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I compared 5 brands of chai concentrate — and there are 2 worth keeping in your fridge at all times

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I compared 5 brands of chai concentrate — and there are 2 worth keeping in your fridge at all times

Author holding carton of Tazo chai concentrate. Tall glass of ice chai latte from Tazo concentrate.
I compared chai concentrate between brands like Good & Gather, Oregon Chai, Trader Joe's, Rishi, and Tazo.

Paige Bennett

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  • I tasted chai concentrates from Good & Gather, Oregon Chai, Trader Joe's, Rishi, and Tazo.
  • I used each to make hot and cold lattes. I was surprised at how temperatures affected my favorites.
  • Tazo's concentrate was my favorite for a hot chai latte, but Trader Joe's was the best iced.

Chai lattes can be tricky to get right since a tasty one needs to balance sweetness and spice. So, I usually just order them from cafés rather than making them at home.

However, there are a lot of easy-to-prepare chai concentrates available for days when I'm home and craving a hot tea in the morning or a refreshing iced latte on a warm afternoon.

So, I tried chai concentrate from five different brands — Good & Gather, Oregon Chai, Trader Joe's, Rishi, and Tazo — to see how they compare when prepared hot and iced.

Here's how they stacked up and which made my favorite chai drinks.

The Good & Gather chai concentrate had a convenient container and was a great deal.
Brown carton of Good & Gather chai concentrate.
Good & Gather is a generic store brand from Target.

Paige Bennett

Good & Gather is Target's store brand, and this chai concentrate came in a 32-ounce container.

It was the best value of the five I tested at $3.50 for this size, making it about 11 cents per ounce.

The best part of the chai was its clever slanted container, which made it so the tea didn't spill or make a mess as I poured it into a mug or glass.

For both the hot and iced lattes, I combined 4 ounces of this concentrate with 4 ounces of plain milk.

Prepared hot, the Good & Gather chai tasted very sweet.
Brown carton of Good & Gather chai concentrate next to mug of hot chai latte held by author's hand.
The hot chai tasted watered-down.

Paige Bennett

I usually expect some spice in a chai beverage, but Good & Gather's iced chai had just the faintest aftertaste of black pepper.

The drink, when hot, mostly tasted like sweetened tea. It wasn't particularly heavy in cream or syrup and just tasted a bit watery.

With ice, the Good & Gather concentrate lost most of its flavor.
Brown carton of Good & Gather chai concentrate next to tall glass of ice chai latte.
The Good & Gather iced chai was lackluster.

Paige Bennett

I expected the iced versions of these lattes to lose some of their potency, and that was definitely the case for the Good & Gather chai.

Its hint of black pepper and sweet taste were almost entirely lost when I combined the concentrate and milk over ice. It wasn't bad, but it turned out pretty bland.

The Oregon Chai concentrate looked promising, as the label noted an "authentic Himalayan chai taste."
Author holding carton of Oregon Chai.
This was my first time trying the Oregon Chai brand.

Paige Bennett

I hadn't tried the Oregon Chai brand before, but it looked promising. The label noted its rich and authentic flavors, featuring black tea, spices, and honey for sweetness.

This container, also 32 ounces, was originally $5, making it about 16 cents an ounce. I got it on sale for $4.

Similar to Tazo's and Rishi's containers, this design seemed better suited for stocking shelves than pouring.

It poured out messily as I combined 4 ounces of this concentrate with equal parts milk.

The hot version of Oregon Chai had an earthy smell and sweet flavor.
Carton of Oregon Chai concentrate next to mug of hot chai latte.
This concentrate created a lighter color of chai compared to the other brands.

Paige Bennett

I noticed this mix was much lighter in color than the Good & Gather concentrate, which made me wonder how strong or rich it would actually be.

As it turns out, Oregon Chai was strong in sweetener and not much else. There was really no spice, not even in the aftertaste. Overall, it just tasted like hot sweet tea.

When added to a glass of ice, the Oregon Chai was refreshing but underwhelming.
Carton of Oregon Chai concentrate next to tall glass of iced chai latte.
The iced Oregon Chai latte lacked spice.

Paige Bennett

I thought the resulting iced latte from Oregon Chai was simply fine: cold and a little sweet.

It was refreshing on a hot day, but overall, the flavor was quite bland to me. The earthiness was a little more present, but there was little sweetness and no spice.

Trader Joe's offered the smallest container of concentrate.
Author holding Trader Joe's container of chai concentrate.
The Trader Joe's chai concentrate came in the smallest container out of all the brands.

Paige Bennett

The spiced chai concentrate from Trader Joe's was unique for a lot of reasons.

It came in a bottle rather than a boxy container, and was the smallest at only 16 ounces, half the size of the other four I tested.

The rest of the concentrates I tried called for a 1:1 ratio of chai to milk, but this one called for 1 part chai to 2 parts milk. So, I decided to use 4 ounces of the concentrate to 8 ounces of milk.

This concentrate was the cheapest upfront at $2.80 — but, broken down, it was 18 cents per ounce.

Combined with hot milk, the Trader Joe's chai had very strong spice flavors.
Author holding container of Trader Joe's chai concentrate next to mug of hot chai latte.
The Trader Joe's chai concentrate had a really dark color.

