75

Made in a timolino.

Sometimes I’m bad at reading the names of teas I’m making, or paying attention to things like ingredients when I look them up on Steepster.

I’m especially guilty of that with this tea because I originally just assumed it was from Marriage Freres since it’s name is so darn similar to Mousse Au Chocolat from that company, and I received both in the same package. It just made sense to me that this was some sort of version of that blend; and I didn’t even bother to check. And then, both times I had this (the review I’m writing now, and the sipdown I had today that I’ll write about later) I didn’t realize that there was oolong in this. If I had, I likely would have steeped it a bit differently. But there’s nothing I can do about that now though, I suppose.

EDIT: I’m reading the ingredients more closely now too; apparently there’s also mate in here and rooibos. So really, it’s like a tea potluck?

Firstly; this smells amazing though the aroma is quite strong; I noticed after a day of having it in my possession that I was going to have to keep it separate from all my other samples because even with it double bagged and wrapped in tinfoil I was still smelling it. It’s so decadent though! It reminds me of rich, moist chocolate cake! With a thick layer of creamy, dark chocolate icing.

I was really impressed with the measured out leaf too; I saw a whole raspberry in what I had measured out as well as several other large chunks of raspberry, and lots of cocao shells. Yummy!

Taste wise; this is very much a raspberry focused tea. Yes; the smell of the dry leaf would have you believe that the ratio of chocolate and raspberry would be in favour of the chocolate but the opposite is true. And, the raspberry was actually a little more tart than I was expecting too; a natural sort of tart though. Kind of like raspberries straight from the garden that weren’t quite ready to be picked – but awfully darn close! And, the raspberry flavour lingers in your mouth for a very, very long time too.

And then, underneath that very intense and sharp raspberry flavour is the chocolate. It is rich and indulgent like the smell makes you think it should be; just not as intense as the raspberry, and the flavour doesn’t stick around nearly as long either. It’s like tasting raspberry, then chocolate, then raspberry again.

Like I sort of touched on; I didn’t taste anything that would’ve led me to believe there was oolong or rooibos in this; though I did taste a mild roasty flavour that reminded me loosely of coffee; knowing now that there’s mate in this that makes sense to me if it’s a roasted mate!

Overall I thought this was pretty good; definitely a little different than anticipated but in a good way! And it’s nice being surprised, too. Thanks MissB!

And, today’s pretty close to over (and may in fact already be over for some of you) but today’s word of the day was: Gait! A gait is: “A distinctive manner of walking; a particular style of such movement.” This one wasn’t a new word for me; but it was for Tre. He had a good laugh about the example sentence for this one too, which was:

‘All the male models seemed to approach the stage with a peculiar gait.’

I should have asked him to do his best model walk for me; I can pretty much guarantee it would have been a disaster.

MissB

Glad you liked it! They handblend all of their teas in the most adorable little shop on the banks of the river in Galway, and this one spoke to me, smell-wise… I just couldn’t try it myself due to the oolong. So I’m glad I’m seeing it’s being appreciated (good or bad).

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MissB

Glad you liked it! They handblend all of their teas in the most adorable little shop on the banks of the river in Galway, and this one spoke to me, smell-wise… I just couldn’t try it myself due to the oolong. So I’m glad I’m seeing it’s being appreciated (good or bad).

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Hello! My name is Kelly, though many people in the tea community call me Ros or Roswell.

I am a mid-twenties tea addict, blogger, and all around nerd. I grew up in the Prairies, but a few years ago I relocated to Quebec to pursue a career with DAVIDsTEA in the tea industry! I’m still working on getting my French language skills down…

My first introduction to tea, in any form outside of instant and bottled iced tea, was about seven years ago when I happened to stumble upon DAVIDsTEA while looking for a birthday present for a friend! I tried their Birthday Cake rooibos blend, and I’ve been hooked on tea ever since! In those seven years; I was introduced to the online tea community, expanded my interest in flavoured teas to include a deep love and appreciation for straight teas and traditional brewing methods, got a tea themed tattoo, started reviewing teas, amassed a sizable tea and teaware collection, became a TAC certified Tea Sommelier, & even came full circle by beginning a career in the tea industry with DAVIDsTEA!

I consider myself a Jack of all Teas, and strive to have a knowledge and appreciation of all tea types, formats, and styles of drinking. I don’t like to feel boxed in to just being a “flavoured tea” or “straight tea” drinker – my expectations may vary depending on the type of tea or how it’s been processed/prepared but if it’s good tea, it’s good tea no matter how it’s been made!

You name it, I probably drink it- and I’ll absolutely try anything at least once.

My default method of preparation is hot, Western style, and straight – but I’m not opposed to additions if I’m in the right mood. If I ever add something to a tea or use a different method of preparation I will ALWAYS call it out in the tasting note though.

I like to listen to music when drinking tea, especially when I’m brewing a large pot at a time or steeping Gongfu. Often I curate very intentional tea and music pairings, and sometimes I share them here in my tasting reviews. Music is something that I find can deeply affect the experience of having tea.

I’m also one half of the “tea and fandom” podcast GeekSteep where, weekly, we discuss newly explored fandoms over tea as well as try to figure out the perfect tea to pair with each fandom. You can find us on Spotify and Apple & Google podcasts.

Favourite flavour notes/ingredients: Pear, lychee, cranberry, cream, melon, pineapple, malt, roasty, petrichor, sweet potato, heady florals like rose, hazelnut or walnut, sesame, honey (in moderation), and very woody shou.

Least favourite flavour notes/ingredients:
Lemongrass, ginger, strongly spiced profiles (and most Chai in general), mushrooms, seaweed, chamomile, stevia, saltiness or anything that reminds me too much of meat that isn’t supposed to taste like meat…

Currently exploring/obsessed with: Sheng from Yiwu, Yancha (Qilan in particular), anything with a strong sweet potato note. Also, I need to try ALL the root beer teas! Searching for a really good caramel flavoured blend, ideally with a black tea base.

Please contact me at the instagram account listed below if you would like me to review your teas.

Currently I’m employed in the tea department of the DAVIDsTEA head office. While I’m still sharing my own personal thoughts on new & existing DAVIDsTEA blends, I am no longer numerically rating them due to the obvious conflict of interest. Any comments expressed are a reflection of my own thoughts and opinions, and do not reflect the thoughts and opinions of the company. Any DAVIDsTEA blends you currently see with a numeric score were reviewed prior to my being hired there and have not been adjusted since becoming a DAVIDsTEA employee.

Location

Montreal, QC, CA

Website

https://www.instagram.com/ros...

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