Featured & New Tasting Notes
Definitely a very sweet cup of tea, but I love that rich and almost caramelized banana note with the gentle nuttiness of candied almonds. It’s smooth, a little creamy, and just that perfect bit of indulgence for a mid afternoon treat.
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.
Steepster TTB 2025
I’ve been watching old seasons of Top Chef, and in the one I’m currently watching, there’s a chef who is notorious for using a LOT of ingredients in his dishes and always doing THE MOST with what he presents. I feel like that’s what’s happening with this tea. We’ve got pu-erh, orange, cocoa, apple, blue cornflower, honeybush, lapsang souchong, rose, red peppercorn, cloves, safflower… not to mention various natural flavors (cinnamon, orange, hazelnut). I can imagine this blend happening if I took my nephews to a tea-blending bar (Do those exist? They should!) and let them loose to create their own blends.
I’m not familiar with the wizard who inspires this blend — which seems unfortunate (for me), as the Black Lotus website includes this quote from him: “Well, my social anxiety is getting the best of me. I’m taking a walk; goodbye.” Been there, friend. Been there.
So anyway, there’s a LOT happening. Arguably too much. My biggest impressions are cocoa and orange, with the spices (cinnamon, cloves) warming up the back of the sip. It’s not bad, to be fair, and it reminds me of a Christmas-inspired blend. But it’s all a little muddy (…dirty?!). I think I would prefer some editing to the blend.
On a related note, that one guy from Top Chef got sent home in the last episode I watched. So there’s that.
Flavors: Cinnamon, Cocoa, Orange, Spices
Steepster TTB 2025
Wrapping up my time with the TTB and trying to squeeze in more samples!
This one is quite lovely — very delicate and fruity, with the hibiscus used to great effect without being overwhelming. I share *Kaylee*’s sentiment that the name is misleading, though — there are no white raspberries in the ingredient list, even though it’s described as a “smooth blend of white tea and rare white raspberries.” Hmmmm. I actually get more of a mulberry flavor!
Still, it’s nice and bright and jammy, with just a hint of tartness. Goes down easy! I finished up the bag on this cup, but maybe I’ll try to cold-brew the leaves — I bet it’d be very refreshing cold.
Flavors: Berries, Fruity, Jam, Mulberry, Tart
What a delight! Sophisticated and vibrant, fresh and refined. I’ve been drinking this at work so haven’t really had the time to dive into the intricacies of what is a supple, floral and gently buttery green tea, but its qualities meld seamlessly with the delicately sweet rose petals, the soft Ceylon cinnamon and the sunny-spicy Manuka honey.
For some reason, I feel like the green tea could’ve been grown where I live in northern California rather than in New Zealand. ashmanra is right, the tea has a high energy, and to me, feels very natural, very ‘blue’.
I hope to come back with a more nuanced look into the green tea used in this blend, but if I don’t, know that Lady Gatsby rates exceptionally high with me and is very much recommended for lovers of a naturally perfumed tea.
I mixed Cranberry of Basilur (a sipdown!) and Lime Flowers by Sonnentor. The latter one I have hoped to make it a sipdown too, but I had too much; so last cuppa remains. Also the latter one have a great chance to repurchase.
It smells quite funky. Flowery (lilac? how?) and tart cranberry / plain hibiscus. But it tastes better — it brings fruity cranberry with nice floral and sweet notes, so it isn’t that tart, as plain fruity element of this tea.
I wouldn’t blend it like this always; afterall the cranberry tea I preferred to have with black tea; but it works together fairly well.
Hey Martin, if lime flowers smell anything like orange flowers, I could understand the similarity to lilac. I grew up in the middle of orange orchards and adore the fragrance of their blossoms! Not sure about the combination with cranberry, though I’d be inclined to toss in a hibiscus element to complement, and then dose it with a ton of sweetener and sip it iced. Is there ANY C. sinensis in your blend? I agree that a strong black would do well. Perhaps a Ceylon and maybe even one from the Uva highlands, having those minty notes. Or maybe a Keemun with a touch of spearmint added!
Lime… in this case it is linden :) — maybe a little bit lost in translation. Sometimes it is translated as lime.
As of cranberry — sadly this blend from Basilur is really tart to me; and I usually mix it up with some other tea. There wasn’t any C. sineisis in my blend; but Uva tea would be a great pairing.
I think linden is referred to as lime tree in British English. In French it is tilluel, I believe. It isn’t a well known thing among most people in America, except perhaps those who are in wellness teas and tinctures.
Ah-hah yes. I have heard of Linden, but forgot it was sometimes referred to as lime. I have no idea what it’s blossoms smell like!
