Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: David’s Tea
Product Description:
Have you heard about the new tea in town? She’s a looker alright: dark, robust, and seductive, with a heart of gold. And you didn’t hear it from us, but she’s even better with a little booze. She’s a luscious black tea, with deep caramel flavour from dried golden mulberries and spicy warmth from orange peel and cinnamon. Take her apple picking. Bring her to Thanksgiving dinner. Sit with her by the fire. You’re going to want her by your side all fall.
Taster’s Review:
When I first opened the pouch, I was a little surprised by what I saw. The dried golden mulberries look a bit like tiny honeycombs. I wasn’t sure what I was looking at! So, I hurried to the David’s Tea website to read more about this tea. Yep… those are mulberries alright. Big, whole, dried golden mulberries, blended with black tea leaves, bits of orange peel, and chips of cinnamon. It looks very festive, and it smells oh-so-good!
The black tea base is pleasantly strong but not too aggressive. It is brisk and flavorful, and provides a good, solid backdrop of flavor so that the fruit, caramel and especially the cinnamon can present themselves.
The cinnamon is warm but not too spicy. While it is the dominate flavor of the cup, because of the other flavors here, this doesn’t taste like a cinnamon tea. In other words, its not all about the cinnamon with this tea; instead it works harmoniously to accent the other flavors while offering a pleasant strength all its own.
The fruit flavor is lighter than the cinnamon flavor. I can taste the orange peel – it tastes citrus-y orange but not in an orange juice kind of way. If you’ve ever made a holiday cider using orange peels and spices, you know the kind of flavor I’m talking about. This, mingling with a hint of mulberry is quite nice and deliciously different.
The caramel is also quite light, but it does develop as I sip. The first few sips, I could barely taste the caramel, but, now, as I’m nearly finished with the cup, the caramel is there. Not a lot of caramel… but just enough to really round out the flavors of this cup without being cloy.
Some recommendations go along with this tea: first, be sure to give the package a good, upside-down shake before you open it and begin measuring. This will help redistribute the flavors. Second, use just a little more leaf than you’re used to. If you usually use 1 teaspoon for 1 cup of tea, use 1 1/2 of this tea. Finally, I recommend adding just a little bit of sugar or other natural sweetener to. My first couple of sips without sweetener really didn’t offer much flavor, but I noticed after a little bit of sugar, the flavors really came to life. I wouldn’t add milk to this because it might overwhelm the balance.
Try these recommendations and prepare yourself for a different approach to the usual orange spice holiday blend!
Mom’s Apple Pie from David’s Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: David’s Tea
Product Description:
This tea will bring you right back to your childhood. Thanks to the spicy aroma of cinnamon, the sweet smell of apples baking in the oven and the fresh green tea blend. Don’t remember that last part? Okay, so we added the green tea. It’s a great way to bring all the nostalgic flavour of mom’s dessert right to your mug. So wherever you go, you’ve got the warm memories…but not the calories. Mom would approve.
Taster’s Review:
This is absolutely fantastic. It really does taste like apple pie. All that’s missing now is a scoop of vanilla ice cream!
The dry leaf has large chunks of apple and chips of cinnamon stick along with long spears of green tea leaves. It smells amazing – the cinnamon is very dominate in the aroma but there are lingering notes of apple and pastry, too.
While the green tea seems a little lost in the fragrance, it is not lost in the flavor. I can taste the sweet, buttery taste of the green tea as well as a nutty undertone. These characteristics are very complimentary to the pie-like taste.
The cinnamon is the strongest flavor here, and I like the warmth it provides. It is sweet yet spicy. The apple comes through nicely too, it is sweet, and as I continue to make my way toward the bottom of the cup, I notice more of the tartness of the apple.
This tea is part of David’s newest Fall Collection, and it certainly does evoke thoughts of autumn. I like this one best hot, because it just seems more comforting and cozy when it’s a hot tea … although it is tasty iced too.
This one is a winner!
Secret Weapon from David’s Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: David’s Tea
Product Description:
This blend just might give you the edge you need to stay healthy. It’s a white Bai Mu Dan, so it’s naturally high in immunity-enhancing antioxidants. Plus it contains licorice and goji berries, a Chinese wonderfood reputed to have 500 times more vitamin C than oranges. The best part? The almonds and cocoa nibs. They don’t fight colds, but they make this an amazingly tasty weapon of choice.
Taster’s Review:
After quickly reading the description, I couldn’t help but think that this tea had a lot going on … maybe a little bit too much. The beautiful mix of nuts, berries, tea leaves and petals did little to assuage those thoughts.
But somehow, it works. The strongest flavors are the almond and chocolate – and that’s quite alright with me. The flavor of the goji berries is a distant note until near the end of the sip, where its tartness emerges and lingers into the aftertaste.
