Posts

Posted on

Dessert by Deb’s Peach Crumble Cake

Peach Crumble Cake by Dessert by Deb
Black Tea & Rooibos / Flavoured
$6.50 for 25g

Peach Crumble Cake came as part of the bimonthly subscription box from Dessert by Deb.

First Impressions

Opening my bimonthly subscription box from Dessert by Deb and finding a shiny gold pouch with a tea called Peach Crumble Cake sets a certain level of expectation in my mind. Peaches, cake, baked goods. The packaging itself is a shiny metallic gold in a resealable pouch, with a clear window across the front where you can see the dry leaf of this organic tea sample.

The Peach Crumble Cake tea looks beautiful, and has a strong peach aroma to the point that I don’t really smell the rest of the ingredients. I do smell hints of rooibos in the background, but the peach lies in the foreground. Peach Crumble Cake consists of certified organic: black tea, natural peach essence, peaches, cinnamon, Canadian maple, rooibos, brown sugar, and calendula petals. It certainly makes for a beautiful tea with the pops of bright yellow throughout.

Preparation

Dessert by Deb recommends steeping Peach Crumble Cake in 212°F (100°C) water for 4 to 6 minutes.

First Taste

Peach Crumble Cake steeps to a deep golden orange. I did use a stainless steel infuser basket, and some little bits got through the fine holes (so use a fillable tea infusing bag if you wish to avoid that). There’s a strong peach aroma to it, with hints of cinnamon and rooibos in the background. The tea has a thickened mouthfeel to it, with the flavours of peach, cinnamon, and rooibos. I don’t get a lot of the black tea blend, and wish that the sugar was stronger in it – I definitely would have appreciated a stronger brown sugar and maple flavour in the profile over the rooibos in the blend (then again, full disclaimer: I am not a fan of rooibos). I do love the level of peach in this, because it does make for a nice blend that I wasn’t expecting.

A Second Cup?

I attempted to resteep Peach Crumble Cake and found that the tea was more black tea (with some astringent notes) and rooibos (medicinal) notes than peach. I would recommend Peach Crumble Cake for the initial steep, especially if you prefer that peach flavour over rooibos.

My Overall Impression

I liked Dessert by Deb’s Peach Crumble Cake. It has a great initial steep with the strong peach flavour, and I think adding some brown sugar, maple syrup and vanilla extract would make for a nice cup of tea by adding a larger punch of flavour to make it taste more like it came out of a bakery. Turning Peach Crumble Cake into a tea latte would certainly up the delightfulness of the tea; but I’m not a fan of the rooibos (unfortunately).

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

Posted on

DavidsTea’s Eggnog Matcha

Eggnog Matcha by DavidsTea
Green Tea (Matcha) / Flavoured
$10.98 for 50g

First Impressions

Eggnog Matcha was an addition to my online shopping cart… on a whim. I was pleasantly surprised to find that it came in a specially designed package with a mix of bright and dark greens. The pouch itself is sealed and resealable, and I got it mostly because hey, who doesn’t like having something with eggnog around the holidays?

Eggnog Matcha is a light spring green colour, with a bit of a sparkle to it (I believe from the cane sugar granules). It has a very milky aroma with hints of cinnamon throughout, which makes it intriguing. Eggnog Matcha consists of: cane sugar, matcha green tea, dry whole milk powder and natural flavourings (for eggnog and cinnamon roll). Who knew that there was flavouring for egg and cinnamon roll? Certainly not me. It smells great though!

Preparation

DavidsTea recommends preparing Eggnog Matcha with 85°C (185°F) water and a whisk, and suggests having it hot or iced. I opted to follow the preparation instructions, but I used a handheld milk frother to speed things up a bit.

First Taste

Eggnog Matcha blends up to a light spring green. The aroma is a mix of cinnamon and a grassy matcha. I don’t actually really smell any of the eggnog (flavouring). It does have a nice creaminess to it, and find that the flavour is nice. Eggnog Matcha tastes more of cinnamon and matcha than anything else to me. The fact that Eggnog Matcha contains whole milk powder adds a level of milkiness to it that doesn’t rely on you adding milk to it to make it into a latte, it’s almost like a matcha latte mix. The flavour of the matcha base is not strong enough to really shine on it’s own though, unfortunately, because the cinnamon is overpowering in comparison.

A Second Cup?

As Eggnog Matcha is a suspension, there are no second steeps with the same powder.

My Overall Impression

I thought that DavidsTea’s Eggnog Matcha was just okay. I had a lot of high hopes and expectations for Eggnog Matcha in regards to expecting more of the flavour of the eggnog to shine through. The cinnamon flavour does come through, and there’s a light grassy flavour from the matcha. I do like the addition of the whole milk powder, I think if you’re wanting a cinnamon bun matcha on-the-go, Eggnog Matcha would really fit the bill. If you wanted more of an eggnog flavour, I would suggest preparing Eggnog Matcha with heated eggnog instead of water.

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

Posted on

Dessert by Deb’s Buttermilk Raisin Scone

Buttermilk Raisin Scone by Dessert by Deb
Black Tea / Flavoured
$6.50 for 25g

First Impressions

As part of the Garden Tea Party Collection, Buttermilk Raisin Scone came to me as part of my bimonthly tea box subscription from Dessert by Deb. The gold metallic pouch is sealed and resealable, with a polka dot label across the front. The concept of Buttermilk Raisin Scone makes me think of the aroma from a bakery – just freshly baked goods. I’m not hugely fond of raisins, but I do like the idea of scones.

Buttermilk Raisin Scone consists of organic: black tea, natural cream flavour, vanilla, Canadian maple, raisins, toasted coconut, and calendula petals. I can definitely smell the vanilla and the coconut, but I’m afraid that the raisins are too mild of a fragrance in comparison. The vanilla is rich though, and makes me think of baked goods.

Preparation

Dessert by Deb recommends steeping Buttermilk Raisin Scone in 212°F (100°C) water for 4 to 6 minutes. I opted to do an initial steep for Buttermilk Raisin Scone for 5 minutes.

First Taste

Buttermilk Raisin Scone steeps to a beautiful golden orange colour. The aroma of vanilla and coconut wafts up from the cup of tea. I found that the flavour is primarily vanilla, with hints of coconut. Upon drinking the tea, I find I’m met with a malty earthiness of the black tea base, with a blend of vanilla, sweetness from the maple, and the coconut. I don’t really taste the raisin, but again the flavour of raisin is considerably milder in comparison to the vanilla, maple and coconut. Buttermilk Raisin Scone has a light creaminess to it, and the the vanilla flavour really makes it seem like an experience of walking through a bakery.

A Second Cup?

Resteeping Buttermilk Raisin Scone didn’t work out quite as well as I would have liked because I found that the vanilla was missing in the resteep of the tea. I would recommend Buttermilk Raisin Scone to be steeped just the once.

My Overall Impression

I liked Dessert by Deb’s Buttermilk Raisin Scone. This black tea base has a great bakery-esque quality to it that makes me think of baked goods, which is what Deb was aiming for. While raisins didn’t shine through, the flavour of the vanilla, maple, and coconut did. The vanilla is really the ingredient that makes me think of baked goods the most, and I do love scones. Buttermilk Raisin Scone would be a fun blend to have as an option for afternoon tea.

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