For me it’s a little bit honey-ish, chamomile like
PLEASE NOTE: Chicago Teahouse is no longer affiliated with TeeGschwendner. You can find out why and more here:
https://teatiff.com/2023/02/13/chicago-teahouse/
Brewing: 5 mins. 1tsp. 212F.
I’m leaving it on the other counter so that I don’t try to smell or touch it until the timer rings.
Dry Leaf: Curly and tightly twisted. Mostly dusty, dark brown in color with a few light brown/golden tips.
Wet Leaf: chocolate brown. Fully opened. Some twigs, pieces of smaller leaves.
Wet Aroma: slightly malty. A bit woody.
Flavor: Woody, malty, resinous, and a bit of deep summer fruits.
Mouth Feel: Astringency.
It’s a decent tea. Good for the morning when one doesn’t really want to think and just drink. But it’s not something I would pull out for a special morning.
Our “local” shop in Raleigh, Tin Roof Teas, also began carrying exclusively Teageschwendner but began carrying other teas as well quite some time ago. There are lots of teas there that you can find on other tea company sites, even using the same stock photo and having the same description. A few have name changes. Madame Butterfly, for example, was available from a number of companies but TRT carried it under the name Fuzzy Navel. Sadly, they no longer carry it so I am back to ordering it online when I buy it for my bestie.
TTB! The rose was too strong for my preferences. It just has a weird sour tang to me, and combined with the raspberry, it all ends up too tart and floral. I left the cup in the fridge for 48 hours, and then the flavors became much more muted and enjoyably fruity. But I wouldn’t want it again.
Sipdown
I haven’t had a vegetal, high note oolong in a while! Many thanks to Youngest for the share.
Ashman and I polished this off at breakfast. Resteeps well. Aroma at the outset of steeping is definitely good old Southern style greens like turnip greens or collards. It doesn’t taste like collard liquor to me, though. Is that a regional term or does everyone call it that?
Mouthfeel is smooth and light. Taste is light floral.
Steepster TTB 2025
Too intriguing not to try, and worth the sample. I’m mostly getting a candy green apple flavor with a bit of chamomile and hay, but gentle hay, not overpowering. There’s maaaybe a smidge of grassiness from the green base, and then I guess the unidentifiable note (to me) is the sweet woodruff. I wouldn’t say this is bubblegum-y, but I can understand why they included that descriptor, if that makes sense (it doesn’t)!
This might be a keep from the TTB.
Flavors: Apple Candy, Chamomile, Green Apple, Hay, Sweet, Sweet, Warm Grass
Ashmanra’s sipdown challenge – April 2025 Tea #5 – A soothing tea
Does anyone else ever find that the last cup of a tea to a sipdown is the most delicious cup? This one was better than I remember. Maybe for the simple fact that it is probably now becoming even more difficult to get tea from overseas. ack. Anyway, I consider this one soothing, probably for the cocoa shells. It’s a lovely combination of flavors. Maybe the annoying licorice has aged itself gone at this point.
2025 sipdowns: 30
The humble grocery store peppermint can pleasantly surprise you if you give it a chance. I’ve been drinking this quite a bit because there are old teas at work up for grabs and I love peppermint. I don’t know how old it is but I like the freshness and the potency. Lots of menthol and a touch of sweetness. It isn’t super remarkable, but it is better than many peppermints I have tried.
Flavors: Menthol, Peppermint
Preparation
I bought this in Flagstaff in November when we were visiting the Grand Canyon! I was super drawn to the name and the fact that it’s herbal, but there are no pine-like ingredients listed. Really, it’s a pretty light chai and mostly tastes like licorice. It’s not bad with milk, but I definitely wanted something more woodsy. In some cups, I can sort of convince myself that I taste something foresty, but certainly not pine.
A sipdown! (M: 6 Y: 64) prompt: April 22 – Earth Day: drink an earthy tasting tea
Two days late! Also it fits better prompt: “A tea with a long name”
But who cares? Sipdown is a sipdown!
Well, this one from derk isn’t much earthy. Thanks anyway. Whopsy daisy. It’s rather mineral. Astringent and herbaceous. Musty mint.
Longer steeps are even more herbaceous — musty mint notes. Sadly, not so earthy as I have wished for to fill the prompt. Fine for mindless drinking though. I had better shengs.
Were 6 grams for my 125 ml gaiwan too much? Who knows…
Preparation
The ingredients of this one were so simple, I probably shouldn’t have gotten it, I just love lemongrass in a tea! It turned out quite straightforward, as expected. I mostly taste lemon, and it’s a bit tart for me at times. So this one is sort of like having lemonade. I enjoy some cups more than others.
