March Sipdown Madness

In my brackets, this tea was paired off against Kusmi’s White Anastasia.

This was actually my first time trying this tea, and based on the dry leaf aroma I had very high expectations for it. Despite an ingredient list featuring a lot of things that I’m not a fan of, the aroma of this tea is pure, robust and sweet wintergreen extract. Like, it goes HARD on the wintergreen. That seemed right up my alley!

Unfortunately, steeped the intensity just doesn’t match the dry leaf aroma. I could probably sit and smell the dry leaf for hours without tiring of it, but the steeped tea is just fine. Certainly not unpleasant, and most of those touchier (for me) ingredients don’t come out in the taste which is a relief. Just not nearly the punch of wintergreen I had anticipated. Not close.

Ultimately, I picked White Anastasia as the winner.

Mastress Alita

This is one of my favorite teas. I just get “rootbeer” from it; must be the mix of cherry bark/sarsaparilla/wintergreen. I recently sipped down my stash just because I’d rather restock fresher, but it was an enjoyable few months of evening cuppas.

DrowningMySorrows

I’m not all that familiar with Tea Runners. Do they blend this themselves? I ask because I was under the impression that it was a Montana Tea & Spice (in Missoula, MT) creation. It’s sold EVERYWHERE here under the MT Tea & Spice name but it wouldn’t really surprise me if they were trying to claim credit for someone else’s blend, honestly. Other MT Tea & Spice teas I’ve had are seriously underwhelming but people here rave about them because it’s a local company.

Mastress Alita

TeaRunners are out of Portland and wholesale tea from several different sources. TeaSource sells Evening in Missoula as well (which is where I get it) and they are out of Missouri. Considering Montana Tea & Spice has a pay-by-the-pound retail catalog on their website (and I don’t see anything else) that seems to indicate they are a wholesale supplier (that is, they sell their tea blend to other tea businesses/companies, who may resell in their own packaging, price points, and even rename the blends) which is very common in the tea industry.

DrowningMySorrows

Thanks, Mastress Alita. I get confused about the origins of some teas with the giant wholesalers and companies putting their own brand name on things.

Mastress Alita

I do too! It could also be that all three of those are getting the blend from yet another source… it can be hard to tell sometimes!

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Mastress Alita

This is one of my favorite teas. I just get “rootbeer” from it; must be the mix of cherry bark/sarsaparilla/wintergreen. I recently sipped down my stash just because I’d rather restock fresher, but it was an enjoyable few months of evening cuppas.

DrowningMySorrows

I’m not all that familiar with Tea Runners. Do they blend this themselves? I ask because I was under the impression that it was a Montana Tea & Spice (in Missoula, MT) creation. It’s sold EVERYWHERE here under the MT Tea & Spice name but it wouldn’t really surprise me if they were trying to claim credit for someone else’s blend, honestly. Other MT Tea & Spice teas I’ve had are seriously underwhelming but people here rave about them because it’s a local company.

Mastress Alita

TeaRunners are out of Portland and wholesale tea from several different sources. TeaSource sells Evening in Missoula as well (which is where I get it) and they are out of Missouri. Considering Montana Tea & Spice has a pay-by-the-pound retail catalog on their website (and I don’t see anything else) that seems to indicate they are a wholesale supplier (that is, they sell their tea blend to other tea businesses/companies, who may resell in their own packaging, price points, and even rename the blends) which is very common in the tea industry.

DrowningMySorrows

Thanks, Mastress Alita. I get confused about the origins of some teas with the giant wholesalers and companies putting their own brand name on things.

Mastress Alita

I do too! It could also be that all three of those are getting the blend from yet another source… it can be hard to tell sometimes!

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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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