I hadn’t read the description of this tea in a while, was trying to pick out sakura under the smokiness and wasn’t quite getting it. Rereading it and seeing that it’s smoked with Japanese cherry wood makes more sense. The smoke is VERY present, but doesn’t seem as overwhelming as smoke in a Lapsang. It has an almost sweet quality to it with a hint of maltiness in there as it cools. I don’t know that I quite get the evoking of liquorice, but I can see how the finish might be described as incense like. The instructions said to steep it for 4 minutes, but I’m glad I started with 2 because this turned out to be a very nice cup.
Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C
2 min, 0 sec
