Hey there Teacups! I’m back today with another Let’s Talk Tea post and thing time around I’m going to be reviewing Adagio Teas’ – Raja Oolong Chai. I honestly don’t think that I had ever tried a oolong based chai before doing this tasting session so I was really excited to see that this was available on the UK website. So when the Team at Adagio UK asked me to choose some blends from the website that I wanted to try I had to put this blend on my list and luckily they had it in stock at the time and were able to put it into the package of teas they very kindly sent me to try. This is actually the last tea from that first initial package they sent me but i do have some more teas to so this is not going to be the last time you see them on my blog.
Here’s what Adagio themselves have to say about this blend over on their website: ”Elements of cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, chicory and cocoa nibs harmoniously blend together creating an exciting, yet truly satisfying chai that is sure to tickle your taste buds. A blend fit for royalty, this Indian chai is a cinnamon lover’s dream. The rich complexity of oolong tea lays a smooth foundation for a majestic cup, packed with savoury spice notes and hypnotic aroma.”
Ingredients: Oolong Tea, Cinnamon, Ginger, Cardamom, Chicory, Cocoa Nibs, Natural Spicy Cinnamon Flavour, Black Peppercorn And Cloves
Tea Tasting Notes
For this tasting session I tried this blend three ways: On it’s own (hot), with just honey (hot) and with both honey and milk (hot). My favourite ways to have this are with either just honey (hot) or both honey and milk (hot). I wouldn’t necessarily say this is a chai as to me it comes across more as a showcase of cinnamon. The other spices are much more subtle and I definitely would have like to see them be a little stronger but for the most part this is quite delicious it just needs to be a bit more well balanced. The oolong provides for a smooth toasty and woody base which pairs beautifully with the cinnamon making this taste like Autumn in a cup.
This does need some added sweetener though as it brings that cinnamon out even more and almost gives it a cinnamon candy taste which is to die for. I was hoping it would bring the other spices out a little more but sadly that wasn’t the case. The hint of cocoa is a really nice addition and provides a subtle creaminess I would also like that note to be strong as well so maybe I’ll add in some extra cocoa the next time I prepare this along with some addition extra spices to round it off.
I was expecting the addition of milk to overpower the oolong but it actually stood its ground pretty well and the milk seemed to subdue the cinnamon a little bit which was a nice way to balance things out. I would definitely suggest using double the amount of leaves if you are going to have this with milk as extra strength is needed to make sure it doesn’t just turn into cinnamon milk. I enjoyed it with milk once it had a little extra strength to it. I would consider buying more of this in the future but for right now it won’t be something I rush to buy as it didn’t wow me as much as other oolong based ”chai” blends I have tried.
I enjoyed this for what it was and I was able to make it work for me in the end but I do think it could definitely do with a bit of improvement and balancing. There are multiple ingredients in this I wasn’t able to pick out at all that would have really rounded off this blend very well and made it feel more like a chai. With just a tiny bit more work I think this bend would be phenomenal and I really hope Adagio will consider re-formulating this blend in the future.
Overall Teacup Rating: 4.2/5
If you want to find out more about Adagio Tea and purchase some of this blend to try yourself, you can do both here (for the UK) and here (for the US). As always if you have any questions at all either stick them in the comments or send them to me on Twitter/Instagram @teaisawishblog and I’ll do my very best to answer them all as soon as I can.
Speak to you all again soon. Happy Steeping – Kimberley
*The tea featured in this post was gifted to me for the purpose of this review. All opinions are my own and have not been paid for.*
Kimberley's Kyusu 
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