7 Tasting Notes

86

I like to think I’m not a snob who is biased against bagged teas just because they lack the utter sophistication that is a loose leaf tea. There are definitely a fair share of bagged teas out there that can run my loose leafs around the block. However, I find that it is easier to justify buying fancy loose leaf teas which you may not be able to find in tea bags as opposed to something like green tea, which is significantly cheaper when bought bagged than it is loose leaf.

Green tea is one I would recommend that you try loose leaf. The flavour it steeps is worlds apart from any bagged tea I’ve had. In fact, green tea steeps better the less smothered it is by paraphernalia. I personally find that there is a notable difference between steeping it with an infuser and putting it directly into the cup.

In my game of favourites with teas, green always wins. Everything that I’ve heard people tell me about the flavour they hate, I love. I like it’s simplicity; its smoky, earthy bitterness. The nice thing about green tea is that it caters to people who like their teas both strong and weak because it’s flavour is proportional to steep time. I like my teas strong and flavourful, because it takes a lot of kick to get my taste buds dancing. The boy-toy prefers his tea so light I wonder why he doesn’t just drink hot water. This tea works well for both of us.

This tea is definitely a safe tea to keep in the cupboard if you’re looking to serve something to guests this winter. It’s has a very aromatic, crisp taste. It also has very good re-steepability. I tend to steep my first batch for anywhere between five and ten minutes and I can still get two, if not three batches out of one teaspoon. If you are a light tea drinker, you can get by with one or two teaspoonfuls drinking only green tea all day. I haven’t tried it yet, but I surmise this tea will work well with a touch of lemon. I can’t comment on honey since I don’t like sweetened teas.

I like to think of this tea as one of my more feminine teas. It pairs well with all the womanly indulgences like dark chocolate, vanilla (or cookie dough) ice cream, salted chips and popcorn. It’s also a great morning tea because it has the same bold kick most breakfast teas have, just appealing to the green palate.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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67

I sure hope tasting notes don’t overwrite previous ones. A friend of mine served me plain green tea with some lemon in it recently and I really enjoyed the bitter and citrus flavour that soaked into the tea from the lemon peel and flesh respectively.

Today when I was look for a tea to steep for the roommate and I, I came across Sencha Pear in my cupboard and thought that a lemon slice would pair well with tis tea. It does. The lemon bitterness of the lemon goes well with the aftertaste of pear, and the hints of citrus add a nice harmony to the tea.

It’s a great sipping combination.

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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67

This tea steeped for a long time. I recently discovered that I like the flavour of green tea when it is steeped without an infuser; being too lazy to strain, I drink my greens traditionally, with the tea leaves in the cup. I don’t like my teas piping hot, so this tea has a long time to steep. I reckon this may have led to a more green tea experience than advertised on the label. Luckily I love Sencha; my daily go-to tea.

Sencha pear has an interesting aftertaste. It tastes like a bitter pear essence coupled with sencha rather than the fruit itself. It steeps a gorgeous color and has a nice mild taste with a lingering aftertaste. Had I not steeped the leaves without an infuser I would likely have been able to get two or three good cups out of each tbsp (plus or minus half depending on the strength you want steeped).

It’s a great sipping tea for anyone with a penchant for slightly bitter tastes. I enjoyed my first cup of it today.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 8 min or more

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70
drank Opposites Attract by DAVIDsTEA
7 tasting notes

I find this tea caters to your taste buds. It has a variety of teas in it and you taste what you want to. I generally pull peppermint as a high note, with undertones of green tea. My roommate tends to taste strong notes of green tea couples with the earthy pu’erh.

I like this tea for multiple reasons; it’s very versatile. It tastes great hot because the pu’erh grounds the mixture well. It also tastes fabulous cold because the peppermint is amplified making the tea very refreshing. It’s a great summer tea when it’s iced and I reckon it’ll be a good autumn tea that can carry you into the winter because of the dark pu’erh and mild green tea. It works well as both a morning tea and an afternoon tea, which comes in handy if you carry these teas to work. Lastly, it smells great in can and cup, which is always a bonus.

