Teji Hei Shu Cha, 2018 (Jinhua, "golden flowers" Aged Moychay signature ripe dark tea from Anhua, Hunan Province, 2018), 230g brick

This was my first Fu brick tea. The dry leaf has a seaweed smell with funky fungal notes. The wet leaf has a dominant kelp aroma with some camphor and leather notes. Unlike a shu/shou pu’erh which is a very dark colored tea, this tea has a clear and amber color. This tea lasts up to 10 steeps minimum. The tea itself has a dominant kelp aroma with some earthiness and it has an indescribable aroma that reminds me of an aged raw pu’erh. As the tea progresses it loses more of the kelp aroma and the kelp aroma is replaced with a nice woodiness and more green and sweet notes. It still retains the fungal funkiness in the background in every steep. Texture is clear, refreshing and slightly astringent and not as smooth as a ripe pu’erh. The texture is similar to a raw pu’erh without the same level of bitterness of a raw pu’erh. Overall a very unique tea with very unique flavor. I used the Gongfu tea method with a gaiwan to brew this tea.