Category: Review

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DavidsTea’s Rainbow Lemonade

Rainbow Lemonade by DavidsTea
Fruit Infusion / Flavoured
$8.98 for 50g

First Impressions

Another purchase with the intention of making as an iced tisane. From the online DavidsTea store since the majority of the retail locations have been closed (including any of the ones that I frequented – there’s one left in British Columbia). Rainbow Lemonade comes in a sealed, resealable pouch with a bright yellow label on the front. I was mostly drawn to this one because of the name – I like citrus things so the idea of a lemonade tisane was intriguing.

The dry leaf essentially features a rainbow of ingredients – so brightly coloured and has a great citrus aroma. Rainbow Lemonade consists of: apple, pineapple, orange peel and pieces, natural raspberry flavouring, hibiscus, lemon peel, sweet blackberry leaves, natural orange flavouring, cornflower petals, raspberries, and natural flavouring.

Preparation

DavidsTea recommends steeping Rainbow Lemonade in 95°C (200°F) water for 5+ minutes. I did an initial steep with the recommended water temperature for 7 minutes.

First Taste

Rainbow Lemonade steeps to a pretty peachy-pink colour. It has some great pink lemonade vibes to it. The aroma of the steeped tisane is very citrus, sweet, and fruity. I can taste the lemon, as well as getting a lot of sweetness from the fruit ingredients while there are some great fruity notes that are just a smorgasbord of flavours. The lemon and orange notes definitely pop the most, but I think the other ingredients play an important role in elevating it above a lemon tisane.

A Second Cup?

While I did attempt to resteep Rainbow Lemonade by adding an additional minute to the steep time, I didn’t find that the second steep was particularly good. It was just lack compared to the initial steep, so I would say that Rainbow Lemonade is good for just one steep.

My Overall Impression

I liked DavidsTea’s Rainbow Lemonade. This is definitely a strong contender for being made into a pitcher of iced tea because it has some great flavours and such a nice brightness to it. I enjoyed it better iced than hot, I didn’t particularly enjoy it hot – so I would recommend it on ice, even consider adding a splash of lemonade to it to really amplify the lemonade flavours and stretch it further.

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Dessert by Deb’s Rhubarb Sugar Pie

Rhubarb Sugar Pie by Dessert by Deb
Rooibos & Black Tea / Flavoured
$6.00 for 25g

First Impressions

Rhubarb Sugar Pie came as a tea sample in my Dessert by Deb subscription box. What drew me to it first was the bright magenta metallic pouch – followed by the fact that there were pieces inside that were also brightly magenta in colour. This is a rooibos and and black tea blend, when I first opened the pouch I found that it has a very mild aroma. I can smell the maple and the apple, and it reminds me of (apple) pie, for sure.

Rhubarb Sugar Pie consists of organic: fair trade rooibos, black tea, vanilla, apple, maple, hibiscus, brown sugar and beetroot powder. When I asked Deb about those brightly coloured pieces, turns out that it’s the apple that has been dusted with beet root powder (how clever is that?).

Preparation

At the time of writing, I wasn’t able to find the blend on the Dessert by Deb website, but her other black teas and rooibos blends are steeped in 212°F (100°C) water for 4 to 6 minutes, so I opted to follow those instructions for Rhubarb Sugar Pie and did an initial steep for 5 minutes.

First Taste

Rhubarb Sugar Pie steeps to a bright reddish pink colour, thanks to the hibiscus and the beet root powder. It has a pleasant aroma and I can make out the molasses notes from the brown sugar, and something that’s a bit fruity (likely the apple?). It is sweeter than I expected, has some strong brown sugar/molasses flavours, as well as apple. I can taste the maple and vanilla, which lends itself nice to making me think of baked goods, especially when coupled with the brown sugar. I don’t taste either the rooibos or black tea base – which is either good or bad? I wouldn’t have minded a stronger black tea base, but I wouldn’t have wanted to taste the rooibos either.

A Second Cup?

I attempted to resteep Rhubarb Sugar Pie and found the colour to be really light compared to the initial steep, and the flavour wasn’t as strong with lighter brown sugar notes – I really enjoyed that molasses flavour.

My Overall Impression

I liked Dessert by Deb’s Rhubarb Sugar Pie. I’m always a sucker for a nice rooibos blend when I cannot actually taste the rooibos, and Rhubarb Sugar Pie ticks that box for me. It’s got a pleasant flavour that really does remind me of a pie. It’s not as tart as I expecting with a name like Rhubarb Sugar Pie, but it’s got some great flavours that do remind me of baked goods (the brown sugar, vanilla, apple). I had this one both hot and iced and think it does better iced, so would highly recommend having it that way since it’s still iced tea season as its not pumpkin spice season (yet).

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DavidsTea’s Caribbean Crush

Caribbean Crush by DavidsTea
Fruit Infusion / Flavoured
$7.98 for 50g

First Impressions

Another “on a whim” online purchase, Caribbean Crush came in a sealed and resealable silver pouch with a bright yellow label on the front. The yellow certainly makes the teal easier to read, at least in comparison with other types of tea. I got it in part because I just hadn’t tried it yet, and I’m always game to try another fruity tisane in the summer time.

Caribbean Crush is a very chunky blend, as you can see from the image below. It smells like strawberry candy, which isn’t off-putting, but not exactly what I thought a tisane with a tropical sounding name would smell like. Caribbean Crush consists of: apple, pineapple, papaya, hibiscus, cranberry, and artificial flavouring (strawberry, cream, red fruit).

Preparation

DavidsTea recommends steeping Caribbean Crush in 95°C (200°F) water for 5+ minutes. I did an initial steep with the recommended temperature for 7 minutes.

First Taste

Caribbean Crush steeps to a very pale pink, like a pale pink lemonade colour. I think the colouring is because of the hibiscus, but I tried shaking up my bag and never got very much hibiscus in each spoonful so I think it was just poorly mixed because I was expecting a brighter pink after seeing other photos of this tisane online. That said, it has a bright fruity aroma to it – I can definitely smell the strawberry and pineapple notes after it’s been steeped. The flavour itself is mostly fruity with apple, pineapple and strawberry notes. It is fairly sweet, which is pleasant. I tried it first hot and then iced and would say that iced is much better – just lends itself to a crisper taste.

A Second Cup?

I attempted to resteep Caribbean Crush and found the flavour to be lacking across the board. I would recommend Caribbean Crush for just the initial steep.

My Overall Impression

I thought that DavidsTea’s Caribbean Crush was just okay. While the dry leaf of Caribbean Crush smells fruity and fun, it doesn’t make me think of the tropics. I found the blend to be a bit poorly mixed in the pouch that I had received, which is why there wasn’t as much of a pop of pink colour as I was expecting. That coupled with the flavour which was a bit tropical, but not really quite what I was expecting, is partially responsible for the lower score. If I could guarantee the next pouch was better mixed with the ingredients, I’d give it a try again – it’s not bad as an iced tisane, just not what I was expecting.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.