Sweet Apple Cider

Made the decision today that I needed to stock up a little on this before it’s gone, because as herbals go, I like it well enough. So, 50g of this now resides in my DT drawer, plus 25g Pumpkin Chai. I almost got Pumpkin Cheesecake and Pumpkin Patch as well, but thought better of it – I mean, I got two pumpkin teas from Butiki today too – how many does one need?! (Don’t answer that.)

Anyhow, brewed some of this up to take the chill off of a rainy autumn day. And used my sweet DT Halloween mug, of course (it exceeds my expectations and is wonderful, in case you were curious). Man, I cannot believe how quickly things sold out. I was debating getting a second mug as a backup, but didn’t even have the chance to contemplate it. Ah well.

This tea still has a bit of a weird sour taste to it (it comes out initially, then fades, which is possibly contrary to what I originally said, as I remembered incorrectly), but it smells wonderful, and the aftertaste is pure vanilla apple. Also, no scratchy throat. So, I’m happy to have some set aside for later :)

ETA: Drank a few resteeps of this one, and the sourness was greatly diminished after the first infusion. I wonder if a quick rinse/10s infusion could help with that? Might give it a shot next time.

I was curious to try this one. It doesn’t look like fall yet and it was hot today but September is almost over so I’ve decided to get in the fall mind set. It is my favorite season after all. This is not specifically cider but it is definitely apple. It reminds me of a Jolly Rancher sucker.

Another tea from the fall collection! This one is a mix of little baby dried apple pieces, crushed dried green leaves, and other tiny stuff. Dry, it smells exactly like those green and brown Caramel Apple Pops that I see around the holidays. There’s also some vanilla in there too. I steeped almost 2 teaspoons for 5 minutes in boiling water.

Brewed, it still smells similar to those suckers, but with a bit more tartness present. Hmm, I’m not sure what to say about this one… It’s unexpectedly weak, considering I used a lot of leaf. The beginning of the sip is sweet and somewhat vague apple/vanilla melange, but then midway through I’m slapped in the face with a very tart, sharp green apple-y flavor. Yowza! And then at the end there’s a weird aftertaste that’s almost mineral or chalky in nature.

This is a weird one, and it seems such a simple concept to mess up… >>

David’s sent a sample of this in my order. I was mystified when I first tried it, because it tasted SO familiar and yet I couldn’t recall where I’d had it before. It didn’t taste anything like cider, despite its name. Finally it came to me; this is the exact flavor of Quaker instant apples-&-cream oatmeal.

I can see from the other notes this tea hasn’t been a huge hit, and I think if you are expecting cider, you will be disappointed. I am kind of nostalgically fond of that oatmeal though (I don’t think I could get something so sugary down now, but I loved it as a kid) so I am enjoying the flavor in this new form.

I made this iced after having it hot and I think this is how I prefer it. It has the same flavors as the hot version and ultimately I feel those flavors lend themselves best to a colder drink. Nonetheless, like all the other Fall blends this year, I am still not sold so the rest of my sample is going to a friend as my relationship with this tea has run its course.

The cider part of this tisane’s name is a misnomer. I tried a sample in the store, and was initially excited to have my first taste of cider for the impending autumn season. However, there was no cider flavour in there! Even a plain, unmulled cider has a very rich, musky, complex flavour, and this brew is clear, bright, and brassy. Totally not a cider taste. Additionally, I would expect a cider tea to have more of the mulled cider flavour, so cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, etc., none of which show up here.

In any case, it was still quite yummy. It tasted like apples right off the bat, but something else not quite identifiable. As soon as my friend said it tasted more like apple candy to her, I realised that was exactly it. This tastes like a green apple Jolly Rancher, but not as sugary sweet – it’s still very fruit sweet, though. It was a friendly little infusion, but unfortunately I don’t think it’ll be coming home with me.

Sweet Apple Cider is perfect for fall, the apple taste is just the right amount of tart and it’s seriously sweet enough on it’s own – which is strange for me because I’ve always got my agave nectar at the ready because I prefer most of my teas sweetened. One of the best of the fall line in my opinion.

Ugh. The scent of this tea holds so much promise, but it is just awful. It smells like yummy hot apple cider. It tastes like apples that have gone bad. The Peaches and Cream has the same awful flavor, I blame the little vanilla nuggets they put in. I love apple cider and this is an insult to cider as a whole.

I didn’t really know what to expect with this tea after seeing that some people haven’t been that impressed with some of DAVIDsTEA’s fall blends. The only other blends I’ve had so far this year have been the pumpkin chai and maple sugar. The maple sugar wasn’t terrible, but needed a bit more maple. I was curious about this one because apple cider teas always get me excited. Apple cider is the perfect drink for fall, but I haven’t been able to find a tea or herbal blend that fulfills my apple cider need. They’re either too sweet, too tart, too spicy or too weak. The real apple cider can be too spicy and have too much sugar for me to have at one time.

Now that I’m sipping this blend, I can say this is probably the most apple flavor I’ve gotten in a tea. Even still, it’s not very strong and remains quite watery. It actually tastes a little like pear at the start of the sip, but apple (including the tart skin) comes out at the end. I also taste a touch of spice, but only at the end as well. The majority of the sip is mostly watery apple with a heavy sweetness. I can’t really figure out what makes it so sweet, but it seems like it’s a rather artificial vanilla flavoring. I think this blend would be better without this as it makes it a little funky.

I’m not sure if I would repurchase this blend. A part of me wants to because it’s the most apple cider-like tea I’ve had, but I don’t really know if I like it enough to own a bunch of it.

Digging into more of the fall teas!

I think this is probably the one I was/am least excited about, except for maybe Maple Sugar. It just feels so redundant at this point; why do you need another apple heavy blend DT? You have so many. Seriously, just pick two or three and stick with them. I’d much rather the seasonal slot go to a favourite from last year or something a little more unique.

Steeped up, this was ok. It was definitely very sweet green apple candy with just the faintest tartness to it. Just enough to remind you it’s green apple and not red. There was also lots of vanilla which was a touch weird with with green apple (how dare you if you get your apples mixed up!) but worked out ok. On the whole I’d say it was more candy like/artificial. But in the aftertaste there was this sort of “crisp” apple realness to it just like you’d bitten into a very ripe Granny Smith. That was a nice little touch/aspect.

On the whole I think I’ll enjoy my sample, but this one will definitely not be a repurchase for me.