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Thank you, Derk :D

Was getting close to midnight and decided for a low caffeine option. Still working hard at getting some tea off my shelf so I can buy more without having that overwhelming feeling of having too much on my shelf. Good luck, right? hehe

The golden sticks (stems) after the first infusion smelled like roasted nori, sweet tobacco. The cloudy, dark amber liquor produced infusions that had a toasty sweet flavor, along with roasted rice, umami, roasted malt and nuts, and smokey notes.

The site suggested 5 grams, 60s, 194°F, 200 ml. I went with a little more concentrated preparation of 5g, 100ml, beginning at 194°F (and later ramping up the temperature), 7 steeps, no rinse, 15s, 20s, 35s, 45s, 55s, 65s, 90s. The first couple of quick infusions introduced the roasted rice, fresh sweetness, bright notes, and at the end, I used close to boiling water for the longer infusions, the result was darker notes of roasted nuts, caramel-like, a different type of sweetness, more intense sweetness. Throughout all the infusions, the bitterness was at a perfect level of enjoyment. Mellow, smooth, calming, satisfying.

Note: Still a lot of flavor, I’ll probably keep drinking this throughout the night. It’s really good :D. Also, I’m biased… I grew up on Japanese tea so take that into consideration. ^^