Wow, I am really getting in a lot of writing today with these new teas!
This is one of the new teas from this summer’s 90s/2000s inspired collection. Though I know Cherry Limeade as a beverage has been around for decades it’s something that I personally really associate with the late 2000s as well as, specially, the fast-food chain Sonic’s very iconic Cherry Limeade slushies. That said, this is 100% a flavour I’m starting to see pop up pretty much everywhere and it really good me interesting in exploring it in tea form.
I love that it’s on an oolong base since that’s a tea type we rarely release new blends on, and I think that despite having pretty bold flavours you actually can taste the oolong in the blend just a bit. It adds a nice soft floral undertone that offsets the tartness of the cherry and citrus, and rounds out the cup a little more than it would be otherwise.
DT has definitely had A LOT of cherry teas so I think it’s a fair question to ask how this compares to others. I find the cherry notes in this blend are brighter and a little less sweet than the dark/heavy flavours of Cherry Berry Punch or Cherry Lucuma, and also less sour than Very Cherry. The tartness is comparable to Sweet Tart, in my opinion, but the overall flavour is less candy-like.
And then, of course, you have the limeade aspect. Technically, there is no lime in this tea and I think that it’s a fair criticism to point that out – I can totally understand expecting lime and then being disappointed when you don’t see it in the ingredients list. Really the only thing I can say to that is that we did try versions that included lime and in all our blind tastings we also felt like the versions without the lime actually tasted more like a limeade. It’s still bright and a little tart, with a distinct zesty citrusy flavour. Flavours are weird like like that sometimes – when you’re not staring at visual cues your brain often does a scarily good job at filling in the gaps. We still wanted to have something in the blend as an homage/nod to the lime though, and that’s where those gorgeous pomelo cubes come in. In the dry leaf they have a really lime-like appearance and provide a contrast of bright green against the red that winks at the inspiration.
Really, I think this tea is best iced. That’s pretty much exclusively how I’ve been drinking it the last year-ish, but of course there’s nothing to say it’s not good hot either if that’s more your jam. I think there’s a lot of fun cocktail things you can do with this blend too. I mean, it would be a great addition to a tea-based Cherry Lime Rickey, and if you wanna get really wild you could infuse it straight in vodka for a punchy cherry flavour you can add to other drinks.
Tea Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/C6J_r7QuSAp/?img_index=6 (6th Pic)
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZwmciiLFPA
Friendly reminder that I do not numerically rate DAVIDsTEA blends as I’m currently employed there and it would be an obvious conflict of interest. Any blends you see with numerical ratings were rated prior to my employment there. These reviews are a reflection of my personal thoughts and feelings regarding the teas, and not the company’s.
