Quince Charming

So strange, in the store, sniffing from that top pocket/compartment of the canisters, this smelled so floral, almost like rose Turkish Delight. I was delightfully surprised since I thought this would be fruitier.

The tea in my pouch, however, is like a completely different tea. Very close to their discontinued Cranberry Pear. It smells like that but not as creamy, much stronger in the pear-like aroma, but more artificial.

Two cold brews later and I’m done, left unimpressed. I had to mix it with club soda to tone down the sweetness and chemical flavours because alone, it was way too cloying. The flavour also resembles Cranberry Pear, but more artificial. Artificial apple pear candy. Eh.

I love quinces, a friend of mine brought a bunch back from Iran and I’ve been cooking and making jam with them ever since. So I pounced on this when I saw it was Davids Tea of the Month.

The scent of the dry tea is odd and bit overpowering, it’s a very sweet, almost bubblegum like smell. There a bit of that odd perfuminess in the flavour, especially as the tea cools but there’s a sour undercurrent (thanks hibiscus). I can taste the actually quince flavours, the closest thing I can compare it to is a mix of pear and apple, but there’s just something off about the flavour profile that I don’t care for. It’s coming across as too artificial and sweet maybe.

Cold Brew Sipdown (135)!

So this is apparently meant to be like a ‘spiritual successor’ to Cranberry Pear? I kind of get that ‘cause Quince is a little like pear, but I’m also skeptical at the same time. Cranberry Pear is one of my all time favourites teas from DAVIDsTEA and it’s sorely missed…

Actually, this doesn’t taste bad. It’s very potent and I definitely, definitely taste the quince which is coming off as a strong, floral pear type of flavour. It’s also apple-y, and I suppose that between the two it sort of evokes the pear notes in Cranberry Pear. However, it’s just too strong. The thing I really appreciated about Cranberry Pear was how naturally creamy that blend was, and the silkyness of it. This is bold and not all together super natural. Like, it does have that vague “chemically enhanced”/artificial vibe. Also, the hibiscus! I get that the tartness of the hibiscus is probably meant to be a little like the cranberry in CP, but it just doesn’t meld together as nicely with the quince.

Sorry, but this doesn’t work for me. It’s probably not 100% fair to be comparing it to Cranberry Pear so directly, but what other choice has DAVIDsTEA left me? You’ve discontinued one of my favourite blends, and even the staff members say this is meant to kind of replace it. Of course I’m going to draw comparisons, and when you get down to the brass tax this just isn’t as good as CP was…

Floral, apple bubblegum. Is that a thing? I don’t do floral teas so I knew this would most likely be a miss for me as soon as I sniffed the contents of the little sample bag I received from a teapal.

Another reviewer said it was syrupy, and I’d agree. It’s sweet but not sickeningly sweet to my tastebuds. There’s a lot of apple flavor, but it reads apple candy to me (not fresh apple). The quince is adding a little bit of tartness that’s really quite present in the back of my throat at the end of the sip. It’s also adding a bit of pear-like flavor but not much.

It’s like a tart, floral variation of Honeycrisp Apple.

The aftertaste reminds me of pink liquid penicillin. Blech. No thank you.

I was pleasantly surprised by this tea! It tastes almost bubblegumy? But, peary and apply, and citrusy…just yum.

It smelled very fruity in the bag, however the aroma and flavour of the steeped tea is floral with a lot of sweetness from some sort of stone fruits. I do not taste and tea at all.

It steeps a very attractive rich orange colour. The initial taste is slightly tangy but mostly fruity and then you are left with floral and sweetness after swallowing.

Wow, it’s been a long time since I tried a new tea :P

As far as this goes, I’m not sure how I feel about it. It’s sweet. Like REALLY sweet. I don’t know if it would be better iced, because it really is quite syrupy. Definitely a strong pear tastes, but it also reminds me of bubblegum and banana candy.

Overall, okay, but not really my thing.

It’s perhaps a little flowery for my tastes, but I do appreciate that the tea is drinkable without adding any additional sweetener, it is quite naturally sweet.
It’s certainly a unique mix of apple, pear, and flower flavours.

This tea is so good! It’s got a lovely level of sweetness without adding any additional sweetener and the smell is incredible! It can be hard t steep it just right but it’s very tasty! Super floral and it hardly seems like a black tea at all!

I went to DavidsTea today at the mall to get one of those new iced tea steeper travel mug (which is AWESOME btw). I was just sad that they ran out of the pink ones after just one day. The teal will have to do for now until I can get my hands on a pink one then my boyfriend can have the teal one. It was a sweet deal because you also got a free 50g of loose leaf tea if you purchase a travel mug until April 11th! AND you got a free iced tea of your choosing. I got this tea. It was awesome at first then it tasted different. I don’t think I like the quince fruit. I was able to finish the drink but I made a sour face every time I took a sip lol