Rishi Tea

At Zingerman’s, they brew this as an iced tea during the summer – it is absolutely perfect this way. It really allows the citrus from the bergamot and the grassy green flavors to be highlighted. I enjoy it hot as well, but a high temperature never seems to mesh well with the lively flavors.

I got this EG from my Earl Grey Galore from LiberTEAS. The smell of bergamot is quite strong, smells natural as far as my nostrils told me. First I drank it straight to perceive the taste of the black tea, was ok, not as bold as I usually like but quite nice. Then I added a tbsp of honey & was yummy. The bergamot flavor {not as strong as the scent} remains ‘til the end of the last sip. I’ll definitely buy it.

2022 Sipdown 143/365!

Ancient tea, it wasn’t horrible at this point but the flavour had gone downhill.

Inspired by TeaEqualsBliss, I decided it was time to randomly choose some more teas from my box from LiberTeas! So this is the first of three teas… which I’m drinking while sitting through a series of wicked thunderstorms. (While I was on the bus home, there was a simultaneous crack of thunder/flash of lightning so loud that I thought perhaps we had been hit. It wasn’t us, but must have been extremely close. Scary. As I write this, downpour #3 is occurring. #1 had pea-sized hail; hoping that was all we’ll see of that…)

The only dragonwell I really remember having is Verdant’s, and I’m sure I’ve been spoiled by it, so I have to say that by contrast, the leaves of this tea look a little dull and broken. Luckily, as soon as they were in the water, I was getting a delicious fresh green, rock sugary scent that did make me think of the teas from Verdant, so all hope is not lost!

The flavour appears to be much the same as well, although perhaps not quite as strong. I’m pleased about this similarity in flavour, because that means that I Like Dragonwell. And now I want to run upstairs and grab any dragonwell samples I can find and see if they taste similar! I did just get one from Teavivre….

Anyways, to specifically describe the flavour, it is a little bit vegetal, with some rock sugar sweetness poking through. The sort of vegetal here (and in Verdant’s dragonwells) is almost a sort of crisp-cooked veggie, where some of the raw flavour has been cooked away, but it’s still crunchy. Snow peas or asparagus come to mind here, but it’s probably more the former as there isn’t a sulfury flavour or aroma. There’s only the barest hint of astringency here, and I’m only noticing it as I’m finishing the cup, so perhaps it’s because some little leafy pieces snuck through my brewing basket(?)

Mmmm, either way this is a good cup. I prefer Verdant’s version probably because it’s a little greener and sweeter, but this one is likely a good bit cheaper. Doesn’t matter for a while anyhow, because I have quite a bit from various sources to drink up before I even contemplate another purchase!

ETA: Second infusion (I have no idea of the parameters, whoops) was only consumed once cold, so it’s unfair to judge it (it wasn’t great). The leaves seemed pretty aromaless and spent afterward, so that’s as far as I went. I suspect the second infusion, drank in a more timely manner, would have been just fine, so I’d take this tea to two again next time.

Another one of my favorite daily teas – I could drink this one forever. I love the woody, earthy notes and the fact that they don’t overpower the heady oolong flavor. If I ever run out of this tea, life seems a little dull somehow.

Rishi was the first ‘real’ tea company I was introduced to. I’ve kept this tea stocked in my tea cupboard consistently for five years, and I return to it to measure other teas, to measure my own palate.
This time, the Jasmine seems unbalanced. I taste the sweet gentleness of the green tea first, and then an astringent, pungent Jasmine taste after. There isn’t a connection between the sweetness and the astringency – the flavor just jumps from the first to the second without warning. Surely, this can’t be how it’s always tasted, right?

One of my favorite daily teas – the first and third steep are my favorite. The first is astringent and floral, the second more of the same but slightly dull, and the third is where the green tea flavors really take a step forward and begin to fill the palate. Beyond the third is well and good, but I do prefer my tea full flavored and so rarely go beyond the fourth, though I easily could. I would be curious to taste a jasmine others rate better than this one.

This is a sample from Sandy. Thanks!

The lemongrass fu is strong with this one. I agree with Dylan that it would be quite and excellent candidate for an Arnold Palmer. With some sweetner it’s much like tea with lemon.

Thank you for the sample Sandy

The lemongrass in this blend is surprisingly powerful, the brew ends up being quite lemony. Not that this is a bad thing. It’s like a pre-made Arnold Palmer. Iced, and with a lot more sugar, I think this would be a fantastic blend!

Thanks Sandy!

I’ve come to appreciate this tea a lot more since the first brew (maybe the leaves at the bottom of the bag were better?). The slight pepperyness has grown on me. It doesn’t look like Rishi sells it anymore, but if they did I’d snap it up in a minute.

Really good super-sweet tea that is very hard to brew bitter. Like one of the other reviewers I actually prefer Rishi’s Golden Needle, but this tea is very similar although it has some sweet potato and peppery notes that the Golden Needle does not.

Are we talking about the same tea here!?

I can only assume the current offering from Rishi “ANCIENT Golden Yunnan” is not the same Yunnan that is being reviewed here. Either that or this is simply a lesser grade.

Even at different steep times, this tea is weak and uncomplicated. The malty, cocoa character is noticeably muted. Surprising astringency for a Yunnan. Very little of the signature Yunnan profile.

With the reviews here and at $20-$25 cheaper PER POUND than others, I had to see what the buzz was about.

I found out you get what you paid for.

The bias towards Rishi teas is pretty obvious here so I don’t expect my review will be posted but FWIW both Adagio and Replubic of Tea have far better offerings.

Haven’t had this in a month or two-been opting for caffeine-free after dinner options most often lately.

