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David's Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 3: Yuzu Matcha
I’ll admit, I’d been looking forward to this one the second I saw it on the back. I’ve never tried yuzu but I’ve always wanted to. For those who don’t know, yuzu is a citrus fruit from East Asia that’s commonly used in Japanese and Korean cuisine. It kinda looks like a smaller grapefruit or large lemon, with the internal look of a lemon. I’ve seen it used in a lot of baking shows, so I’d been interested.  
As for the matcha itself, this was a million times better than the first two days and a huge relief to get after some disappointing flavors. it actually tastes like matcha! Whoo-hoo! It’s got a subtle hint of citrus that adds a whole other layer that is really delicious when combined with the earthy taste of matcha. I really wish this was sold on the actual site, because I’d buy a whole bunch of it if I could. Regretably I only have the one drink because it’s exclusive to the calendar but hopefully David’s Tea will make it a year round product next year. As a heads up, the mix does not fully mix in, there’s these little green dots that cling to the top and the edges of the bag. These are not clumps of matcha and don’t taste or feel like anything. My guess is thats the flavoring, so don’t worry too much. Overall, I’m super happy about this one. 10/10 please make this a normal product David.
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David’s Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 23: Salted Caramel Matcha
Awwww heck yea! I was so pumped for this one because it sounds amazing and guess what? It tastes amazing too! It’s so creamy and decadent and sweet it’s the perfect desert matcha... though you shouldn’t actually be drinking matcha late at night. Well, it’s a great way to start your day off sweet too! It’s got that salted caramel taste of being sweet, but not tooth rotting sweet, and more complex than just pure caramel candy. It’s not too salty, frankly you can’t even taste any salt which is good, but you can taste the caramel and the matcha. It’s really amazing, and I loved it. 10/10.
Also, the listing on David’s Tea linked above states that this supports the Ethical Tea Partnership, which most but not all of their teas state. I thought I’d mention it now though, as it’s almost the end of these reviews, but generally, the Ethical Tea Partnership is similar to Fair Trade coffee and chocolate - it’s a membership organization that works to implement living wage, equal rights, and sustainable farming practices amongst tea farming communities world wide. They work to help end gender violence in these communities, to minimze their carbon footprint, and generally are just a good sign to look for when considering who you buy tea from, which has always been a feather in David’s Tea’s cap for me.
You may be wondering “hey, what happened to Day 22? Elliot did you forget another one?” To which i say - no I didn’t forget the matcha again.... I forgot to buy milk again. But considering I already know what tomorrow’s is (process of elimination and all that), and I know I will not be drinking it at all, I’m just going to make yesterday’s matcha be what I drink tomorrow. And yes, there’s still two I haven’t reviewed, but I’ll get to them at some point I swear. Now, happy day before Christmas Eve, and I’ll see yall tomorrow!
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David’s Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 21: Chai Matcha
Well to start with, Blessed Yule everyone! I hope you are all having a wonderful Tuesday. 
Now that that’s been said, onto the review! Basically, this is a chai. I know I’ve been going on about how i like tasting the matcha in the flavor instead of having it buried, but this time, I like the drink AND there’s barely any matcha flavor. It tastes like a green tea based chai and it’s fantastic. Heavier on the nutmeg than some chais, but comparable to tazo chai/Starbucks chai if you’ve had that. You can’t really taste the matcha, but it’s fine in my opinion. It’s a nice, sweet chai that wouldn’t be out of place in a coffee shop and i’d definitely recommend. 
