Overall this was more run-of-the-mill than I expected for such a high-end tea. My favorite thing about it was the smell of the dry leaf, the actual cup was good, but not as interesting.

The dry leaf smells incredibly beautiful...multifaceted too, lightly roasty, very fruity, like baked goods, suggesting sweetness, hints of spice. Rou Gui means "cinnamon" and there is definitely a cinnamon note there, but it's only one quality among many, and this smells more malty and fruity than anything else.

The aroma of the brewed cup isn't exactly disappointing, it's pleasant, but it neither as mind-blowing nor as complex as the dry leaf suggested. The flavor is typical for an oolong, relatively mild. Finish slightly metallic, but also very smooth. More warming than typical for an oolong. I was more a fan of the overall experience of drinking it than the smell or taste.

Didn't resteep as well as I had hoped. The aroma was less complex, the cup tasted much more like a generic oolong on the second steep, and lost that magic. The second cup is also oddly acidic, tasting a little like an aged oolong that has been roasted and re-roasted. There's a pleasant softness in the roast, and the cup was both warming and clean and crisp, a combination that isn't super common among teas, but flavor-wise and aromatically, it was less interesting.

Good but this is an exceptionally expensive tea...I just don't see paying this kind of price when I've been really wowed by oolongs in a much lower price range.

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