This is probably the most tippy looking shou I’ve had so far. This was another sample from YS and is quite likely to translate into an order, provided I can figure out the local customs situation. (I got stuck with a $57 customs charge on my last $100 tea order from the US – not a YS order).
I used 10g in a 130ml gaiwan. Did a flash rinse and even that came out quite dark. Steeped it for 10 seconds the first 3 times before adding on 10 seconds on each steep. This lasted over 10 steeps in total with the last one being 2 minutes.
It was thick and dark from the first steep, just how I like it. A very small amount of fermentation flavour but not at all fishy. This was enjoyable though I struggle to describe the taste. You could say rather typical shou but not the earthy kind at all. Maybe more of a woodsy note, with hints of cocoa or even coffee. No smokiness. After the 5th steep an underlying sweetness emerged. I would recommend this if you like really bold and thick shou. Now if my local customs and postal services can clear up the issue of crazy fees on importing tea, this will be a part of my next YS order.Flavors: Cocoa, Coffee, Wood
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Can you get a package from a friend customs free? That may be a way to do it. Ship your order to a friend and then they reship it to you.
@mrmopar well this particular package was shipped as a gift by the vendor, so I assume not.
The frustrating thing is that per my reading of the rules and regulations there should be no extra or special charges for importing tea. However, I can’t get anyone at the post office or customs office to agree to that and I wonder if its as simple as not wanting to admit that they made a mistake. They keep insisting tea goes through a special handling process without being able to quote a specific part of the law to back it up. So its possible it was an error they wont confess to and future packages may have no trouble, but that’s a bit of an expensive risk to take.
Will send in a written complaint to the ombudsman and keep my fingers crossed.Yeah, hopefully you can get it sorted out. It just seems too high a tariff for something like that.
High tariffs that discourage the free-market are never a good idea.
Perhaps Scott may have some insights?
Can you get a package from a friend customs free? That may be a way to do it. Ship your order to a friend and then they reship it to you.
@mrmopar well this particular package was shipped as a gift by the vendor, so I assume not.
The frustrating thing is that per my reading of the rules and regulations there should be no extra or special charges for importing tea. However, I can’t get anyone at the post office or customs office to agree to that and I wonder if its as simple as not wanting to admit that they made a mistake. They keep insisting tea goes through a special handling process without being able to quote a specific part of the law to back it up. So its possible it was an error they wont confess to and future packages may have no trouble, but that’s a bit of an expensive risk to take.
Will send in a written complaint to the ombudsman and keep my fingers crossed.Yeah, hopefully you can get it sorted out. It just seems too high a tariff for something like that.
High tariffs that discourage the free-market are never a good idea.
Perhaps Scott may have some insights?