10238 Tasting Notes
This was the second tea that I had for the #SeptemberSipdown prompt for the day, which was to pair a tea with all of the food I ate throughout the day. I had this with my afternoon snack/lunch which was two granadillas drizzled with some honey right from the honeycomb…
In truth, just because my fingers got so sticky eating the fruit and honey combination, I mostly ended up eating my snack first and then washing it down with the tea after I’d washed my hands. It was the type of pairing where it works because you’re combining two similar things (in this case tropical fruits), thus doubling down on that flavour. The tropical notes in the tea were actually really good – I tasted mango and pineapple and the slightest hint of an underripe banana type of flavour.
I had worried that this might be a bit too “busy” and that it would be hard for all the flavours to come through and, if they did, for it to also be harmonious. I was wrong though; the tropical flavour was bright and sweet but equally matched to a toasty and comforting popped rice note as well as warming cardamom and ginger. I think maybe what really kept it all meshed was actually the cardamom, which can sometimes have a citrus-y flavour that would compliment those tropical notes really well.
Whatever the reason, on paper this seems like it shouldn’t work but it really did and it’s actually one of the better Genmaicha I’ve had from 52Teas in a LONG time – even though they usually are all quite good.
I just topped up a nearly empty tin of this tea with a really fresh batch of this tea, and it was perfect timing because the #SeptemberSipdown prompt today was to pair a tea with every meal you had throughout the day…
I actually ended up really not eating much over the course of the day, but the first thing I had was leftover caramelized onion and pineapple poutine from last night’s takeout. I really love lemon tea paired with that sort of “bar food” because they do such a good job cutting through the fat and greasiness of the food, and this one was a particularly awesome combination because the hint of spice worked well with this savory dish and the pop of acidity from the lemon went well with the tangy, sweet pineapple.
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 and feelings regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Cold Brew!
Finished off my night, yesterday, with this tea and it was really refreshing! This has really become a staple part of my tea cupboard and in particular I’ve been drinking a lot of it over the last few weeks as the weather has begun to change. I like it best hot either straight or with a little bit of milk, but having it cold brewed was quite nice too. It’s always really nutty, and this time I got lots of almond notes. However, it also had just a bit of a red fruit note as well. Switching from the old rooibos DT carried to this one was such an incredible move!
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 and feelings regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Iced Latte!
…yes, you read that right. The #SeptemberSipdown prompt yesterday was to make a tea you dislike in a creative way & this might just be my least favourite tea that DAVIDsTEA carries. It’s not that I have a distaste for DT’s Gyokuro in particular, but in general I just really dislike straight green teas – and of all the different straight green teas out there both Sencha and Gyokuro are really right at the top of my list.
I don’t think my creativity was really out there with this prompt, but it is true that a lot of people would find it VERY blasphemous to make a Gyokuro as a latte – let alone an iced latte. In fact, a lot of people I work with in the tea lab were very perturbed to see me making this as an iced latte. I did toss in some raspberries though, to fancy it up a bit and hopefully introduce some flavours to make this more palatable.
I’m sad to report that even in iced latte form, I still really dislike this tea. I tried though, and that’s the important part! It’s okay to not enjoy things, but tastes do change over time so a check in every once in a while can be good too.
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 and feelings regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
Couldn’t resist buying the two teas from Zadiko Tea Co/Zach from Try Guys notoriety – even though neither of the flavours actually sounded particularly like something I would enjoy. It’s one of those SUPER RARE times that a Youtuber that I like actually has merchandise that falls into my category of interest, so I felt like I had to support…
I will say, even for Youtuber Merch standards, this was very expensive tea. When you compare it to anything else in the commercial market with a similar profile, of which there are MANY teas because neither of these two flavours are particularly unique at all, it’s crazy over priced. I know they’re Organic & part of the shipping cost is clearly built into the pricing but even still it’s high. More “experienced” (for lack of a better word) tea drinkers will know that, but the more “casual” (again, for lack of a better word) fans of The Try Guys who aren’t familiar with LLT or know there’s comparable tea already on the market probably wont fully understand how much this is marked up – and in a way that’s saying something because the mark up on tea in general is already pretty ridiculous…
Anyway, all of that aside, the tea is pretty good if you’re a fan of the spices in the blend. I am not. It’s just a really intense, spicy ginger with a hearty punch of earthy turmeric. I do not like ginger, but if I did I think I’d feel pretty satisfied with the level of intensity and how naturally “zesty” the ginger is. I think it fits appropriately in the “breakfast tea” category because is has the boldness that most breakfast teas do, which is sort of good for shocking you awake with flavour. It would also probably take nicely to milk.
My main thing, aside from the overpricing and the fact that it’s just not a flavour profile that speaks to me personally, is that the one thing in the blend I actually thought would appeal to me (the sarsaparilla) wasn’t noticeable at all. I really wish I’d actually been able to pick up on that flavour, it would have been such a nice offset to all of the spices!
Grandpa Style!
I’m going to have to revisit this one Gongfu because I just don’t think this brewing style did this tea any favours. It wasn’t really unpleasant, and it had some roastier and nutty notes, like walnut, but more than anything else it was deeply mineral and almost metallic tasting and I just didn’t love the way those flavours lingered on my tongue after each sip. I don’t know for sure, but I just have a gut feeling a different style of brewing would mitigate that quality.
Sipdown (1117)!
I finished this one off earlier in the week at work, and it was nice because it felt appropriately autumnal but at the same time I did find myself a little bit let down by the lack of carrot flavour in the cup. It was just a little bit too much warming spices, in particular nutmeg, and not enough of the flavours that the blend is ACTUALLY named for.
It was just the right time to finish it off.
Cold Brew!
One of the oldest teas in my stash at this point, so I figured that I should probably work on sipping it down. It’s pretty flat/stale now, and the cold is completely missing but the light lime note that’s held on is still really refreshing!! I think Bird & Blend has discontinued this tea now, which is sad – I liked this one a lot at one point in time, I just wish that it didn’t go flat so quickly.
They brought it back just for the Christmas in July Sale this year, but it sold out ridiculously fast — I’m not one of those people that can be arsed to get up at ridiculous hours my time to hit the beginning of the sale UK time, and by the time it was reasonable hours for me, it was already gone, except for samplers (though I did get a sampler, because I’m always wildly curious about any pop/soda/cola teas)!
Cold Brew!
After brewing this I topped it up with a couple splashes of heavy cream, and then I sipped away at it during my commute in to the office. It was not as intensely roasty as I remember it being, but I’m sure that’s in part because dairy just softens flavours. With the cream it tasted like a chocolate and orange marshmallow, which just gave me warm and gooey nostalgic Butiki memories. I was happy with how this one came out.
Gongfu!
Broke into this cake this afternoon!! Wasn’t sure what to expect from this tea, but I found the flavours well rounded and smooth! After having Astro Red & Arbor Red quite recently, it does lack the bite/tannin that I enjoyed so strongly in those teas but it makes up for it in very well balanced notes of malty cocoa, sweet & tender honeyed white peach, and syrupy red fruits w/ an undertone of something that feels bordering on tropical! It steeped out quickly, but the first four steeps were lovely!
Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/CFna9wiAeYs/
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GR3Liudev18&ab_channel=ChappellRoan
