DAVIDsTEA

Finally finished with my pre-spring break projects and tests. Got my order from Davidstea in the mail this morning. Perfectly timed! Now I can have new tea and pistachios as a reward for getting through it all. (Plus, I got all the samples from the Spring collection I wanted to try. Gotta remember to try those before they go away this time. XD)

Now I’m not going to lie, I was looking forward to this tea. Mango salsa is probably one of my favorite things ever. I opened the bag, and it smelled absolutely intoxicating.

Now first of all, maybe its because I’m from Texas, but this doesn’t have any spice in it. At all. I mean, my throat is kind of warmed after drinking it, but not really. Maybe a shot of Tabasco would liven it up? Ahaha, I can’t believe I even thought of that.

Secondly, the mango in this tastes like Juicy Fruit. Seriously, maybe its just the way I brewed it, but the resemblance is uncanny. I’ll try steeping it a bit longer next time to see if that helps the flavor any.

Overall I’m pretty disappointed by this. Admittedly my expectations were very high, I expected to fall in love. As it is, its good, but its not the spicy mango I was hoping for. And for the cost to cup ratio of David’s Tea, I’m not sure it was worth it.

EDIT: Its getting spicier as it cools. Now THATS what I’ talking about Mango Diablo.

As I’m sipping this tea it reminds me of Glitter and Gold also by David’s Tea, reason being it’s a very great “spin on a classic black tea”. It’s one of those teas that is for someone who doesn’t like the taste of lot of “extras” in their tea, which I find is the same way I find glitter and gold. I’m not a fan of straight black teas for some odd reason and I find this is a great alternative when I want something a little toned down with a bit of brown sugar. Not my favourite tea but definitely one I’ll enjoy while it is in my collection.

Not really a lot of tangerine specifically, but I do really like it. There is a lot of citrus going on, and the green tea is nice too. The wife got me some for Christmas and I just had to order some more.

Not going to lie, this one is awesome! Nice and complex with all the spices. The pepper and cardamom work really well with the mint. I did find the tea wanted some sweetener, so I added a tsp of natural sugar. :) So good. In fact, the wife had an upset stomach last night and I made some of this for her. Helped her settle down.

I’ve very much fallen out of “love” with this tea. It’s a bit too sweet & floral for my preferences. But, I’ve only enough left for 2 cups, so I shall diligently drink it up to achieve another sipdown today. (Need to make room on my shelf for the Summer Collection!)

Added a bit of milk to the cup to try and mellow out the floweriness a bit, and I have to say I’m liking it a little better this way. I won’t change my rating, because there was time when I liked this better than I do now.

Broke my rule about having caffeinated tea after lunch on this one. I had to get the taste of a failed tisane experiment out of my mouth, and I knew that the heavier, malty taste of Love Tea #7 would do the trick.

When I first tasted this tea, I was in the midst of a chocolate tea phase. In comparison to some of the others I was enjoying at the time (Chocolate Orange, Red Velvet Cake, Read my Lips…) this one didn’t really stand out as super desserty. But now that I seem to be on a bit more of a light, fruity flavored kick, I can appreciate the richness that this blend has to offer.

Still think that a stronger strawberry flavor would be an improvement, though, so I’m leaving my rating as is. It’s just interesting how you notice different flavors at different times.

Backlog: It’s good, but not amazing. The dry leaves are certainly very pretty to look at, but as far as taste goes, I could do with more strawberries and less rose petals.

The smell of this is overwhelmingly chocolate (like, coworkers-stopping-at-your-desk-to-remark-on-the-chocolate, chocolate), but the flavor is not as intense as the smell. I’ll certainly enjoy finishing what I have of it, but probably won’t order it again, as I think there’s better chocolate teas out there.

OKAY SO. At first I liked this, but then I tried it again a few times and it kind of made me sick. Didn’t taste that good… then an hour later my stomach was killing me… probably unrelated to the tea, I did have some greasy pizza that day. Sigh, I bought a tin of this, so it will be around, maybe I will come back to it and re-discover my appreciation.

Great for mornings.

