★☆☆☆☆
This one is too cinnamony for my taste. I will try other mates though.
Traditional yerba mate elegantly balances the spirit of chai spices with the essence of tropical fruit undertones.
Customers use these reviews to describe their experience with Samurai Mate, including flavor, aroma, preparation preferences, strength, and how the tea fits into daily routines. Browse the full review history page by page to compare tasting notes, steeping tips, and favorite ways to enjoy this tea.
This one is too cinnamony for my taste. I will try other mates though.
I knew I loved mate, but I didn't realize how bright it could taste. This was a perfectly balanced summer perk-up.
Delicious! My sister stole this one too. Now I need more.
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An interesting tropical twist on chai. Unfortunately my sample packet was overloaded with cinnamon. I have had this tea before and it was a delicious blend of tropical flavors and traditional chai flavors. A nice cup of tea. Update: The tea packet had a much more balanced blend this time.Really enjoyed this tea.
It is exactly like the Teavanna tea of a similar name that I used to love. I'm so happy to have found that adagio makes it :)
This is a really nice tea! It has a very nice spice blend. I do prefer black tea, but for someone who wants caffeine but does not like the taste of regular teas, this is a great option.
Seems like a really strange combo but the spices and fruit are really good together, especially with a little bit of honey. This is the best mate blend I've had by far.
This is a yummy, sweet chai tea! I mixed this one and the White Ayurvedic Chai, it made it even better! 😻
I'm a chai lover and I love chai with a twist, and this tea doesn't disappoint! A fantastic flavor profile and while it is not a traditional chai, this Samari sure kicks like one!
This is a complex tea with a great energy kick. Unique and delicious.
Didn't get many tropical flavors from this blend. There's a light woodsy base and strong spice flavors-- mostly clove and ginger, though I was able to taste the other spices. There were light notes of lemon, but none of the other fruity flavors. The tea tasted fine, just not as fruity as I was expecting.
A blend with a lovely kick to it from both the yerba mate and the spicy cinnamon. It's not overwhelming as the green roiboos tempers the cinnamon, as well as lets the notes of ginger appear in each sip more calmly. Smooth, and delightful with a little agave and oat milk. Well balanced.
CommuniTEA portion: 212 for 7 minutes. I wasn't sure I would care for this sip but it is a lovely chai. Spiced with some tropical fruit notes. Enjoyable tea!
This may not ever be my favorite tea but it is a well-balanced, layered, civilized blend. I can appreciate the balance of light spices mellowed by pineapple and mango. (I usually hate mango but I don't really taste the fruit so much as I can tell the fruit is mellowing and sweetening the tea and spices.) In contrast to many of Adagio's chais, this doesn't have strong cinnamon or clove tastes, instead I taste more ginger and lemongrass, which are surprising, lighter, fun flavors that some people will enjoy more. As far as the teas, this is the second time I have had mate and the first time, I didn't like it at all, so this was an improvement 🤣... I do like the green rooibos and I think it gentled this tea nicely.
The first and last tea I ever got from teavana was their samurai chai mate. It was amazing and this blend takes it to another level! It has the best spicy bite with a citrus brightness and cozy warmth. It’s such an easy drinking chai and gave me just the boost I needed going back to work after Spring Break!
Cinnamon stood out the most in my cup. But I don't taste much of the fruit. Nice, but wish the fruit had stood out more.
I liked this, but it did not resemble Yerba Mate to me, more of just a really light chai, I love both so I'm not complaining, would have preferred a smoky Mate instead of unsmoked.
This review is based on looks and scent (which i probably shouldn't have done). I am highly allergic to mango and mine definitely had pieces of mango - so I would say that would have been a positive for flavor! I'm not a big matte fan, so that likely would have averaged it out to middling for me. CT 3/20/23
I really enjoyed this tea, but my sample had loads of cinnamon. This isn't a problem as I love cinnamon, just a bit sad to miss the tropical flavors. Tasty nonetheless.
