16790 Tasting Notes
Cold Brew!
I actually drank this 24oz cold brew split over the course of two days because I wasn’t really feeling it the way I usually do. It didn’t taste bad or anything, but just wasn’t hitting as hard. Perhaps there was some cognitive dissonance happening because it’s not really tropical tea weather in Montreal right now and I’m so in the weeds with advents. But it was smooth and buttery with very coconut cream forward flavour and then more of that light, sweet pineapple juice note in the finish.
Cold Brew!
December is always weird for me when it comes to cold brews because I never know if the teas I open for advents are gonna be cold brew suitable so I don’t really start a cold brew until I’ve opened the advent teas for the day and decided if I’ll be making any of them that way…
As a result, I do drink less cold brew than any other time of the year. But this was one I made in a non-advent cold brew day and it ended up being a really nice little refreshing treat for myself to come home to after a long day. I love that this is basically like a more elevated lemonade. Not as sweet, but with a bit of pucker still and then that very characteristic yuzu peppery and pithy undertone and finish.
I’ve nearly sipped my way through this box of Korean yuzu peel, and I will be SAD when it is gone…
I figured I’d use the extra time I have while on vacation to catch up on tasting notes for the few teas I’ve snuck in around my advent teas since the start of December…
This is one I had early on – mostly because I packed it into a DIY advent I made for a coworker with a tea from a different tea company each day of the month. We both felt similarly about it in that it’s quite buttery and milk oolong forward. I get some of the hojicha in the undertones – a lighter roasty toasty flavour that leans into the “bread” part of the milk bread. I do feel like it’s missing a little something though. Sweetness, I think? Most milk breads I’ve had either have elaborate toppings or even just a simple condensed milk drizzled on top.
Adventageddon Day 18
Not my favourite tea from DF, but not bad either. It’s just busy. Like, it feels as if there are many one too many thoughts or flavours happening here and it comes off quite strong and a bit perfumey. Jasmine. Bergamot. Multiple tropical fruits. Oof.
But, that said, I really enjoy Dammann Freres’ mango flavouring in just about anything they put it into and all of the other tropical flavours are pretty good too. They compliment the jasmine well, and the combination is really fresh and aromatic. Yes, arguably too aromatic. If only they had just removed the blergamot I feel like this could have been quite harmonius.
Today’s Advent Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DDvFf6my37O/?img_index=1
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O174kR4eDrg&ab_channel=VillagersTV
Adventageddon Day 18
This is a tea I am quite familiar with and though I would normally prefer to drink this tea iced or cold brewed it was too chilly for that today, so I had it hot instead. This tea will probably never dethrown Cranberry Pear, which is my all-time favourite blend from DT (and probably my favourite pear tea of all time), but I was actually surprised how much I loved this cup. I don’t even know when the last time I had it hot was, but I was glad I’d switched things up so that I got to re-experience it!
Today’s Advent Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DDvFf6my37O/?img_index=1
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qf-hRCqxQrU&ab_channel=JermangoDreaming-Topic
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 and feelings regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Flavors: Candy, Floral, Juicy, Orchid, Papaya, Pear
Adventageddon Day 18
Deciding what to do with this hojicha was really tough because I love it so much and knew that with today’s weather I was reaaalllyyyy going to want to lean into that toasty and snuggly feeling. I almost did a giant Western teapot since I’ve been loving doing that in the afternoons the last few days, but I was also craving a latté and none of my other teas today made sense to be made that way. So hojicha latte with strawberry marshmallows it was! Very delish.
Today’s Advent Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DDvFf6my37O/?img_index=1
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyzGdNHypkU&ab_channel=TomWebber-Topic
Adventageddon Day 18
Grandpa Style!
This tea, which is the one from Tea Thoughts for the day, was my standout today. I think this is partly because of the weather today which was very cold, clammy and right on that awkward middle ground of not being snow but not being rain either. So, having a cozy mug of something grandpa-style brewed was just well timed. But I’ve been craving a good raw pu’erh for a couple days now as well as, and even though I haven’t loved a lot of these more experimental roasted pu’erhs from W2T I still thought this was very interesting and it scratched the sheng itch I’ve been feeling.
Today’s Advent Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DDvFf6my37O/?img_index=1
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XK16atZKLWM&ab_channel=Tommy%26Roy
Flavors: Absinthe, Bitter Melon, Grilled Food, Herbs, Honeydew, Roasted, Smoked, Wet Wood, Woodsy
Gongfu!
Enjoying a session of this one as I continue to slowly make my way through this recent tea order! This unique cultivar brews up such a beautiful mahogany red liquor with subtle purple undertones to it. Not in taste, but it does kind of remind me of blueberry skins. Even more so in person compared to how it looks on camera. The liquor is very, very thick, and there’s a little bit of bitterness (not a complaint) in the top notes that likely comes from just how heavy-handed I was when portioning out my amount of tea leaf. I’d describe the body of most steeps are quite rich and woody with a mix of oak and apple skin notes that trail off into a more heady, aromatic and rose-y floral finish. At a few points I got just a bit of fleeting sandalwood. Quite complex!
I slept in today for the first time in what feels like months and took a bit of an advent detour with this first gongfu session, so it’s going to be a busier afternoon playing catch up. Well worth it, though!
Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DDugt9dpwqv/?img_index=1
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHbNtOc1oxc&ab_channel=Vilde-Topic
Adventageddon Day 17
I think this was my least favourite of the day, though it wasn’t bad per say so much as just not quite for me? You wouldn’t know it by the name but it’s essentially a chocolate chai. I’d say the chocolate notes are pretty up front and honestly quite nice though they did have a bit more of that fruity sort of undertone that I taste quite commonly in chocolate blends originating from Europe. North American chocolate teas are a little different, which just reflect the overall variances in regional palates.
As far as the spices go there is a lot happening and not really in a bad way, but just lots to pick up on if you sit with the flavours more consciously while drinking. I think the licorice-y sweet and coating taste of the anise and fennel is pretty strong and it does latch onto the chocolate in a way that borders on cloying – though I didn’t personally feel like it crossed that line. Other notable spices are the aromatic cardamom which brings a slightly pine-y and citrusy menthol note to the finish and I find really nice with the chocolate and the peppercorn which is, well, peppery.
Probably my least favourite thing was that the sip was kind of astringent/drying and I’m not really sure why? But it was leaving this sort of papery feeling on my tongue as if I’d just licked cardboard. Not in taste. Just in feel. So that was kind of meh.
Today’s Advent Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DDsgx80yZkj/?img_index=1
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haeQB7RagcI&ab_channel=TeenageDads-Topic
Adventageddon Day 17
Back to back black tea days from Inoki made me quite happy today – I feel like they’ve really consistently knocked it out of the park with their black sections. I had no time for gongfu today though, so this was a Western style teapot that I brewed up at work and shared with my “pod” of desk mates.
I think I could have pushed the steep time a minute or two longer, but I’m still really happy with how this one tasted. Very bold, brisk and woody with near perfect undertones of smoke and bittersweet dark cocoa.
The coworker I shared this with doesn’t drink a ton of straight teas. Though, I mean, way more than the “average” person given that we work at a tea company and she’s been here for nearly a decade – her preference just happens to usually be blends. However, straight black teas are probably what she leans towards the most when it comes to traditional teas and though she’s modest and would deny it I think she has a pretty discerning palate. I’ve yet to find a more smoky tea that she likes, so I was very pleased that she enjoyed this one as much as she did. Made sharing it all the worthwhile!
Today’s Advent Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DDsgx80yZkj/?img_index=1
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5BfciHOUrc&ab_channel=ZBerg