Paige Bennett

Even just opening the bottle, I knew this concentrate would bring way more heat. It smelled strongly of spice and had a really dark color that seemed to promise a robust flavor.

This concentrate tasted of black pepper first, then ginger. I didn't taste much of the milk or black tea. I like a spicy chai, but this was a little overpowering when served hot.

Next time, I'd prepare it with even more milk.

With ice, Trader Joe's chai was one of my favorite concentrates.
Trader Joe's container of chai concentrate next to tall glass of iced chai latte.
Adding ice helped balance out the spice.

Paige Bennett

I still combined the 4 ounces of concentrate with 8 ounces of milk for the iced version of the Trader Joe's chai. I found that the addition of ice really balanced out the concentrate.

The result was a tea with a more balanced profile, since the melting ice helped tame all the spice. I actually ended up loving the Trader Joe's concentrate when combined with milk and ice.

Rishi's masala chai was one of the most expensive options.
Orange carton of Rishi chai concentrate.
I loved how pretty Rishi's container was.

Paige Bennett

I judged the book by its cover with Rishi, which came in a gorgeously designed container.

It cost $6 — on sale for $4.80 — for the 32-ounce package. At 19 cents an ounce before the sale, this was pricier than the other brands I tested.

This concentrate called for a 1:1 concentrate-to-milk ratio, so I used 4 ounces of chai with 4 ounces of milk for both hot and iced, as with most of the previous drinks.

Between the container's shape and the liquid's consistency, this concentrate was the messiest to serve. It kept spilling out as I tried to pour it.

Although Rishi's chai was really sweet, I liked that it had more spice than the other brands.
Rishi carton of chai concentrate next to mug of hot chai latte held by author.
The warm latte smelled heavily of cinnamon.

Paige Bennett

The red-orange tone of this chai was interesting, considering the other brands were more light to dark brown. It also smelled strongly like cinnamon, which was one of the leading ingredients.

This chai was incredibly sweet, and I liked the taste of cinnamon and cardamom in the hot version of the latte. It wasn't as spicy as the Trader Joe's concentrate, but it had more of a punch than the Good & Gather and Oregon Chai ones.

When I poured the Rishi concentrate over ice, I noticed some gritty bits that weren't very pleasant.
Carton of Rishi cha concentrate next to glass of iced chai latte and spice-flecks floating in drink.
There were small pieces of spice floating in the drink.

Paige Bennett

Despite thoroughly shaking the concentrate, some gritty spice particles ended up floating in the drink — this hadn't been noticeable in its hot counterpart.

The cinnamon flavor also worked better when served warm, so overall, this iced drink tasted average to me.

I've enjoyed Tazo's chai in the past, though it can get pricey.
Author holding Tazo chai concentrate carton.
I used the same one-to-one ratio to make the Tazo chai lattes.

Paige Bennett

I've purchased Tazo's chai concentrate a few times in the past and enjoyed it, but I hadn't realized how pricey it was upfront compared to some other brands.

This 32-ounce concentrate rang up at $5.19, the most expensive one I tried after sales were factored in. Still, it ultimately cost me 16 cents an ounce, keeping it on par with the other options.

I followed the same one-to-one ratio when preparing the Tazo chai.

The hot version of Tazo's chai was a perfect blend of sweet and spicy.
Tazo chai concentrate carton next to mug of hot chai latte.
The warm latte had a creamy consistency.

Paige Bennett

I really enjoyed the hot Tazo chai latte. It wasn't too sweet, and the spice was forward, but not overwhelming.

The concentrate and milk combined to create a creamy consistency rather than a watery texture. This was my favorite hot chai that I tested.

I loved the iced version of Tazo's concentrate, but it wasn't my top pick.
Tazo chai concentrate carton next to tall glass of iced chai latte.
The iced Tazo chai latte lost some of its flavor after it was mixed.

Paige Bennett

Although Tazo took the spot for best hot chai latte, it wasn't my favorite iced chai drink.

It was delicious, with sweetness and a hint of spice, but I found the super-strong Trader Joe's concentrate was perfect with ice. This one lost some of its flavor, but was my second-favorite iced drink.

Tazo's concentrate was my favorite hot latte, and Trader Joe's took the top spot when prepared over ice.
Containers of chai tea concentrate lined up next to each other from Good & Gather, Oregon Chai, Trader Joe's, Rishi, and Tazo.
I would purchase all of these concentrates again.

Paige Bennett

The Tazo concentrate had a perfect blend of spices and sweetness that came through when hot, resulting in a nice, creamy latte. However, a lot of its flavor was subdued when added to cold milk and ice.

Although I wasn't a fan of the Trader Joe's chai concentrate when prepared hot, I loved it with cold milk over ice. The extremely strong spices in the concentrate overpowered the other flavors when served warm, but they held up well to ice and offered a much better flavor.

All of these chai concentrates were good, and I wouldn't mind buying any of them again. However, Tazo is my preferred brand for a hot chai latte, and I'll have to stop at Trader Joe's if I'm craving one iced.

This story was originally published on May 18, 2023, and most recently updated on February 24, 2026.

Read the original article on Business Insider

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