15662 Tasting Notes
Cold Brew!
I liked this a lot as a cold brew last time I had it that way, but this time around I thought it was too strong and even had an astringency to it that I’d not expected. That said, it retained the nice honey sweetness in the top notes and floral undertones – it was just that the too concentrated vegetal body notes and that unfortunate astringency after the end of the sip killed the rest for me.
Not sure if I over leafed, allowed this to cold brew too long or a combination there of.
Broke into one of my new matchas yesterday; I was just really feeling like something nutty and sadly I’m all out pistachio matcha now so this was the next best option.
I made this one as a coconut milk latte. My hope for it was that it’d taste a little bit like peanut butter, similar to how DAVIDsTEA’s Nutty Granola Crunch does when it’s latte’d. I will say that it was really sweet, smooth and nutty in general but it didn’t taste distinctly like peanut to me: just generic nuts. Or, at best, maybe more almond than anything else? But not like an overly sweet marzipan almond; just regular ’ol almond. I have to at least consider that may be in part because the coconut milk also has a distinct taste that I could see muddling the flavour a little. It warrants further investigation of this new matcha in just straight water.
Like I said though, it tasted really good even if it wasn’t super accurate and ultimately taste IS the most important factor…
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwN-oL-b2Rg&list=LL1M1wDjmJD4SJr_CwzXAGuQ&index=11
Fuck yes for song mash ups! And good ones at that. I though the nuttyness of the blend in addition to the overall smoothness of it complimented this seamlessly executed mash up perfectly. Plus, it was up beat – a quality worthy of the buzz a matcha latte gives you.
Steepsted Western. Malty, marzipan notes with a cocoa finish. Very sweet, smooth, dark, full bodied, and beautifully haunting just like the song I paired it with…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHccClTAdzc&list=LL1M1wDjmJD4SJr_CwzXAGuQ&index=13
EDIT: Also, I added a small touch of honey.
Sipdown (212)!
Thank you VariaTEA for passing this along! I still find it weird that there’s a different version of Birthday Cake specific to Americans – is the Canadian version not good enough? It doesn’t hurt to try it though; as an employee I should know as much as possible about the different kinds of teas we sell.
Honestly though? When I brewed this one up I really couldn’t taste and real discernible difference between it and the Canadian version. It was still smooth, and very much like a creamy vanilla cupcake. If anything, I appreciate that this version has slightly less sprinkles because they don’t do much other than help the aesthetic of the tea leaf.
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eu0KsZ_MVBc&index=10&list=LL1M1wDjmJD4SJr_CwzXAGuQ
So smooth…
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Had a really nice mug of this the other night at work, with some added honey because the ginger was a little intense for my tastes after my first few sips.
The honey was a good addition; it’s a natural pairing to the ginger but also drew out the sweetness of the grapefruit. The latter was already fairly strong, but more of a semi-sweet grapefruit flavour with hints of tangyness/acidity. This made it pop more, and also seem juicier. I don’t regret getting more of this one, it’s solid.
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjfspM5sDIA&index=5&list=LL1M1wDjmJD4SJr_CwzXAGuQ
Don’t ask me why I think these two go together; I don’t have much explanation for it other than it was the grapefruit element of the tea that I thought tied in with this song. I don’t know; it’s catchy, and sort of weird? But in a whimsical way that just works.
Had this one hot during my last shift,
I was torn between this and another citrusy blend but one of my coworkers pointed out that we so rarely have this one in stock that I should take advantage of it. She was totally right; and so I did. It still greatly reminds me of sweet lime skittles but had some apple notes to it this time around as well. It’s not an immediate need, but once I finish off one of the white teas I’ve got in a tin right now this is what I’m going to replace it with.
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Just finished up this session literally minutes ago,
It was my last tea of the night tonight and this week’s Gong Fu session. I also made a lovely pairing/meal of it as well! I made another baked brie, but this time with a quince compote topping baked onto it and butternut squash maple crackers!
Here’s a picture of everything after the first few bites/first infusion:
You can also see my Kyusu in the picture as well! This was my first time using it, so my notes from this session not only encompass the tea and food pairing, but the teaware as well. Of course, as always, this is “stream of consciousness” style.
5 Sec.
- Some initial smokiness
- Vegetal: Spinach/artichoke
- Cheese is sweet, creamy and buttery
- Creates a nice overall “buttered artichoke heart” sort of thing
- And the quince is needed sweetness/fruitiness to contrast the savoryness/umami
- Crackers are nice but rather salty
7 Sec.
- It’s a little awkward since I’m left handed, but the kyusu pours really smoothly
- Vegetal notes getting stronger, a bit of asparagus now
- Some floral undertones?
