Tazo Chai tea concentrate review

I have always loved Chai tea. I grew up drinking it at home, ordering it in coffee shops, getting it at school (what has this world come to? I had a coffee shop IN my high school), and later working in various coffee shops. I know what I like when I have it at home. I know what I like when I order from Starbucks (and heaven help the poor employee who takes my order. It's so long!), and I know what I like when I order from random coffee stands.

I have never been a fan of powdered chai. When I was younger and living at home, Mom always had the Oregon chai concentrate (the original!) at the house. Mix that with some milk or soy milk. Steam it if you're feeling adventurous, and be treated to a taste of heaven.

Living in Arizona, I haven't always been lucky enough to find the Oregon chai concentrate products. I went shopping at the commissary a few weeks back for their case lot sale, though, and they have the Tazo chai concentrate, so I decided to give that a try.

Image from Seattle's Best. 

In a word? Disappointing. A little too much black pepper and a tad too much cardamom, in my opinion. I also like my chai with a touch of vanilla, which this didn't have, so I could have already been a little grumpy, which swayed my opinion. 

The one thing that I like about this a little more than the Oregon concentrate is that it seems to be more concentrated, so it goes a little further. I added a little more milk than 1:1 ration the box suggests, and the flavor was still strong. With the Oregon, I usually end up with more chai than milk. 

There you have it! Sorry for the lack of updates these last few days. I experimented with a pot roast today (in red wine), but wasn't very happy with it, so I'll keep that recipe to myself. Hopefully I'll have a little more free time for kitchen experimentation this week, so you'll see a little more of me. :)