Rishi doesn’t exactly talk up Jade Cloud, describing it as “a lively, delicious everyday green tea.” It’s mellow, it’s bright, it’s very low on astringency, it’s more sweet-vegetal than spinach-vegetal. As one of Rishi’s increasingly few standard Chinese greens (and their only current non-Jasmine Chinese green), this one won’t scream for attention but it is indeed very drinkable as an everyday green tea. It’s satisfying without demanding attention or fuss. It’s the kind of tea you can drink while making breakfast and not feel bad about all the nuances you’re missing… because there aren’t many to miss. It’s the Dunkin Donuts coffee of tea: approachable, satisfying, but not overly complex.
First steep is slightly sweet, a little grassy, well-rounded and smooth. This would be a great introduction to green tea for a new drinker; it’s neither aggressively astringent nor aggressively vegetal (no seaweed or broccoli water here), but has a nice body and an assertive enough taste that nobody will bemoan your flavorless hot water.
Second steep is much weaker but still enjoyable; sweetly green, smooth, slightly water chestnutty, and with a hint of freshly-crushed blueberry in the finish.
Rishi doesn’t recommend a third steep and other drinkers here have noted failure, but something quite nice actually emerges with an extended steep time of 8 minutes or so. Certainly wouldn’t go for a fourth unless I were feeling particularly cheap, though.
Flavors: Blueberry, Chestnut, Sweet, Warm Grass
