16396 Tasting Notes
Iced tea!
This one was a little weak as an iced tea, but still quite pleasant. Most dominant notes were the pineapple and cinnamon, but there was also still quite a lot brown sugar, lemon, and hay/straw from the base white tea. I wish it had more body/flavour as an iced tea, but it did make for a nice, crisp refreshing cup that was fruity but a bit of a break from the typical fruity iced teas I’ve been drinking as of late.
This is sort of a “dual” review, if you will.
This year DT sold ‘hot chocolate on a stick’ in three different flavours, and one of them was a dark chocolate infused with Candy Cane Crush. I’ve been eyeing up that one for a while now, so I finally caved and bought one. I decided I was going to melt it down/infuse it into a hot mug of the latte mix – for extra candy cane goodness!
It was actually delicious! Very sweet, of course, but a smooth and thick dark chocolate and peppermint/vanilla sort of profile. Really decadent and indulgent, as well. The only downside is that I couldn’t get my chocolate to completely melt down. Most of it did, but there was definitely some that just sort of stayed as these little melted ‘beads’ of dark chocolate floating on the surface of the mug. Sort of a weird textural thing, but still delicious. Also, bought some of this latte mix for at home – just for lazy times/moments when I was sweet tea yummyness with minimal effort.
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.
It’s baccckkkk!!!
Out of all the teas that DAVIDsTEA released in 2017, this one is unquestionably in my top five favourites – I stocked up SO HEAVILY on it because I was just really scared that it’d never come back. However, it soft launched in stores earlier in the week as a core tea in DT’s collection so I no longer have to hoard my stash!
I celebrated the glorious return of this tea by making a huge iced cup of it with a heaping dollop of frothed milk on top, and a honey drizzle! Sweet, creamy perfection to add to the smooth, sweetly earthy and softly spicy profile of the tea! I love the subtle, warming spices alongside the carrot and mellow pineapple notes. It’s so great.
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.
Made this one up as a latte!
This was a lot more spicy tasting in straight milk than it came across in eggnog so I actually ended up diluting my latte a third of the way through with a lot more milk as well as sweetening it with some honey just to cut down on the intensity of the turmeric/ginger/cinnamon notes, and after I did that it was a lot more enjoyable. Before hand it was just a little too intense for my delicate white girl taste buds.
The main thing in this that I’m not really into is the taste of the black pepper though; I get it’s in there to sort of ‘activate’ the turmeric’s wellness benefits or whatever but the taste of it just distracting for me. It ALWAYS pulls me out of the cup. Plus, it does a weird textural/mouthfeel thing that gives the softest bit of “grit” to the cup and I’m just not having it…
But otherwise this is a nice, warming latte.
Cold Brew!
I’ve been WICKED CRAVING the rhubarb in the blend for weeks now. Like, every time I scoop it for someone and I smell the rhubarb I get mad thirsty and I just like hone into all those yummy, spongy rhubarb pieces. This is something that in the past I’d had lots of in my stash though, and I don’t remember it SUPER fondly so I’ve been hesitant to make it in store or buy some for home. The other day was employee shopping day though, so since all employees got an extra bonus amount off our normal discount I decided it was a good time to get a VERY SMALL bag of this to bring home to revisit. Low risk…
As a cold brew? Actually much better than I expected it to be! I swear, DT must have changed the formula for this from the last time I owned it (which would have been like two years ago) because it’s got a MUCH stronger presence of rhubarb; both visually in terms of the size of the rhubarb pieces present but also in the flavour which was actually really richly rhubarb heavy. Also very strong in terms of the strawberry flavour, and surprisingly sweet/creamy! I mean, still tart both from the rhubarb and surplus of hibiscus but not like what I was braced for. Basically, it tasted like that I wanted it to taste back when I had that large quantity of it on hand that I wasn’t super into.
