Roswell Strange Send Message

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drank Mulberry White Tea by RiverTea
16802 tasting notes

RIP RiverTea.

I’m having a really hard time accepting this. I mean, next to Butiki, RiverTea was one of my very, very favourite tea companies, and now both are no more. At least Butiki gave us a chance to stock up, but I’m incredibly choked up over the blends that I loved from RiverTea that I’ll likely never get a chance to try again.

I’ve loved RiverTea since before they were actually open: I was very lucky to be part of a group of contest winners who got to try out some of their teas, prelaunch. This is one of the blends I originally tried – and one I was really impressed with. They had such beautiful packaging, and any time you ordered from them everything felt so thoughtful and personalized, from the extra little gifts in each box (I love my Swan “Teaball”!), to that “For a happier Roswell” sticker on the tissue paper. Plus, such reasonable shipping prices and not only free samples with each purchase, but samples in resealable bags.

And for me the worst part is that I’ve had an order ready to be placed with them for months, but I waited until Black Friday to do all my orders at once – and now I don’t have a chance. So I most likely missed my opportunity to get more of my favourites. Which is heart breaking. So heart breaking.

RIP Mulberry White
RIP Tea of Kings
RIP Infinite Good Feeling
RIP Sweet Seduction
RIP Marquis de Gris
RIP Sweet Helen
RIP Magic Summer
RIP Boatsman
RIP Cherry Dream

And RIP all the other I didn’t get to try, but really wanted to. Those were some of my favourites, if it wasn’t clear…

I hate that I have to eulogize them. HATE IT.

But that aside; I made this one as a latte and of course it didn’t disappoint. Not even a little. I mean, it was a little different as a latte because it’s a more gentle tea in the first place but the fruit flavours in it like the caramel-esque mulberries and papaya were still present and made for an interesting and very, very relaxing light fruit flavoured hot milk drink that calmed all my nerves and made me feel so relaxed. So very relaxed.

It also was phenomenal for dunking the chocolate chip cookies I got from DAVIDsTEA. Those cookies were tasty to begin with, but they’re the perfect “Stiffness” to not turn to mush in hot milk but still soak it up and get soft and yummy!
5 comments
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TeaNecromancer
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RIP Rivertea, I will immensely miss you and your teas :(

Sil
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you could email them and see if they have stock left since they didn’t really announce they were closing.

Fjellrev
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In a way, I’m kind of glad I never ordered and experienced it. Ignorance is bliss. But at the same time, I’m kicking myself. I kind of did what you did. I was just on their site a couple months ago plotting an order but then thought to wait until BF to see if they’d have a good sale.

Kittenna
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I only had just started to hear about RiverTea, and hadn’t quite made it to the website yet, but given what I’ve heard people say, this is another big loss :(

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Comments

TeaNecromancer
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RIP Rivertea, I will immensely miss you and your teas :(

Sil
Delete

you could email them and see if they have stock left since they didn’t really announce they were closing.

Fjellrev
Delete

In a way, I’m kind of glad I never ordered and experienced it. Ignorance is bliss. But at the same time, I’m kicking myself. I kind of did what you did. I was just on their site a couple months ago plotting an order but then thought to wait until BF to see if they’d have a good sale.

Kittenna
Delete

I only had just started to hear about RiverTea, and hadn’t quite made it to the website yet, but given what I’ve heard people say, this is another big loss :(

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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...

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