Rishi Tea

It was a stormy afternoon perfect for oolong drinking. I did another smaller 6oz cup series of steeps. And again with this tea, it worked quite well. This time, I increased the steep time by 15 seconds each steep, which also worked well.

1st steep: 4 min. Yummy oolongy goodness but nothing to remark on.

2nd steep: 4 min 15 sec. This one was like drinking an old library in a good way.

3rd steep: 4 min 30 sec. This one reminded me of drinking toffee coffee. Not sure it tasted like that but that’s what I was thinking of when I drank it.

4th steep: 4 min 45 sec. Lighter toffee coffee. Again, the 3rd and 4th steeps were the best ones in my opinion.

5th steep: 6 min 45 sec. Increase steep time by 2 minutes for this steep. Before steeping today, I’d read in my previous tealog for this tea that the 5th steep was where the tea became more watery than tea. Even with the much increased time, this was again the case. This steep is still drinkable though.

Notes: Starting at 4 min and increasing the steep time by 15-30 sec each steep works good. Water temperature is also good. 5th steep is noticeably weak, but drinkable.

In light of the recent pair of user-caused green tea fails and the weak oolong a week or two back, I decided to try something different today. A 6oz cup. I hoped to manage multiple steeps so not to feel bad for “wasting” tea by only doing one steep. I hoped to trick myself into thinking I was drinking less tea and therefore, drink more tea. I hoped the tea would be tasty. Oh wait, I always hope the tea will be tasty. =)

The 1st steep was back to the yummy oolong I remembered. The first few sips I thought I was in for the weak oolong that I got last time I had this. Cooling a bit changed it back to good. Could be a bit stronger though still.

2nd steep: 4 min 20 sec, 200° F.
Darker in color. Stronger in taste. Good.

3rd steep: 5 min, 200° F.
Wow, this one is really good. I noticed the difference in taste immediately. Roasty woodsy drinkability.

4th steep: 5 min 30 sec, 200° F.
Another really good one. Hints of the 3rd steep, reminiscent of a good cigar. I thought this was going to be the weak time-to-stop-steeping steep on the first few sips. But it was not.

5th steep: set timer for 6 min, forgot to start, unknown long time. 200° F.
Water with essences of steep 4. The time-to-stop-steeping steep.

This is one of the most times I’ve steep a tea. And I’m not really sure how much the time should increase between steeps. I picked 30 seconds cause that seemed like a good noticeable increase in time. Maybe I try 15 seconds next time. I know it doesn’t need more than 30.

Well, the 6oz cup worked on all three counts. I look forward to trying a green this way.

I must confess that I’ve been hoarding my Wuyi Oolong. You see, I only have the one and the tin is already half gone. But I’ve been craving oolong for several days. Late yesterday afternoon, I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to drink but knew I wanted more tea. So I fell back to the fact that I’d been wanting oolong recently.

Maybe I should have listen to my instinct at that time and ponder a bit more before I chose what to drink. Because not having run the dishwasher yet, I was down to a few mugs left. None were good choice to steep a single portion of tea and I didn’t want to waste my precious Wuyi Oolong steeping a double portion when I could get multiple steeps from it anyways. I chose an oddly shaped moose mug, which I love, but holds two cups. I thought I could just steep one cup in it. But I went to put the infuser in the mug, after heating it and getting the water to the correct temperature, when the oolong malfunction occurred.

The infuser would not fit deep enough into the mug and only a 1/2 inch of water barely wet the tea leaves! I’d brewed this mug less than full before! Possibly a cup and a half full though. But the infuser had sank deep enough and the leaves were covered with room to spare. PANIC!! My leaves are wet! My water is cooling! I don’t really have enough time to wash a mug. I quickly look in the cupboard for a glass cup that my infuser will fit in. They are all too narrow! I grab my Pyrex liquid measure cup. You know the one. The one with the handle that measures two cups. You most likely have one. I heat the Pyrex with the water from the moose mug then add water from the kettle. Check the temperature, add the infuser. It fits!

Four minutes later, the resulting tea looks rather light. But it’s been awhile since I’ve had oolong so perhaps I just don’t remember. I pour it back into the moose mug for drinking. It’s good but weak. A bit too weak. I drink it anyways, knowing I can make another steep right away. I make the 2nd steep in the Pyrex and pour it into the mug. A bit stronger but more of the same mostly. I am not inspired to try a 3rd steep. I think the oddness of preparation resulted in the less than enjoyable oolong last night rather than a downturn in my liking of oolong. I will try it again with a suitable mug and perhaps slightly hotter water. It might be awhile though.

2nd steep: 5 min, 190° F.

Steep #2 went into the bath with me while I read the October Believer. It was drank quickly.

Wuyi Oolong, I haven’t had you in awhile and you’ve just been sitting there in your tin on the top shelf of the cupboard, getting bored perhaps. You sounded like you’d go good with a Jonagold apple and natural almond butter for a snack.

When I poured hot water on the leaves, the smell was very strong: roasty, toasty, and grain-like with some dusty and earthy. It reminded me of something but I haven’t been able to place it and I’ve been sniffing at my cup as I drink. The taste is much as I remember and quite nice, although probably not the best paired with this snack.

My yummy Wuyi Oolong seemed different this morning. It was not as yummy as I remember it being. It seemed stronger, more bitter, and more dry. I shall have to see how subsequent steeps fair.

Yay for PMs!

I had another pot of Rishi Wuyi early this afternoon. Just as delicious as the two pots I had yesterday. I had hoped it would fortify me to make a large Target run. But alas, a poor sleep last night won out over leaving the house. I did triumph over two loads of laundry though and a nice bath.

