DAVIDsTEA

Another one of the new matchas to come out today!

This one is especially exciting to me for a couple different reasons. The first of which is that this is DT’s very first organic flavoured matcha offering! Organic flavouring is a lot trickier to work with that other kinds of flavouring, and the flavours you can achieve are also a lot more limited as well so I’m especially proud that we were able to achieve such a juicy, delicious organic offering in this incredible flavour!

The second reason I’m excited? Well, watermelon! I mean, like banana, this is one of the matcha flavours I’ve been dreaming of DT releasing since long before I was an employee. Being a part of bringing this flavour to the finish line has just been yet another experience where I’m again humbled by the fact I’m lucky and privileged enough to be able to make teas that I had dreamed about nearly a decade ago a reality. That never stops feeling amazing to me!

Though I am absolutely one of those people who drinks every flavour of matcha as a hot tea, I will admit that this one especially shines when you make it iced. It’s a very juicy watermelon flavour with a nice pop of sweetness to it, but I don’t find it gets too far into that Jolly Rancher/candy territory despite that, and I like that you can taste some of the grassy umami flavours of the matcha still. It’s really yummy!

If you want a really wild ride then I recommend adding a little pinch of salt as well! I feel like I sound like a broken record when it comes to watermelon and salt, but it’s truly just an incredible flavour combination and I like how that small addition can really change the profile of this matcha in a fantastic way.

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.

Dipping into my stash on this overcast afternoon because if there’s anything that can top a grey and gloomy afternoon it’s this sweet, nostalgic and juuusssttt a little bit creamy matcha that tastes exactly like banana taffy!

Tea Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/C5EuDOvOE3g/

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irRl_vQ9Gs4

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.

New matchaaa!

I feel like it’s been a while since we had new fruity matchas from DT. I mean, what was the most recent matcha released? It’s always hard for me to mentally keep track because I’ve seen behind the curtains so far in advance, but I think it might have been the Glitter Matcha? And before that the other winter flavours…

We’re full force into the summery matcha offerings now, though! Today’s launch had one returning matcha (Berries & Cream) and four new ones: Banana, Watermelon, Green Apple and an unsweetened version of our Peach Matcha. New tasting notes for all of them eventually, but I’m starting today with the two that I have in my personal stash, and have for quite some time that I’ve been eagerly chomping at the bit to talk about!

Banana can be a really polarizing flavour and I suppose that’s why it’s taken DT so long to put out a banana matcha, but I’ve been personally dying for one to be in the collection since even before I started working at DT as a seasonal tea guide many, many years back. Way back in the height of Red Leaf Tea’s flavoured matcha offerings, the Bananas & Cream Matcha was one of my very favourites of their offerings. If you are a fan of that very sweet candy-like banana flavour then you’ll know exactly what that matcha tasted like and what this one tastes like. A banana matcha for the banana lovers.

I’m definitely paraphrasing (poorly) here but I read something recently where someone described how it pains them that there’s no word in the English language for when you’re just meeting someone for the first time while simultaneously feeling like you’re two old friends/kindred spirits reconnecting after a long time separated. They said it really beautifully, and it reminded me of something similar I’ve experienced where trying new foods/flavours can trigger a feeling a nostalgia for something that you’ve not actually experienced. I mention it because the moment I first tried this tea it left me feeling both of these distinct things. It’s was so incredibly nostalgic tasting and even though it was my first sip I felt like I was greeting a long forgotten friend.

I personally think this is as classic and delicious of a banana matcha as we could have possibly gotten, and I can only hope that when others try it they’ll experience even one of the two feelings I’ve just described. It’s just wicked delicious, and I’m happy to have such a flavourful and full of life banana matcha in my tea stash now!

(PS. It’s great hot and iced, but it’s ESPECIALLY good as a hot or iced latte. Tastes like banana cream pie!)

Tea Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cfo3CESOAcj/

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1lfiy2_m3U

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 just finished off an old package of this I had received in 2018 from a cupboard sale by Ost. Thank you, Ost! Using for the July sipdown prompt, “A peach tea.”

I’ve been drinking this cold brew. The apple pieces come through pretty heavily for me in this one, but there is a gentle, sweet peach candy note to the tea. It’s actually a bit sweeter than I prefer, but it makes a nice ice cold drink.

I had one scoop left in the bag after the last liter of cold brew I’d prepared, so last night I decided to use it up as a very late night cuppa. I actually liked it a little better that way, because it had a slightly tart edge that I personally prefer in fruit teas that smoothed out some of the sweetness. I think, however, that this was due to the fact that what few white tea was actually in the blend sifted to the bottom of the bag, and I had just left the bag in my cup while drinking (my go-to for herbals) which caused the tea leaf to get a bit astringent/bitter.

Not a favorite… I’ve had other peach herbals that were more potent on the peach and tangier in the mouth that I prefer over this. However, this could be a good herbal peach for those that are hibiscus-averse.

If you are a fan of honey and floral notes, then you will may enjoy this tea. I myself found that the stevia in it made it a little overly sweet and almost cloying. If not for the stevia, I actually would have quite liked it myself

This has a nice strawberry candy flavor, balanced perfectly with the matcha. With some sugar to bring out the sweetness of the strawberry, this is quite tasty and refreshing. I only had the advent sample, but I’d totally drink this again. One of my favorite DT matchas for sure.

