Being a Starbucks reward member, I get a free drink on my birthday. I didn’t make use of it often enough in the past, but I found I can take a brisk walk to the nearby Starbucks to pick up my drink and be back in the office in ~30 minutes. Usually I try a new espresso drink when I get a free treat, but since I try to save coffee for Fridays, I went for tea.

Teavana’s Emperor’s Cloud and Mist green tea had a fancy sounding name and reviews favored it so I decided to give it a try. It was either that or the Jade Citrus Mint green tea, and I am usually not a fan of mint teas unless I’m sick (though, Trader Joes had a really good chocolate mint black tea this past holiday season). Turns out it reminds me of a green tea from Thailand that we’ve gotten as gifts from my parents’ friends.

Unfortunately I didn’t take notes while drinking, but I recall that it wasn’t really marine-tasting or necessarily grassy as I usually tend towards Japanese green teas. This tea was Chinese in origin so that may have led to the different taste. But there was something distinct in the taste that I typically don’t find often in my usual teas. I haven’t found the word to describe it.

I learned recently that Japanese green teas tend to be steamed as part of their processing while Chinese green teas are pan fried. The different methods leads to the different colors after steeping with Japanese green teas actually being green and Chinese green teas being more golden. The methods also lead to different flavor profiles.

Since I ordered at a Starbucks, I got two tea bags in my grande cup and got to see the leaves unfurled in their nearly whole glory. I was pretty wired in the morning with that first cup, even though I worked my way through it by pouring a bit into another cup and diluting it with hot water, then drinking out of that cup. I did try a sip without diluting and was surprised at the delicate taste – not too bitter as I expected with two tea bags in a 16 oz cup. Needless to say, I managed to make the two tea bags last me the whole work day since the leaves were fairly whole and stood up well to multiple steepings.

If I had to order green tea and I was trying to be healthy, I would order this one again. I wouldn’t go out and buy my own tin, however. It doesn’t hold the same standard that Tazo’s Joy does, which I try to grab a tin of each year it’s available. I’ve tried Teavana’s Joy, also at a Starbucks, but that wasn’t the same as Tazo’s. I’m very hit or miss with tea, but once I find something I like, I’ll be drinking often. Emperor’s Cloud and Mist isn’t quite one of those.

Sidenote: The big 3-0. Scary.