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.

Today's Tea: Banana Nut Bread

Banana Nut Bread from David's Tea

Description: Like all amazing recipes, this one took years to perfect – and it was totally worth the wait. This tea miraculously captures the flavour of freshly-baked banana bread. The taste of real banana slices blends perfectly with almonds and the sweetness of dates and currants. It’s fragrant, with all the warmth of a loaf hot from the oven. As deliciously comforting as mama’s special recipe, but without the calories.

Ingredients: Dates, currants, almonds, banana pieces and slices, artificial flavouring.

Allergens: tree nuts

(From David's Tea: Banana Nut Bread)


Steph's Thoughts:

Here's another tea that came out of left field to knock me into OMG YUM territory. (I don't know why I keep doing this, because David's Tea CONSTANTLY proves me wrong!) I love bananas. I love banana chips. I like banana chocolate chip muffins (or cake). I think ANYTHING ELSE containing bananas is disgusting.

Except this tea. You know why? BECAUSE IT'S NOT SIMULATED BANANA! There are real banana pieces in here. (Trust me, I know. The first thing I did upon opening the package was begin eating the tea. I am not normal, people.) And mixed with all the other stuff, it actually tastes like banana bread. Normally I don't like nuts in my banana bread, but seeing as it's almonds, not walnuts, and it's in liquid form, I'll forgive DT for this oversight. *sticks out tongue*

It looks very weak upon brewing, but it certainly doesn't taste that way. When you smell it, it's got all the fresh-baked banana loaf goodness, and the smell lingers. It's not a bad smell. It's a homey smell. It's an "I'm going to Grandma's house and we're going to have lots and lots of yummy food and YAY I'M LOVED!" smell. At least, that's what it is for me, even though my grandmother rarely baked banana bread. But I think zwieback flavoured tea would be kinda gross. It's the sentiment behind the thing, though. And the sentiment behind this thing is love and om nom nom nom nom.

I really do love the flavour, and I think it's because it's authentic banana rather than chemical banana. Chemical banana is disgusting (think penicillin in child-friendly format). This is not that. I love the fact that David's Tea is a company that really does make you go "Dude, I was so wrong, this is exactly the opposite of bad!." My initial thought of banana tea was "ew what? Bananas in tea? Ew!" I have been proven very, very, very wrong.


Verdict: Another win. (seriously, how do these people keep doing this??)

Today's Tea: Chocolate Rocket

Chocolate Rocket from David's Tea

Description: Need a boost? Try this tea. First you'll experience a pure, sweet hit of chocolate. Then you’ll find yourself awash in the freshness of raspberries. Followed by the richness of almonds and chicory. And then, bang, you'll realize you've been infused with roasted Brazilian maté. How will you know? It's what's giving you all that crazy energy. Just fly with it.

Ingredients: Roasted Yerba maté (Brasil), cocoa, almonds, roasted chicory root, raspberries, natural and artificial flavouring.

Allergens: Tree nuts

(From David's Tea: Chocolate Rocket)


Steph's Thoughts:
I fell in love with this tea from the first smell. Normally I'm put off a bit by nuts, but the almonds just enhance the flavour. I mean, who can't love raspberries and chocolate?? 


This isn't the first time I've had this tea. This has become a favourite of mine. Usually I drink this tea with sweetener in it, but today I opted to drink it black. It was (obviously) less sweet than I'm used to, but the aftertaste was amazing. Definitely raspberries and chocolate, but not overwhelmingly so. I think I would add a little bit of sweetener, as it's a little on the bitter side. Don't get me wrong, it's not BAD. Just the opposite, in fact. But in this case, sweetness enhances the flavour, not detracts from it. But like I've said, to each their own.

This is a comfort tea. When I don't know what to drink but want something yummy, this is what I pull out. It tastes amazing hot or cold, though cold it requires a bit more sweetener.

Drinking it without sweetener, the initial sips are tangy and tart, but then the aftertaste is like.... chocolate covered roasted almonds with raspberry in. Like those really expensive 70% cocoa chocolate bars with the raspberry chunks...... But it's considerably lower in calories than a chocolate bar, with all of the flavour. Win? I think so.

Today's Tea: Toasted Marshmallow

Toasted Marshmallow from David's Tea

Description: Everyone loves a camping trip in the fall. Fresh air, beautiful scenery, hungry bears – ah, the great outdoors. Well, okay, we’ll admit it. We’re only in it for the marshmallows. Nothing beats a freshly toasted marshmallow straight from the campfire. But what if you want to satisfy your sweet tooth without going camping? Try this tea. It’s a sweet, toasty black tea blend with cinnamon, brittle and...you guessed it! Mini marshmallows. Now you can enjoy your favourite outdoorsy treat without a hungry bear in sight.

Ingredients: Black tea, marshmallows, brittle pieces, cinnamon, allspice, roasted kukicha green tea, natural flavouring.

Allergens:  nuts, not vegan

(From David's Tea: Toasted Marshmallow)


Steph's Thoughts:
This is officially my second cup of this tea, but the first time I've had a chance to review it. I will, however, give you both sets of thoughts.