HOWEVER - and pay attention now - to find it DO NOT SEARCH FOR “CHAI MATCHA DAVID’S TEA” ON GOOGLE. The first link that pops up is for a prepackaged verious that doesn’t look to be on sale anymore, which is a damn good thing because apparently, that product exposes you to lead. I’m guessing it is just the packaging on the product or the specific batch due to some spices in it (which according to CA.gov can have lead contamination when from Mexico or Asia) because the listing i linked above and what comes up when you search specifically for chai matcha ON THE DAVIDS TEA SITE has no warning. California also has much stricter rules for what counts as a carcinogen or toxin so it probably passes federal inspection (as a funny story, E6000 glue is carcinogenic in California only, which was a joke in the art department of my school and we called in cancer glue!) That being said, i would NOT RECOMMEND THIS to anyone who is breast feeding or wanting to get pregnant soon. If you’re already pregnant, you shouldn’t be drinking matcha in the first place because of the caffiene content. If you’re not, I wouldn’t worry too much because again, the link I included leads to a product with no warnings and the one with the warning isn’t for sale anymore making me think they’ve fixed the problem. But knowing it was a problem in the past, I’d recommend for people dealing with infants or potential pregnancies avoid out of an abundance of caution. You do what is best for you, though, and if you think it is okay, then i would recommend this matcha because it’s a really good chai and definitely a good morning drink if you love chai’s but want something with a bit more caffiene to get your day started. 9/10 for taste, 6/10 for safety testing. 
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David's Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 20: Berries and Cream Matcha
So I'll be honest, first impressions of this tea were not good. Just opening the bag and smelling it i could already tell there were some pretty artificial berry notes to it. I hoped that maybe, it'd still be okay once mixed into milk and water, but no luck. The first sip tastes pretty good, but then there's this awful aftertaste that lingers for so long. it's super artificial and a bit like your mouth feels when you first wake up, like gummy and awful. And it wasn't just me waking up first thing, I had it after being up for 2 hours, brushing my teeth, drinking water, and eating cookies, so it really was this tea. I couldn't get more than a couple sips in before i gave up, it was just... really not good. Do yourself a favor and don't buy this tea. 0/10
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David’s Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 17: Orange Dreamsicle Matcha
I’m going to be really honest with y’all, this morning has been rough and chaotic and frustrating so my matcha got scarfed down in a rush without thinking much about it. It was tasty, but I admittedly couldn’t really distinguish any orange flavor to it because of the rush. It may have been there, it may have not been. It was definitely good, but from what I remember, it was a very, very subtle orange flavor and was more like a slightly brighter matcha flavor instead of the typical heavier earthy taste. So definitely good but not super distinct. I’d say more but I don’t remember more from in between my rush. Sorry. I’ll give it an 8/10 to be generous, because it was definitely tasty even if i dont remember much. now if youll excuse me, I’m still in a rush.
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David’s Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 15: Maple Matcha
If you’ve ever sweetened your matcha latte with maple syrup, then you’ve tried this matcha. It’s got that strong maple syrup flavor layered with the matcha, but neither is really more dominating then the other. It’s nicely balanced, not too sweet or too bitter, and the maple definitelly tastes like they mixed maple sugar into the mix, not like it’s an artificial sweetener. Personally, I’m not really the biggest fan of it, I’ve always prefered honey as a sweetener, but if you like using maple syrup to sweeten things then this is the matcha for you because it definitelly tastes like it. 7/10, not a personal preference but still tasty
Day 16: Matcha Spoon
So I was very surprised today to open my little box and find that I didn’t get another matcha, but instead a matcha spoon. I thought for sure the “surprise” the box claims would be on the 24th, but apparently, it’s on the 16th. I’m sure for some this would be really disappointing, and does make me wonder how they are going to make the 24th box special if it’s just going to be another matcha. But for me, I’m currently fasting before I have to get my blood drawn in an hour, so I don’t really mind not being tempted by a yummy looking matcha. 