- Don’t know if that’s from the quince…
- Or just exaggerated by the natural floral quality of the fruit
10 Sec.
- Really, really vegetal/umami
- Spinach, artichoke, brussel sprouts, asparagus, and a little smoke in the top notes
- Sweetness in the finish
12 Sec.
- Definitely underestimated how well this would pair together; but it all ties in so well
- Same as prior infusion but less sweet
15 Sec.
- Welp, the brie is officially finished…
- That just leaves some very vegetal green tea
- Now that I’m not eating the brie I get some nuttyness that I think was masked
- Also more asparagus
And that’s it folks; while I enjoyed the meal and tea immensely it was very filling and on top of that I’m not a huge green tea person so my green tea session never really go on too long anyway. I did really enjoy this green though! Also, it was really neat that it’s from Hawaii! While not my first Hawaiian tea I think this was my first Hawaiian green tea. If they’re all as smooth as this one, it’s something I’d definitely revisit or explore further…
Sipdown (213)!
Finished this one Gong Fu last week as part of my weekly Gong Fu session resolution that is still on going; I’m very pleased that I’ve been able to maintain the ‘1/week’ goal I set but I’d like to increase that to two a week eventually. Working towards that…
These are my notes from the session (stream of consciousness style):
5 Sec rinse, though it appeared to do nothing so I followed up with another 5 Sec rinse which did start to open up the bloom…
5 Sec
- Very light
- Has a super delicate peachyness to it
10 Sec
- Sweet peach & floral jasmine
- Some hay and a finish that tastes like nectarines
- Still light but not nearly as much as the first sip
10 Sec
- Bolder though still medium bodied, at most
- Strong floral front notes of jasmine and lily
- Peach/nectarine finish and supporting notes
- A little vegetal
15 Sec
- The same but more vegetal/jasmine
20 Sec
- Peach/nectarine/lily/jasmine
- Vegetal/hay
- Picking up something new in the finish but not sure what flavour it is
20 Sec
- Mostly nectarines and jasmine at this point
- Still getting that odd, new note; and I greatly dislike the taste of it
30 Sec
- A little sour in the top notes but otherwise the same
- Whatever the new note I dislike is, it’s only getting stronger
- And so even though there’s still life in the leaf I’m ending the session here
Also, I took a picture or two of the tea (before and during session):
https://www.facebook.com/resteep/posts/10209570183505376
This was originally meant to be a food pairing, hence the veggie hotdog. However I actually ended up finishing the hot dog before my water had boiled for the tea and so the pairing never really ended up happening. It was a good hot dog, though. You can kind of see the bloom in the second picture though; it was really pretty even if I didn’t end up loving the tea.
It’s a Christmas miracle, Steepster!
I was raiding my mom’s tea cupboard and I found a cup worth of this tea hiding out in the back. It was one of my favourite the year it came out, and has been dearly missed by me so of course I stole it to drink later. It’s been sitting in her cupboard for at least two years now (I think maybe three?), so she wont miss it.
I shared this one, with some added milk, at work with my coworker Kandyce who had never gotten the chance to try it before. Kandyce is actually allergic to cocoa, so she doesn’t really get to enjoy any of the mint/chocolate teas we put out but this one only had white chocolate in it so it’s alright for her to drink!
It was really good; the peppermint in this is just so cooling and strong even after such a long time since this was fresh. I like the really subtle spice from the peppercorns in it and of course, most importantly, it’s creamy and rich from the sweet white chocolate. I honestly thought I’d never get to try this one again unless it came back in a future winter collection so I’m just so happy this surprise cup was so enjoyable.
Although, weird note but both Kandyce and I agreed it kind of reminded us of white Tic Tacs, in a way. Though a pleasant one.
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Had a lovely teacup of this in the morning while I was making myself some brunch!
I was craving the sweetness of the pineapple, but because I wanted some creaminess too I added a splash of coconut milk. This is one of those teas where coconut milk is the perfect pairing because this tea already has delicious, sweet buttery coconut notes to it already. So, more than anything else it just really exaggerated those. That didn’t diminish the sweetness and candy like flavour of the pineapple though – if anything it just made it richer and more perfectly pina colada like.
Unrelated; the other show I’m really into right now is Riverdale! I used to read as many Archie comics as I could get my hands on in the summer when I stayed at my Grandma’s house; she owned a lot. So, Archie has always felt very nostalgic to me. It’s been the weirdest, but most pleasant, experience seeing the Riverdale world reimagined as this style of TV show. I’m just completely encapsulated by it all. The characters, though! Seeing what they’ve done with them has been the best part for me.
Even as a kid, my favourite character was Jughead. He was goofy, and sarcastic, and holy shit did he love food. I just adored him! And, I only related to him even more after he was officially announced as Asexual in comic canon. So, I’m so very thrilled that I’m just adoring Cole Sprouse’s take on him in this new series. It’s the perfect clash of genres, with just enough familiarity to the comics while being its own entirely separate thing. Some characters have gone through bigger changes, like Mrs. Grundy her story line on the show so far is undoubtedly the worst thing or Moose. However, Jughead still feels like Jughead to me, at the core of it all.But anyway, I made an aesthetic blog on Tumblr today surrounded around Riverdale’s Jughead character which you can check out here if you want: https://juggy-j0nes.tumblr.com/ Not gonna lie, I’m pretty proud of it.
