Tazo Chai Pumpkin Spice Latte product photo.
Now that it’s the time of year for “pumpkin spice everything”, how do the seasonal flavored teas hold up under the promise of autumnal tea-time goodness? Today’s beverage: Pumpkin Spice Latte by Tazo Chai, which can be found at selected Target stores, Safeway, Lucky, and other local grocery stores. The flavored tea is also available in tea bags for those who would rather make their own beverage. The front of the carton reads: “A seasonal blend of warming chai with pumpkin pie spices and other natural flavors.” Caffeine level is 4 out of 5, which supposedly translates to 46 to 60 mg. per serving. The back of the carton reads: “Cinnamon and cardamom sit by a crackling fire, knitting black tea scarves and catching up over mugs of steamed milk. Ginger waltzes in with a just-baked pumpkin pie, the aroma filling the room with sweet spice.”
140 calories per ½ cup of concentrate with the addition of ½ cup of 2% milk.
Ingredients: water, black tea, black pepper, ginger, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, natural flavors, cane sugar syrup, honey, ginger juice, citric acid.
I found Tazo Pumpkin Spice Chai Latte to be a mildly flavored, sweet and pleasant variation on their traditional chai. There is no “pumpkin” flavor to speak of, and no “tea” flavor, but the warm spices are there and they mix well with the added milk. I would not say that this tastes like drinking a piece of pumpkin pie; it’s actually very similar to their regular chai, except that the flavor is milder. I also found that the caffeine level was not as high, as compared to their regular chai concentrate, which I drink in the afternoons to get me through the afternoon energy slump without having to take a nap. This Pumpkin Pie Spice Chai blend did not keep me awake at all! It is a tasty drink, however, and very seasonally appropriate, but I will probably not buy it again, instead sticking with Tazo’s regular chai blend.
Copyright 2013, Elizabeth Urbach.
Like what you read? Leave a comment below, click on “Subscribe” above, visit the San Jose Tea Examiner page on Facebook, read my other blog, The Cup That Cheers, or follow me on Twitter @SanJoseTea or Pinterest!
The Hour For Tea 