Introduction:Chagee’s newly launched ‘Golden Crow Soaring’ combines Xinhui green tangerine with Yunnan Pu’er tea, and is paired with a limited-edition badge blind box to spark conversation. This modern Eastern-style tea beverage presents polarizing flavors—some praise its layered complexity, while others criticize its herbal and off-putting notes. This article delves into the reasons behind the taste controversy and offers tips for badge collection to help consumers make more informed choices.
On September 14 this year, Chagee officially released its new original leaf fresh milk tea series product, ‘Golden Crow Soaring,’ which pairs Xinhui green tangerine with a Yunnan Pu’er tea base, highlighting a modern Eastern tea concept. This product attempts to blend the freshness of citrus with the richness of Pu’er, creating a tea-drinking experience that balances aftertaste and layers. However, upon its market release, the drink sparked highly polarized discussions—some consumers lauded its unique and varied flavor profile, while many others bluntly criticized its overly strong oolong character, even noting medicinal or peculiar undertones.
Launched alongside the new product was a ‘Golden Crow Soaring Badge Blind Bag’ peripheral campaign that sent collectors into a frenzy. Starting September 13, customers who purchased a designated double-large cup set meal at any nationwide outlet could randomly receive a postcard, a double-cup paper bag, or a ‘Golden Crow Soaring Badge Blind Bag.’ The blind bag contains four uniquely designed zinc alloy badges, including ‘Golden Crow,’ ‘Green Tangerine,’ ‘Ancient Tea Horse Road,’ and ‘Meeting Friends,’ each with an equal chance of approximately 25%. These badges measure 13.5cm × 10.5cm, and not only feature the tea brand’s logo embossed on the front, but also have two spear needles on the back for easy display or storage, making them highly popular among figurine and design enthusiasts.
The badges immediately ignited heated discussions on social platforms. Many consumers stated that although they initially intended to buy the drink, they unconsciously fell into a ‘gacha mode,’ repeatedly purchasing the set meals in an effort to collect all four badges. Netizens shared their collection experiences, with some noting slight weight differences among the badges—for instance: ‘Golden Crow’ weighs about 32 grams, ‘Green Tangerine’ around 31 grams, ‘Meeting Friends’ roughly 32 grams, and ‘Ancient Tea Horse Road’ about 30 grams. These details may help guess the contents but also add to the challenge of completing the set. Some customers joked that they came for tea but ended up playing a blind box game, with comments like “Just my luck, so frustrating” and “Two staff members and still no Golden Crow!” frequently appearing.
As the topic gained traction, many netizens also began sharing their genuine experiences with the ‘Golden Crow Soaring’ beverage itself.In terms of flavor, this tea drink uses green tangerine and Pu’er as its base, but many users reported that its oolong character was overly prominent, even accompanied by medicinal or peculiar off-notes.One review bluntly stated: “This is the worst drink I’ve ever had, might as well call it poison.” Others described its taste as akin to “kissing a middle-aged man who smokes and loves tea,” while some even detected a fecal odor, exclaiming “the more I drink, the more it tastes like poop.” Even those who tried it out of curiosity by ordering both hot and iced versions still couldn’t accept the flavor, commenting “I’ve never had poop, but it really does taste like it.”
However, some users offered more neutral perspectives. One netizen mentioned that if you chooseregular sweetness, it can slightly mitigate the bitterness and astringency, whereas half-sweet tends to highlight the astringent nature of the tea base, making the overall experience even less enjoyable. Experienced tea drinkers suggest that if you want to try this beverage, it’s better to opt for regular sweetness, and remind that green tangerine Pu’er inherently carries a certain level of bitterness and astringency, hence the polarized reviews. The images also show the drink exhibiting an amber hue with clear tea liquor, though flavor perception varies from person to person.
Based on community discussions, the acceptance of ‘Golden Crow Soaring’ is clearly influenced by individual taste preferences. Consumers who enjoy citrus notes and Pu’er aromas may appreciate its layers and aftertaste; however, those unaccustomed to herbal scents or strong oolong flavors may find it hard to adapt. If you’re planning to try this new release, consider starting with regular sweetness and pay attention to how ice ratio affects the flavor. Additionally, if your main goal is badge collection, remember to take note of the weight details of each variant—it might help you complete your set more efficiently.
Whether it’s the drinking experience or the peripheral collection, ‘Golden Crow Soaring’ showcases Chagee’s ingenuity in product creativity and market strategy. However, the polarized flavor also serves as a reminder to consumers that when trying new tea beverages, it’s wise to review multiple opinions before deciding to take a sip. As for those collectors queuing up again and again just for the badges—good luck, maybe the next cup will be the cherished ‘Golden Crow’ you’re after.
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
