Iron Milk Tea (鉄観音ミルクティー) – Shin An Ju

I’m hanging out in Sapporo this weekend because it’s a three day weekend here! I basically explored an area I haven’t been yet, ate lots of food as usual, and no day out is complete without boba. I’m finally back at Shin Am Ju, and I realize I haven’t had it in a hot minute, despite it being my favorite shop in Sapporo.

Anyway, today I’m trying their Tieguanyin, which the menu calls iron but its really tie guan yin, ha! I guess it’s not wrong, since the Tie is iron, but no one actually calls it iron. Since it’s somewhat late at night, and I just ate dinner, I didn’t want to get greedy and overwhelm my stomach with a large, so I decided to hold back and get a medium. Plus, with the tieguanyin track record here in Sapporo, I didn’t want to take chances in case this menu too, was lying to me…

Oh my goodness I felt like crying on the inside…of joy. Upon my first sip, I had an omg moment, because the drink was so right, so accurate. This, Sapporo, is how you do Tieguanyin. It has a slightly toasty flavor characteristic of a normal Tieguanyin, with also an oolong depth that other teas don’t have. I almost regretted getting a regular, but logically I think it’s the right decision.

Details: Iron Milk Tea; medium; less sugar; less ice; from Shin An Ju (Sapporo)