This is the first oolong tea I've ever tried from Japan, one of a few Japanese teas other than green teas that I've ever sampled. It has a classic oolong character, but I was disappointed, it just doesn't seem all that good.

The aroma of the dry leaf is pleasantly nutty, with light notes of roast. The dry leaf looks quite delicate for an oolong, with smaller, thin leaves that are irregularly rolled.

Upon brewing, the cup initially also nutty, but upon sipping, the flavor or mouthfeel isn't what I expect for an oolong, it's alien even. The body is thin and the flavor is surprisingly sour. There's a fruity note that reminds me of GABA oolong, and which I don't like, but thankfully the cup isn't astringent like that tea was. If anything, there's an uncomfortably low amount of astringency, making it seem thin.

There are also floral qualities and light notes of roast. I find I love the way the cup smells when I'm not sipping it (this is when it is most floral and roasty, like some wuyi oolongs) but when I sip it the odd fruity quality comes out more.

Doesn't resteep as well as I'd like. The leaf still smells very aromatic, but upon brewing I find the flavor is weak, even if steeping for 8+ minutes on the second steep. The leaf looks thinner than most oolongs, and I wonder if the flavor gets extracted faster because of this.

The price on this is very high. It was interesting to sample, and I certainly recommend for people to buy a small sample of it, but I don't think it's worth buying regularly, in quantity. At this price, it competes with some of the best oolongs, and I think there are similar-tasting (or even slightly better-tasting) Chinese oolongs available for little over a quarter the price.

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