Yeah, either my tastes have just changed over time (totally possible) OR the formula for this one has just been slightly tweaked since I last owned this one. Anyway; it was a nice brew and definitely satisfied the craving I had been having. Knowing me, I’ll probably be good now for at least a few months…
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.
Iced!
I wish I’d gotten to drink this one in a bit of a more relaxed environment but that’s just NOT the case when you work in retail at this time of year; and in a management position no less. Just stress, and awful customer interactions abound…
I got this one for essentially no cost during Teavivre Black Friday sale; I had enough points and gift cards that I really only had to pay around a dollar overall for my order and shipping. I had never tried one of Teavivre’s herbal blends before so I thought it was a good opportunity to give one a go; I chose it mostly for the pineapple in the blend. I’m a sucker for pineapple.
Ultimately I thought this was pretty good; definitely a mostly pineapple and hibiscus/roselle flavour but that’s what was advertised to me so no surprises there. What did surprise me is that as the ice melted over the long period of time I was drinking this (had to sneak sips in between hours of helping customers) I started to taste more of a peach-like quality. I mean, peach and pineapple worked surprisingly well as a pairing with the much more tart hibiscus but I just wasn’t sure where that note was coming from.
I will have to further explore in future tastings.
It’s opening weekend of the Last Jedi – at least for a few more hours.
I was going to go see SW:TLJ on opening night; I’m a pretty big fan of the series in general (I mean, you’d hope so since I have a Star Wars tattoo) but Friday was also the day I found out my phone got stolen and, like, well life stuff happened. Now I’m kinda hesitant to shell out the money to see it right now ‘cause I know in the next few days when I finally get around to replacing my phone that’s gonna be a BIG expense. Ugh! Fucking money…
So, while I wait to be able to watch the movie in theaters I’m drinking a cup of this tea instead as, like, a nod to the series I guess? Or like, just to be thematically appropriate? I don’t know, really – I just thought it felt right.
I liked this one the first time I tried it, and I’m liking it now too. I just skimmed my first tasting note, and it looks like what I’m experiencing this time is meshing pretty damn closely so I’m not gonna both really expanding on what I’m getting now past the fact it’s basically just a very smooth Nutella-like flavour with some almond stuff happening too. I think anything further would just be repetitious.
Last tea of the day today, and man have I had a day…
So, last night I left my phone at work. Not the end of the world; I knew it was on the counter and the store was locked up – it was safe and secure, and I worked the next day so I knew I could totally grab it when I got in to work. So, I got in this afternoon and immediately started rummaging through the counter drawers. I could NOT find the phone. So, concerned I turned to the ASM Paige and was all “Uh, hey – did you see my phone here this morning?” Paige got so pale, so fast – and that’s when I knew something was wrong. I guess this morning, right after the store opened, one of our tea guides/associates had seen it on the counter and very loudly said something to the effect of “Hey Paige, who’s phone is this?” – nearby customer then turned to her and claimed it was her phone/thanked Rachel (the tea guide) for pointing it out so she didn’t forget it. Then promptly left…
By the time I’d started work for the day Rachel was gone, so I gave her a call and very hesitantly asked her to describe the phone she found. Yup; matched mine PERFECTLY. That fucking bitch of a customer stole my fucking phone! I mean, it’s password protected and actually quite old (almost six years old!) so I figured maybe just maybe they would have taken a closer look at it after leaving the store and realized it’s worth like nothing/they couldn’t get into it and abandoned it as customer service/mall security but nope. I called it several times today, but whatever bitch stole it has it turned off. I also checked FB Market/Kijiji/Varage Sale and all the like to see if someone had listed it on any of them in an attempt to sell it, but no such luck. I’ll keep checking…
So, I guess tomorrow before I start work I have to go figure out this damn phone situation. I’ve never lost a phone before, or broken one for that matter. What’s the fucking process here? Clearly I’m gonna need a new phone because I’m sure this one is completely lost now but can I transfer my plan over or anything? I literally have NO CLUE how this works; it’s been SO LONG since I last got a phone. I mean, it’s literally six years old so the last time I got a phone/set up a plan or contract I was sixteen years old. And I definitely had parental help doing it…
HOW DO I ADULT?!?!
