36

My friend Helen very kindly brought this in to the office for me to try because she thought it was weird and that would interest me – and of course she was right. Canned bubble tea is exactly the kind of thing that seems out there enough to tick that “I HAVE TO TRY IT” urge that I often get…

Normally I think I would have low expectations for something like this – but I recognize the company “Ocean Bomb” from a line up of Pokemon Sparkling Beverages that they do. I’ve had over half the line up of those now, and they were surprisingly good. So I think my expectations were a little bit raised. My reaction is honestly two fold…

Fold number one is that the drink itself is HELLA sweet. Like, it tastes like someone made a Thai Milk Tea, which is already extremely sweet, and then sweetened it some more and that’s the drink. It’s not bad, but it’s extremely cloying and finishing a full can would be hard for me to do. Fold Two is that there are actually “pearls” in the can so the first time I drank one was very shocking and because you’re drinking a milk based beverage your mind automatically goes into curdled milk/unnatural clumping of things territory and it’s perturbing. However, pausing a beat and realising what you’re drinking is a lot better. They don’t taste bad – but they’re clearly agar based and not tapioca, so the texture is more of a tendon-like texture than soft and chewy/gummy. I hate agar based pears because of that texture (I think it’s because, as a non-meat eater, it puts me in an uncomfortable mindset) so I didn’t enjoy the presence of the pearls at all.

Ultimately – would I drink this again? Nope.

Very glad I tried it though because it’s weird and interesting in the best way.

tea-sipper

Imagine if someone isn’t expecting the pearls in the can AT ALL.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

People who liked this

Comments

tea-sipper

Imagine if someone isn’t expecting the pearls in the can AT ALL.

Login or sign up to leave a comment.

Profile

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...

Following These People

Moderator Tools

Mark as Spammer