I did not expect to like this tea this much.
I saw it when I was stocking up on Vanilla Comoro which serves as the base for my summer “soda” syrup. Superanna loves horchata so I was mainly getting it for her, planning to try one sachet and pass it on to her. This I will do, but I think this will be on a future order of my order.
The main thing I have to say about it is that the cinnamon is perfection for me. This is just the right level, and is pretty much the type and amount I remember being in Heirloom Bartlett Pear. It gives the same warm and cozy feeling.
The toasted rice doesn’t come off as burned popcorn. The oolong is so light it is almost like a white tea base. The vanilla and milk flavors are sooo creamy.
I love this just as it is, but if you really wanted to add milk and sugar (I am usually disappointed when I add anything to tea) I bet it would be good. In fact, I may try it that way ice cold.
Coconut is the strongest flavor, but the kukicha gives it a hearty backdrop. This was best sweetened with milk. I taste coconut and marshmallow and that’s nice, but a little simple. The next two times I had this, I found it too plain for my tastes. The flavors didn’t shine anymore for whatever reason.
Why I didn’t multiple cake this 7542 replica when I saw it in years past on other vendors websites, or most recently on Liquid Proust’s…
Oh well. At least I know what well aged, humidish-stored puerh tastes and feels like. This brews rich and does great with less leaf and moderate steeps in a 200mL duanni pot. Taste and energy are strong enough that only 2-3 pours leaves me satisfied. This current pot is on day 3!
Flavors: Betel Nut, Bread Dough, Camphor, Dark Wood, Forest Floor, Overripe Cherries, Petrichor, Rich, Round, Smooth, Spicy, Tobacco, White Pepper
Preparation
Day 3?? That is awesome!
Wow! Yours seems very similar to my 2002 7542 replica which I coincidentally reviewed a week ago, so we may have some esp going on! And your cake wrapper is virtually identical to mine, with the same exact characters, just in a very slightly different font (mine is squished a bit). But the flavor descriptions are spot-on, and when I pulled the cake out just now to check, I got another good hit of that camphor aroma! Yeah, this is among my better sheng cakes, and I sure don’t regret $79 I spent on it. When you write “pot is on day 3” do you mean the leaf has been soaking all that while? Or you just added more hot water to the remaining wet leaf? Or the infusion has just been standing?
…forgot to paste the link: http://steepster.com/teas/beautiful-taiwan-tea-company/76558
Once I let this cool and added milk, it tasted super nice and sophisticated. The anise is the strongest flavor, but it combined beautifully with the base, and a bright, yet desserty hit of orange comes next. This flavor profile really surprised me – I didn’t expect to be such a fan, but I really enjoyed my bag.
Steepster TTB 2025
I have to admit that my tea drinking in 2025 has been pretty uninspiring — I’ve barely written any Steepster notes, and I’ve mostly been drinking old favorites. That makes the TTB’s arrival extra exciting for me!
Mmm, smells delicious. This is malty, astringent, and maple-y, but I’m not getting much blueberry at all (or bready notes to evoke pancakes, for that matter). Blueberry as a flavor is hard to capture in general, I think. I do have a soft spot for brisk breakfast teas, and I love maple, so I’m not complaining here. But “blueberry pancakes” is a stretch!
There’s not much left in this packet so I’ll probably keep it and try it again with some oat milk — that might add some pancake-y heft to the flavor.
Flavors: Astringent, Brisk, Malty, Maple
From CameronB! Thanks very much! The flavors are unique here, as in I don’t think I have had this particular blueberry/lemon flavoring before in another tea. It’s a bit like candy… so not really tangy fruits. The blueberry is more like a muffin sort of blueberry. Neither fruit is very distinct. The green tea base isn’t taking over at all and I didn’t even notice the rooibos. It’s an okay blend.
I go through matcha phases. Sometimes I don’t drink it for months, sometimes I drink it everyday. I’m going through a daily matcha phase right now, of course when there is a global shortage and it’s difficult to restock.
This is nice. Very light, no bitterness when made as an iced americano. Really bright and grassy.
I do miss having these sachets available in my stash. I liked the packaging quite a bit and they were waterproof, unlike many others. Plus, the sachets looked fancy.
This is the last (unless another one is hidden away somewhere) I have and it is no longer being made so I guess this is a sad goodbye.
This chamomile is reliable. Lightly citrusy with the typical fresh chamomile flavour. It held up well over time without getting a dull or flat in flavour.
Flavors: Chamomile, Citrus
