Adventaggedon Day 24 – Tea 5/6

Welp – I knew I was asking for too much hoping that I’d get three teas I enjoyed in a row.

Honestly, of all the advents I did this year I found this to be the most challenging for me. There were a lot of very similar teas and repetitious ingredients – with so much focus on Chai/Turmeric. I really shouldn’t be surprised because spices are kind of Vahdam’s speciality and I did want something that would push me outside of my comfort zone – but I was just hoping for some more straight/single origin teas or more inventive uses of the spices. Not six variations on a turmeric tea…

There were many days where I really wanted to skip the Vahdam tea – but I’m very proud of myself for not doing that. Actually, in general I’m just super proud of myself for not falling behind on advents AT ALL. Last year I did five “full” advents and one 12 Day Countdown, along with a single instagram photo and daily Steepster notes – it felt like a lot at the time and I swore that I wouldn’t do the same amount this year. Well, I was right in a way because I didn’t do the same amount – I just did more.

I had six “full” advents (if you count the two 12 Tea countdowns as one advent), wrote daily steepster notes for each tea, and took an IG photo and story post for every tea each day in addition to running three IG advent chat groups – all while working my full time job (at which I was SIGNIFICANTLY busier than last year) and doing my podcast. All that, and I didn’t miss a single thing or get behind at all. It was a crazy packed month, and to say I felt busy would be an understatement. I don’t think it’s fully hit me yet that tomorrow I can just drink whatever the fuck I want…

This tea, though? Yeah, it was fine – I honestly was paying closer attention to the Bojack Christmas special I was watching that the profile of the tea, and honestly after reading Cameron B’s tasting note that might have been a good thing? I do recall tasting the mint, but otherwise it was a pretty nondescript tea. Sort of underwhelming to finish out the advent on, to be honest.

Advent Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/CJM0NCOgiTR/

Leafhopper

I’m glad I didn’t get the Vahdam advent. Back when they were Golden Tips (I feel old now), they focused more on single-origin teas, but now they seem to concentrate on spiced blends. I keep thinking I should do an advent calendar, but then I read all your reviews and realize I wouldn’t like 60% or so of the teas.

Courtney

Lex and I were discussing this tonight Leafhopper. I do enjoy chai teas, but can’t have turmeric and it seemed like so many had it. Also, I don’t want to find if there’s a limit to how much I enjoy chai haha!

Martin Bednář

Get some rest :) You had really busy month!
I had troubles getting two Advents, six are indeed beyond me!

Michelle

Vadham has lost me as a customer as they now focus on turmeric and chai blends. Some of their most yummy teas are no longer available, I guess they are focusing more on new business and not their old patrons.

eastkyteaguy

I have wondered what exactly has been going on with Vahdam Teas numerous times over the past year. They used to carry a ton of high end single origin teas, but as others have noted, they now seem to primarily focus on chai blends and flavored or scented teas. I imagine this was a conscious decision on the part of the company’s owners. There are other vendors in the Indian tea game who focus a lot of their attention on single origin teas, so maybe they saw the increase in competition cutting into their profit margins and decided to focus on other products to maintain revenue.

tea-sipper

Leafhopper, I didn’t know Vahdam was once Golden Tips!
Ros – you are a dedicated tea professional!

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

People who liked this

Comments

Leafhopper

I’m glad I didn’t get the Vahdam advent. Back when they were Golden Tips (I feel old now), they focused more on single-origin teas, but now they seem to concentrate on spiced blends. I keep thinking I should do an advent calendar, but then I read all your reviews and realize I wouldn’t like 60% or so of the teas.

Courtney

Lex and I were discussing this tonight Leafhopper. I do enjoy chai teas, but can’t have turmeric and it seemed like so many had it. Also, I don’t want to find if there’s a limit to how much I enjoy chai haha!

Martin Bednář

Get some rest :) You had really busy month!
I had troubles getting two Advents, six are indeed beyond me!

Michelle

Vadham has lost me as a customer as they now focus on turmeric and chai blends. Some of their most yummy teas are no longer available, I guess they are focusing more on new business and not their old patrons.

eastkyteaguy

I have wondered what exactly has been going on with Vahdam Teas numerous times over the past year. They used to carry a ton of high end single origin teas, but as others have noted, they now seem to primarily focus on chai blends and flavored or scented teas. I imagine this was a conscious decision on the part of the company’s owners. There are other vendors in the Indian tea game who focus a lot of their attention on single origin teas, so maybe they saw the increase in competition cutting into their profit margins and decided to focus on other products to maintain revenue.

tea-sipper

Leafhopper, I didn’t know Vahdam was once Golden Tips!
Ros – you are a dedicated tea professional!

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

Profile

Bio

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...

Following These People

Moderator Tools

Mark as Spammer