For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about when I say a matcha spoon, I’m referencing one of David’s Tea’s special matcha accessories. You’re unlikely to find them elsewhere since you can pretty much use any spoon to scoop matcha, as I have been doing for years and years. But David’s Tea sells these things to make your lattes a bit more uniform. Each matcha they sell has a little thing on the label that tells you how many of the little spoonfuls of matcha they recommend, kind of like some tea companies will say “1 tsp per 8oz” on their labels. They have a bigger tea spoon for their loose leaf teas that is essentially the same. They come in really pretty colors and can be themed, so the one I got is this beautiful forest green with golden sparkles Christmas themed one. Typically they are $4 to $7, depending on if you get the boring silver one or the pretty ones. But generally, I would not recommend buying one on your own unless it happens to come in a starter kit or heavily discounted. II won’t give this a rating because its, you know, a spoon, but I’m still glad I got one that I didn’t have to buy individually.
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David’s Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 14: Peach Matcha
I was a little nervous with this one, because some peach teas can taste so overpoweringly peach-y that it tastes artificial. Peaches don’t really have that strong of a taste really (nectarines tend to be sweeter in my opinion). But I almost had the opposite problem with this matcha. The peach was so subtle you could barely taste it. It was there, if you thought about it, but otherwise it was just a matcha with an amorophous fruity flavor you could just sorta make out if you were looking for it. Certainly not bad, I personally found it wonderful and drank the whole thing before I even remembered I should do a review. But if you’re looking for a strong peach flavor similar to that of iced peach teas, this is not the matcha for you. If you’d like just a slightly lighter matcha and a good summery drink, then this is a perfect choice for you. I think it’d be ideal as an iced matcha, so it’s definitely one I’ll be keeping on my summer lattes wish list. 7/10, would have liked more peach but it’ll be a perfect summer drink.
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David’s Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Sorry I’m a bit behind, it’s been finals week and traveling home for winter break so I’ve been busy as heck! Let’s go get up to date, shall we?
Oh also, I thought I’d mention some other, cheaper matcha sampler products. The Single Serve mixed bag and a cozy single serve mixed bag which have a big variety, alongside a summer sampler. One sampler has has bubblegum, which I’ve yet to see elsewhere. There’s a holiday sampler, a fruity sampler, and a few other products with a couple basic matchas (matsu and vanilla usually) that also come with matcha makers if you were interested. This is far from a comprehensive list, but if you’d like to try one of the matcha’s i review, check out the samplers because they might be in there and I’m only linking where you can get the individual matcha (unless i can find it in a sampler and no where else like the wild honey one below).
Day 11: Wild Honey Matcha 
Soo.... more technical difficulties. I still had no milk, so I went to the dorm kitchen where there was milk. It said it wasn’t expired and I thought it smelled fine in my very, very sleepy, late for work state, but uh... it was chunky and nasty and I didn’t notice until I’d already ruined the tea. Whoops. I did get matcha that day, but it was from Dunkin so no review for you. -20/10 don’t drink spoiled milk friends
Day 12: Mango Matcha 
Oh my giddy aunt this was amazing. You could taste that wonderful earthy matcha flavor but there was this deliciously sweet mango flavor that would stay on your tongue and was just so good. Fruity, but not overwhelmingly sweet, this was the perfect tropical matcha mix. Yet another one I would gladly buy in bulk, because this was just wonderful. Really made my chilly morning just a bit sunnier and I loved it. 10/10 for sure. 
Day 13: Vanilla Matcha 
This was the most classic matcha drink I’ve had so far. Tasted very reminiscent of a Starbucks or Dunkin matcha, though less sweet then both of those, and noteably less sweet then the other drinks so far (except the matcha matsu). Still definitely good, and if you’re a fan of the chain restaurant matcha’s then this is the one for you. Just a good ol’ basic matcha with that touch of vanilla I always love. 7/10 nothing special but still very good.
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David’s Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 8: Lavender Honey Matcha
For those of you who aren’t aware, lavender honey is one of my favorite sweet flavor profiles (in case you’re curious, the list goes lemon, peanut butter, chocolate, molasses, lavender with honey or lemon, the two are tied). I love lavender, the scent, the plant, the taste, all of it. I know some people doubt aromatherapy but for me, lavender truly calms me down. So needless to say, I was looking forward to this flavor, and dang did it come at a good time. Wednesday’s are my busy day, and on this, the last Wednesday of classes, I’ve been extremely anxious. Having lavender honey pop up for today was the best outcome I could have gotten. 
