drank Trick or Treat by DAVIDsTEA
16875 tasting notes

Introducing Trick or Treat!

This is our second new Halloween tea this year, along with Witchy Watermelon. If Witchy Watermelon was meant to be a divergent flavour from the usual Halloween go-tos then Trick or Treat is sort of the opposite: classic and nostalgically Halloween in its flavour direction! Additionally, I really like to think of this tea as the spiritual successor to Caramel Corn – a fan favourite that gets requested quite a bit. They’re not identical, but absolutely have some similarities and my hope is that fans of Caramel Corn will love this tea as much as they did that one. Why caramel popcorn for Halloween? Well, it’s perfect for all those Halloween movie marathons that happen every year!

In terms of taste, I find this pretty straight forward. It’s definitely that caramel popcorn kind of vibe with the distinct gooey caramel notes and buttery flavours you would expect. In particular I really love the balance of the just-so-slightly salty buttery popcorn with the rich creamy caramel. Not nearly as salty as Salted Caramel Oolong, but still justtttttt a little bit in that vein to help balance the richness.

…and, it is a rich tea! Inclusions like licorice root add to that natural sweetness while also adding this mouth coating sensation that makes the blend feel richer in mouthfeel as well. I personally have a STRONG aversion to the taste of licorice root, so that’s the one element of this blend that prevents me from getting super into it – however I really appreciate what it adds to the composition, and I love getting to play around with all different types of functional sweeteners as ingredients – especially when it means leaving out stevia. So you win some and you lose some. The anti-stevia crowd will hopefully appreciate its absence here and while it’s maybe a loss for those, like me, who dislike licorice root… well, we have plenty of other alternatives out there.

My recommendation would be to try this as an iced latte or hot latte. It reaallllyyyy comes together when you add milk to it, and the inclusion of dragonfruit makes it steep up a beautiful pink shade similar to how Forever Nuts looks when you latte it. Just make sure you actually get a dragonfruit piece in your measured out leaf though; it won’t taste different if you’re missing one (since the dragonfruit doesn’t add taste) but the colour will be more of a light yellow instead of the fun pink. I suppose you could call that the “trick” part of Trick or Treat.

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.

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Bio

Hello! My name is Kelly, though many people in the tea community call me Ros or Roswell.

I am a mid-twenties tea addict, blogger, and all around nerd. I grew up in the Prairies, but a few years ago I relocated to Quebec to pursue a career with DAVIDsTEA in the tea industry! I’m still working on getting my French language skills down…

My first introduction to tea, in any form outside of instant and bottled iced tea, was about seven years ago when I happened to stumble upon DAVIDsTEA while looking for a birthday present for a friend! I tried their Birthday Cake rooibos blend, and I’ve been hooked on tea ever since! In those seven years; I was introduced to the online tea community, expanded my interest in flavoured teas to include a deep love and appreciation for straight teas and traditional brewing methods, got a tea themed tattoo, started reviewing teas, amassed a sizable tea and teaware collection, became a TAC certified Tea Sommelier, & even came full circle by beginning a career in the tea industry with DAVIDsTEA!

I consider myself a Jack of all Teas, and strive to have a knowledge and appreciation of all tea types, formats, and styles of drinking. I don’t like to feel boxed in to just being a “flavoured tea” or “straight tea” drinker – my expectations may vary depending on the type of tea or how it’s been processed/prepared but if it’s good tea, it’s good tea no matter how it’s been made!

You name it, I probably drink it- and I’ll absolutely try anything at least once.

My default method of preparation is hot, Western style, and straight – but I’m not opposed to additions if I’m in the right mood. If I ever add something to a tea or use a different method of preparation I will ALWAYS call it out in the tasting note though.

I like to listen to music when drinking tea, especially when I’m brewing a large pot at a time or steeping Gongfu. Often I curate very intentional tea and music pairings, and sometimes I share them here in my tasting reviews. Music is something that I find can deeply affect the experience of having tea.

I’m also one half of the “tea and fandom” podcast GeekSteep where, weekly, we discuss newly explored fandoms over tea as well as try to figure out the perfect tea to pair with each fandom. You can find us on Spotify and Apple & Google podcasts.

Favourite flavour notes/ingredients: Pear, lychee, cranberry, cream, melon, pineapple, malt, roasty, petrichor, sweet potato, heady florals like rose, hazelnut or walnut, sesame, honey (in moderation), and very woody shou.

Least favourite flavour notes/ingredients:
Lemongrass, ginger, strongly spiced profiles (and most Chai in general), mushrooms, seaweed, chamomile, stevia, saltiness or anything that reminds me too much of meat that isn’t supposed to taste like meat…

Currently exploring/obsessed with: Sheng from Yiwu, Yancha (Qilan in particular), anything with a strong sweet potato note. Also, I need to try ALL the root beer teas! Searching for a really good caramel flavoured blend, ideally with a black tea base.

Please contact me at the instagram account listed below if you would like me to review your teas.

Currently I’m employed in the tea department of the DAVIDsTEA head office. While I’m still sharing my own personal thoughts on new & existing DAVIDsTEA blends, I am no longer numerically rating them due to the obvious conflict of interest. Any comments expressed are a reflection of my own thoughts and opinions, and do not reflect the thoughts and opinions of the company. Any DAVIDsTEA blends you currently see with a numeric score were reviewed prior to my being hired there and have not been adjusted since becoming a DAVIDsTEA employee.

Location

Montreal, QC, CA

Website

https://www.instagram.com/ros...

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