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Roswell Strange drank Hazelnut Chocolate by DAVIDsTEA

15662 tasting notes

Another new tea – this one part of the first Holiday/Winter type drop of the year! This is a Frequent Steeper exclusive tea; and I think it’s the first time DT has ever done a FS exclusive blend before? I’m not 100% sure of that, though…

Does anyone else remember Choconut Oolong? That was a DT holiday blend from, I believe, 2014 – basically meant to taste like Nutella. I actually enjoyed it at the time (I’m not sure if I would today – tastes change) but it was pretty damn unpopular when it was released. I think if you dig through old tasting notes of mine, I’ve commented before from when I was a customer that a true sign that a tea blend is realllyyyyy bad is when the Tea Guides in store encourage you to buy 50g and not a 100g tin…

Well, this is basically Choconut Oolong redemption. This blend was essentially six years in the making, after the initial attempt flopped so hard. I think it was worth the wait though because this tea is really good. Y’all know that I’m not a big chocolate fan in general, but this is a nice and rich dark chocolate note that I find comparable to the chocolate in S’mores Chai. That might be, partly, because they’re both chocolate blends on a similar pu’erh base…

Honestly the chocolate is good but it’s not the best part of the blend & there are a lot of good chocolate teas out in the world already if that’s the draw for you. What there aren’t a lot of good version of are hazelnut teas and as far as I’m concerned this is honestly the nicest hazelnut I’ve ever tasted in a tea! It’s robust, rich and accurate. I feel like I’m getting a nice slightly toasted but still a bit raw hazelnut blast with this tea. Obviously hazelnut compliment chocolate – if it didn’t Nutella wouldn’t be the global sensation that it still continues to be. So as a decadent/indulgent blend this one just works! I highly recommend it as a latte, either hot or iced. The milk is the perfect kiss of creaminess to compliment both of these stellar flavours!

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.

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Martin Bednář
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Not fan of Nutella, nor chocolate with hazelnuts too much, but tea with this flavour? Sounds interesting, but not sure if I would like that.

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Martin Bednář
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Not fan of Nutella, nor chocolate with hazelnuts too much, but tea with this flavour? Sounds interesting, but not sure if I would like that.

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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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