This tea also pairs wonderfully with peppered food if you’re looking to take your spice up a notch. The peppermint and ground pepper mix to make firecrackers dance across your tongue. If you enjoy spicy food or are looking to pull out the peppers in your food (because you sick perhaps, like I am today) then this is your tea.

If you are looking for a new autumn tea, I’d recommend trying this one.

P.S. This resteeps well.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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70
drank Toasted Walnut by DAVIDsTEA
7 tasting notes

This tea reeks of comfort. It smells warm and inviting in a way that could be almost irritating if you’re in a bitter sort of mood. It is reminiscent of vanilla scented candles and cookies right out of the oven. If you could taste the feeling of a warm fireplace on a cold autumn day, it would probably smell like Toasted Walnut.

I steeped this right before bed and the mild nutty flavour and vanilla scent have put me into a nice pre-sleep coma. When the steams settled a little (because my tastebuds can’t discern any flavour from most teas when they are piping hot) this tea tastes faintly of walnuts (I don’t pick up any notes of coconut, despite the frequent mentions of it.) and even more faintly of green tea. The undertones of green tea complement the stronger walnut aftertaste quite well.

While this tea doesn’t steep as strong a flavour as I’d like, it is one of those teas I turn to to make me happy when my go-to teas fail me. I’d recommend this to anyone who likes vanilla or baked goods, or usually veers away from nutty teas and is looking for something different to try.

P.s. This pairs well with ginger-cinnamon cookies.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 8 min or more

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18
drank Jumpy Monkey by DAVIDsTEA
7 tasting notes

I bought this tea for a boyfriend almost a year ago to help him get through his long student nights and he loved it. In fact, a year later, he still loves this tea and swears by it for an energy boost before a workout or to get him in a creative mindset to write. So, I steeped some today because I had a terrible night of sleep and thought it would be the perfect start to my day.

Sorry to say, Jumpy Monkey is probably the most disappointing tea I’ve tried from Davids Tea to date. It smells wonderful and perhaps that’s why I was so disappointed when it turned out to have such a lack lustre taste. Initially, it has a mild taste of cloves but over time it turns out tasting like… leaves. It leaves a taste in my mouth that I imagine would resemble the taste of chewing on fallen autumn leaves. It also leave my tongue feeling waxy and oily which I didn’t quite appreciate first thing in the morning.

To be fair (and recognize that I may have done something wrong, as this seems like a cult favorite), the tea does go from bad to worse as it cools. Next time I’ll steep it in much hotter water to see it it makes a different to the brew, and also play around with the steep times. But for now, I’m ecstatic that I did not let the charming sales associate talk me into buying 100g of this tea.

Other than the taste, the tea does everything it claims. It is an instant energizer which lasts in the system for a long time. However, in my world of teas I can easily find a replacement with a better taste.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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80

CEG is a great afternoon tea. I tend to like strong teas and therefore steep mine longer than recommended. I also tend to let my teas cool off before drinking them. For undetermined reasons a lot of teas taste like hot water to me if I drinking them piping hot.

This tea is unique in my collection in that I prefer to drink it hotter than the most. The hints of vanilla tend of disappear after the tea has cooled leaving a much stronger bergamot aftertaste on the tongue. (I for one don’t dislike it’s flavour, but it seems to be an unpopular one.) In a lot of ways this is a darker, cozier version of the Countess of Seville. Although, if I’m not mistaken that’s the bergamot talking.

CEG is a recent acquisition and I have a feeling it will make a fabulous winter mid-day pick me up. It one of the few things that has me looking forward to my first encounter with a truly frigid winter. It has the warm familiar feeling of curling up with a book on my favorite chair watching the snow fall.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 6 min, 30 sec

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Teas are my sanctuary. They show me and save me from the world.

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