Tosa Shimantogawa

Tea: Tosa Shimantogawa - 7420
Vendor: Lupicia USA
Price: $4.00 / 50g
Source: Kochi, Japan
Vendor Description:Produced in a rural area at the upper stream of Shimanto River. Tea leaves are well rubbed with a pleasant smell and enjoyable as a simple natural tasting handmade tea. Produced by Shuhei-san.

Leaf: The leaf for this tea had a very long needle like shape. The color of the leaves was very nice.

1st Infusion: The tea had a very light pale green color to the infusion, with very little aroma to speak of. This was completely different from the flavor though. There was a very strong singular flavor to this tea. It had no aftertaste and very little bitterness. It was a very well defined single flavor. It was a light flavor, but the central part of this flavor was very strong. There was a certain grassiness to the flavor. This cup had me thinking about what it was I was tasting down to the last sip.

2nd Infusion: The leaves were fully expanded at this point, and were much larger than I had expected. They were for the most part intact. The tea had a very weak flavor at this point and there was not much left. It had a light bitterness, but that was about it.

Rating: 7/10

Conclusion: The flavor of this tea was quite good, but the tea could not really stand up for more than one infusion. It is a very interesting tea, but past a few pots I think I would move elsewhere.