Rishi Blends up Award Winning Teas

If you’re a tea lover, it will come as no surprise that for the past 1,000 years, tea has been the most heavily consumed beverage, next to water.  Although you can find common black tea in grocery stores all across America, the mass-produced varieties do not possess the quality that is exhibited by specialty tea makers, whose products adhere to strict blending guidelines.

Truly exceptional tea is grown and harvested by those who embrace sustainability, socially responsible agriculture, and is blended by artisans who take pride in the quality of the final product.  To that end, Rishi Tea has set the standard for excellence in taste, quality and customer service.

If you haven’t heard of Rishi Tea, then this is your opportunity to become acquainted with a major player in the tea production industry.  This small but rapidly expanding company is in its 13th year of providing customers with traditional handcrafted teas that are typically available only in Asian markets.

Rishi Tea Begins in 1997 in Milwaukee

Founder and CEO Joshua Kaiser began Rishi Tea in 1997, when he realized that the artisanal teas he had grown so fond of during his travels could not be purchased back home in the United States.  Discovering that consumers were now demanding more organic and premium products for their drinking pleasure, Kaiser and his partner, Benjamin Harrison, began mixing organic and original botanical blends in a tiny Milwaukee production space.

Rishi’s teas are known for using organic cultivation techniques and adhering to Fair Trade standards. As the company developed its product base, they have maintained the founding principles of unique hand-blending techniques, meticulous hand-packaging and strict quality control. Today, the Rishi team encompasses a passionate group of tea lovers who serve as guides for their customers as they explore the flavorful world of premium tea.

Dozens of Varieties are Available for Every Tea Lover

There are dozens of different teas in the Rishi product line, many with unusual, but flavorful blends that are soothing, relaxing and invigorating, depending on your palate’s preference at the time you choose your favorite brew.  Fruity, flowery and spicy combinations of tea and other aromatics make Rishi Tea a favorite with their fans throughout the world:  in fact, Rishi Tea can proudly boast that 11 of their teas were first-place winners in the 2009 World Tea Championship, a prestigious honor for such a small company.  In fact, out of 300 submissions, Rishi won a total of 28 awards; this attests to the quality of the products they produce.

The teas capturing first place include:

• China Breakfast Tea
• Masala Chai
• Matcha Japanese premium tea powder
• Jasmine Green tea
• Sencha Yuzu, Japanese green tea
• Cinnamon Plum
• Silver Needle Jasmine
• Silver Needle Premium White Tea
• Summer lemon iced tea
• Tropical Crimson Iced Tea

Rishi Teas are rich and satisfying.  Tea aficionados will praise the carefully balanced blend of flavors, such as those that you will find in the warm and spicy Cinnamon Plum variety.  It has a delightfully bold flavor that is particularly enjoyable on a chilly winter night.  Their Pu-Erh Ginger tea is zesty, strong and energizing, with a subtle hint of orange.  Savor a cup of when you have a cold, or need to feel some comfort.

On the more delicate side is Rishi’s Silver Needle Jasmine white organic tea.  Light and flavorful, it is bursting with the soothing aroma of fresh jasmine flowers.  The least processed of all tea types, white tea contains a high concentration of antioxidants and very low levels of caffeine.

For those who are on the go and who can’t always brew a cup of hot tea, Rishi offers pre-measured packets of 100 per cent premium tea leaf powder that can be mixed with bottled or tap water for an instant pick-me-up.  Sencha Green Tea is one of their antioxidant rich products, with 88 mg of polyphenols per serving.

You can order Rishi Tea and a variety of brewing accessories online, or you can find a store near you by plugging in your zip code into the retail location finder.  Once you sample some of their extraordinary brews, you will never use an ordinary tea bag again or cheap tea coupons !

Disclosure: We received samples of Rishi Teas and loved them.

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