Nose: I’ve spent all week drinking dirty chais. Julie bought me pumpkin chai tea bags from the clearance aisle, which I promptly threw into the trash. But she encouraged me to go find a solid chai tea bag. I prefer to make the concentrare from scratch but this month has been maxed. So, one chai tea bag, two spoonfuls of acacia honey, one shot of espresso and then fill my thermos to the top with oat milk. An earthiness, nearly tobacco. Goji berries and golden raisins.

Palate: Sharp and bitter for a second … morphing into bright fruit forward sweetness. Raisins. An orange herb drop. Prune juice. Black tea tannins and 80% dark cocoa, which Julie loves but I barely find palatable. Black peppercorn. Minutes later the palate lingers, like chocolate espresso beans. Despite all these potent and dominant flavors, the mouthfeel is thin and slightly strained.

Rating: 5 / 10 – I really like the nose on this, and all the elements to capture my imagination are there, but the palate just didn’t carry it through. For the ABV there was no lack of flavor, it just missed a roundedness in my mouth which would have made it worth pouring again. I wish I knew why this isn’t my jam.