Izzy's - Norwegian Chai

Norwegian Chai - Chai Tea Ice Cream mixed with Finely Ground pieces of Cardamom Toast

Today I review a flavor from Saint Paul's Izzy's Ice Cream called Norwegian Chai.  My ancestry is half Norwegian -- my father's father and mother's mother were both 100% Norwegian, so both of my haplogroups come from Norway.  So, I just had to get this flavor.  Izzy's has me covered for the inner parts of my family tree as well.  I have already reviewed Irish and Swedish flavors, so this flavor finishes off my ancestral flavor tour.  This is a chai tea flavor which is blended with finely ground cardamom toast from the local Wuollet's Bakery.  Here is a link to the specific toast -- it looks like a Norwegian version of biscotti.  Cardamom always intrigues me, so I am looking forward to this.

Removing the lid, the chai tea base is a fairly light beige color.  I can smell the spices right away.  Cardamom specifically is known as much for its aroma as it is its taste.  Digging in, it is quite good.  I don't know how to describe it, though.  It's like the tea and spices have blended into their own flavor.  It is not at all bitter, but not too sweet.  As described, the toast pieces are finely ground.  They are the same color as the base ice cream so they don't stick out visually, but I do feel a bit of grit in my mouth and I can see some of the crumbs on my spoon.  The flavor they provide is quite good though.  Later on in the pint, I did encounter a larger toast piece or two that was not fully ground.  Those were fun, but fairly rare.

I liked this pint quite a bit.  This is fun spicy tea flavor.  It's actually the second spicy tea flavor that I have had from Izzy's -- the first was Blue Mountain Spice which I reviewed a couple of years ago now.  The flavors are similar enough that it's difficult to judge them without retrying them side-by-side.  I think I like this Norwegian Chai flavor a bit better, but that could be personal preference.  If I had to describe a distinction between the two flavors, I'd say that Norwegian Chai has a sweeter and blended flavor and did remind me of pieces of cardamom toast dunked in tea while the Blue Mountain Spice had more of a pronounced herbal tea flavor and had stronger spices like cinnamon in the mix.