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This tea was just lovely, as it seems all the blacks are by Verdant. This one was one of the teas that wasn’t as described on the site, however—not to me anyway.

The predominating flavors were cocoa and bran, with a raisin and brown sugar kind of sweetness that was perfect with the other flavors.

There was a tiny bit of astringency and minerality, but they were not unpleasant.

The only thing I have to knock this tea for was that 90% of the life was sucked out of the leaves in the first steep (western). For the price, I would expect it to last at least two or three, so I am knocking some points off for that.

I’ve been running behind on reviews; can you tell? Sometimes I go through periods where I just want to drink tea and not have to worry about writing it—curse of the introvert.

This tastes just as it should—appley and cinnamony. It’s a great fall tea. Sometimes I wonder what these flavorings would taste like if they weren’t put on such cheap bases. This one was drying and boring, just as you would expect.

But then I remember that the good bases don’t need flavoring.

I can’t believe I forgot to review this.

Though I am not a huge fan of sugar in my tea, I loved this one. The spice and flavoring paired surprisingly well with the matcha, which I wasn’t expecting. It’s buttery and cinnamony, with maybe some hints of the other pumpkin-related spices.

Since they say that they add matcha flavoring to their matcha, I’m not sure how to rate the base. It tasted a little floral, sweet, grassy, and creamy as it should have, but how much of that was the flavoring?

I’m also docking off a few points because by the time I get the tea flavor as strong as I like it, it’s too sugary. Let us sweeten our own teas, David!

I want more. I stopped by my “local” David’s, but they were out. I don’t think it’s worth the $9 shipping fee, so I’m going to have to wait until there’s a sale and hope that they still have it in stock.

In an effort to like sheng, I brewed this one at half strength to calm the flavors down a bit. It worked a little bit. This one was like light green vegetables and a little sweet, so I’m thinking snow peas or something similar. There were some floral notes as well, but I was distracted by the sheng taste in the background that reminded me of soap.

*Disclaimer: it’s probably not the tea’s fault. I dislike sheng.

Let me be the ten millionth person to say that this is white tea that tastes nothing like a white. But as someone who loves sweet black teas, it was a perfect choice for me. You know who you are, thanks for the sample!

The first steep was vastly different than the rest. It was sweet peaches and honey with a pollen kind of taste that reminded me of orange blossoms. There was also a light caramel flavor, and something reminiscent of juicy fruit gum? It was bright and sweet. There was no bitterness whatsoever, but maybe the slightest, slightest hint of astringency at the very back of the throat that dissipated quickly.

The second steep on got darker in flavor, but no less pleasant. It becomes a little sweet potatoey, with some earthiness thrown in there. Maybe it was all about the butternut squash; it’s difficult to be sure.

I brewed a couple of steeps at 175 and lower, and it become mineral, losing all its sweetness. I wouldn’t recommend it that way.

This is a fantastic tea. The dry leaf smells nutty and creamy, like a sort of chocolate liquor. There are also some vanilla and hazelnut notes.

As it’s brewing, it’s amazing. It smells JUST like baking chocolate cake.

When I first started sipping on it, it tasted odd, like the base had an earthy plastic taste that lingered on the palate. But after it cooled a bit, this flavor disappeared, leaving a lovely, bready chocolate cake flavor.

Again, Davidson’s tea seems to be one of those grocery store brands that doesn’t disappoint. This tea begins by hitting the tip of the tongue with the VERY slight bitter tang of a Chinese oolong.

Now, this is a jasmine tea, and I hate jasmine blends. But the jasmine was so very light and delicate that it was actually a mild flavor, like a spice, to accompany the tea instead of drowning my senses. The oolong carried the jasmine scent to the middle of the palate, where it spread like a warming cloud.

As I swallow, it gets a little strange. There’s a bit of salty greenness, which reminds me of a Chinese green tea.

I can imagine drinking this tea at a really good Chinese restaurant.

Loved this shou. It was extremely smooth and not at all drying. No astringency or bitnerness. It had a nice dark, earthy flavor with a bit of tang that I associate with fermentation. Very sweet and friendly tea. Mouthfeel is creamy.

Ended up sharing some steeps with some coworkers, and everyone loved it!

Probably a good sheng, but it tastes like sheng, so…

Not astringent at all, which was nice. There was a sweet vegetal taste to it that was pleasant. Then there was the bitter sheng flavor.

I still have a few more sheng samples to try, so you may be seeing more of these reviews.

This one is a little odd. I have the looseleaf version. When I sent this to a friend, she said it was “oily.” How can a straight tea be oily? I kind of know what she means now.

The mouthfeel is like nothing I have ever experienced. It’s extremely juicy and slick. It’s not oily in an unpleasant way, but I can completely see how she would say that.

The flavor is like most whites I have had, extremely mild. Most of what I get is mild sweet grass, and maybe a little bit of hay. There’s a bit of honey sweetness in there as well.

Despite what people tend to think about grocery store tea, Davidson’s has been consistently good.