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Sipdown (531)!

For the first time in months I had yesterday morning off work which meant I could go to the market downtown before starting for the day. It was nice getting out there, and I got a pretty good haul, including sweet buns from my favourite baker, some lentils, my favourite coconut mango sticky rice, and even some freshly made cherry tarts for the staff (the tarts are awesome because EVERY ingredient in them is grown locally, so not only are they made local but they’re grown local too). The highlight of the haul though was the honey I grabbed; this time around I nabbed some lavender and cherry honey.

That brings my overall haul of infused honeys to:

- Cherry
- Lavender
- Garlic
- Matcha
- Lemon
- Orange Spice
- Cinnamon
- Coffee
- Chocolate

And of course plain honey.

I really wanted to find the perfect tea to try out the new flavours with though, and this seemed like a great pairing for cherry! Plus it let me get in another sipdown, which is always a good thing. I added a fairly generous amount of the honey because I wanted to get enough to not just sweeten the tea but to also imbue a cherry note to the cup. It was a raving success because the blend was so smooth and rich and it definitely took on the taste of cherry! Overall, as someone on Insta pointed out, the chocolate and cherry combo took on this sort of rich, velvety ‘black forest cake’ kind of taste, with nuttier undertones from the hazelnut.

It was delicious!

Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/BhksnXKH88Z/?taken-by=ros_strange

Starfevre

Garlic infused honey? What do you put that on?

Roswell Strange

Savory bagels, largely. I also use it in cooking sometimes. And I added it to a potato flavoured tea once :p

Lexie Aleah

I can imagine Garlic honey…. I feel like Garlic should stay savory and not sweet.

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Starfevre

Garlic infused honey? What do you put that on?

Roswell Strange

Savory bagels, largely. I also use it in cooking sometimes. And I added it to a potato flavoured tea once :p

Lexie Aleah

I can imagine Garlic honey…. I feel like Garlic should stay savory and not sweet.

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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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