The licorice was barely noticeable until after the first few sips. And even now, I’m about halfway through my first cup, and I find that the licorice is still a bit hidden. It reveals itself in the aftertaste with a pleasant sharpness, but I can’t help but wish that there was just a little more licorice flavor. Then again, more licorice might upset the delightful flavors I’m experiencing now, so maybe not.
One might think that the white tea would be lost in this sea of strong flavors, but, to my surprise, it isn’t. The white tea comes through, very crisp and clean. It seems to add a taste that I’d compare to a breath of fresh air wafting through the other flavors. It adds a refreshing lightness to the cup that I really like.
If this is “health food” – consider me a health food junkie! YUM!
Chocolate Chili Chai from David’s Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: David’s Tea
Product Description:
Is winter giving you the shivers? Try this fiery southwest chai. A blend of black tea, chocolate and Ancho and Aleppo chilis, it gives new meaning to the term “hot chocolate.” But despite sweet roasted corn and lily petals, it’s not for the faint of heart. Spicy notes and an extra-hot finish mean you should only drink it if you love to feel the heat – otherwise, you’d better get out of the kitchen.
Taster’s Review:
When I think “chai,” I think masala chai blends which usually consist of the basics: ginger, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. There are sometimes variations to the basics, and sometimes other ingredients are added, but these are the four main ingredients that come to mind when I think chai. Now, granted, chai actually means “tea” so, you can have a plain Ceylon and it would be a chai, but, for me, chai has come to mean a spiced tea.
This tea forces me to re-think my ideas about chai, because there is no cinnamon, ginger, cardamom or cloves here, and yet it is called a chai. And to be honest, even though this is a bit different than what I would expect from a chai, it is really good. REALLY good!
The chocolate is the strongest flavor here, and that’s quite alright with this chocoholic. It tastes sweet and creamy and rich. But what is really nice is how the zesty spice from the chili cuts through some of the sweeter notes of the chocolate, providing a really nice contrast in flavors for the palate to enjoy.
The chili does not hit the palate immediately. The sip starts as a rather smooth-tasting sip, it doesn’t taste really spicy/hot. About mid-sip, the chili comes to life! It starts out as a warm, chili pepper kind of taste, not too hot, but gradually getting warmer. By the time the finish hits, the pepper really kicks in – never getting what I would consider to be too hot, but it is definitely a kick of chili spice. The aftertaste is that of spicy chili pepper, again not too hot, but there is a light, slow burn in the back of the throat.
The black tea seems to come secondary here, and that is a little disappointing, but it is hard to express too much disappointment with a tea that I’m enjoying so much. I love the chocolate and chili flavor here. The black tea is distinguishable, but it isn’t a terribly strong black tea flavor. I would love to see what a stronger, bolder tea leaf might do to this blend of chocolate and chili (perhaps a solid Assam?) As it is, though, I really like this; even without the basic chai spices, even with the lighter tea flavor. The chocolate and chili is so delicious!
NOTE: While writing this review, I noticed that this particular tea is not featured on the David’s Tea website. I suspect that this is because this is a winter/seasonal blend, and I do hope that it will return when winter returns! It’s a wonderfully warming blend!
Buttered Rum from David’s Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: David’s Tea
Product Description:
Hot buttered rum is so delicious we want it all day long. Unfortunately, most employers frown on workplace drunkenness, so we came up with this rich and creamy alternative. Toasted coconut and vanilla beans mingle with black tea in a caramelized caress of flavours. Decadent hot or iced, it also blends perfectly with dark rum, brown sugar and a dash of milk – so go ahead and indulge your inner pirate, off the clock.
Taster’s Review:
This tea has been at the top of the Steepster ratings for some time now, so I figured it was high time that I try it! And I’m really glad I did.
This is really good. The rum comes through nicely, especially at the start. As I continue to sip on this cup, I find that some of the other flavors make their way through, although I can still taste the rum notes… they are just not quite as dominate as they were at the beginning. The coconut is one of the nicest additions to this – it gives the cup a delicious sweetness and creaminess, and I like the way it melds with the rum flavor.
The “buttered” aspect is very slight in the beginning, but by about mid-cup, the flavor has developed nicely. In fact, I am finding it to be the dominating presence now, perhaps because it has united with the vanilla and coconut. By the time I’ve finished with the cup, I find that the cup is actually quite heavy in texture, coating the palate with a creamy- buttered presence.
If I were to offer any complaint about this tea at all, it would be that the black tea isn’t a strong presence in this cup. I think that if it were a slightly stronger tea (an Assam, perhaps?) it might have a bit of cleansing astringency which would make the finish a bit cleaner. But, then again, I actually quite enjoy the heavy creaminess of this tea. It is such an indulgent pleasure, but a guiltless one! The best kind!