This tea has a pungent aroma unlike any other green tea I've sampled before. It reminds me of a hoppy beer like an India Pale Ale, and the bitterness in the tea is similar to that of a strong IPA. The aroma is more like a typical black tea than a green tea to me--I would probably guess incorrectly that it was black tea just by smelling the leaf or cup.

There's a bit of astringency, but it's tolerable, and less than the bitterness. This tea has an edge.

I'm not sure where Upton gets their impression that this tea has a "delicate aroma of apricot" and a flavor that is "mellow and sweet, with a light fruity finish".

I found this tea to be strong, dark, and kind of wicked tasting...not delicate or mellow by any stretch of the imagination.

I used Upton's brewing instructions and was satisfied with them. You need to use a lot of leaf, since the leaves take up a lot of space. I tried making multiple infusions but was unsatisfied--this tea becomes bitter easily, and yet the aroma is mostly gone after the first cup. Perhaps the tea would indeed be delicate if I lowered the temperature to 160, but the sample only contained enough for two cups.

While I greatly enjoyed this tea, it was on the expensive side, especially given the amount of leaf necessary to use, and the fact that I found the leaves only usable for a single cup.

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