326 Tasting Notes

68
drank Qi Feng (Organic) by DAVIDsTEA
326 tasting notes

(note: I think this is the same as Feng Shui: http://steepster.com/teas/davidstea/12951-feng-shui-organic . But this is sold under the name Qi Feng)

Smell: Dry leaves remind me of dark chocolate (weird!). Tea liquor smells more like the tea description of sweet and smoky.

Flavor: Very pleasant, the smoky flavor is comforting. Vegetal flavor has a lot of “warmth” to it. Seems like a good tea to drink in the winter.

Aftertaste: Sweetness lingers for a bit

Steeps: 1

Preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 2 min, 30 sec

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80

Smell: Before brewing, the leaves smell sweet and silky. Tea liquor smells like typical oolong

Flavor: I like how the buttery and vegetal flavor is very faint, but it enhances the creamy flavor. Its a very tasty, with mild flavor, that ends on a sweet note.

Reminds me of: Somewhat reminds me of DavidsTea’s milk oolong, but the flavor doesn’t jump out at you.

Steeps:3 (+ rinse)

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

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85

Amazing flavor, I didn’t really expect something like this from an oolong.

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 6 min, 0 sec

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80
drank Black Needles by DAVIDsTEA
326 tasting notes

Smell: Before and after brewing, it smells like a standard black tea, maybe a bit “woodsy”

Flavor: Nothing strange here, just a pleasant, very smooth and kind of earthy black tea. I could easily drink this all day, multiple days throughout the week. To me, the best characteristic is how smooth it is.

Reminds me of: Other black teas I’ve tried, except much more soothing.

Aftertaste: No bitterness, just a hint of the initial flavor

Memorability: Very

Steeps: 2 (both were flavorful, resteep was 5 mins)

Would I buy this again?: Yes. I’ve actually refilled this 3 times so far, and will continue to do so.

Other notes: Out of all of the plain black tea that DavidsTea carries (excluding Lapsang Souchong), this is without a doubt my favorite.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 30 sec

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55

Smell: Dry leaves remind me of grape flavored bubblegum, which makes my mouth water. Brewed, it smells like flowers and grape juice.

Flavor: For me, the scent of the dry leaves builds up an unrealistic expectation. Its a strong scent, and then when I drink it, its very light in flavor. I’ve done this at a low temp and a high temp, either way I have not really enjoyed the flavor.

Reminds me of: Liquor reminds me of DavidsTea’s Champagne (also a white tea)

Steeps: 1

Would I buy this again?: No, this tea just isn’t doing it for me.

Other notes: The package says to do 94 C. at 4-5 min. I’ve always thought the liquor came out too strong & dark. Turning down the heat made it taste better, but with a loss of strong flavors. In my opinion the taste is not a good value at $11.75 for 50g. If you are really curious about trying this, I recommend getting a small size in store (25g)

Preparation
160 °F / 71 °C 3 min, 30 sec

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81

Smell: The loose leaf smells like Lapsang Souchong and malt. Brewed, a bit more like a smooth black tea with the previous qualities.

Flavor: Everything I expected from the scent of this tea. The flavor doesn’t disappoint me at all. Unlike how some other teas will “tease” you with the a wonderful scent.

Reminds me of: Camping, campfires, my previous experiences with Lapsang Souchong

Aftertaste: Smoky, kind of reminds me of mushrooms

Comforting or Refreshing: Comforting, especially now in winter

Steeps: 1 (I don’t usually resteep smoky black teas anyways)

Would I buy this again?: This isn’t going into my permanent stash, but I would certainly get more in the future.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 15 sec

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74

I don’t drink a lot of pu-erh, but found this enjoyable. I’ll probably write a longer review after I go through the 25g bag.

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

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Smell: Dry leaves smell kind of sweet. Brewed it smells really “clean” and has a bit of sweetness to it.

Flavor: Very clean, smooth, a little earthy. No strong flavors, its soft and fluffy.

Reminds me of: Spring

Aftertaste: Soft vegetal flavor lingers for a bit.

Comforting or Refreshing: Both? It’s refreshing, in that it reminds me of Spring and is kind of “cheerful”. Comforting because its very smooth and the earthiness relaxes me.

Steeps: 1

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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67
drank Barberry Fling by DAVIDsTEA
326 tasting notes

Smell: Dry leaves and fruit smell very zesty. When its brewed, it reminds me of NeoCitran. :(

Flavor: Tastes like a picturesque spring morning. I don’t really associate flavors with seasons, but the sencha and barberry evoke memories of it. It just tastes really “fresh”.

Reminds me of: Spring, and every time I’ve been sick and have drank NeoCitran. ;)

Aftertaste: There is a hint of sencha, but its not a strong aftertaste.

Memorability: Its memorable, but it reminds me of a cold medicine so that isn’t great.

Comforting or Refreshing: Refreshing

Steeps: 1

Would I buy this again?: No, not unless my husband wants more. He seems to enjoy this much more than I do. Its not awful, I just don’t care for it.

Preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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70

Smell: Have you ever tried those jellybeans from Jelly Belly? This smells just like their pear flavored jellybean.

Flavor: Like biting into a really juicy pear (but not as refreshing). I can tell that there is some green tea in the mix, but its very mellow. Its like throwing some pears into a salad. I don’t think pear is a particularly strong flavor, but once my senses pick it up, it tends to stick out.

Reminds me of: It tastes like sencha, but does not really remind me of any other teas.

Aftertaste: This sounds weird, but its kinda zesty and tingly in my mouth. Almost minty. The pear flavor lasts awhile.

Memorability: Pretty memorable, especially the smell.

Comforting or Refreshing: Comforting

Steeps: 2

Preparation
170 °F / 76 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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Profile

Bio

Feel free to add me on Steepster, I’ll probably add you back. :)

I don’t log tea every time I drink it. Tasting notes tend to be about either one style of brewing or a new experience. It is helpful for me to look back on my notes and see what a tea tasted like or which steeping parameter worked best for me. I try to mostly short steep tea unless it only tastes better with a long steep. I’d rather experience what a tea tastes like over 3 or 12 steeps than just 1 to 3 long steeps.

When I write “tsp”, the measurement I use is a regular western teaspoon. Not a tea scoop

How I rate tea:

99-100: Teas that blow my mind! An unforgettable experience. Savoured to the last drop. I felt privileged to drink this.

90-98: Extraordinary, highly recommended, try it and you won’t be disappointed (and if you are, mail me the tea!)

85-89: Wonderful, couldn’t expect more but not a favourite.

80-84: Excellent, a treasured experience but not a favourite.

70-79: Good but could be better. Above average.

60-69: Average, unexceptional, not something I would buy again. Slightly disappointed. I’d rather drink water.

50-0: Varying degrees of sadness

No rating: Mixed feelings, can’t decide whether I like it or not, not enough experience with that sort of tea to rate it. A dramatic change of heart.

Location

Ontario, Canada

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