Welp; it’s happened – I’ve tried my first chaga/mushroom tea. I guess the good news is that I clearly didn’t die since I’m writing about it now…

For anyone “not in the know”, I have an allergy to mushrooms of basically all kinds. It used to be really bad but over time I’ve been cycling out of it and the severity of my reactions has gotten far, far more manageable. I’ve even been experimenting with eating different kinds of mushrooms in very small amounts at the recommendation of my physician. I’d never tried a chaga tea though because I just didn’t know how bad my reaction might be since it was a type of mushroom I’d not had exposure to at all before it starting trending in wellness/tea communities.

For anyone curious if I had any reaction at all, my mouth did get a little bit itchy for a few hours – but it was easily manageable. I also took some precautions, like making sure I tried it at the end of my work day, and ensuring I was with people just in case I did have a bad reaction. So, I guess this means I can try the other chaga tea in our line up, and after that I will once again be able to say that I’ve had every tea on the tea wall.

(Not in DT history of course, but for sure anything currently carried or that was carried at one point before my employment there.)

As for the taste of this tea? Well, I’ve never had chaga or most mushrooms on their own to really know what to expect in terms of that flavor – and my coworkers have all said that they can’t really taste the mushroom in this blend either, so I guess I’m not surprised that I didn’t really pick out any weird/different notes. It mostly just tasted (strongly) of chocolate? Like, a mix of dark and milk chocolate – with roastier undertones from the chicory. My immediate thought was just that it reminded me a lot of Cocoa Boost from the Wellness Collection in 2017…

So I guess, my final verdict is that if you liked Cocoa Boost then I think you’d probably like this one too? Or the same thing with Hot Chocolate. For me, I didn’t love the flavour enough to revisit this one in the future, especially given the whole itchy mouth thing. But at least I can say that I’ve tried it!

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 regarding the teas, and not the company’s.

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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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