Even though I don’t usually like mate, I like this blend. It has so many of my favorite flavor profiles. It’s like a spicy tropical chai. I love how all the flavors blend together. To me it’s not as heavy as a black tea based chai and although it has a caffeine kick, it’s not the same jittery jolt I normally get from a mate. No one flavor overpowers the rest. The green rooibos and the pineapple lend a sweetness and keep the spices in check. Overall very nice blend. (185° for 6 minutes.)
Edit: We’ll I must have gotten a packet with less mate last year, or way more this year. The spices were weaker and the mate was too strong for me this time around, I only drank half a cup and I have the shakes. Still a tasty blend but definitely not something I’d keep on hand due to the maté reaction.
This tea has a chai like flavor to it. It’s an easy tea to drink. I was finished before I even knew it and left wanting another cup.
March 20, 2023. This is a nice, light and well-balanced spice tea. There was a bit of sweetness to it and I don’t know from which of the spices it came. I brewed the tea at 195 for 3 minutes because I don’t like a grassy or a bitter taste, but maybe that’s why it tasted so light. Next time I have the opportunity to try it again, I think I will increase the temp to 212 and steep it for about 5 minutes.
This is fun! I'm normally not a huge mate fan, but this is a warm spiced, slightly fruity, rich blend.
I enjoyed this cup w/ it's strong cinnamon-y vibe and earthy mate + green rooibos background notes! Docked a star because I couldn't taste the fruit flavors in my CommuniTEA sample. Even as it cooled, when flavors sometimes come out, mine just had a slight nondescript juiciness. I might order a full sample sometime to see if the fruit flavors come through then. I agree w/ another reviewer who said the green rooibos might be what sort of unites or grounds the other elements! For people who like this type of tropical spice flavor situation, try the Thai Chai or Noble Land Mermaid blend!
UPDATE - I had to bump it up to five stars because I've bought this a few times now for the warmer months. Purchase is proof I love it -- strong cinnamon, juicy, zingy! It's delicious and refreshing iced when weather is warm, too.
Very nice chai flavor, a mild fruity sweetness and that ginger bite makes a great cup of tea
This is such a nice spicy, zinger of a tea! Gets you moving and warms you from the inside out! Cinnamon is predominant with mate and other spice flavors sparking a tasty blend.
Just lovely! Bright and lively, but with a mate richness. Lashing of lemongrass. A perfect spring cup.
This tea was delicious! I greatly enjoyed the different flavors. What a great way to start the morning!
I didn't really like this one. The ginger was too spicy, if it had been cinnamon spicy I think I would have liked it better.
I thought this tea was good. I tasted tropical fruit with cinnamon.
With the CommuniTEA packets, I like to sniff the tea before reading the description. This one’s scent is predominantly cinnamon, followed by almond. Interesting combo. Then I checked the ingredients and saw a very unusual but intriguing combination.
Unfortunately, the cinnamon really dominates the flavors. I can barely even make any other out.
I like the subtle spice and hint of sweetness to this blend, and both the aroma and the taste of it are delightful. Perhaps not a blend I would buy for myself, but certainly one that I would accept if offered a cup of it.
This reminds me of a Caribbean chai tea. A yummy mix of tropical and chai flavors.
I like the nice caffeine boost from this, not too overwhelming but noticeable. But I didn't particularly enjoy the taste. I didn't get any fruit flavor - really nothing but cinnamon.
Loved it! Out of the packet, the spices were amazing. A pleasant chai with reminders of the holidays. After brewing, the tea was warming and great on a cold night. Good hot or cold.
A nice and light tea. I get chai but it is offset some with light fruit--lychee maybe. Pleasant and easy to drink. Liking this more than I thought I would.
This is a delicious Mate Chai. It is too spicy for me without milk and sweetener but with those it is lovely. Mate doesn't always sit well with me although I love it. I will probably do decaf the rest of the morning to see if that helps.