This was only made better by the flavor. By golly does this taste good! You’ve still got that beautiful matcha flavor that’s perfectly balanced by the sweetner, not too much, but not too little, with this subtle lavender background that lingers on your tongue. You can’t taste the honey much, its mostly a lavender matcha, but that certainly doesn’t make it less good. The lavender is present, but not overpowering which is a difficult thing when it comes to lavender and making sure it’s not going to taste like soap. I think this would be amazing with just a swirl of lemon honey, though it’d make it sweeter than it had to be. Either way, I’m relaxed, caffeinated, and ready to power through today. the only downside? it’s not sold individually. @David’s Tea, get on this!! 10/10 would recommend.
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David’s Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 7: Earl Grey Matcha 
Now I LOVE earl grey tea. In summer, it’s my morning drink of choice and I’ll be making a london fog latte while my family is doling out the coffee. So at the thought of combining my two favorite tea drinks, I was pretty stoked and was looking forward to this one. Regretfully, it is nothing like I expected. My favorite earl grey is from Stash and has a nice, subtle and light bergamont flavor that is perfectly balanced by the hefty black tea. in this drink, the bergamont tastes overwhelmingly strong to the point it tastes just a bit like its a cleaning supply. I think they just poured a jar of bergamont essential oil into a vat of this and mixed. Badly. This is Severely bergamont, and without the black tea to keep it grounded. Still better than the cream of earl grey, I perfer bergamont to yogurt after all, but unless you really, really, really love bergamont and feel like inhaling it with a side of milk, this is not the drink for you. I’ll finish it but I will not be enjoying it. 2/10. 
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David’s Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 6: Cherry Blossom Matcha
Oh MAN was this a good one! I drank the entire mug before realizing “Oh i should make a review of this” because I was lost in the haze of an amazing latte. Slightly floral, slightly fruity, slightly sweet, this matcha was perfect as a latte. The flavor was so smooth and only improved by the milkiness. It felt like drinking a latte while walking around a flower garden and having a picnic under a blossoming cherry blossom tree with a lacy parasoil next you you. Truly, I was so relaxed and happy, and it might just be my favorite so far. It is with a heavy heart that i must inform you that it is not available for individual sale but you bet that I will be messaging David’s Tea to beg them to make it, at the very least, a spring and summer special. I’m in love okay. the best thing in my mind? my drink got cold fairly quickly (my heater is not going and it’s 28 degrees American out right now, im a popsicle) 12/10, best matcha so far. 
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David’s Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 5: Matcha Matsu
For those of you that don’t know much about matcha, let me explain what matcha matsu is. Basically, it’s super high grade, ceremonial matcha meant for use in Japanese Tea Ceremonies. Most matcha you’ll get in the USA is just culinary grade, so still perfectly high quality, excellent matcha, but not quite ceremonial grade. Also, signifigantly cheaper. Cermonial grade is typically only ever grown in and processed in Japan, for David’s Tea it is specifically Nishio, Japan. Basically if you like matcha to stand alone, no sweetners or additives, and are looking for extremely high quality with a more earthy flavor, you should go for ceremonial matcha, while if you are just a casual drinker who prefers matcha in lattes, you should just pick culinary blend. Culinary is what you’ll get a coffee shop, ceremonial is what you’ll get in Japan. For me, I usually only get culinary grade, because I drink my matcha with sweetner and as a latte, and as a broke college student I cannot afford the 20$ per ounce ceremonial grade tends to run. So just keep that in mind. 
