This tea has some of the longest, largest leaves I have ever seen. Green, and some the greyish-green called silver, they unfurl into huge green leaves when brewed. You’ll need to use a large infuser or tea sac; the usual mesh ball would be popped right open when these leaves expand! In fact, I found it pleasant to brew this with the leaves loose in the hot water, and then pour the finished brew through a strainer into a cup – that way I could watch the leaves uncurl.

Even though it’s not a “flowering” tea, it offers some of the same pleasure to watch. Do make sure the water is not too hot – well below boiling. Using boiling water on these leaves results in a bitter taste. (Yes, I test these things so you don’t have to. Some tea is more forgiving than others, so I always try things several ways to see what the limits are.)

The blend of spices in this chai is fairly simple – the usual cardamom, ginger, and cinnamon that we tend to associate with chai, but no cloves – and there is the addition of lemongrass. This creates just a slight sharp note on the tongue, not a strong lemon flavor; cardamom is definitely the dominant flavor here.

Normally, people add milk to chai; however, since the base of this tea is white tea rather than black tea, you might want to try a sip before adding milk. If you do still want to add some, use less than usual; you might also try a non-dairy milk, such as soy or almond, which might be less likely to overwhelm the tea flavor.

Tavalon describes this tea as:

This masala chai-inspired white tea blend combines cardamom, ginger, lemongrass and cinnamon.
sommelier’s notes: 8 oz water (180F) | 1 tsp loose tea | steep 3 minutes – perfect way to warm up on a cold night

Given their last phrase – that one should drink this tea at night – I feel that I have to add a caution: white tea is NOT lower in caffeine than other tea. That is a myth. White tea has as much caffeine as green tea; depending on the leaves and time it’s picked, it may even have as much caffeine as black tea.

Young tea leaves – which white tea often is – have more caffeine in them than more mature tea leaves. Any good book about tea will tell you this; I recommend The Story of Tea: A Cultural History and Drinking Guide by Mary Lou Heiss and Robert J. Heiss, but there are lots of other books available. Anyway, the long and short of it is, if you are drinking this at night, be aware that it has as much caffeine as chai made with black tea; if you want a lower-caffeine tea, you’ll have to get one made with a decaffeinated tea or an herbal base such as rooibos.