Last year, to celebrate the first week of fall, I conducted an experiment to find the best fall chai in the Cedarloo area. I visited five coffee shops with the intention of finding the chai that best suited my taste buds and my wallet for the fall months.
I do not enjoy coffee. I never have, and I probably never will. But, I love tea, especially chai, and arguably the best time to drink chai is the fall. One of my favorite things to see as chai becomes incredibly popular is the different fall flavor each shop will choose. Between brown sugar, maple, pumpkin and nutmeg, I love trying different kinds of chai.
For the second round of this experiment, I’ve brought in a new fifth contender to our chai experiment. This year, I’ve decided to revisit Sidecar, Sarah’s Espresso, the Savvy Bean and Cup of Joe, and our new fifth shop will be The Vibe. I won’t rate any corporate coffee shops, this review is restricted to locally-owned coffee shops in the Cedar Valley.
Similar to last year’s experiment, the best chai in the Cedar Valley will satisfy three categories.
- Taste – I’m looking for a chai that is smooth, spicy and not too sweet. How do the fall flavors compliment the chai?
- Presentation – How does the chai look? Is it milky? I love when chai has a little flair to it.
- Price – How much is this chai worth? As a college student, paying more than $6 for a chai can be a dealbreaker. Out of these three categories, I will rank the chai out of five, compiling for an out of 15 average, and I will rank based off of that.
For the sake of science, I’m going to try to keep my orders as similar as possible. At its core, my order will be a small iced black chai with oat milk. Whatever fall flavor a cafe chooses to add will be denoted and factor into its individual ranking.
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Sarah’s Espresso (above) returned with a new fall menu in 2024. In this year’s rankings, Sarah’s gained two points but dropped a spot compared to 2023. According to Bailey, Sarah’s fall chai is simply “too sweet” for her liking.
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A newcomer to the fall chai scene this year, The Vibe (above), stunned with it’s taste and with it’s pricing. According to Bailey, while the taste was ‘delectable,’ the price of $8.50 for a small chai, was not. The Vibe unfortunately places last in this year’s rankings.
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- Sidecar – Small Pumpkin Chai with Oat Milk
Last year, Sidecar’s chai topped my list. This year, their chai is just as good. A small pumpkin chai with oat milk was $5.50 at the location on 1st Street. Similar to last year, the chai was nutty with hints of cinnamon. I was deeply pleased with Sidecar once again. A nice flavor to fair price ratio. I always deeply enjoy their chai as a nice pick-me-up. Their pumpkin chai will rate at 13/15 this year.
- The Savvy Bean – Small Apple Crisp Oatmilk Chai
My visit to the Savvy Bean could be described in one word: redemption. Last year, the Savvy Bean came in last on my rankings because of the chai to milk ratio. This year, that issue was no longer a problem. The chai was flavorful, and they offered a different flavor than other shops. On top of that, when I went they were partnering with a fiber optics internet company, so drinks were discounted at $1.30. Their typical price would be $6.25, so that was a nice surprise. Overall, the Savvy Bean has made incredible strides to continually improve on their beverages. This year, the Savvy Bean will receive a 12/15.
- Cup of Joe – Small Toasty Pumpkin Chai with Pea Milk
I have become a big fan of Cup of Joe’s chai. This year’s chai is no different. Their toasty pumpkin chai was nutty and flavorful, while not being too sweet. Cup of Joe also doesn’t have oat milk, so I substituted with pea milk, which doesn’t taste that different. I’ve also had Cup of Joe’s spring blueberry chai, which is also delicious. Cup of Joe simply doesn’t miss. This chai ran me for $5.50, similar to Sidecar. Cup of Joe will receive a rating of 12/15, tying with the Savvy Bean.
- Sarah’s Espresso – Small Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Chai with Oat Milk
This year, Sarah’s Espresso dressed up their chai to the nines, describing what the chai includes, “Pumpkin pie sauce and white mocha sauce, topped with brown sugar cold foam and cinnamon sugar.” While it sounded appealing, I didn’t personally enjoy this chai. It was a bit too sweet for me. This chai clocked in at $6.00, which on our scale, isn’t as expensive as other chais. But, for how it tasted, I wouldn’t purchase it again. The presentation was gorgeous, but the taste wasn’t there. I would stick to their energy brews. Sarah’s Espresso will receive a 9/15.
- The Vibe – Small Pumpkin Pie Chai with Oat Milk
The Vibe, formerly known as Scoopski’s, recently rebranded and became a coffee shop, as well as serving hard scoop ice cream. I purchased a small pumpkin pie chai with oat milk from the shop to start my Monday morning, and it cost me $8.50. The chai was topped with a pumpkin cold foam with cinnamon and included a pumpkin pie sauce on the bottom of the drink. Despite how expensive it was, the chai was delectable. Don’t get me wrong – if this chai was less expensive, it would probably be number one on my list. But, because of its taste and presentation, The Vibe’s chai will get an 8/15 from me, scoring a 0 in the pricing column.
If you have strong opinions about chai and want to recommend a coffee shop I missed, you can contact me at [email protected]
