Producers Series: Rishi Tea

information gathered by Sara Joss, server at Graze; complied by Samantha Egelhoff, PR/Outreach

courtesy of Rishi Tea's website

The vision of founder and tea buyer, Joshua Kaiser, Rishi Tea began in 1997 to fill the void of traditional handcrafted artisan teas in the North American market. Enlisting the help of longtime friend, Benjamin Harrison, Rishi Tea started in a small room in Milwaukee’s Third Ward, tirelessly hand-blending teas and individually packaging them for sale. Their operation grew quickly and facilities expanded, but they still maintained their core founding principles, committing to a philosophy of sustainability in all aspects of their business. Earning their organic certification in November 2002 and working for the advancement of Fair Trade Certified tea, Rishi Tea is a key player in the TransFair USA Fair Trade Certified projects, which support a better life for tea-farming families and communities by providing fair prices, wages, safe working conditions, environmental sustainability, education and community development.


The founders of Rishi Tea still travel every year, maintaining their strong personal relationships with the tea farmers of China, Taiwan, Japan, Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and India, and bringing you the freshest sustainable teas possible.

At Graze and L’Etoile, we offer 10 of Rishi Tea’s varieties, including black, green, caffeine-free botanical, oolong, and African rooibos. Enjoy one in house or to-go anytime; they’re the perfect way to relax! 

courtesy of Rishi Tea's website

Green Teas: A broad class of teas that are processed with the intention of preserving the tealeaf’s green character and low degree of oxidation. 

• Jade Cloud - An organic fair trade tea that is a special grade of Chinese green tea produced in the high elevation tea gardens of western Hubei, China. It has a mellow and refreshing character that is smooth with low astringency. It’s aroma sugests sweetly toasted chestnut and bluegrass. 
• Jasmine - This organic green tea is blended with fresh jasmine blossoms by a traditional tea scenting process. The green tea absorbs the natural essence from fresh jasmine blossoms and imparts a sweet and soothing fragrance in every cup.
• Orange Blossom - A refreshing and floral blend of green teas with sweetly-scented blossoms, lemongrass and tropical citrus fruits.                                 

Black Teas: Originated in China. Black tea profiles depend on the tea bush varietal, season of harvest, elevation of the tea garden and the degree of tealeaf oxidation.

• China Breakfast - This breakfast tea has a robust and flavorful taste profile that is rich and malty with subtle notes of chocolate.
• Darjeeling 2nd Flush Muscatel - The “2nd flush” or second harvest of the year provides semi-brisk teas with big, fruity flavors and distinctive floral aromas that are reminiscent of Muscat wine. A favorite of connoisseurs, the black teas of Darjeeling have a unique character with nuances of green and oolong teas.
• Earl Grey - A British tea classic and the most popular tea of the Western World. This citrus-scented tea blend dates back to the 19th Century Sino-British trade of opium, silk and porcelain. Rishi’s Earl Grey blends bold-flavored Yunnan Dian Hong harvested from antique tea trees with natural Bergamot citrus from Southern Italy.

African Rooibos: A South African tea made from the red bush plant. It is a completely caffeine-free herb tea that, when brewed properly, has a brilliant red infusion and a sweet nutty finishing flavor. 

• Blueberry Rooibos - African rooibos and real, wild blueberries in a perfect balance provide tart, juicy, and naturally sweet flavors that taste great hot or iced. It is artfully hand-blended in small batches using only 100% naturally caffeine-free botanicals and artisan herbal tea-blending techniques.

Caffeine-Free Botanical Blends: Mild-tasting infusions of wild herbs and flowers are often served before a tea ceremony to cleanse the palate and the soul before the tea is served.

• Peppermint - Peppermint leaves produced from Washington state. The Pacific Northwest variety of Peppermint in the most aromatic and potent form of this world-renowned mint variety. Mint is prepared like a tea throughout the world. 
• Serene Dream - A balance of botanicals and aromatic flowers with a smooth body.    

Oolong: The oolong tea category is defined as a group of semi-oxidized teas whose manufacturing style ranges between green and black teas.

• Wuyi - The cliffs of Northern Fujian’s Wuyi Mountains are an important tea producing area with a long history. Oolong tea was first produced in Wuyi and this region’s soil type, microclimate and unique tea bushes produce exquisite oolong. Rishi’s Wuyi tea has a smooth and rich body with a classical roasted aroma and sweet finish, known as Wuyi Qi Lan or “Profound Orchid,” its flavor is quite unique with sweet notes of raisin sugar, honeysuckle, and roasted barely.

Visit their website or Facebook page for more info on these teas or the many, many other kinds they have available!