David’s Tea matcha matsu runs for $19.98 for 50 grams. I definitely over boiled the water, because the directions for each tea are tiny and on the back of the box, not the bag itself, which I think needs to be changed for next year as it makes it harder to know the proper way to make it. I don’t have any of the correct equiptment to make matcha like the bowl or whisk (again, I’m broke and a college kid making these before I run to class or the library), and like I said above, i drink matcha with milk and sweetner, in this case white sugar since the matcha matsu is the only matcha in the advent calendar to NOT be presweetened. Again, this is because it tends to be drunk with no sweetener from what i have seen. 
I’m not sure if it’s because I didn’t have the proper whisk, but there were multiple hard clumps even after mixing with a fork vigourously for about a minute and a half. I had to fish them out because getting a mouthful of matcha clumps is nasty. This is a major issue, especially concerning matsu. As i was whisking (before adding milk and sugar) the matcha smelled fairly of what, to me at least, was similar to seaweed and I didn’t find it pleasant quite honestly. It’s definitely an outlier in a box full of matcha mixes intended for lattes, and if you’re the person to enjoy said sweeter, flavored mixes, you probably won’t like this, or at least, won’t notice a difference from culinary grade. If you’d like just a plain matcha, go for David’s Tea vanilla matcha, or this culinary grade matcha from Amazon that i usually get, since I can’t afford $10-12 shipping. The takeaway from this is essentially, if you like matcha lattes, are broke, or aren’t picky, pick the culinary grade basic matcha. If you are a matcha afficianado, drink matcha straight with no additives, or are actually performing/participating in a true Japanese Tea Ceremony, get ceremonial grade. If you’re the latter person, find a Japanese company that can provide you with better matcha then this. 3/10, wouldn’t recommend to anyone, basically,but not terrible so long as you aren’t paying full price. 
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David’s Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
Day 4: Blueberry Matcha
If you’ve ever had blueberry boxed muffins or blueberry tea you might be aware of how painfully articial blueberry things can taste. blueberry really doesn’t have much flavor on its own, so companies need to... you know give it one. that usually doesn’t taste good. Needless to say, I was a bit worried about this one.
But David’s Tea strikes again. This matcha is amazing. It’s just got a very subtle blueberry taste at the end, more like a blueberry pie taste than an artificial blueberry taste, and you can still taste that delicious matcha. My friend and I were right when discussing the calendar - matcha is too earthy to give artificial complicated flavors. Subtle, single fruit flavors will always work better. Judging from the last two days, I know we were right. With just a single subtle taste, the matcha is elevated and so much better (and weirdly making me want to try adding matcha to my next blueberry pie...) while still keeping its integrity. Luckily for all of you, this IS one of the ones that is sold on its own (and is actually worth the $11.98 USD per ounce) so if you are looking for a summery matcha thats a bit more complex than your usual one, then i’d definitely recommend it. 10/10 
Also if anyone was interested in how i’m preparing these, since I forgot to add this to the intro note, I’m filling a large mug with half warmed up whole milk and half 212 degrees(American) water from the filtered school water fountain. I try to mix for thirty seconds to a minute, depending on whether or not I’m in a rush to get to class. I empty the full packet into the mug since they are serving size and add nothing else since they are presweetened. So yea! 
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David's Tea Matcha Advent Calendar Review
I'm well known for being a massive tea snob fan and I'm especially into matcha. My mom actually got me David's Tea Matcha Advent Calendar this year. David's tea is my favorite tea company and it's becoming a tradition where she sends an advent calendar to the kids in college so we get a boost of holiday cheer in between the anxiety of finals. The calendar contains pretty much all of the company's matcha teas, including all the nutty flavors that I never know whether they are worth trying and spending the money on. Rather than continuing to annoy my friends with reviews on each day, I thought a better idea would be to make a review here every day. If you don't want to view these, block #matcha review, but if you do, then here we go!
