No. 8 Mao Feng Shui ~ Steven Smith

I’d like to sincerely apologise to my regular readers. The past two weeks (the first back to work after my two month medical leave) have been excruciating and i admit i haven’t had the time and energy to put together a decent review of anything. Today i’m home sick, so it felt like the perfect chance… ^^;;

As with other Mao Fengs I’ve reviewed previously, No. 8 Mao Feng Shui from Steven Smith Teamaker is a lush, vegetal Chinese Green. Although it has subtle qualities, No. 8 Mao Feng Shui is a refined spring harvest Zhejiang Green with a good deal of character. If you didn’t pick up on the pun in the title, Shui (水) is the same word used in the Oolong Shui Hsian/Shui Xian, as well as the Shui in Feng Shui (sadly one of the only commonly used Chinese words in the West) and should probably be read to mean “harmony”. Although the Feng in Mao Feng is a totally different word (most commonly used in Huang Shan Mao Feng, meaning Yellow Mountain Fur Peak).

I suppose I’d say No. 8 Mao Feng Shui has a very light bamboo aroma (its loose leaf is actually more aromatic). In color No. 8 Mao Feng Shui delights with a bright (maybe yellow-tinged?) jade. Flavor-wise, No. 8 Mao Feng Shui offers a delicate grassy note, though little else. In texture, No. 8 Mao Feng Shui doesn’t linger, which for a Mao Feng is perhaps a kind of accomplishment. My only real complaint about No. 8 Mao Feng Shui is that it’s bagged. Mind you, Steven Smith has definitely put a lot of consideration into designing the sachet and it is full leaf.

1. Aroma – 92
2. Taste – 93
3. Texture – 93
4. Spunk – 94
5. Rarity – 96
6. Availability – 92 (i picked up mine at Plum Market)
7. Appearance – 95

Mean score – Rounds up to 94%

Not bad at all for a bagged tea i picked up at a local grocer.