My initial cup of Toasted Marshmallow was rather disappointing. It tasted more of cinnamon and allspice than it did anything resembling a marshmallow, let alone a gooey, nummy, freshly toasted marshmallow.
This may be a result of several factors:
 - I was away from my kitchen all weekend so I couldn't take my tea stash with me, and thought I'd be brilliant by putting "preloaded" teabags each in their own little baggie, then stored in a big bag, and take that with me, since the place where we were going is known for not having great tea. (Red Rose and Green Tea are fine in a pinch, but FOUR DAYS? No thanks.) However, this seems to severely compromise the quality of the tea. Next time I think I'm just going to bring my tea stash along, and to heck with space (and the funny looks from Hubby).  I don't really need a different outfit for every day, do I?? (Or shoes to match)
 - Also, I had no access to dish soap to wash out my travel mug, so I had to rinse it out between teas in the bathroom sink. While the body is metal, the lid is plastic and it is starting to absorb the flavours of the tea that I've (accidentally) left in the mug too long.... Anybody have any good recipes for a soak that will take the flavour out of the plastic??
My sister in law wasn't impressed either, mostly because of the overwhelming cinnamon and allspice. It tasted more like chai or gingerbread than marshmallow.

I made my second cup of Toasted Marshmallow for breakfast this morning, thinking, "well, if it's as disappointing as the first time, I just won't buy any more of it." I figure I should give new teas several tries before I make up my mind.  I opted not to put any sweetener in. I'm glad I didn't, because the second-go-round was exactly the way I expected it to be the first time 'round. Sweet, and tastes like marshmallow, except without all the unbelievable stickiness that is the downside to roasting marshmallows. The brittle pieces make it sweet enough that you don't really need sweetener, which is also the downside to real marshmallows - the overwhelming and all-consuming sweetness that makes you sick to your stomach after, like, four, except they're SO GOOD that you can't stop eating them.... This is a way to enjoy toasted marshmallows without any regrets.  Also, I'm pretty sure that even with the actual marshmallows and brittle in the tea, that this tea has less calories than toasted marshmallows. See? It's a win for everyone!

So, if you put the tea FRESH in a teabag (or steeper) and drink it out of a clean mug (rather than an oft-used travel mug that hasn't been washed [but has been rinsed!] in a while), it allows the TRUE flavour to really come out, and it's not nearly as disappointing.

Lesson: Pay attention to how you're brewing your tea, because it really does affect the quality of the taste.

Verdict: When brewed right, a win!

Tea Art

I'm sure most of my loyal readers (all, what, three of you?? Seriously, people, comment!) will wonder what I mean by "Tea Art."

This is something that my best friend Andy figured out. She came over for tea one day, and while I was spooning the tea into the teabags, she thought, "Wow, these teas not only smell good, but they're BEAUTIFUL to look at too!"

So many of the teas that you get from tea bags look like ... well, like dried oregano. Sort of a greyish-greenish colour, chopped up into little pieces, and very "BLEH" looking.

But the tea that David's Tea sells, if you look at the pictures of the tea itself, they're very beautiful. That's why I always post a picture of the tea leaves in my posts. Because not only do they TASTE good, they look good too! If it's a fruit tea, there's actually chunks of the fruit in there, not just "flavouring." When you order a berry tea, it's not "berry-infused leaves" or "artificial berry flavour added" (though there MAY be some of that), but you get actual, honest-to-goodness BERRIES in your tea. There are some teas that you don't even need to put in the steeper, because you can EAT THE TEA!! (I think Forever Nuts is one of those...)

I digress.

So, Andy was walking around a craft store one day when she found some picture frames on sale. These were "recessed" picture frames - the kind where there's a space between the picture and the glass, with a 3D mat. She had a brainwave. Combine the frame with some tea and spray glue, and you've got beautiful art!

I know it seems slightly sacrilegious to put glue over something that is perfectly drinkable. But.... it's PRETTY! And you really only need about twenty-five grams of the tea, which is enough for art, plus a cup to drink.

(These are two of Andy's Tea Arts - Pom Power and Vanilla Oolong)

I went to the same craft store, bought the same frames (although I didn't get mine on sale. Boo!), and brought over some of my tea, and we made tea into art. When we were finished, we drank tea, of course.

The trick with doing this kind of art is making sure you don't use TOO MUCH glue. It makes your art look very tacky if you use too much. If you're particularly sensitive to spray adhesives, you might want to wear a dust mask, or do this outside (though NOT on a windy day!!).

