If you put milk or sugar into your tea, this isn't what you want. This is a tea meant to stand up on its own, so its much less astringent and strong than a typical assam or breakfast tea. It's not quite as subtle as the crazy expensive stuff full of golden tips, so it strikes a good balance between depth of flavor, smoothness, and not being too light.Package came with an acceptable amount of broken balls, just a few, probably enough for 1-2 cups had fallen apart. But these balls are also not too tightly rolled, so they come apart and actually brew well (some pressed teas are just too tight and don't brew properly)I found the 2-3 minute brew time to be appropriate. 2 minutes wasn't enough, but 3 was perfect. I also found 1 ball per 100mL of water to be the sweet spot (my tea pot holds 800mL, so 8 balls)Because this tea is so subtle, it does require a little more of it than others might. So if value for money is critical, look into the assam by perfect tea (also a good tea if you like milk and sugar), but if you want a nice afternoon drink with just enough indulgence that doesn't break the bank, this stuff is solid. I finished the 4oz package in about a month, (pretty typical for me) and have re-ordered the 8oz. This is probably going to become a pantry staple.