On Amazing Customer Service (And Today's Tea: Oh Canada!)

So, a few weeks ago, I sent David's Tea a note, basically saying, "Hey, you guys are awesome, and you inspired a blog; here's the link, check it out."

They sent me an email back, essentially saying, "Hey, awesome! Which teas can we send you to review?"

And I kind of went, Bwuh???!!! Because I wasn't expecting "free stuff." I was just expecting a generic, "We'll check it out, thanks." That's what I've gotten from most other companies.
BUT David's Tea is no ordinary company. They care about the customer. They reply to feedback, and it's not just a generic email, either or one of those form letters where they generically reply to your comment/feedback/concern. I LOVE that they take customer service seriously.

Anyway. I sent them a list of ones I'd like to try. This was EXTREMELY HARD because, well, I want to try ALL THE TEAS (insert Hyperbole and a Half graphic here). I chose six teas.

Today when I went to get the mail, my tea was in my mailbox!! I can't tell you how loud I squeed about this. I got Assam Banaspaty, Kanpe tea, and Oh Canada (along with 3 mini samples of things I already have).

So today's review is Oh Canada! 

Description: Looking for a taste of Canada? Try this red rooibos tea. It’s sweetened with (what else?) maple syrup and sprinkled with delicious maple leaf candies. Plus it’s 100% diplomatic (well, caffeine-free) and tastes great in both our official languages. With green rooibos, honeybush, caramel and toffee bits to shake things up. A truly authentic Canadian experience.

Ingredients: South African green and red rooibos, honeybush, caramel bits , toffee bits , candy leaves, artificial and natural flavouring.

Allergens: Dairy, soy and tree nuts

(from David's Tea: Oh Canada!)

Steph's Thoughts:

It looks so cheerful!!!!! When you dump it in the steeper, the little multicoloured candy leaves are like autumn, going "Here I am! I'm here to make you happy!" And then, when you pour water over it, the tea turns a rich reddish-brown colour and it just makes me want to squee. It's earthy. It's ... almost the exact shade of red I want to dye my hair. Seriously though, the tea is happy. (Oh, also, DT has other Happy Teas. I should make a post one day about Happy Teas.....)

Smell: I don't normally like caramel, but this smells like maple syrup, autumn, honeybush tea, and Festival du Voyageur.

First sip: This one doesn't need sugar. The maple and the rooibos blend together so nicely. It's like my mouth is having a Canada Day party (hey, it matches my toenails! - I have Canada flags on my toenails from the Olympics). I mean, you COULD sweeten it. But then it would be like dessert. Also, if you look at the ingredients list,  there really is a great deal of sugar actually IN the tea.

Hm. This might make good popsicles. Ooh, Maple Popsicles. How epicly Canadian would that be??

Anyway! This is a good, smooth, after dinner or dessert tea. It's got a nice flavour, and it's pretty.

Because of the amount of sugar in the tea, I think this is going to become a "treat" tea, or a "once in a while" tea, rather than a staple. I'll definitely share this one, though, because it's worth spreading the love.