*BONK*
I lived around tamarind trees in Jamaica. We used the sticky stuff inside the pods to make some nice candy, tamarind rum balls. They were good with or without rum. Kinda sweet (only because of the added sugar) and kinda tangy. I tasted the drink the made out of tamarind but I didn’t appreciate it so much. I much preferred soursop or sorrel drink, or countless other tropical treats.
I can’t imagine how you make a stable spice out of that sticky stuff, or how authentic it would be, but I’m game for trying it.