INITIAL THOUGHTS
The packaging is beautiful, as always. There's tons of pretty green colors, silvery stars, golden lettering, and overall very beautiful. the back has information on each mix which ruins a bit of the surprise, but considering they aren't in order and it's required by law to have nutrition information, I'm not upset with it. The front says "23 bags of matcha drink mix and a surprise", so im curious about what that is. considering there's only 23 listed mixes on the back and nothing else, I'm guessing it is not a food item. Having had David's Tea matcha drink mixes, I can say that I know they are high quality. Some advantages of them are that they mix into the drink incredibly easy and without five minutes of whisking, they leave less sludge at the bottom (at least in my experience), and they are presweetened to a comfortable amount so things definitely aren't bitter if that's a concern for you.
On the inside cover there's a bunch of information on matcha and some information on how to make matcha, though it is mostly an advertisment for other matcha products David's Tea sells. considering they are ceremonial necessities, like the whisk and bowl, I don't find this too annoying. Each box for the month is easy to pull out, sturdy and decorated pretty. The numbers are very clear and easy to find, and the set up of mini locker type boxes on a firm shelf means it won't be falling apart like most advent calendars do by the 23rd. It at least has a quality matching $65, but with a $10-12 flat rate shipping. Considering how many tea options we get (each costing between $10 to $12 per oz (50g), excluding the 20$ per ounce matcha matsu, which is included in this calendar), it is actually very helpful if you want to try a bunch of matcha flavors without spending $230+ to try all of the flavors. Each packet is one drink, so it's not like you'll be wasting any of it if you try each. Some flavors actually are only available in this kit, like the lavender honey matcha or the yuzu matcha.
If you like matcha and want to explore a lot of unique flavors, I would say that this is worth the price. However, if more than 5 or so flavors aren't things you'll like, or you aren't a huge matcha lover, don't buy this. You'd have better luck with the regular tea calendar (only $50, and each packet can make 2 or 3 cups. I still have some from two years ago). I'll add a full list of flavors at the end of this post for reference. For me as a huge matcha lover, I'm excited. So let's get into the actual reviews.
DAY 1: Cream of Earl Grey Matcha Drink Mix
Full honesty, I knew I wouldn't like this one and was really bummed out I got it first. I've had the Cream of Earl Grey tea and was so not a fan. why? It tastes like yogurt. Seriously, it tastes like yogurt, and the matcha version was no different. You couldn't taste any bergamot, just a weird, yogurt. If a matcha yogurt sounds tasty, think again, because you couldn't taste the matcha, just... yogurt. 0/10 would not gurt again
DAY 2: Pumpkin Pie Matcha Drink Mix
I was really looking forward to this one giving my affection for pumpkin spice lattes (call me basic all you want, but you'll have to call me in the pumpkin field because that's where I am in the fall). Regrettably, this wasn't nearly as good as a PSL. It's definitely pumpkin-y, but it disguises the matcha taste so it really tastes like you are drinking a diluted pumpkin syrup. I don't even really think it tastes like pumpkin pie because there's no spices or nice cooked pumpkin, it really is the artificial pumpkin in a PSL, without the nice chai undertones. if you love a PSL, you'll probably like it, but don't expect it to be matcha. If you don't like a PSL or want the matcha aspect, don't get it. 4/10.
Total List of Flavors:
Matcha Matsu, peach, wild honey, chai, maple, yuzu, raspberry, gingerbread, candy cane, salted caramel, berries and cream, mocha, lavender honey, cherry blossom, mango, strawberry, mojito, cream of earl grey, earl grey, orange dreamsicle, vanilla, blueberry, pumpkin pie.
12 are available on the website as of 12/2/2021. The other 11 are unique to this kit. Available matchas not included in this tester are: blue magic matcha, eggnog matcha, glitter matcha, and mint matcha. Considering the number of exclusive to this calendar flavors, I would say that it definitely makes it seem more worth the cost. I have never seen most of these flavors on any other site, so when I say they are truly exclusive, I really do mean it.
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