GM Sampler of the day. After blasting GM about their ingredients in their Kashmiri Chai, I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by the Pu-erh Chai, the cardamon pods were actually whole and full of tasty seeds. The smell of the dry tea was very un-chai-like; a faint hint of cinnamon and a sort of basement mustiness. It brewed quickly to a dark fruitwood brown. The taste was very mild with a hint of cinnamon and none of the spicey kick of other chia mixes (I’m talking about clove, black pepper, & ginger spiciness). The underlying pu-erh tea was a perfect complement and I enjoyed this combination better than I did for both GM’s pure Pu-erh sampler and Kashmiri Chai.
A note on how I drink Chai’s: I treat a Chai mix like any other black tea and generally drink it without milk or sugar. For those that I have experience with, more than a single sample batch, I might add a touch of sugar to help bring out the spices. But initially, its straight up, served black :-)
