So I spent most of today, for work, at an International Foods trade show here in Montreal. I definitely brought home waaayyyy too many samples of both different teas/RTDs/Kombucha but also just a ton of snacks. Plus, I obvious had waaaayyyy too many other samples during the actual trade show…
However, I think the best part of the day was actually after the tradeshow. It took place at a convention center near Chinatown. I had gone with Marika, so afterwards we hit up Chinatown for a late lunch and to check out some of the stores in the area. One place we went was a Chinese/Korean grocery store, and it was such an incredibly different experience going with her. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it here on Steepster (though it’s definitely come up on the podcast), but she lived in China for several years and actually speaks Mandarin and reads it pretty well too. So hearing her recommendations for products to try just has, like… so much more weight to it!?
Like, yes! Tell me what you liked when you lived in China and what’s authentic and actually enjoyed by the people living. I want to hear it all!
Anyway, all that to say that when she saw this bottled tea on the shelf her face LIT UP more than I’ve seen it in quite a while. She insisted that I try it because it was the best unsweetened bottled tea she had ever tried, and I said “well yeah, of course I will” because I trust her implicitly. I guess it’s cold brewed, which is cool and makes sense because this is smooth.
Like, I’m fully on board. Sometimes when people say smooth or “round” they’re also saying flat/bland but no, the taste of this is surprisingly complex with deep nutty and honey flavours alongside a nice malty flavour. It’s just… so refreshing and easy sipping. I might be biased because she was so into it, but I am inclined to say it’s the nicest and most authentic bottled tea I’ve come across. You can implicitly tell this was made with real tea leaves, for sure.
