7g in 100 mL gaiwan
Dry leaf appearance – probably made up of lots of broken, smaller leaves, but hard to tell. Good, solid compression but not like a Xiaguan ripe where you have to break the pick to get enough tea to drink.
Dry smell – maple syrup, light chocolate, damp, humid forest in summer months, earthy
Wet smell – sweet, caramelized sugar, creme brule, coffee cake, cinnamon, cinnamon buns, freshly baked old fashioned donuts with glaze, plums, cinnamon raisin bread
Liquor – dark red, almost rose colour on first steep before fully opened. Almost opaque but not yet. On third steep a dark, semi-opaque plum-like colour, almost like a cola
Texture – soft and thick, velvety and smooth
Taste – very, very sweet. Light and sugary, maybe a bit of maple syrup on a sweet waffle or other kind of pastry. Extremely pleasant. Second steep even sweeter. I get a serious baked good taste, maybe a maple donut. A tiny bit of maple sugar candy
Empty vessel – syrupy, but there’s almost a kind of fruitiness along with it, a tiny bit tart. Like blueberry compote. Brandy-ish after third steep
Mouth finish – tingly palate, light coating but not significant. Produced a bit of saliva on the tip of the tongue
Wet leaves – pretty much what you would expect from a typical shou.
Body feel – a bit intense, but almost scattered and confusing Qi, maybe due to the blend or something. Still, not unpleasant.
A solid daily-drinker; definitely a great value for such a low price. Be warned of the possibility of a slight funk, however, as my S.O. thought it smelled fishy (though I didn’t get that myself).
