Noël à Montréal

Another great blend from Dammann Freres, while I loved this blend it is not for everyone. This blend has a lovely balance of orange, anise, and a touch of maple sweetness. If you don’t like anise, you probably won’t love this blend. I really liked it, it was perfect for me.

This was a sample that came in my recent DF order.

I feel like this may be an unpopular opinion (perhaps I’m a chestnut snob?), but something about DF’s chestnut flavour doesn’t sit right with me. It seems to come off as woody/musty. I had the same issue with Oolong Châtaigne, sadly.

Otherwise, I can get definite star anise and hints of chocolate. Safely removing this one from my wishlist!

Dammann Frères Advent 2021 – Day 15
This chestnut tea sounded so good on paper that I ordered it along with my Advent calendar so I’ve been drinking it for a few weeks now. I love chestnuts but at first, I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. It’s a great tea, I just wasn’t sure if it was my type of great tea. But I keep coming back to drink it so obviously this is working for me.

This tea has such a strong personality. It’s unique. It’s very rich and layered with so many flavors that it keeps it interesting. The chestnut is not the freshly roasted chestnut kind you get on the street in winter, it’s more like candied chestnut. And surprisingly, I like the maple syrup here.

The marriage between the chestnut the chocolate the pastry and maple syrup definitely makes you feel like you’re eating a rich dessert like a Mont Blanc, Angelina’s teahouse famous dessert. It’s thick and rich and sweet. It makes me think of chestnut buttercream and chestnut meringue in a sweet buttery crust. OK clearly I’m hungry! It’s delicious, but it’s strong.

I need to remember to not sweeten it too much. It’s a perfectly Wintery tea and it matches its name nicely. I can’t say that I pick up too much on the green apple or clementine, but it might be what keeps it from being too sweet or too rich.

I think I’ve decided that I prefer this without additions. Milk seems to perk up the star anise.

The flavours of the blend cohere better and more smoothly when the tea is drunk black.

I hope I remember this next time.

Dammann Frères Advent 2021 – Day 15
&
Mastress Alita’s sipdown challenge Wednesday, December 15th: International Tea Day

Second time trying this and I like it even more. There’s so much going on in this but all simply works as cohesive whole to create a pretty unique chestnut tea. The anise, chocolate, clementine, and maple are also popping in and out as secondary components today.

I enjoy this one a lot but don’t think I’d be able to work through a large quantity, just because it’s a super heady/rich tea – especially with the anise. Every now and then, around winter time, would be a treat though!