This time of year, I love to curl up with a good cup of chai.  Typically, I drink my chai early in the day, because most chai blends are made with a strong, hefty black tea base with the gusto to get me going.  But, what about later in the day, when I want something a little less invigorating but still want that warm, comforting flavor of the spices?

Coconut Kukicha Chai to the rescue!  Yogic Chai makes some of the very best chai blends that I’ve tasted, and this Coconut Kukicha Chai is no exception.  It’s delicious.

The kukicha is a lighter tea than the typical black tea that is usually used in traditional chai, and it has less caffeine than other tea types, making it a good choice for tea drinking later in the day.  And I love the addition of the coconut, because it adds a sweet, creamy taste to the cup – giving it a latte kind of feel without milk.

Yogic Chai’s masala spice base is comprised of cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and ginger.  That’s it.  Nothing fancy or excessive.  But apparently these four ingredients are all you need because Yogic Chai has the perfect balance of flavor and warm spice.  Everything is very harmonious without being too spicy.  It’s just warm and comforting.  A cozy cup of chai!

Here is Yogic Chai’s description of this blend:

Herbal Properties:

- Kukicha Tea: Popular among the macrobiotic community. Kukicha is a powerful antioxidant* and is very low in caffeine, in fact the lowest in caffeine of all traditional teas.

- Cardamom: A household spice that is commonly used to support digestion without increasing Heat.* It has expectorant and diaphoretic actions. (sweat inducing)* The mucus forming properties of milk are neutralized when cardamom is added to it.*

- Cinnamon: This warming spice is traditionally used in cold formulas as an expectorant and diaphoretic (sweat inducing).* Due to its warming property, cinnamon is known to promote digestion.*

- Cloves: An energizing herb,* cloves are an effective stimulant and aromatic for the lungs and stomach.* Cloves are used extensively in Ayurvedic herbology.

- Ginger: In Ayurvedic and Chinese herbology, Ginger is known to have heating, cleansing, toning and stimulating properties.* Ginger promotes digestion, relieves abdominal discomfort, dispels chills and it is also useful for relieving respiratory complaints due to phlegm and arthritic conditions due to coldness.*

- Coconut: Coconut, says vaidya Mishra, Director of Maharishi Ayurveda’s Product Research and Development, is considered a divine plant in vedic tradition. Whenever you perform a sacred ceremony like a yagna, havan or puja, a coconut must grace the occasion.

* This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

This is a deliciously different chai, and I’m loving it.  It has so much that I want from a chai latte – it is sweet, creamy and warmly spiced; but it is a lighter version of what I would drink first thing in the morning.  This is my late afternoon chai for those chilly winter days … and we still have quite a few ahead of us!