Ancient Tree Shou Tuo Cha

I have a standing subscription for the Shou Tuo Cha. I've gone through a great number of these little nests and they never disappoint. The earthy, mossy flavor is deep and delightful.

I first came here for the TMNT pizza box sampler for my wife, then stayed and purchased 4 kinds of aged teas to explore what I liked and what I want to purchase more of in the future. This was the first variety I tried and I really enjoyed it. I did as another reviewer elsewhere suggested: I looked up how to brew properly before using any of the aged teas I purchased and used a gaiwan and a small teapot purchased from my local Chinese grocery for all of my teas. I am new to brewing this kind of tea, though, so while I followed the directions and process I watched from several YouTube sources and read about in articles, I could probably have better technique.

This tea was unctuous and, ,yes, very rich and herbaceous. It brewed very dark and kind of complexly chocolatey. It felt almost soup-y like it was coating the inside of my mouth with deep, mineral earthy sweetness. This was the first aged tea I have ever tried and I thought I was starting out with the tea I'd like the least, but really this was so good. I can see myself drinking this regularly.

This tea is herbaceous in flavor, almost medicinal, in the best way possible. It makes an excellent accompaniment for greasy food because it cuts right through the fat, but it's also fantastic on its own. It brews up very dark, I like to add a little edible glitter to my cup and it looks like a starry night. I am absolutely going to make sure to keep this stocked!