This tea is fantastic. I was looking forward to it after I read the description on steepster before it came out. In the bag it smells like a fruity bubble gum almost. I steeped it up hot and it was nice, but from the first sip I knew it was a tea that was meant to be iced. My next cup, I iced, and I was right, it makes for a beautiful iced tea… I am definitely going to get a tin of this guy to keep around for the summer so I can make pitchers of it… I suspect it will be delicious with Malibu melon rum… and cut up melon chunks for a pitcher of cocktails in the dog days of summer :)

This is actually one of my favorites. So I can’t understand why I haven’t written about it yet. I normally avoid oolong’s like the plague. I don’t hate them, but they just aren’t normally for me. I smelled this one in the store and immediately bought a tin of it. I’ve refilled that tin twice. I am sad they are not keeping it. It’s creamy and nutty enough to balance out the floral taste of the oolong. This was the first oolong to make me brave enough to try other oolongs.. I must say.. I was sad to see it didn’t make the cut to be a permanent tea :(

I don’t normally like oolong teas all that much. I find them very floral, and strange. I got this one after the sales associate told me it was amazing and to smell it. I instantly loved the creamy sweet smell of it and picked up 50g. I have been drinking it like crazy, as it is the perfect tea for any time of day! I am loving it! I am going to make a pitcher of it iced, and I think I may squeeze some lemon into it.

Had this one the other day – a sample that came with my last order, I guess? Truest pomegranate flavour in a tea, nom nom… though the seeds look nasty after you pull them out :P I put the whole sample in my mug and was glad I rounded up.

I got this tea while I have having a chocolate craving and one of the girls at David’s Tea recommended this. When I smelled it I was in heaven, all I could think was CHOCOLATE COVERED STRAWBERRIES I’M SOLD. So 20 grams into the bag and home I went where for some reason this does not taste like it smells. Took a whiff after steeping and was so excited, first sip was BLEHHH. What happened to my beautiful strawberries, or chocolate, I didn’t taste anything, just astringency and a really bad after taste. I gave this another chance and brewed it for less time in a little less hot of water and nope, couldn’t do it. I traded this tea with my friend who likes it and got kiwi’s big adventure and ceylon star from her instead.

This tea is weird…. It is sweet and tart, cinnamony and fruity. It tastes like a mishmash of favors, yet I don’t hate it. No, I don’t love it, but I don’t hate it. It is hitting the spot tonight as my nighttime tea. I am sure I will have no trouble finishing my 25 grams.

I drank this tea almost every morning during the holiday season! It’s delicious and the perfect refreshing mint tea to have in the morning. I feel weird drinking it outside of Christmas time, but still want to! Might have to buy a tin just to have around for cold SF nights.

This is a nice change-up for my standard English Breakfast tea. I love that it’s mild yet still gives off a warm sugary aroma. Add a bit of skim milk and some honey (major sweet tooth here) and it’s even yummier! It’s tough not to eat the little white chocolate chips straight out of the tin though.

Holy goodness I’m obsessed with this tea! It smells lovely right out of the package and the flavor itself is mild upfront, with a wonderfully tangy blueberry aftertaste that sneaks up on you. I add a small amount of skim milk and like it without honey, though I’d like to try some agave in it or maybe even some vanilla. I might also have to taste the blueberries out of the steeper… they do look delicious!

This is the fifth tea from the ones my cousin picked up for me. I didn’t do my note for the fourth yet.

This tea reminds me of camping, both in the scent & taste. I don’t know if its psychological, because of the name, all the berries. I don’t know. It even smells/tastes like pine.

Ugh this is so delicious & is making me long for camping, late night fires, saunas, berry picking. Too good for words.

First time trying a straight white tea. Really enjoyed this one. Was very light and floral-y. Very nice for a relaxing evening :)

I had this hot as an in store sample the other day and wasn’t particularly wowed by it. Then I stuck some the fridge overnight, and it was awesome. Thank you friend who convinced me this would be better iced and that I should get some anyways. You were right.

This is very much a mango tea; my 16g bag consists mostly of mango pieces with a reasonable, yet less apparent, amount of black tea leaves. It’s a heavier blend. The mango gives it a flat, fruity sweetness that is spiked up by the subtle, more tart pomegranate. The black base is also very subtle.

This cup is nice an refreshing and deserves a sunnier day than what we’re getting right now. Happy daylight saving time from the Pacific Northwest.

Sipdown! I might have over-leafed this a touch. It’s still pretty good, but the creaminess is missing. Need to do a re-steep.

I’m going to go through my cupboard and see what else I can finish off today.

I’ve had a lot of coconut oolongs lately, so decided to switch to vanilla today. Maybe my tastebuds have changed, but I think I enjoyed it a lot more than I did the first time I had it. Enough that when I finish off the small sample I bought (I have 1 cup’s worth left), I’ll likely replenish.

I preferred the first steep to the second this time. It was creamier, and the vanilla was more apparent.

The smell of the dry leaf is divine. Unfortunately the brewed tea doesn’t quite live up to its smell.

The first steep I had was a bit disappointing. Very bland. I didn’t give up, though, as I know some oolongs are better with the second or third infusion. I could detect more of a creamy vanilla taste in the second cup, which made it much more enjoyable.

Not my favourite, but definitely drinkable. I think I may try it again with a lower water temp and see how that goes.