The first thing I noticed was that the dry leaves smelled like a bag of fresh peat moss – earthy and tannic – which as a gardener isn’t something I find unpleasent. I gave the leaves the standard 30 second rinse to hopefully get rid of any dust or debris and then I brewed it for three mins – the lower end of Adagio’s steeping reccs but I know how dark pu’erhs brew up so I wasn’t worried that it would turn out weak. Unfortunately the brewing tea took on less of a peaty scent and more of fishy scent, which didn’t exactly thrill me.
Thankfully it didn’t taste like fish but it was very earthy, almost like a mouthful of dirt. At first I couldn’t decide whether to gag or enjoy it but as I drank more I found that the flavour became smoother and less jarring to my tastebuds.
I’m still not entirely sure if I like pu’erh or not – it definiatly falls in the category of being an aquired taste but it’s interesting and I enjoy having variety in my teas.
