I was surprised at how good this was. I took a chance because Maeda-en really has terribly short descriptions of their teas on their site. I really didn't know what I'd get. The tea, in terms of the type of leaves, length of them, scent, and color, actually reminded me more of Shin-cha than other Fukamushi. The leaves were pine-needle slender, dark green and had a sweet, almost fruity, deep fragrance to them. I made the brew the way I made Shin-cha -- 80ºC water, 110ml, 1tsp (heaping) of tea, for 20s to start -- and it was very good. It tasted a lot like the Shin-cha and had a similar color. There was a dusting at the bottom of the cup like Fukamushi. Overall, it's very hearty, just like the Shin-cha, it's rich, sweet but buttery (in a much better mixture than oolongs I've had from China which also combine the sweet and buttery notes), it had that typical grassy note that rich Japanese teas had, and was both uplifting and relaxing/nourishing. I'm glad I gave it a try. It's not even that expensive, if you have one tea session per day. I often get a lot more brews out of these Shin-cha-like teas, so I'd say it's worth the cost even though it's a bit more expensive. It's in the Gyokuro range if you're familiar with Japanese teas. I'd definitely recommend it.

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