This is the first and only so far oolong tea I’ve ever tried.

My local Earth Fare had several Rishi loose teas 50% off and this is one of the several I brought to try. I did not know if I would enjoy it at all. I haven’t been too fond of unflavored black teas so far and thought an oolong would taste similarly. To my surprise, I loved it. It rapidly became one of my favorite teas of the current batch in my apartment. I start drinking and before I know it I’ve consumed the whole pot already.

I’m about to drink a pot of the second brewing of this set of leaves.

This organic Earl Grey is made using the same ancient assamica tree leaves as Rishi’s regular Golden Yunnan. The leaves here are much darker than in the Golden Yunnan either as a result of the scenting process or, as I suspect, because it’s less tippy (has fewer buds). Truth is, if you’re planning on scenting a tea, it makes sense that you wouldn’t use a lot of buds, the flavor of which will only get overwhelmed by the bergamot. Anyway, this brew yields a rich liquor with a great citrus taste that doesn’t taste medicinal the way some some cheaper Earl Greys can taste. A nice tea, as my grandmother would say.

A nice travelogue about the ancient Yunnan harvest can be found at http://www.rishi-tea.com/travelogue/Fair_Trade_Organic_Tea/slides/Map_of_China.php.

Another good article about the wild Yunnan harvest can be found at http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/21/world/asia/21tea.html?scp=7&sq=tea&st=cse

Rishi has some great teas. This would not be one of them. The batch I bought had what I can only describe as a sharp, acrid, almost chemical-like taste. Not at all pleasing, especially after having experienced some exceptional oolongs recently, including a great Darjeeling oolong and several great tie kwan yins (Iron Goddess). I gave my Wuyi to a coworker, who finished it in a few weeks. Hey, different strokes.

I’m very picky about my black teas.
This is one of the best I’ve found!

I wanted to revisit this tea and give it a proper evaluation for 2 reasons…

1.) This tea is still by far my favourite oolong. And Rishi must have just released their latest and greatest crop into the public because the flavour of my most recent cups of these tea were different from the flavour I’ve had from previous shipments. It’s always been really good, but what I just had is INCREDIBLE. I can’t stop!

Pairs best with fish and spicy foods, but also makes a lovely mid-morning/mid-afternoon treat.
Also, I recommend brewing this in a glass teapot. It’s so beautiful! A teaspoon of Iron Goddess unfurls to fill half of your teapot. I’ve seen few teas that do it like this one, so set the glass pitcher in front of a window and just enjoy the show!

2.) Rishi announced that they are donating 20% of their proceeds from this season’s sale of Iron Goddess to an organisation that is working to provide relief efforts in Haiti. They posted this article in their most recent newsletter:
http://www.foodthinkers.com/2010/03/the-enduring-oolong-of-compassion/
Pretty awesome.

Three things I’m crazy-passionate about include:
-Excellent tea.
-Fair Trade efforts or acts of charity.
-The philosophies surrounding Avalokitesvara/Guan Yin/the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy (so much that a related prayer [the mantra of compassion] is tattooed on me.)

… So this whole ‘awesome-delicious tea / 20% going toward Haiti’ -thing pretty much makes my day. It’s the perfect excuse for you to try it if you haven’t yet. And if you’ve had Iron Goddess of Mercy in the past, and enjoyed it, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND the latest crop. It’s fantastic. :)

I like how it swells to like 500 times its original size after the first infusion. Hehehe… gets me every time. :)

No contest. My favourite oolong!!!!!!!!!!

A nice tea. Deliciously malty and nicely balanced. Not as strong of a caramel finish as some other Golden Yunnans, such as Itoen’s, but it’s organic (not a small consideration given Chinese farmers penchant for pesticide spray) and fair trade. And there is something really cool about having wild-harvested tea from 1,300-year-old tea trees.

I was so surprised by how much I loved this tea!!

Great for the white tea lover, who wants a slightly different take on the usual. So good!

Oooooooh! Update from the last time I had this! So… I got the POUND of Pu-erh Vanilla Mint that I ordered! Mwahaha, I was so excited!
So to celebrate, last night I did as Rishi recommends, and I brewed it like a chai. Half milk, half water, and 2 tablespoons of tea per 12 ounces. It was very good (when you smell it you’re going to think of Andes Mints or Girl Scout Thin Mints!) but I, personally, prefer it just brewed with water. It creates SUCH a dark brew, but it’s not bitter at all, and it’s just… awesome. It’s awesome. You should try it. It’s awesome.

Have a great day!

THIS… IS… THE… BEST… TEA… I… HAVE… FOUND… IN… AGES.

I cannot imagine anyone disliking a single thing about this tea. Even me… usually I’m not a mint person. But I cannot drink enough of this. It’s incredible. A very new blend from Rishi, and it’s sure to get rave reviews once people start trying it.

Also… I was incredibly impressed to see the reference to Yak butter tea that is a rumoured delicacy from Tibet. I’ve heard of Yak butter tea on numerous occasions now due to the personal interest I take in that part of the world, and have yet to come across anything that would compare to it.

Rishi’s reference to this rarity is what sold me, but the tea’s taste is what I’ve found to be beyond impressive, and is sure to please.

Spicy and almost coffee-like in flavor. I love it so, but the caffeine hits so hard that I can see through time after one cup.

My household cannot function unless there’s a bag of this in the cupboard. Spicy, sweet, and earthy with just a tiny touch of caffeine. It’s delicious all of the time, but it’s particularly great if you have indigestion or a cold. Plus, the chocolate chip cookie recipe that incorporates Maghreb Mint-infused butter is just incredible – try it sometime! – http://www.rishi-tea.com/Recipe_02.php