Michael O'Keefe Send Message

I really wanted to like Coconut Oolong.

I love coconut. The taste, the smell, everything about it is great. I also like Oolong tea. It’s my favourite kind after Green tea, so in theory I should like Coconut Oolong, right? Unfortunately not.

I tried Coconut Oolong tonight when I went to check out the new Spring Collection. The smell was really nice, so I this was the tea I chose first. I was very disappointed with the results though. The oolong itself was fine, but I found the coconut to be clashing against it. I found this weird, as I like coconut teas. I tried Coco-Lemon Thai the other day and I really liked that. However, with Coconut Oolong, I found myself actively disliking it.

I didn’t taste the creaminess described by Davids Tea, instead I just had a generally unpleasant taste in my mouth. Maybe I was just unlucky, could I have gotten some bad ingredients? I hope so, since like I said, I want to like this tea. I’ll have to try it again the next time it’s being sampled. The tea did get better towards the end of the drink, so I still have hope.

I received North African Mint the other day from a friend who was giving me some of the teas which she didn’t like. I’m a fan of minty teas, so I figured that I would like North African Mint given the name.

Unfortunately I didn’t taste much (if any) of the mint flavour, and instead I could only really taste the spices. Unsteeped and steeped, you can smell both the spices and the mint, but the mint seems to be drowned out in the actual taste.

The spicy taste wasn’t bad, but it was only okay at best. I was a bit disappointed (Despite going in with low expectations.) Maybe I just didn’t get a good mix of the ingredients, so I’ll have to try this one again sometime.

I bought Genmai Hojicha the other day when I asked the guy working at Davids Tea to give me a few teas which I probably wouldn’t buy otherwise. This was one of them. Green tea, with rice? Definitely something I wouldn’t have tried otherwise, but I’m glad that I asked for the guys suggestions!

The rice surprisingly adds a lot to the taste of this tea. The roasted green tea leaves are interesting enough, but the the roasted rice adds a really unique flavour. The tea is naturally a bit bitter, so it’s not for you if you like sweet teas. The rice balances it out a little bit, but the bitterness of the green tea is more pronounced. The toasty taste and smell of Genmai Hojicha makes for a very satisfying experience, it seems like the perfect tea to drink next to a wood stove fire.

Jungle Ju Ju is a pretty unique tea of David’s. It is one of their only herbal teas with caffeine, in fact it’s a stimulant, something you’d expect out a maté tea, not a herbal. It’s also not something I’ll be drinking casually, Jungle Ju Ju will be kept for special occasions (Primarily late at night when I should be asleep, but I need a boost for whatever reason.)

Right away you’ll notice that before steeping, Jungle Ju Ju has a very distinct smell. It’s almost overwhelming, the guyausa coming across very strongly, with hints of peach and papaya too. Unfortunately this smell changes after steeping into something a bit unpleasant, not a deal breaker, but it would have been nice if Jungle Ju Ju preserved it’s aroma through steeping.

Jungle Ju Ju has a pretty sweet taste to it, you can definitely taste the peach and papaya. The guayusa balances it the sweetness out. I’m not a huge fan of peach and papaya, so overall I can’t love Jungle Ju Ju like many people seem to do, but it’s easy to recommend if you’re a fan of fruity teas, and need lots of caffeine to start your day.

Yellow Dragon delivers on every level I could hope for.

I love lemony teas, and I love mint teas, so Yellow Dragon is exactly what I look for in tea. The list of ingredients is short, only including some of my favourite things to be found in tea. Yellow Dragon is fun to smell, you get exactly what you’d expect, peppermint and some lemon. It’s fun to look at, the balled up oolong tea uncurls as the tea steepens to a golden hue. Most importantly, Yellow Dragon is a joy to drink.

The peppermint is the star of the drink, it’s the most noticeable taste that you’ll encounter. It is backed up by an almost perfect balance of taste offered by the oolong and lemon. Yellow Dragon is incredibly soothing and satisfying to taste. It’s not overly sweet or bitter, it’s just a nice tasting tea from the first sip to the last.

First of all, Birthday Cake smells amazing. A friend of mine had it the other day, and after smelling it I knew that I had to buy some for myself. It smells like an ice cream cake you would buy from Dairy Queen, which makes sense since the tea contains little bits of ice cream and sprinkles (which are no longer visible after steeping.)

I was a little bit let down by the actual taste, since the smell made me hype the tea up in my head so much. It was still quite good though! You can still taste the ice cream, and you get what seems to be a bit of a maple taste too. I found it a bit too sweet for me, but if you like sweet teas, birthday cake will be great for you.

Looking at Citron Oolong, you’d expect something that tastes a LOT more citrusy than the tea actually ends up being.

Citron Oolong is not orange juice in tea form, but it is a decent oolong tea with a noticeable citrus tone from the lemon and orange flavouring, plus a bit of jasmine. I had it hot, but I feel like it could be better iced. If you’re a fan of citrusy teas than this would be great for you, but otherwise approach with caution. If you don’t like citrusy foods, than you’re not going to be a fan of this tea.

Organic Detox is one of my favourite teas. Right away when you open the canister you can smell the strong aroma. The tea itself is a golden / brown colour when it’s steeped, nothing too exciting.

The lemongrass and natural lemon flavouring is the most noticeable when tasting, though certainly not overwhelming. The juniper berries and and ginger add to the complexity too, making it very tasty. It’s certainly not a sweet tasting tea if that’s what you’re looking for.

Something interesting to note about Detox is that it does in fact make you feel better! I always drink it when I’m feeling a little bit sick or just a little gross after an unhealthy meal, and it makes me feel much better. When I bought it, the lady working at Davids Tea told me that it’s good for hangovers, and after some testing, I can confirm this!