This is a good and reliable masala. It has a bit more cardamon than I would like, but I can deal with it as long as I don’t inhale the dry blend too much. The cinnamon is very pronounced-to the point of having a bit of a spicy kick to it.

Brewed in mug and almond milk added after brewing. It’s better to brew together on the stove, but usually I just go with my tea boiler.

I’m feeling good right now because it’s a monday night and I have the day off from school tomorrow, so I can sit back and relax and know that I can drink as much tea as I want without having to worry about getting to sleep on time (it’s a daily struggle choosing between that last cup of tea and a good night’s sleep). It’s a nice, cool day here in eastern Pennsylvania. It’s been raining quite a bit and the air is nice and crisp as a result, I just love the smell and feel of the air after rain, and it’s setting the perfect tone for drinking this tea.

First of all, I just LOVE the way the downy buds of a silver needle look. I love the look of any bud-only tea. I also love the texture of silver needles when you drink them, that funny drying feeling on your tongue as the little hairs of the tea buds mingle with your taste buds.

Rishi’s silver needle is one of only two silver needles I’ve had previously to this one, and it’s definitely my favorite and is far sweeter compared to the other one that I had which was from Teavivre. As I imagined, that sweetness works really well with the flavor of jasmine. The sweetness of the buds blends perfectly with the intoxicating aroma and sweet taste of the jasmine, but the tea base still has enough oomph to it to balance it out (in the odd way that white teas can have oomph).

Right now, with this cup of tea in my hands, with the scent of sweet, floral jasmine wafting up at me through billows of hot steam, I am happy.

You definitely don’t want to steep this too long, because it goes a bit bitter. With the right water temperature and without steeping too long, this is delightful. Very nice rose scent, and I love the mix of jasmine flowers with the rose petals.

Finished the last of this today. So tasty and comforting. I maybe really have to consider buying this. I just looked at Rishi’s website and the price really is quite reasonable! But I mustn’t buy anything until I drink down these teas!

Also, don’t you hate when you’re eating your apple with a bit of peanut butter only to find that your apple is eaten but the peanut butter keeps finding its way into your mouth? Mmmm, peanut butter….

Oh my! This is good. The last yellow tea I had was medicre and I sort of wondered what the big deal was about. This tea though! Amazing! Thank you for sharing this precious tea with me Azzrian!

I think used too little leaf but it’s still wonderful! It has the fruity floral complexity of an oolong but the light freshness of a white. Love this! More leaves next time though!

Finally trying the last of the Rishi teas I ordered during the Mother’s Day sale! After my wonderful experience with their Ancient Emerald Lily I was hoping this tea would be similar but alas, this green falls a little flat for me. There’s a very strong steamed veggie smell once it’s brewed, and that carries through to the taste. I don’t really like when my tea tastes mildly of steamed spinach. It’s a shame, because the other notes her are really working for me: there’s a nice grassy taste, as well as a tiny hint of citrus and chestnut.

But steamed veggies + a hint of citrus reminds me unfortunately of a weird tea version of V8. Not exactly the most appetizing taste, and it’s kind of ruining the experience for me. I really want to like this because I love how grassy it is, but I can’t help thinking that someone made tea with the leftover water from blanching vegetables.

EDIT: Tried different brewing parameters (stepped for 1 minute 30 second), still too vegetable-tasting. Bumping the rating down a bit as I didn’t finish either cup.

This makes an excellent iced tea – the subtle flavors come through very nicely.

Earthy and nutty, with a subtle coconut flavor this is not too sweet.

Unfortunately this seems to leave coconut flavor residue in my Breville, so I’ll have to steep this in the cup unless I want to clean it afterwards, but it’s worth the extra trouble.

Today is a no-caffeine day for me. I have to wake up painfully, depressingly early tomorrow (about an hour after I usually go to bed ;~;) and on top of that I have to spend the whole day with my in-laws. Both of these situations definitely call for a soothing herbal blend, and it’s way too early in the day for my usual herbal tea (which puts me to sleep in about 10 minutes). However, I’ve had this tin sitting around for a few days and it seemed like the perfect opportunity to try it out!

At first sniff I was a little confused, as it smells like straight-up peppermint. I have peppermint tea, so I was really hoping there’d be hidden complexity here. Once brewed this is a very unusual blend—the peppermint is there only as a background note, with the citrus and sage a lot more prominent. I wasn’t sure about sage in tea but I LOVE it. So comforting and almost savory. There’s also a soft pine taste going on, and this really feels like a holiday tea to me. It reminds me of eating leftover stuffing and sitting around the Christmas tree! But it’s not so seasonal that it feels weird to drink it now—in fact, the citrus gives it a bright, spring-y feel as well. I am usually just so-so on herbal blends, but this one is so complex and tasty that I think it is going to become a cupboard staple.

Wow, just…wow. This is truly a fantastic and unique tea. The leaves are beautiful, and the aroma is powerful and reminds me of dried apples. That dried apple smell continues into the flavor, and the tea has a little zest at the same time. As much as I like ordering new teas and avoiding repeat purchases, this is something that I might have to keep stocked on my shelf.

Also, as an added bonus, the second steeping keeps a remarkable amount of the original flavor, and is not weak at all (though given the absurd amount of leaves needed per cup, perhaps this is to be expected). The third steeping came out a little bitter, but the flavor definitely remained. I’ll adjust the water temp and steeping time on the third steeping next time, and hopefully this will kill the bitterness.

This is a big cup of yum. Hooray again for Portland and Whole Foods Market.

I love lemongrass and this has the perfect amount.

This tea smells wonderful and the lemongrass isn’t bitter or overpowering. I sweetened this up a bit with some honey.