So, here's the "Recipe" for tea art:
1) Buy yourself a frame that can enable three-dimensional art. Also invest in spray glue and tea.
2) Cover the table with newspaper.
3) Take the frame apart into its components - the back piece, the mat, and the frame
4) Make a "template" for the spray glue. Basically, take an 8.5x11" piece of scrap paper (cardboard would work too), put the mat in the centre, and mark VERY LIGHTLY with a pencil around the INSIDE of the mat.
5) Cut the square you've marked out of the middle of the 8.5x11 paper.
6) Take the back of the picture (you know, the paper with the picture that comes with the frame, boldly proclaiming "your picture here" or somesuch. Mine had Gerber Daisies...), and turn it over so the white side is up.
7) Align the template with where the picture is (you may have to hold it up to the light), and place on newspaper-covered table.
8) Spray on a light layer of adhesive.
9) Take off the template, and put the mat around the area where the spray glue was (it should fit neatly over the area).
10) Put a layer of tea on the glue.
11) LIGHTLY spray the tea with glue
12) Add another layer of tea.
13) Lightly spray the tea with glue.

If it is looking a little sparse at this point, you MAY get away with a third layer of tea. It depends on what kind of tea you're using, and how strong the glue is. But trust me, when I say lightly, I do mean LIGHTLY. I used too much glue on mine, and it looks kinda dumb if you look at it too closely. *pouty face*

When the glue has dried (about 15-20 minutes), put the art in the frames, and VOILÀ! Tea art to hang on your wall!

(For those wondering, I used Jessie's Tea, Kiss my Lips, Glitter and Gold, and Pom Power.)

Today's Tea: Gold Rush

Organic Gold Rush from David's Tea

Description: Mulberries are a pretty precious fruit, so you don’t find them in tea very often. After all, mulberry trees are usually reserved for silk making, as they’re the only thing silkworms will eat. No wonder – they’re naturally sweet and rich, with an almost caramel-like flavour. In a word, decadent. Here we pair golden mulberries with creamy coconut and delicate white tea, for a tea that is guaranteed to give you gold fever. Eureeka!

Ingredients: Organic: mulberries, coconut, white Silver Needle tea. With natural and organic flavouring.

(From David's Tea: Gold Rush)


Steph's Thoughts: 
At first, I was incredibly apprehensive about this tea, as it contains coconut. My experience with coconut in tea has been pretty ... unsatisfactory to this point. So I'm sure you can understand my hesitation.

However, I was pleasantly surprised. This tea has a very, very light flavour, and you can't taste the coconut at all. My first thought upon tasting it was, "hey, it tastes like one of those white freezies I used to eat as a kid." Except without all the teeth-rotting sweetness. This tea has the "grown up" kind of sweetness.

I find it very light, with an initial "barely there" flavour, but there's the sweetness. And then the flavour creeps up on you, but not in a bad way. I think connoisseurs would call it subtle. Either way, it's a nice refreshing afternoon tea.

Today's Tea: Cocoa Canela

Organic Cocoa Canela from David's Tea

Description: This super-chocolatey blend is an homage to Mexican hot chocolate, which is traditionally spiked with cinnamon. First we take carob, cocoa nibs, cocoa powder and chocolate chips for a rich chocolate overload. Then we add pieces of cinnamon for a hint of spicy warmth. And to top it all off we add South American yerba maté for a seriously sweet energy boost. Try it as a latte with a shake of cinnamon and a warm churro for dipping.

Ingredients: Organic: Yerba maté, carob, cocoa nibs and powder, cinnamon, chocolate chips. With organic and natural flavouring.

Allergens: dairy and soy

(From David's Tea: Cocoa Canela)

Steph's Thoughts:
This tea has been on my "to try" list ever since I saw it hit the website. Holy frijole, it was everything I expected and more!

Upon walking into the store, I squeed when I saw that they actually HAD Cocoa Canela. (Those not versed in StephSpeak, a squee is an excited squeal. It can be lengthy or short, but it sounds kinda like, "EEE!" and it's that feeling that you get in your heart when you're hanging out and then all of a sudden, you see David Tennant walking down the street and he notices you and winks and says, "Hello, I'm the Doctor" and your entire heart feels like it's going to burst with excitement. Or, you know, when you walk into David's Tea and there's the EXACT KIND of tea you want sitting on the counter. THAT'S a squee.)

Anyway. Squeeing was had. And then I ordered a mug of it hot. The barTEAsta asked me if I wanted it as a latte, which was totally a yes.With a little bit of sweetener, it was JUST LIKE drinking a mug of superamazing hot chocolate. Except without all of the guilty "OMG YOU'RE GOING TO GET FAT WITH CALORIES!!!!" voice in your head. Because it's tea. And if you use skim milk and low-calorie sweetener? Hello, MADE OF WIN!

This morning, I made a cup of it with no milk and no sugar. Still love it. It has enough sweetness in it that you don't really need any sugar to still be able to enjoy the taste. If you want to drink a cup of "no-guilt hot chocolate" you're going to want to add a bit of sugar. I find that most hot chocolate powders are too sweet, and this way, you can make this tea with your desired sweetness and still get the same effect.

The thing I like about this tea is that it's got the distinct taste of cinnamon. It's not overwhelming, though; it's like it's supposed to be there. It makes me think of Mayan temples and warmth, and the ancient beliefs that chocolate was medicinal. (I'm not debating that belief, though. It makes ME feel better!)

I would also turn this into popsicles too. .... I really do need to start working on my popsicle recipes, because the last ones I made were SO disappointing.

Verdict: Amazingly fantastically made of win!