Another solid ripe from w2t. I went heavier than I normally do on the leaf (I think I prefer to do this with shou) at 8g in 100mL. The dry leaf smelled musty and woody. After a rinse, there was still some wetness on the nose and a more aromatic woodiness – also a bit of sweet vanilla.
The first two steeps had just a tad bit of funkiness to the – not enough to put me off thankfully. They were also immediately thick and creamy, with sweet vanilla and dark cherry notes.
After those two steeps, the tea tasted nice and woody with a sweet finish – I tasted vanilla and tobacco. Not smoky, but like the smell when somebody is smoking sweet pipe tobacco. Sometimes it would be a little bit drying, but that aspect seemed to come and go at random. I did flash steeps for around seven infusions before I had to do longer ones. Got through around 10. Seems like shou is hardly worth drinking once it stops brewing up inky black for me.
Glad I got samples of w2t’s Shou. I think just getting a few samples is enough to satisfy my rare shou cravings though. I don’t see myself stocking up on cakes anytime soon.
Flavors: Cherry, Creamy, Sweet, Tobacco, Vanilla, Wood
