72

At the time I placed my Della Terra order, Tre owed me $40. I told him he could pay me back by buying me $40 of tea online since he has a credit card and I don’t. I ended up needing a few filler teas to reached the $40 he owed me and this was one of them. It just sounds really interesting. I don’t own any teas with cherry in them even though I love cherries and I’ve never tried a tea tht was cola flavoured so I figured it was worth a shot.

I can’t really decide whether or not I actually like the smell of the dry leaf for this one. I think it’s the most interesting smelling black tea I’ve ever owned. I can definitely smell the cola which is really strong and reminds me of those “Coke Ball” candies you get that sort of taste like flat coke. I THINK I smell the chocolate, but it’s really burried under the super intense smell of coke, and there’s a note in there that’s familiar fruity but I’m not totally sure I would call cherry.

I had Tre smell the dry leaf without knowing the name of the tea or what was in it, and he said it smelled like orange peels or orange zest, and I can’t help but sort of smell oranges and coke now.

For my 6 oz. cup I’m using a level tsp. just because this smells so weird and so strong and fragrant that I don’t want to be totally overwhelmed; if it tastes weak I can always use more leaf next time. I steeped this one using boiling water for 5 minutes.

The liquor of this tea is actually really pretty; there are little silver specks all through it that are very shimmery in my mug. The smell is definitely cola, with something else that smells mildly like cherries or chocolate? Either way, it just kind of smells… “off”. Curse Tre mentioning oranges – I can’t get that out of my head, and I’m not sure whether or not there really are orange notes or whether I’m tricking myself into thinking they’re there.

Taste wise, this is totally the weirdest tea I’ve ever had. I’m tasting coke for sure, but it’s hot which is such a weird experience and sensation. I can taste the chocolate, actually, which I wasn’t sure I’d be able to. And, I taste oranges! Blerg. Coke and oranges is such a weird flavour combination. I also THINK I taste cherry, but it’s SO much in the background that it’s almost impossible to taste. I’m also not getting anything “cakey” about this tea.

Overall, I just can’t figure out whether I like it or not. I’m so glad I tried it, because this was so weird how could you not try it? But I don’t think I’m going to repurchase it. I’m not even really sure how I want to rate it…

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

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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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