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Sipdown (117)!

Thank you for the sample TheLastDodo! This is so something I wouldn’t have picked for myself but when I was cooking supper tonight I suddenly found myself with such a craving for green tea. How odd for me! But, this was the perfect thing to satisfy that craving.

The dark twisty leaves are beautiful, first off. Dry I didn’t get much of a smell – it kinda smelled, to me, like most straight greens do – a little grassy. That is, if they don’t remind me of seaweed – which this one didn’t. I made very sure to steep it at the correct temperature, though my steep time was dreadfully inaccurate. I was aiming for two minutes – but I got distracted chopping up peppers, and I think what I ended up with was closer to a five minute steep?

Still came out spectacularly though – not even a little bit bitter or astringent which, to me, was shocking given that I personally have the most trouble brewing greens and am usually very receptive of bitterness when it comes to them.

Most notably, this was a very, very creamy and buttery green tea. It reminded me strongly of buttered green beans – sweet, creamy and so smooth going down. Something I used to eat all the time at my Grandma’s house during the summer. And following the same sort of mindset, when you got past the rich flavour there was a gentle earthiness underneath and extending a little into the aftertaste – like beans straight from the garden which haven’t been washed yet. Fresh, raw, and natural. For me, this is something you’d drink in the early afternoon outdoors right when spring is on the cusp of becoming summer.

And I loved it. I really, really did!

So far it’s the only tea I’ve had today – yesterday I got more dental work done (only nine fillings left to go – yay?) and afterwards could really only stand cold things, so I just had my daily cold brew. Good news is that today my mouth feels perfectly fine! Usually I’m in pain for the next couple of days following getting work done, so it’s a welcomed change.

Today, I had to spend a few hours running around getting stuff done like getting my new work pants hemmed – ‘cause they were like a foot longer than my legs. Major tripping hazard! I also didn’t sleep a wink last night, so I spent a LARGE portion of today taking long naps. Not much has been accomplished; oh well…

TheLastDodo 10 years ago

Yay! Not yay to the fillings, but yay to easygoing greens!

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TheLastDodo 10 years ago

Yay! Not yay to the fillings, but yay to easygoing greens!

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Bio

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

I am a twenty five year old proudly queer tea addict, blogger, and all around tea geek. 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 preperation 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.

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.

Tea Pet Reference Guide:

Clay Pixiu Dragons: Zak & Wheezie
Clay Goldfish: Dot
Clay Monkey: Enzo
Jade Pixiu Dragon: Whitaker
Ruyao Carp: Splashy
Ruyao Banana Man: Pheobo
Ruyao Dragon: Pablo
Ruyao Frog: Bebe
Sculpted Pig: Nelly
Sculpted Tuxedo Cat: Pekoe
Sculpted Tabby Cat: Marmalade
Ceramic Rabbit: Rupert
Ceramic Stringray: Irwin
Ceramic Horse: Bergamot
Ceramic Snail: Snicket
Ceramic Cat: Saffron
Wood Fired Man: Leopold
Brass Mouse: Stilton

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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