Rishi Tea

Having avoided white for so long, this tea surprised me. The smell of the leaf after adding a drop of hot water smells sweet, and almost roasted. The liquor is a very pale straw color, and the body of the tea is just as thin as the color. However, the tea has a decent amount of sweetness which is barely balanced with a noticeable astringency. The taste is very light, floral, fruity, with notes of raw sugar.

This tea is a favorite of mine because the price makes it a great everyday tea, and it’s very tasty. This is the kind of tea I think of when I think of a “soothing cup of tea.” It’s not the most interesting and complex tea, but it’s very soft and naturally sweet with little astringency. The flavor is very “green,” buttery, veggie, and a decent amount of umami. The savory sweetness of this tea is what makes it.

This Rooibos was a pleasant surprise…I generally do not drink Rooibos, but I had a sample, so I brewed it up and it was good. This tea is fruity and flavourful with a great lime taste and ginger. Will I buy it…no…but, I would drink it again if it was offered.

The dry leaves smell like someone sent me a bouquet of assorted flowers. Little round tightly rolled pellets of moss green.

Brewed; this tea is flowers, flowers, flowers!!!! Very Very very low roast ,,,love it!!!
It says on the package that this is Si Ji Chun style.

Not only do I taste and smell flowers, I taste tropical fruits such as Lychee fruit and melon.

I drank this with a lunch of avocado, Roma tomato, and sunflower sprouts on whole wheat bread and it paired very nicely. Then with fruit, it was amazing. Very great tea to pair with dessert.

Very amazing the differences in style and the many flavors that can be brought out of tea!!!!

This tea comes from central Taiwan.

Today I’ve established a discipline to not drink tea past 3:00 PM, so that it won’t affect my cortisol level via caffeine. Last night I had trouble going to sleep. Anyway to get to the point I had purchased this Serene Dream yesterday for the simple reason that it was the cheapest loose leaf tea Rishi offered at Whole Foods. I will take a sip now, and it’s 7:41 PM but I’m jumping to the conclusion that this doesn’t contain caffeine. I should mention/preface I added two tsp of German Rock Sugar from Teavana and this cup of tea is so nice. Second sip, I realize that this tea is nice only because it’s the perfect temperature after waiting 15 minutes, including 5-6 infusing. Third sip , I am reminded of Wild Orange Blossom/Youthberry blend (Teavana) not because it taste similar but because that is what I rather be drinking right now. Will give it another sip… Thank God I added rock sugar!.And another , a big gulp as I’m just trying to finish it up. Two more sips and I hoped this had mint. Maybe try this with Mint, otherwise look else where for a night time tea.

This tea is packaged in air-tight, oxygen free packaging from Taiwan within the Rishi box.
The dry leaves are tightly rolled little nuggets and they have a scent of soda bread and minerals.
Brewed, the leaves unfurl into curly-cues with stems and the liquor is a dark golden color with essence of toasted chestnut just as the packaging suggests. It really smells wonderful.

Wow, the flavor is smooth. It is a roasted flavor but not a strong roast, it is just enough.
As the tea cools, subtle flavors and scents of vanilla orchid come thru. There is a tiny tiny astringency.
Really delicious and awakening tea but not harsh with caffeine, it’s just right.
Lovely tea.

Upon the second steeping, I am getting a bit of stomach upset as more tannins are probably coming through with the leaves being more open. The Iron Goddess is not showing me mercy :( :( :( Must be sure to drink this one with a full lunch.

I enjoyed this tea and like that it is certified fair trade and organic. I compared this tea against two tea cakes (one from longrun and one from a store in China Town D.C.). All three teas were very similar but Rishi is much easier to find at my local Wegmans.
This pu erh steeps very quickly and I only used 1/2 of a Tou Cha. The tea came out a dark red with a earthy taste—pleased overall.

The dry leaves have essences of vanilla, mango, and lychee. They are long, black, and twisted.
Brewed, the liquor is a beautiful light golden amber with scents of honeysuckle and peach. The leaves unfurl and turn moss green.
The flavor is mostly floral and it has a slight astringency. All of the nectar and honey notes are in the scent and the flavor is all flowers.
This Oolong is amazing in its transformation! Now I see why this is called the Phoenix!

The dry leaves have the scent of cocoa and rocks. They each have 2 leaves and a bud with the fuzziness of Silver Needle.
Brewed, the liquor is very inviting with scents of mulberry and honey.
I love white tea, I can’t wait to taste this.
The flavor is very honey-tasting with touches of nectarine pulp and a hint of almond biscotti in the finish as you breathe out. This is fantastic white tea!! One of the best I have tried!

The dry leaves are beautiful, they look like flattened yellow-green raffia. They have the scent of hay, sea salt, and rice.
The liquor is a beautiful lemon-green color with scent of lemon-cooked potatoes and a bit of toasted oat.
The flavor is a nice, mild, toasty green tea with essences of crackers and green beans.
This is a nice tea with food because it enhances the food rather than overpowering it.
As the tea cools, I catch a touch of pretzel stick.
This is a nice, toasted, everyday green tea.

Drinking this with lunch today and I am getting way different notes than I did last time. I love this green tea. It has a hint of raw unsweetened cocoa along with nuts, peas, potato. I love these roasty, nutty green teas to eat with meals. Very delicious to always keep on hand for an everyday green tea.
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8/4/14
Threw some of this into my gaiwan after my long jing gave all it could and I still had some hot water to use. This is really good Bancha though it definitely tastes minerally if you have just drunk long jing right before lol.

I can’t remember the last time I had oolong… I remember this one being green and honey-like, but it appears to be a shui xian instead of qi lan now. It has a nice soft toasty roasted aroma that melds with the ripe fruit flavors of shui xian. I’m not sure if I’d say it’s all that complex for a Wuyi oolong, but it’s quite enjoyable.

This tea is just… amazing. The flavor is full bodied cacao and grape, like the name suggests. I wish it wasn’t a limited edition, because I want this to be a staple in my cupboard!

Dry,,,, the pretty yellow flower buds have a sweet, honey scent.
While steeping, the blossoms puff up and return to their glory.
The liquor has a honey and pineapple scent with golden sunshine color.
The taste is very nice. I like this all chamomile with no additional flavors. Very pure, herbal experience. Really like spring when you were a little kid playing in the yard,,,all the smells and fun of the Earth. As the chamomile cools, it gets sweeter and more honey notes come thru. A lovely goodnight!!!!!