Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Sweet Chai from Zonnatura

It's still officially summer, yet it certainly doesn't feel that way. The autumn has really arrived here in the Netherlands and there ain't no stopping it now! Rain, heavy gray skies, cold winds -- the works. A perfect occasion for this tea junkie to check out a new tea!
While I love green tea and drink it by the bucketfuls, I'm also rather partial to herbal teas (mint, nettle, chamomile and verbena are my favorites), and to sweet and spicy chais.
I was rather excited when I spotted this soluble chai at the tea section of my supermarket. It is a product made by Zonnatura: a Dutch company that produces earth-friendly, healthy, organic products. I'm a big fan of their carrot juice, nettle tea and muesli cereals.
On the package, it says: "a luxury melange of sweetened tea with spices". The ingredients list includes sugar, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, green tea extract and vanilla extract. You are supposed to dissolve two or three teaspoons of the mixture in hot milk or water.
The first thing I noticed when I opened the container was the warming aroma of the tea. Lovely!
The mixture is fine and sort of resembles sand, and yes -- make sure you stir very well. Otherwise you might end up with a tiny bit of sludge at the bottom of your glass like I did.
I made mine with mostly hot water and a little bit of rice milk. Perhaps I might increase the amount of rice milk next time and try it as a bedtime drink.
Because of the sugar content, however, it won't be a tea I'll be drinking every day. But for a special treat? Absolutely! Bring on the autumn!