Taste-O-Meter ^TM rating system: How does it work?

Hello fellow Chai Drinker!

When we invented the concept for our Chai Taste-O-Meter ^TM rating system, the task fell to me. "Great," I thought. I always loved chai. Then it began to arrive. Box after box of it! I laid it out (you'll see a partial sampling in the photo on the right) and quickly saw I may have bitten off a little more than I could chew - er uh drink. In fact, this job was becoming a monster. My kitchen and refrigerator were packed to the gills with more chai than you can shake a stick at!

The chai testing went well after I got my methodology down. First I compared the leading product of each brand head to head on a simple rating scale; 1) mild to bold, 2) low to high spice, and 3) low to high sweetness. Then I moved on to all the variations.

Taste-O-Meter rating system: For comparison purposes, the Tazo chai latte served at Starbucks restaurants rates: Bold 2, Spicy 3, Sweet 8. Relatively thin, milky and sweet.

Some may say that only 3 metrics doesn't really do justice to the complex taste arena that is chai. And I agree. For example, to say something is "spicy" is such a general statement. Which spice? All of them? One of them? A preponderance of cinnamon gives a radically different taste than a preponderance of ginger for example. And in the field of taste, one quickly finds that some tastes complement while others diminish or counterbalance each other. But the 3 metric rating does serve a purpose of giving you a general sense of how one product compares to another. For deeper information, click the customer comments link and you will find the first comment is my overview of the product, where I could go into a little more depth... in some cases, all the way to the bottom of the chai cup, if you know what I mean.

Others among you may disagree with my interpretation. We welcome your voice! Please post your impressions, whatever they may be. We each have our own tastes and yours may not agree with mine. But in time, I'm sure the Chai Taste-O-Meter rating system will evolve to help push the best chais to the "top of the heap." And in the mean time, I have about a year's supply of chai to finish up. I'm glad chai is a healthy alternative to coffee, or I'd be in trouble!

Happy Chai Tasting!

Sincerely, Troy the Chai-Direct Chai Tasting Guy