90
drank Carrot Cake by Della Terra Teas
681 tasting notes

Sipdown! (97/395)

Okay don’t judge me guys, but I may have had this sample in my cupboard from my swap with VariaTEA for around 4 years before finally sipping it down… My cupboard is just so huge that little baby samples like this often get lost amongst the others and I forget I have them for a while before they finally resurface. I’m fairly sure I had a cup of this when I first got it in the post, but that was so long ago now that I honestly don’t remember. There was just enough left for a big mug so that’s what I’m having this afternoon as I begin Mission Positivity. My wonderful boyfriend (his name is Ryan and we met the day before my birthday earlier in the year) has inspired me to take more control of my life and happiness, and drinking more tea and journaling it along with my life is just one of the ways I’m doing this. Anyway, please bear with me as I find my feet again and drink a lot of tea which has seen better days.

Luckily, this tea has held up amazingly well since I didn’t store it the best and have kept a hold of it for so long. I don’t remember what it was like when it was fresher, but the flavours are still present and I can’t imagine that much has been lost. Immediately when I poured the water over the tea, I got an incredible waft of vanilla cream cheese frosting, and knew that this was going to be delicious. There’s a back note of cinnamon to the scent, which becomes stronger and more cake-like the longer the tea is brewing. I left it brewing as I did laundry in the next room and several times had to stop what I was doing to take a big sniff because it smelled so good. The flavour is just as delicious. It’s sweet without being too much, bready and comforting. I feel like adding a pinch of sugar would have enhanced the dessert quality of the tea, but I’m drinking all my tea plain at the moment as I’ve just recommitted to Weight Watchers (another part of Mission Positivity). I don’t think the sugar is necessary, though – I definitely don’t feel like I’m missing out! The main body of the tea is rooibos-heavy, though not in an unpleasant way, with a touch of warming cinnamon and hint of vanilla. I actually think the rooibos is a very good choice for the base in this blend, as it adds a lovely honey note which meshes really nicely with the additional flavours. It feels thick and unctuous as a carrot cake should. The carrot cake spices and vanilla cream cheese flavours come out even more in the aftertaste, and it really does taste as though you’ve just eaten a piece of carrot cake! It’s one of my favourite desserts, and as a fan I have to say I’m very impressed with this tea.

It’s a shame that DT went out of business, because this tea could definitely replace dessert for me, especially with a touch of sugar, and that’s something I’m looking for at the moment especially as I’m trying to get to my goal weight and just be healthier in general. Still, it’s not like I’ll be off my no-buy any time soon, so at least I’m avoiding temptation…?

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec 2 tsp 12 OZ / 354 ML

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Bio

I first got into loose leaf teas when a friend of mine showed me Cara McGee’s Sherlock fandom blends on Adagio a good few years back, but they weren’t on sale in the UK so I started trying other kinds instead and have been hooked for almost three years (and have purchased several fandom tea sets including the Sherlock one I lusted over for so long).

Flavoured teas make up the majority of my collection, but I’m growing increasingly fond of unflavoured teas too. I usually reach for a black, oolong or white tea base over a pu’erh or green tea, though I do have my exceptions. I will update my likes and dislikes as I discover more about my palate, but for now:

Tea-likes: I’m generally easily pleased and will enjoy most flavours, but my absolute favourites are maple, caramel, chestnut, pecan, raspberry, coconut, blueberry, lemon, pumpkin, rose, hazelnut and peach

Tea-dislikes: vanilla (on its own), ginger, coriander/cilantro, cardamom, liquorice, pineapple and chocolate

I am a 25 year old bartender, English Literature sort-of-graduate and current student working towards finishing my degree. I am hoping to one day complete a masters degree in Mental Health Social Work and get a job working in care. Other than drinking, hoarding and reviewing tea, my hobbies include reading, doing quizzes and puzzles, TV watching, football/soccer (Sunderland AFC supporter and employee of my local football club), music, artsy weird makeup, and learning new things (currently British Sign Language).

I should probably also mention my tea-rating system, which seems to be much harsher than others I’ve seen on here. It’s not always concrete, but I’ll try to define it:

• 50 is the base-line which all teas start at. A normal, nothing-special industrial-type black teabag of regular old fannings would be a 50.

• 0 – 49 is bad, and varying degrees of bad. This is probably the least concrete as I hardly ever find something I don’t like.

• I have never given below a 20, and will not unless that tea is SO bad that I have to wash my mouth out after one sip. Any teas rated as such are unquestionably awful.

• This means most teas I don’t enjoy will be in the 30 – 50 range. This might just mean the tea is not to my own personal taste.

• 51+ are teas I enjoy. A good cup of tea will be in the 50 – 70 range.

• If I rate a tea at 70+, it means I really, really like it. Here’s where the system gets a little more concrete, and I can probably define this part, as it’s rarer for a tea to get there.

• 71- 80: I really enjoyed this tea, enough to tell somebody about, and will probably hang onto it for a little longer than I perhaps should because I don’t want to lose it.

• 81 – 90: I will power through this tea before I even know it’s gone, and will re-order the next time the mood takes me.

• 91 – 100: This is one of the best teas I’ve ever tasted, and I will re-order while I still have a good few cups left, so that I never have to run out. This is the crème de la crème, the Ivy League of teas.

I never rate a tea down, and my ratings are always based on my best experience of a tea if I drink it multiple times. I feel that this is fairest as many factors could affect the experience of one particular cup.

I am always happy to trade and share my teas with others, so feel free to look through my cupboard and message me if you’re interested in doing a swap. I keep it up-to-date, although this doesn’t mean I will definitely have enough to swap, as I also include my small samples.
Currently unable to swap as I’ve returned after a long hiatus to a cupboard of mostly-stale teas I’m trying to work through before I let myself purchase anything fresh

I also tend to ramble on a bit.

Location

South Shields, UK

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