Delicious creamy pineapple coconut. Mmmm.

A relatively new tea that was released as part of our Garden to Cup collection!

This actually came out a few weeks ago but I wanted to drink it more recently before writing my tasting note for it. I’ve had it a handful of times prepared the Western way just hot and straight and I find that brewing it in that method brings out a little more sweetness and quite a bit of malty and woodier flavours, with just a hint of cocoa and red fruits. My favourite way to brew this one, however, is gongfu! It holds up really well and if you’re generous with your leaf to gram ratio you can just get the most beautifully robust and full bodied session!

On top of a pretty thick liquor and a hint of pleasant astringency, the tasting notes for a gongfu session range from very dark almost bitter baker’s chocolate to deep woodier notes and maltiness with a hint of very black cherry sort of “peaking out” from the undertones around the midsession mark, sort of as if to say that the reward for such an intense and more umami leaning session is this syrupy fruit note that breaks the mold of those earlier steeps even though it’s not necessarily a bright fruit note in and of itself.

I do hope we carry this tea for a while, even though it was released with the intention of being limited edition since it’s a small batch production, because it’s nice to see a solid quality Chinese black tea on the wall – right now our only (unflavoured) Chinese black tea is the Jasmine Black Pearls and though they’re delicious and malty in their own right, there’s definitely a difference between a jasmine scented tea and just a very good plain black…

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.

This can be a little tart and bitter, but with enough sugar it’s decent. The orange is pretty authentic, but it’s not really something I would reach for over an herbal orange tea. This just doesn’t have a place in my cupboard. I shared it with someone, who wasn’t able to taste the orange and found the floral flavors to be much too strong. I shared it with someone else who loved the orange flavor and didn’t notice the bergamot. My final cup of this I drank cold, and I thought the orange and bergamot complemented each other very well. The bergamot definitely shows up in a very floral way, but it sort of works. I guess my opinions have evolved slightly over the course of my 2 oz bag.

This had a subtle candy raspberry flavor in the first sip or two. Later, it faded and I really only tasted mild, sweet matcha. It was pleasant, but it didn’t have much character beside some other delicious matchas I’ve had recently. The flavoring needs to be much stronger, but it’s not a bad matcha.

(DavidsTea 2022: 120)

2022 Sipdown 135/365!
Mastress Alita’s Sipdown Challenge May 2022: Herbal tea

Searched my iced tea stash today for some interesting options, and found this one. Not sure if I’d ever tried it previously; the packet was unopened. Brewed it up fairly strong, and it was actually rather pleasant – not really what I was expecting. It didn’t really taste like mango, but was very tropical-fruity and pleasantly sweet with a tart undertone, but also an undercurrent of artificial flavouring. However, no stevia – a pleasant surprise.

I taste mostly earthy matcha, but in some sips, I get a nice bright, tangy citrus flavor. I think the matcha flavor is stronger than usual because I let this sit for an hour or two, and the matcha all clumped back together. The citrus is definitely the aftertaste for this one, but it’s really pleasant. I wish it were a little stronger, but I appreciate how fresh it is and how different from other teas I’ve had before. Yuzu is such a fun flavor.

Wow, this mint flavor is so fresh. It really is like eating fresh mint leaves. I don’t taste the matcha too strongly behind that. I always make my matcha in cold milk, and I have to say that this one does particularly well with that preparation method. I just taste sweetness and mint leaves, and it’s so refreshing.

trying to get through a few teas that i have left that have maybe a cups worth of tea in them while i make bread and read while indulging in kiddo’s need to play with me…all day long lol

Cold Brew!

Had this one over the weekend because I was craving something really bright and fruity and the tart lemon and sweet kiwi notes of this straightforward blend really deliver on that balance. The kiwi notes in particular were really phenomenal. If Jolly Rancher had a kiwi flavoured hard candy I imagine that this would be pretty close to that taste.

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.

Had this one a few nights ago. Usually I drink it cold, but I was just really in the mood for something bright and zesty but hot. It was surprisingly better than expected. Maybe more of the lemonade side of the profile overall, but the sweetness of the kiwi lingered on the palate after the initial wave of bright tang.

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.

Another new one from this summer that I seem to have missed writing a tasting note for!

I feel like this tea is kind of weird to me because it doesn’t actually have any lemon in it, but when I drink it my mind fills in all those gaps for me and it just tastes so citrusy and refreshing. Like, a prettttyyyyyy mouth puckering kind of lemon (or “lemon adjacent”) pop of flavour! I do wish there was more kiwi to it, but I taste it in particular in the finish after that initial sour blast of flavour and it’s nice to finish on that hint of sweet and tangy kiwi. My recommendation is to drink this one iced or cold brewed because I find it a little weird hot, but of course experimention is always key!

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!

Doubled up on the sachets for an extra large tumbler of cold brew. I even tossed in a little bit of ice (though it’s unnecessary for steeping) so I could get an ultra cold drink extra quickly. I feel like I’ve been on a big iced or cold brewed beverage streak lately. I’m just kind of constantly thirsty and overheated feeling lately.

Anyway, though was good! More of a strawberry forward flavour but with that hint of tropical kiwi on the back end. With the two sachets it was just right. Definitely would have been too thin otherwise.

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.