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Tea 106: Preparation, Consumption, and Health Week Four!

This week’s class was prerecorded for us ’cause our instructor was having some technical difficulties; focus of the week was the technical aspect of brewing different styles of tea in a teapot, Western style. Nothing new to me, honestly.

Cuppings for the week included: A Silver Needle, Pan Fired Green, Ti Kaun Yin, Kenyan Orthodox Black, and some Rooibos – all things I’ve cupped in various other courses with the exception of the rooibos. This was the first time in any of my courses, thus far, where we’ve looked at herbal teas/varieties other than Camellia Sinensis and Camellia Assamica. It actually brought up an interesting conversation though among my classmates…

How would you describe the taste of plain (red) rooibos? Personally, I think it’s quite woody and maybe a little nutty? Sometimes with a peppery finish. However, more than one of my classmate compared it to cigarette smoke which is something I’ve never experienced with rooibos. Thoughts? Anyone else get that flavour?
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Scheherazade
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I’m with you – rooibos is woody, sometimes a little nutty. Smoke rang a vague bell with me, though, and now I’m trying to remember which rooibos blend it was that I thought that about. Maybe it’ll come to me.

Kaylee
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I also usually get a woody, nutty flavor. Oddly, the rooibos flavor wheel does not include nutty, but does include smokey. I’ve never noticed even a hint of smokiness in rooibos though.

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Scheherazade
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I’m with you – rooibos is woody, sometimes a little nutty. Smoke rang a vague bell with me, though, and now I’m trying to remember which rooibos blend it was that I thought that about. Maybe it’ll come to me.

Kaylee
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I also usually get a woody, nutty flavor. Oddly, the rooibos flavor wheel does not include nutty, but does include smokey. I’ve never noticed even a hint of smokiness in rooibos though.

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Hello! My name is Kelly, though many people in the tea community call me Ros or Roswell.

I am a mid-twenties tea addict, blogger, and all around nerd. I grew up in the Prairies, but a few years ago I relocated to Quebec to pursue a career with DAVIDsTEA in the tea industry! I’m still working on getting my French language skills down…

My first introduction to tea, in any form outside of instant and bottled iced tea, was about seven years ago when I happened to stumble upon DAVIDsTEA while looking for a birthday present for a friend! I tried their Birthday Cake rooibos blend, and I’ve been hooked on tea ever since! In those seven years; I was introduced to the online tea community, expanded my interest in flavoured teas to include a deep love and appreciation for straight teas and traditional brewing methods, got a tea themed tattoo, started reviewing teas, amassed a sizable tea and teaware collection, became a TAC certified Tea Sommelier, & even came full circle by beginning a career in the tea industry with DAVIDsTEA!

I consider myself a Jack of all Teas, and strive to have a knowledge and appreciation of all tea types, formats, and styles of drinking. I don’t like to feel boxed in to just being a “flavoured tea” or “straight tea” drinker – my expectations may vary depending on the type of tea or how it’s been processed/prepared but if it’s good tea, it’s good tea no matter how it’s been made!

You name it, I probably drink it- and I’ll absolutely try anything at least once.

My default method of preparation is hot, Western style, and straight – but I’m not opposed to additions if I’m in the right mood. If I ever add something to a tea or use a different method of preparation I will ALWAYS call it out in the tasting note though.

I like to listen to music when drinking tea, especially when I’m brewing a large pot at a time or steeping Gongfu. Often I curate very intentional tea and music pairings, and sometimes I share them here in my tasting reviews. Music is something that I find can deeply affect the experience of having tea.

I’m also one half of the “tea and fandom” podcast GeekSteep where, weekly, we discuss newly explored fandoms over tea as well as try to figure out the perfect tea to pair with each fandom. You can find us on Spotify and Apple & Google podcasts.

Favourite flavour notes/ingredients: Pear, lychee, cranberry, cream, melon, pineapple, malt, roasty, petrichor, sweet potato, heady florals like rose, hazelnut or walnut, sesame, honey (in moderation), and very woody shou.

Least favourite flavour notes/ingredients:
Lemongrass, ginger, strongly spiced profiles (and most Chai in general), mushrooms, seaweed, chamomile, stevia, saltiness or anything that reminds me too much of meat that isn’t supposed to taste like meat…

Currently exploring/obsessed with: Sheng from Yiwu, Yancha (Qilan in particular), anything with a strong sweet potato note. Also, I need to try ALL the root beer teas! Searching for a really good caramel flavoured blend, ideally with a black tea base.

Please contact me at the instagram account listed below if you would like me to review your teas.

Currently I’m employed in the tea department of the DAVIDsTEA head office. While I’m still sharing my own personal thoughts on new & existing DAVIDsTEA blends, I am no longer numerically rating them due to the obvious conflict of interest. Any comments expressed are a reflection of my own thoughts and opinions, and do not reflect the thoughts and opinions of the company. Any DAVIDsTEA blends you currently see with a numeric score were reviewed prior to my being hired there and have not been adjusted since becoming a DAVIDsTEA employee.

Location

Montreal, QC, CA

Website

https://www.instagram.com/ros...

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