100

Final tea left to try from Tea Desire! Somehow, I managed to save this one for last even though it’s been taunting me since I bought it! This tea is $8 for 50g, which is the high end of Tea Desire’s pricing. The sales lady shared with me that this one is pricier because all of the tea leaves are soaked in Champagne; personally I just find that really interesting.

I ended up buying 50g of this one, which is the smallest amount you can get at their store, and man did I get a lot of it! The amount of dry leaf that equals 50g is about enough to fully fill one of the tins from DAVIDsTEA. It’s a lot!

The dry leaf smells very rich and decadent and juicy! There are lots of large bits of currants, and lots of full currants as well! Smelling it, I’m reminded of really high end jams and jellies. It’s so sweet smelling too! Very, very sweet. Almost too sweet in fact (but not quite). The predominant smell here is definitely juicy black currents! Mmmm

Steeped, the liquor is a darker golden yellow that smells EXACTLY like the dry leaf. Same juicy black currant scent and sweetness. This might just be the best white tea I’ve ever smelled. If this scent could be captured into a perfume I have no clue how much I’d be willing to give for it! Probably a whole lot.

First few sips: Oh it’s so sweet! It tastes just like black currant jam, with the light taste of white tea and champagne kind of floating on your tongue in the aftertaste, along with a much lighter tasting currant flavour. I have no clue how someone could justify adding a sweetener to this – it’s SO sweet as is. Every sip is perfect! There’s absolutely no bitterness or astringency either.

Honestly, this might be the best white tea I’ve ever had. I’m going to have no trouble going through my 50g of this! For sure I saved the best for last! Even if this is a one hit wonder and doesn’t resteep well, the first cup more than makes up for it (I am excited to resteep though).

However, if you don’t like the taste of currants or really sweet teas this one probably isn’t for you – just a warning.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 15 sec
Sil

sounds neat!

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Sil

sounds neat!

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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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