Rishi Tea

I was really impressed with this genmaicha. I have tried sooo many brands, and this one is leveled up with Den’s Tea. It’s refreshing, full of unami. I tried it hot, and I see this being amazing iced. I prefer genmaichas made with sticky/sweet rice, I think the tea it just tastes all around sweeter and has more body.

Honestly, I’m not sure how I got this, but since I had my first work from home day at my new job, i decided to give something new a whirl (since I’ve been stuck on Teavana Spiced Apple Cider + Rooibos Chai) or bagged tea at work until they determine I’m not a weirdo.

Anyway…

Seriously don’t know how I got this, but I had an ounce of it to begin with in an official Rishi bag. This was on top of my cabinet which also happens to house tea but happened before my tea obsession so I probably stuck it up there since I didn’t know where exactly to put it.

Anyway, is this chocolate chai?

No.

It’s basically ginger chai. So if ginger is your thing, you’ll love this. Me, on the other hand seems to hate ginger in tea (though I do like it on my sushi – the pickled variety though). This to me was barely drinkable. I got about half-way down my mug, before dumping it for the Teavana blend I mentioned above. Also, they recommend 2 Tablespoons on the front (for 12oz of water), I used 3 teaspoons. I cannot imagine how much more I would have hated it if I had followed directions!

Not a fan, but I don’t think I paid for it, so all is not lost.

EDIT
Managed to pawn this off to my husband’s coworkers so yay! Out of my cupboard! =)

Pass the Stash TTB #9

I had no expectations for this tea at all. It was a pleasant fruit blend, but not really anything truly spectacular. Good solid cuppa, though. I’m glad I had the opportunity to try it.

Great tea. Full bodied and lets you feel like your swimming in a pool.

bright

Thank you for the sample cookies!

I always like a good Yunnan black. This one is no exception. Very satisfying. Not anything unique or spectacular compared to other Yunnans I’ve tried, but definitely a tasty solid tea choice.

The blueberry flavor tastes pretty aggressive and artificial. It curdles milk if you try to add some…so don’t do that.

HHTTB #14/18

Here is another one from the traveling tea box. I grabbed this one because I tend to enjoy ginger teas. This did not disappoint. It was a think mouth feel with a base that had the deep coco flavor mixed with the ginger. I am still not used to ripe pu-erh and so the earthy/mushroom smell the tea was really enjoyable.

Last of this one tonight. I am at my Grandparent’s for five weeks. I had to leave the kettle with the boyfriend. Gramma has a Keurig machine so we tried that. Some of the (admittedly tiny) leaf ended up in the cup. It doesn’t have as bold of a flavor that i am used to from this one. It was quite convenient though. It will be fine to use until I can stop somewhere to get a kettle.

With honey tonight. Yum!

Another oldie but goodie. Trying to sip this one down this week.

This is a little too tart for me tonight so I ended up adding a little bit of sugar. I find this tea very enjoyable. You definitely get the blueberry out of the sip! That was what I was looking for to start my evening. I really like the color the liquid of this tea is too, just beautiful.

This is sweeter than I remember. It is nearly like juice. Seems to somehow fit perfect with finally forcing myself to begin work.

Has a very mellow and earthy flavor with coffee and cacao overtones. I don’t particularly care for the woodsy flavor, but I think it would be good for people who like darker coffees. I would like it more if it had a more complex flavor because it almost reminds me of a red wine, but it’s lacking the depth I typically associate with a good glass of red. I don’t detect any floral undertones (maybe I burnt it? I’ll update when I try steeping another glass.) It’s not a bad tea, just not to my liking.

EDIT: After trying this tea again, it’s grown on me. It definitely has a woodsy, earthy taste, so if that’s not your thing, this tea isn’t for you. When I drink it, I like to put in a small chunk of orange rind and a teaspoon of honey, and it’s quite delicious and cozy.

This tea is not my favorite. I keep tasting more of a crisp minty taste and I feel like I should be tasting something more sweet. If you are going to go green, I feel like there are so many better options. “Cloud Mist” being one.

This tea is a really good pu’er blend. Lots of wine flavor with grape, cedar, blackberry and fig notes. Bit of tart and dryness. The pu’er isn’t heavy, fermenty or weird – but quite woody and creamy. This blend is pretty good iced too!

Full review on my blog, The Oolong Owl http://oolongowl.com/pu-erh-bordeaux-rishi-tea-tea-review/

It is a tad bit concerning when I open a bag of tea at work and the next 5 people to pass my room ask me what air freshener I am using because they can smell it down the freaking hall. Yeah. That’s this tea. Blueberries everywhere. I only open my cabinet door when I absolutely must because when I do, I know that I will unless the blueberry fury.

Now, the taste? You’d never guess by the smell but this tastes exactly like…..oh yeah, blueberries. Like so many of them. Stuffed in your mouth. And quite possible up your nose.

I promise this tastes better than I’m making it sound. I’ve had it hot and iced and I’m not sure which I prefer. There is just a slight hint of something I’m not completely fond of…maybe something that tastes too close to artificial? Or maybe it’s just the rooibos sneaking into what might otherwise taste like juice.

I don’t know….I don’t even know what to do with this air freshener tea except keep saying thank you when people comment on my new perfume….

Forgive me, it’s been more than two years since my last tea review. The new job pretty much ate my brain — and all my free time. O.K., so enough about me. Let’s talk tea.

Technically, you can’t call Himalayan Class Black a Darjeeling because it’s grown 150 miles (245 km) to the west. But for all intents and purposes that’s what it is, a Darjeeling grown just over the border in Hile, Nepal. Darjeelings have this amorphous quality about them. They’re technically a black tea, but they’re kind of green. And they’re made with Chinese varietals and Assamicas.

Himalayan Classic has that typical Darjeeling quality. It has very little body and that classic apricot-peach taste that Darjeelings have. (Rishi also says it has a malty quality, which I’m not tasting.)

If you like Darjeelings (particularly second flushes), you’ll like this.

You wouldn’t want to put milk in this tea. Well, let me rephrase that — I wouldn’t want to put milk in this tea. There’s no accounting for what you might want to do, but the tea doesn’t really have enough body to handle it. And I’m not sure milk goes well with teas with floral qualities either.

The tea is quite green, as is the wet infusion. The liquor has that greenie-oolongie thing that Darjeelings tend to have. Quite frankly, Darjeelings have been mediocre the past few years, so this is a good alternative.

First steep should be about three minutes, just like a Darjeeling. Go four to five minutes for the second steep. And I don’t think you can coax a decent third steep out of this.

Hands down favorite green tea. I am a green tea fan, and since finding this dragonwell by Rishi, it is the only one I drink regularly.