When I opened my CommuniTEA packet, I was met with delicious aromas of chai spices and sweetness from the fruit. I steeped the tea for 5 minutes. There is so much complexity to this tea, but it blends together perfectly! The chai spices really compliment the tropical fruit flavor. There is also some added sweetness from the almond notes. This was really tasty and I'll definitely need to add it to a future order!
The flavor of this tea was unexpected. It smelled of spices like cinnamon and ginger but tasted more fruity. I'm feeling just so-so about it.
Hey, someone dumped cinnamon on my fruit loops! Those are the exact flavor profiles my taste buds are processing. Not an unpleasant tea;
just a bit whimsical like a kids cereal. I like the tropical fruit and spice combination, somehow it all came together. Still waiting for the yerba mate to kick in...
A fruity, mate chai? Well, sure! All of the seemingly competing flavours really did meld nicely in this tea. I think the green rooibos was a good calming influence on some of the stronger flavours, so they could all play nicely. I steeped for 7 minutes because I wasn't sure how bold it would be, and it turned out just about ideal for my tastes. I appreciate this blend and I would certainly drink it again.
In the bag: Half of my packet is the finely chopped light green flakes of mate. Otherwise, several bits of cinnamon bark. A few pieces of dried flesh of mango or pineapple - it's hard to tell. Plenty of chopped lemongrass, too.
On the nose (pre-steep): Cinnamon, almond, and a hint of ginger. Other aromas are here but are hard to distinguish. Underlying impression of sugar.
On the nose (post-steep): Similar to pre-steep. The cinnamon has dialed back a smidge and a hint of mango has joined the troop. Ginger is a tad louder.
On the tongue (pre-sweetener): Mango and pineapple are the main flavors. Ginger accents the duo. A touch of lemongrass. No bitterness. Slightly sweet. Moderate intensity.
On the tongue (post-sweetener): Sweetener turned up the mango and ginger a hair. No other changes.
Opinion: A surprisingly tasty tea. My favorite mate treatment thus far. The tropical fruits combined with ginger deliver a unique and complementary set of flavors. Mate's light grassiness provides a supportive base for these additives.
Preparation: First and second steeps @ 10 min @ 212 ℉. ½ teaspoon monk fruit sweetener.
UPDATED from 1/17/22: There is a lovely aroma of cinnamon, lemon and warm woodiness as the CommuniTEA packet opens, with just a hint of ginger. Oh no - there are aniseeds mixed in with the pineapple pieces and mate as they pour into the infuser! However, not too many. It all steeps (at a slightly lower temperature to avoid bitterness) into a lovely golden tea. The flavor is so unique and multi-dimensional. The stage is set with the green rooibos as director, and the mate and chai flavors taking center stage (and they taste great). Adding ¼ teaspoon of sweetener (to 10 oz) really allows some of the other sweet fruits to peek out from behind the curtains as a group, teasing the taste buds. The light chai production is a hit, and never boring. Beware, the mate has plenty of caffeine, so do not drink too late. ( 8 mins @ 200ºF + sweetener).
This was my first experience with mate tea. This tea had a very light flavor to it and wasn't dry at all. The fruit in this I think add to how light it is but the flavors of the fruit don't come through very much either. It was a very nice afternoon tea
This tea is very unique, I can’t even explain the smell, I was a little bit suspicious because of the ingredients in it. But I was soo wrong. It’s really good
Loved it, great flavor taste and good value quality
A great mate that combines the smells and flavors of chai spices with citrus and other tropical flavors from the papaya and mango. With the caffeine I tend to prefer this as my morning drink when not having coffee; is like a supercharged yerba mate!
This tea is absolutely delicious. Will definitely purchase again.
Wonderful mix of flavor. One of my favorites blends for winter nights
This is a really nice combination of spice and fruit. The spice 'sits on top of' the fruit without overpowering it, so you get two really nice sensations. it's not a full body tasting tea, however.