Category: Review

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DavidsTea’s Nepal Green

Nepal Green by DavidsTea
Green Tea / Straight
$12.98 for 50g

First Impressions

Nepal Green was a purchase made on a whim one day when I wanted to get up the $50 minimum for free shipping (because when it would have equaled out the cost of the tea vs. paying for shipping, tea always wins). So I picked Nepal Green because, surprise!, it’s a straight green tea that I somehow haven’t tried before from DavidsTea. The tea came in a sealed, resealable, matte silver pouch with a familiar label on the front. The leaves themselves are wiry, I found them to be a mix of dark green with white downy leaves. It’s quite a pretty tea. The aroma is grassy, vegetal, and mildly fruity.

Nepal Green is an organic green tea from Hile-Dhankuta, Nepal. This straight green tea is from the Jun Chiyabari tea garden which has sustainable farming practices, and 80% of its are women – facts from the DavidsTea product page.

Preparation

DavidsTea recommends steeping Nepal Green in 185°F (85°C) water for 2 to 3 minutes. I opted for an initial steep of 2 minutes.

First Taste

Nepal Green steeps to a very pale yellow. The aroma is lightly sweet and a bit grassy. The flavour of Nepal Green is a pleasant blend – there’s some sweetness, a freshness that reminds me of corn on the cob, as well as some grassy notes and bit of nuttiness at the tail end of each sip. It’s far more complex in the flavour profile than I was expecting, but it’s definitely tasty.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Nepal Green five times (six steeps total with the same leaves), adding an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep. The tea got darker and became more of a golden yellow by the second resteep. The flavours deepened and were just more amplified from the initial steep.

My Overall Impression

I loved DavidsTea’s Nepal Green. I found the tea to be pleasant and tasty, plus the leaves resteeped quite well! I liked the fact that DavidsTea is able to share that this tea came from a single origin source that has organic and sustainable farming practices, while being a leader on the local level. The flavour of this tea is nice, and I drank it hot and thought it was just very pleasant. I think the flavours would translate well if cold steeped or iced, but as the weather cools in my area, I’ll be continuing to drink it hot.

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Udyan Tea’s Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea

Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea by Udyan Tea
Black Tea / Straight
₹500.00 for 100g

Udyan Tea has provided me with Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea for the purposes of writing an honest review.

First Impressions

Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea came in a matte black foil bag (sealed and resealable). The labeling on Udyan Tea’s products is simple – there are a lot of information about the tea on their website thought if you’re ever interested in learning more about their products. I do wish that the labeling was more informative (either on the same label or onto the back). Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea is a beautiful tea – there’s a nice blend of colours from red, green, and brown. The aroma of the dry leaf is lovely – I find it to be a mix of nutty and earthy.

Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea is a black tea harvested in the autumn of 2018. I think it’s neat when you can get that level of information about your tea! Namring is a tea estate/garden located in Darjeeling, India.

Preparation

Udyan Tea recommends steeping Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea in 90-95°C (194-203°F) water for 4 to 5 minutes. My initial steep of Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea was in 93°C (200°F) water for 5 minutes.

First Taste

Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea steeps to a golden orange colour. The aroma reminds me of roasted nuts, as well as something that reminds me of floral notes (not quite sure what flower it is that it reminds me of). I found the aroma to be inviting, and I enjoy the taste. There’s a sweetness, nuttiness, and floral flavours all quite well-balanced. There’s a touch of astringency and bitterness at the tail end of each sip.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea twice, adding an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep. I found the flavour to remain fairly similar to the initial steep. I found the floral notes to be weaker and the nutty flavours were more prominent.

My Overall Impression

I liked Udyan Tea’s Namring Upper Autumnal Black Tea. I found that the tea was pleasant, but I did find the bitterness and astringency to remain with each steep. I liked the balance between the nutty and floral notes, but the persistence of the bitterness and astringency didn’t make a favourite for me. I think it would take to some sweetener and cream easily, if you’re not fond of the astringency either.

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Dessert by Deb’s Chocolate, Berries & Cream

Chocolate, Berries & Cream by Dessert by Deb
Black Tea / Flavoured
$9.00 for 50g

First Impressions

By now, the matte white bags from Dessert by Deb feel familiar. They’re heat sealed and resealable, once you’ve opened it. The first thing that I noticed when I opened by the bag of Chocolate, Berries & Cream is the aroma. It honestly smells the way I’d expect a tea with this name to smell. It really reminds me of the aroma of a strawberry creme chocolate – and I don’t say that too lightly since I’m a fan of chocolate.

Chocolate, Berries & Cream consists of organic: black tea, vanilla, Giddy YoYo cacao nibs, Giddy YoYo dark chocolate, elderberries, currants, raisins, and hibiscus. The aroma of the ingredients is really well reflected in the name, I’m honestly a bit surprised that strawberries isn’t an ingredient because it reminds me so much of strawberries.

Preparation

Dessert by Deb recommends steeping Chocolate, Berries & Cream in 212°F (100°C) water for 4 to 6 minutes. My initial steep of Chocolate, Berries & Cream was 5 minutes.

First Taste

Chocolate, Berries & Cream steeps to a dark reddish brown, a colour I’d attribute to the chocolate, the hibiscus, and the black tea in the blend. There is a bit of an oil slick on the surface of the tea, which I think is from the natural oils from the dark chocolate. The steeped tea smells like berries and chocolate. I found that it had a light, sweet fruity flavour, and there was a slight bitterness from the dark chocolate. I can’t really pick out the black tea base, but I think that’s because some of the flavours are mingling there and are just overpowering the black tea – which isn’t a bad thing.

I did try Chocolate, Berries & Cream with a touch of evaporated milk and organic cane sugar, and found that it helped to temper the bitterness from the dark chocolate and helped brighten up the berry flavour in the initial steep.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Chocolate, Berries & Cream once. I found that it lacked in the chocolate and berry flavour, which is what really drew me to this tea initially. I would recommend steeping Chocolate, Berries & Cream just the one time.

My Overall Impression

I liked Dessert by Deb’s Chocolate, Berries & Cream. I found that the name of the tea is well represented in the dry leaf and the steeped tea. It made for an enjoyable experience, and did quite well being doctored with some sweetener and cream. I can see this being a fun tea to introduce to friends and family are new to tea and want a caffeinated tea to help bring them over from the dark (coffee) side. It also just makes for a fun fruity black tea blend that really reads as a dessert tea, which couples well with the Dessert by Deb name.

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