Also, obviously I’m not mad at Rachel – I think in the same situation I probably would have done the exact same thing. Like, that fucker played Rachel so badly/took advantage of her kindness but also had some BLOODY QUICK reaction time too. Ugh! It’s just such a fucking headache…
But at least the tea has been good today. Had it not, I don’t know that I could have made it through an hour long shift without snapping at someone – I’m pretty proud of myself for keeping my cool today even with good tea. There were photos on my phone I hadn’t backed up yet that meant a lot to me, and a few phone numbers/contacts that I don’t think were backed up either that I’ll never get back. As well as tons of text history, including some from friends and family who have since passed away…
Anyway; the tea! I’ll keep it pretty brief since I’ve ranted/rambled enough but it was very, very smooth and sweet with good, velvety mouthfeel and medium bodied notes. The body was a mix of sweet red fruit notes, honey, hazelnut, mineral, wood, caramel, some sort of sugar glaze, malt, and baker’s chocolate with a strong bread like note that I’d describe as some sort of mix of sweet bread and Easter Buns/Hot Cross buns. You know, the ones with the sweet sugar “cross” along the top and bits of candied fruit. The finish is the same lovely mix, but a little weaker/watery.
Overall, there’s A LOT going on but it’s really delightful and it’s as nice of a note to close out the day on as I think I’ll be able to manage tonight. I just have to set the frustration of it all aside right now, and deal with it tomorrow. However that works out…
Just, fuck.
You don’t have a tracker app set up if it’s a smart phone do you? This made me so mad reading this, something very similar happened to me about two years ago.
Why would somebody do this?! Ugh, people are the worst. I’m so sorry.
That sucks, Kelly. People are terrible. I know a guy in my residence who found an Iphone and was going to keep it but it had a passcode so he was like “fine, I’ll turn it in since its too much effort to unlock” and then thought he was such a good guy for not stealing someone’s phone.
This person is worse since they actively stole your phone and I guess hoped it would be unlocked or something. Just keep your eyes on the sale sites for a little bit since the person might wait to post it and then you can at least catch the jerk who did this.
As for the process now, I think it all depends on your phone plan and such but most people will try to help given your phone was stolen, at least that has been my experience with broken/lost/stolen phones. Just go into the store for your service provider and talk to customer service and explain the situation and most likely they’ll walk you through the process.
@Lexie, it’s not a smart phone – so no tracking :/
My iphone got run over by a car (I’d dropped it without realizing in front of my house). It was a pain, but in the end it was an opportunity to get a new phone! Maybe an upgrade is in order to treat yourself after having to go through this. :-)
:(
Nothing like an early morning cup of Darjeeling to ease into your day with!
2nd flush is definitely my preferred flush of Darjeeling – primarily because of that lovely grapey/muscatel note that’s so prominent and unique. I think this one is showing its age because it lacks some brightness but it’s still really enjoyable overall. Very smooth, with muscat notes and notes of other red fruits like pomegranate/currant with honey undertones and really, really gentle malt and whisps of floral undertone. Not as much as you’d get from 1st flush, though.
It’s actually really lovely how I’ve been able to stretch out this sample – and there’s still at least another cup (possibly two) to come in the future even yet!
I wish I’d taken better notes on this one ‘cause it was actually pretty interesting, and I think the combination of things in this blend is really unique/intriguing. Like, they’re all ingredients that work together but also you can split them up in any combination and they all work as flavour pairings too:
Vanilla pear? Check. Ginger pear? Check. Chocolate pear? Check.
Vanilla ginger? Check. Vanilla chocolate? Check.
Ginger chocolate? Check.
I just remember thinking that it was impressive how all four main flavours were so clearly represented/present, and how this is definitely more of a rooibos blend than a black even though there’ black tea in it. I don’t know; I’ll take better notes next time.
