18115 Tasting Notes
Iced!
This was the other tea I had in my second travel mug while working offsite unpacking stock. It’s not a coincidence that the two teas I picked are my favourite two that were released this year. This one is easily my number one. I just don’t think I’m ever going to get over how perfectly fresh, juicy and bright it tastes. And unpacking boxes for multiple hours in a row is pretty tiring, so that punchy fruity flavour definitely kept my spirits up quite a lot!
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts and feelings regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Iced Latte!
It is a busy time of year, but especially if you’re connected to retail in anyway. In the past during the holiday season I’ve volunteered to work extra hours to support some of our teams (like customer service). It’s pretty normal, as well, for head office employees to work a shift or two during this time of year in some of the stores local to us. I always struggle with that because I don’t speak French, so it’s challenging to actually be helpful for those teams…
Well, this year I ended up helping out a bit by just doing stock. Unpacking boxes, refilling shelves, and things of that nature. Definitely something I used to do a lot back in the day when I worked in store, and that is really helpful and requires no French. I will say, putting in six hours of essentially non-stop stock is way more exhausting now than I remember it being seven years ago. My legs were jelly the next day!
I brought a bunch of travel mugs with me for my stock shift and filled them all up with tea so I could stay super hydrated while I was working in the offsite room. This was one of them! It’s probably my second favourite tea that we released this year? Top three, easily. I know I shouldn’t have favourites, but it’s impossible not to.
As a latte it’s rich and earthy with warming, cozy spices. I adore the use of allspice in this blend. With the clean, earthy sweetness of the carrots that combination makes the blend IMO and then the creamy notes of frosting are the cherry on top. Except not fruity. This isn’t a fruity carrot cake at all – no sneaky raisins or shredded pineapple to be found. Just sweet spices and bold tea.
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts and feelings regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Cold Brew!
Sipping on this currently from an appropriately lemon-adorned tumbler. I’m most of the way through the brew, and it’s been a pleasant way to wind down the evening. Bright, but not too lively and tart with just a nice smooth and creamy finish to each sip. I’d had a craving for this blend for a few days before I caved and dug out the tin from the far back of my white tea drawer. Worth it, though.
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts and feelings regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
The last tea of our board game evening this weekend was Chai On The Rocks!
In general I find that I’m fascinated to see the types of teas people keep in their own stashes. What patterns in preferences might emerge? Are you a bold, breakfast blend kind of person? Sweet and decadent? Only fruity teas? However, I will admit that when it comes to my coworkers (which is who’s house I was at for the games) I’m especially curious what teas they gravitate towards. Mind you, I have some personal investment. Tell me what teas I’ve developed you love the most and why! I’m self centered enough to need to know…
Well, let me just say that with this particular friend/coworker, this tea was VERY surprising. Quite unlike a lot of the other teas I’ve seen her enjoying within the office. But it was a very nice tea to end the night on. So smooth and aromatic, with just a bit of bitterness from the orange to go alongside with an otherwise very whiskey and spiced rum-like profile with notes of ginger and cardamom. Just cozy and warming, which kind of felt nice for what progressed into just a really free-flowing conversation!
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts and feelings regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Cold Brew!
Used six of the sachets of this tea to make a very large pitcher of cold brew to bring to my friend’s house for a board game night. I picked this because her and her partner don’t seem to be opposed to caffeine in the evenings (good – me either!) and I like having something simple with a clearly defined flavour because it’s pleasant but doesn’t distract from conversation or gameplay.
She hadn’t tried this flavour yet either, so it was fun to share it with her. I think it went over well! Smooth with a bright, sweet lemon note. Definitely giving Southern Sweet Tea vibes. We finished the pitcher really quickly, and then ended up pivoting to hot tea for the rest of the night.
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts and feelings regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
I spent this past Sunday playing board games and chatting with a friend. We both work at DAVIDsTEA so there was lots of tea shared over the coarse of the evening, including this one from her own tea stash. I don’t know if I’ve ever had Harrod’s Darjeeling before, though I’ve tried other of their teas. For a bagged Darjeeling I thought it was quite nice, though! Medium bodied with a gentle, fuzzy sort of astringency and a bit of a sweeter and fruity leaning profile with notes of honey and grapes/raisins. Definitely a very nice tea to sip on over a conversation!
I bought a growler of this kombucha a few days ago while grocery shopping and I’ve already finished it off. Presumably it’s a winter/holiday flavour, since I’ve never seen it carried before now and the label was red and green. Makes sense. It was very good though! Bright and a little bit tart with a pretty authentic cranberry juice flavour that matched the fun bit of funky acidity and twang from the kombucha vinegar. The finish was more herbaceous and crisp, with that lovely pine-like note you get from cranberry. I could have drank gallons of this, honestly. Really refreshing and well balanced. Best kombucha I’ve tried in a long time.
Gongfu!
This tea is one of my all-time favourite scented oolongs. Top three easily! The starflowers add such a beautifully aromatic, complex and sweet tropical flavour that tastes eerily similar to passionfruit, and the oolong itself is buttery smooth with a fresh and floral finish. I usually drink it just on its own, but was pleasantly surprised by how nice it was with these delicately flavoured macarons. Unsurprisingly the fruit flavoured ones, like the lemon, were the most balanced pairings but even the flavours like Creme Brulee brought out interesting notes in the tea, like silky coconut or macadamia nuts.
Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DSQhJmJElOP/?img_index=1
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VViwMClRQDw
Gongfu!
This heicha is so thick and full-bodied with bold notes of forest undergrowth, incense, beet root, leather, wet potting soil, and petrichor. Undertones of warming and numbing spices, like clove, build as the session progresses, and the finish always hits you with a solid dose of decaying wood and cooling camphor. There’s something cozy and comforting about it, but also this quiet grandness that’s hard to put into words.
Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DSTNv5wkq59/?img_index=1
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Fqk2DfIkMY
Grandpa style, which has been surprisingly pleasant even though it’s also like getting slapped in the palate with a punch of smoke. It’s so savory though, with a really nice woodiness. Normally, this raw pu’erh kind of makes me think of forest fire crossed with, like, a really nice broth but today I can’t help but think of chimney smoke from a snowy log cabin. Maybe that’s because we’re creeping up to Christmas? In that case, it might be even more appropriate to say that I’ve been drinking this tea “Santa Style” all day. Now, if only I had some cookies and biscuits for dunking…
Tea Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/DSVyUEAkia3/
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TBovvogpQ8
