Thanks to Brytta Sopword for the sample!

A low-grade sencha that is remarkably enjoyable for what it is.

Flavor is bold, a pleasant bitterness (easily becoming too much if oversteeped), and slight sweet, sour, and savory qualities. Aroma toasty, with a strong warming quality, but also with vegetal notes and faint accents of mint. Surprisingly complex aroma for such an inexpensive tea!

Normally I think of sencha as something I like more in the summer, but this is a perfect winter tea: hearty and rich.

Finish is quite astringent, but I found this refreshing. I just recommend being careful with brewing. I liked using 170-180F water, less than one teaspoon of leaf, and brewing for 3 minutes. If using a full teaspoon I'd go shorter. This tea is very strong and easy to make too bitter or astringent to the point of being harsh.

When brewed the way I like, I found the bitterness invigorating.

I also found this tea tasted great when it had cooled. I even think it tastes sweeter, and the bitterness diminishes somewhat.

This tea really delivers; it's hard to get any Japanese teas in this price range, and this one was significantly better than a number of pricier teas I've tried.

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