1
drank Chrysanthemum Flowers by DAVIDsTEA
6105 tasting notes

Thanks to Janelle for a sample of this tea! Another tea where I really have no idea what to expect, just a hope that it’s not completely like chamomile, haha.

And it’s not. But oh, is it WEIRD. And not entirely pleasant. There’s almost… a metallic taste to it. I did use a metal infuser basket since I was concerned the Finum would get all gross like it does with chamomile, but it must be a flavour from the tea itself, because I’ve never had an infuser impart flavours to a tea like this. So… doesn’t taste like chamomile, but does taste like metal has been leached into the water. I’m really not finding this good at all… O.o Dumping time. (Oh man, I just burped and it tasted like this tea/metal. I am so grossed out right now, you have no idea.)

ETA: If you can get past the metal association, this might be a reasonable tea. But it’s quite distinct, and making me gag, so it’s a big no-go.

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec
Lilysmom

That does not sound good….

Kittenna

It wasn’t. And actually, reading someone else’s post a bit later, it dawned on me what I meant – rust. It tasted like rust. Like well water with a lot of iron. But, doubtful that it’s the water given that it was the only tea of the four brewed up that had that flavour/aroma.

AllanK

While I have not tasted the David’s Tea version, Chrysanthemum Flowers are an acquired taste. They are earthy. If you have more sample try adding sugar.

JC

Chrysanthemum flowers are a completely different flavor profile than Chamomile for sure, but it should not taste like what you described :P They are very lightly sweet, but mostly medicinal and refreshing (not really camphor, but similar). I’m sorry you had to try something like what you described.

Kittenna

Hmm. Maybe I overleafed or something? It just tasted like a cup of rust/metal (plus other tea-ish flavours, but that was the predominant one). Sigh.

JC

It could be, but by the sound of the it I would go with the possibility that they were just old or not stored properly (happened to my first bag), I have mine well sealed now and it still tastes and smells the way it is supposed to after a year and a half.

JC

Or try 185-195 degrees, if you have some left. ;)

Kittenna

Well, improper storage is definitely a possibility. (Age less so, as they were only out from DT for a while.) They’ve been in a ziploc for a year. I do have some left, so maybe I’ll try the lower water temp too. Thanks for the suggestions!

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Comments

Lilysmom

That does not sound good….

Kittenna

It wasn’t. And actually, reading someone else’s post a bit later, it dawned on me what I meant – rust. It tasted like rust. Like well water with a lot of iron. But, doubtful that it’s the water given that it was the only tea of the four brewed up that had that flavour/aroma.

AllanK

While I have not tasted the David’s Tea version, Chrysanthemum Flowers are an acquired taste. They are earthy. If you have more sample try adding sugar.

JC

Chrysanthemum flowers are a completely different flavor profile than Chamomile for sure, but it should not taste like what you described :P They are very lightly sweet, but mostly medicinal and refreshing (not really camphor, but similar). I’m sorry you had to try something like what you described.

Kittenna

Hmm. Maybe I overleafed or something? It just tasted like a cup of rust/metal (plus other tea-ish flavours, but that was the predominant one). Sigh.

JC

It could be, but by the sound of the it I would go with the possibility that they were just old or not stored properly (happened to my first bag), I have mine well sealed now and it still tastes and smells the way it is supposed to after a year and a half.

JC

Or try 185-195 degrees, if you have some left. ;)

Kittenna

Well, improper storage is definitely a possibility. (Age less so, as they were only out from DT for a while.) They’ve been in a ziploc for a year. I do have some left, so maybe I’ll try the lower water temp too. Thanks for the suggestions!

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Bio

I have always been a tea fan (primarily herbals and Japanese greens/oolongs) but in the last year or so, tea has become increasingly more appealing as not only a delicious, calming drink, but as a relatively cheap, healthy reward or treat to give myself when I deserve something. I should clarify that, however; the reward is expanding my tea cupboard, not drinking tea – I place no restrictions on myself in terms of drinking anything from my cupboard as that would defeat my many goals!

My DavidsTea addiction was born in late 2011, despite having spent nearly a year intentionally avoiding their local mall location (but apparently it was just avoiding the inevitable!). I seem to have some desire to try every tea they’ve ever had, so much of my stash is from there, although I’ve recently branched out and ordered from numerous other companies.

I like to try and drink all my teas unaltered, as one of the main reasons I’m drinking tea other than for the flavour is to be healthy and increase my water intake without adding too many calories! I’ve found that the trick in this regard is to be very careful about steeping time, as most teas are quite pleasant to drink straight as long as they haven’t been oversteeped. However, I tend to be forgetful (particularly at work) when I don’t set a timer, resulting in a few horrors (The Earl’s Garden is not so pleasant after, say, 7+ minutes of steeping).

I’m currently trying to figure out which types of teas are my favourites. Herbals are no longer at the top; oolongs have thoroughly taken over that spot, with greens a reasonably close second. My preference is for straight versions of both, but I do love a good flavoured oolong (flavoured greens are really hit or miss for me). Herbals I do love iced/cold-brewed, but I drink few routinely (Mulberry Magic from DavidsTea being a notable exception). I’m learning to like straight black teas thanks to the chocolatey, malty, delicious Laoshan Black from Verdant Tea, and malty, caramelly flavoured blacks work for me, but I’m pretty picky about anything with astringency. Lately I’ve found red rooibos to be rather medicinal, which I dislike, but green rooibos and honeybush blends are tolerable. I haven’t explored pu’erh, mate, or guayasa a great deal (although I have a few options in my cupboard).

I’ve decided to institute a rating system so my ratings will be more consistent. Following the smiley/frowny faces Steepster gives us:

100: This tea is amazing and I will go out of my way to keep it in stock.

85-99: My core collection (or a tea that would be, if I was allowing myself to restock everything!) Teas I get cravings for, and drink often.

75-84: Good but not amazing; I might keep these in stock sparingly depending on current preferences.

67-74: Not bad, I’ll happily finish what I have but probably won’t ever buy it again as there’s likely something rated more highly that I prefer.

51-66: Drinkable and maybe has some aspect that I like, but not really worth picking up again.

34-50: Not for me, but I can see why others might like it. I’ll make it through the cup and maybe experiment with the rest to get rid of it.

0-33: It’s a struggle to get through the cup, if I do at all. I will not willingly consume this one again, and will attempt to get rid of the rest of the tea if I have any left.

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