It is hard to believe that it has already been exactly 5 years today that I started Tea in Spoons. So, I thought a nice way to celebrate is by holding a giveaway and review an old favourite, Cold 911!
I’ve spoken in the past about how my tea journey started, in large part it because of DAVIDsTEA. I had always had over-brewed pu’er at dim sum growing up, but DAVIDsTEA was the first shop to open my eyes to the world of tea.
Therefore, it felt fitting to page homage to the company and I decided to revisit DAVIDsTEA Cold 911 after reviewing it for the first time in 2015. I picked this herbal blend for two reasons:
a. my original icon image was a picture I took of Cold 911, and, b. as of 2020, despite being a fan favourite for years, Cold 911 had been reformulated. I thought the second point spoke to how over the years, my taste, my tea knowledge, and even the blog itself has shifted and changed, despite still having the same values at the core.
I asked Nadia, the Tea Content and Compliance Manager at DAVIDsTEA, to explain why DAVIDsTEA changed Cold 911. I met Nadia this year at the Toronto Tea Festival. She stated that “[t]his comforting herbal tea has the same peppermint, citrusy and aromatic profile we love, with additional eucalyptus leaves!”
Luck would have it that I actually purchased a pouch of the old the Cold 911 in November 2019. So, I thought it would be nice to “re-steep” the two versions of the blends and see how they compare. At the end of the post, I will also detail my giveaway!
Let’s go!
Cold 911 (Prior to 2020)
Description: “Bad colds require great interventions. Like this soothing mix of peppermint, juniper and oranges.”
Instructions: 1-2 Perfect Spoon per 475ml (16oz) | 95°C/200°C | 5+ minutes
Review: One thing that originally drew me to this blend was its strong peppermint smell from the dry blend. So much so that it would tickle the nose. The blend was a clear mixture of peppermint intermixed with juniper berries and apple pieces. After infusing for 8 minutes, the wet blend had a herbal and grassy smell.
The liquor was an amber yellow with a brownish tint with a strong peppermint smell. It had had a mixture of citrus, herbal, eucalyptus, and peppermint that lingers in the mouth. The liquor leaves a tingling soothing sensation that is very pleasant, especially with a sore throat. This tea is very nostalgic for me as I always would drink it when I was under the weather and always made me feel better (4/5 rating)!
- Type: Herbal tea
- Origin: Unknown
- Caffeine: Caffeine-free
- Ingredients: Peppermint, apple, juniper berries. With natural eucalyptus & orange flavoring
- Other: Organic
- Company: DAVIDsTEA
Cold 911 (After 2020)
Description: “At the first sign of a cold, reach for this super-soothing minty blend.”
Instructions: 1-2 Perfect Spoon per 475ml (16oz) | 95°C/200°C | 5+ minutes
Review: Visually, it looked very similar to the dry blend of the previous version. There were sizable broken leaves of the eucalyptus, blended with the peppermint alongside the apple pieces and sprinkling of juniper berries. The smell was sweet, herbal and of eucalyptus leaves. After an 8 minute infusion, the wet blend smelled very much like the dry blend, and had strong eucalyptus notes.
The liquor was a light hay colour with a sweet eucalyptus smell. As expected, since this contains actual eucalyptus, compared to the previous version, there was a strong eucalyptus taste followed by a herbal mintiness. It also had a cooling sensation with a mild tingle.
I admit it is hard for me not to compare this new version to the old one. I found the dry blend had a much milder smell, in comparison, and leaned more heavily toward the eucalyptus than the original blend did. I personally prefer the more minty taste of the original blend, but that might be the nostalgia talking (3.5/5 rating).
- Type: Herbal tea
- Origin: Unknown
- Caffeine: Caffeine-free
- Ingredients: Peppermint, apple, eucalyptus, juniper berries, natural orange oil. With natural flavouring, natural peppermint oil.
- Other: Organic
- Company: DAVIDsTEA
Giveaway
I couldn’t think of more fitting items to giveaway to celebrate my blog anniversary than a $25 CDN DAVIDsTEA gift card and a classic DAVIDsTEA perfect teaspoon! Thank you, everyone, for your support! May you be able to fill your Perfect Spoon with a lot of tea!
This giveaway is open to Canada and the United States ONLY. The giveaway will start on March 5, 2020, and end on March 15, 2020. Please read the full Terms and conditions below. The giveaway is not sponsored and I purchased the items independently.
Final Thoughts
(Cold 911 from 2015, 2019 and 2020)
It still amazes me that it has been 5 years. I never thought I would start on this journey, but now that I am on this path, I can’t think of being anywhere else. Thank you to everyone for all their support and I am excited to keep learning more about tea!
Special thanks to Lu Ann from The Cup of Life, who every week has to make sure I post on time! You can read my interview with her, here.
The question of the post: What started your tea journey?
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