2008 Xiaguan,s Happy Tuo is one of the many products in Xiaguan,s FT series of teas. Made as a special order for the Fei Tai company and intended for the Taiwan market these FT series teas are of a higher quality than the regular Xiaguan Puerhs. My first experience with the FT lineup was the Yushang Tuo,s, I liked it so much that I started looking into these teas and collecting them. This is my first time with the Happy Tuo but judging from the looks of the tuo I think I will indeed be happy. The packaging is as cute as a squirrels nut, a little purple hexagonal shaped box. After examining the tuo Ive realized that I may not need my hammer to get into this one as it doesn't appear to be pressed as tight as other Xiaguans tuo,s. The tuo,s surface is sprinkled with the to be expected silver leaf (decoration) But the tuo,s mostly made from rather small leaf and broken leaf. With Xiaguan Ive come to expect a mix of chopped leaf and am no longer disappointed when I see it. The aroma from the dry leaf is rich as all get out. Woodsy and tobacco aromas permeate the area where the tuo is being fought with. Now that a good chunks been pried from the tuo lets get down to business. The usual two rinses start the session, a 30 second rest and let the brewing commence. The first pots flavor is quite nice. Anticipating some bitterness I kept the infusion time short. Rich tobacco, some bitterness and sweet. The teas color is a little dark for it,s age. That's not a bad thing but what that implies is that the mao cha may have gone through some fermentation before the tea started to be processed. The tea has a good heavy mouth feel, permeates deeply and almost overwhelms the taste buds and nasal passage. This stuff packs a pretty good wallop. By the third infusion the bitterness has for the most part disappeared, it really didn't have a lot of bitterness to start with. The teas sweetness is pretty dominant but I like it. Around the fourth infusion it needs to be pushed a little to try to maintain the body and flavor. But that initial flavor profile has abandoned it,s post leaving behind a flavor of grain with a very faint honey tone. By the sixth infusion it,s pretty washed out and gone home for the day. All in all, it,s good. But not great. For the price it,s a good value I guess. I wouldn't mind storing a few of these out of curiosity to see how they age.