289 Tasting Notes
I reviewed this tea a while back. My old review is below. I think I got a bad sample because it was bad. It was a strange experience at that time. My body told me ‘no way’ and to immediately instructed me to throw it in the garbage. But when the TTB box had a sample of this tea in it, I decided to give it another try since so many people seemed to love it. So I tried it today, and this time around, I found it to be one of the best Dayi ripes I have tasted. It is sweet and deeply fruity. I really loved the first few steeps. I got quite hopped up, so this is a good one if you are looking for caffeine. Later steeps were not quite as smooth, more bitterness came through. Then, it turned into that yeasty bread dough flavor. This is a great tea, and at around $40, it is one of the few semi-aged Dayi teas that are reasonably priced. I guess this particular tea does not have a hype factor built in. Both Berryleb and Dragon Tea House sell it.
OLD REVIEW
So I gave this try due to Allan’s very positive review. I found that it was not for me. It is kind of mushroomy, which I personally don’t care for. Otherwise it was earthy and deep. Very strong caffeine and cha qi, probably the highest kick factor I’ve ever experienced from a ripe pu erh.
I’ve wanted to try this one for a while. Thank you Steepster trading friend. This is supposedly one of the upper tier Dayi cakes. This one fetches $90 right now. My how prices have skyrocketed for some of these Dayi teas. Is it hype or is it that good? Hype. It’s really not bad, but far from the best dayi I’ve tasted. It basically is an average Dayi ripe, though it did not hold up that well. Not terribly interesting nor smooth, but good flavor. It is certainly fine, and would be a decent pick if it were, say, $30.
A nice fairly easy to drink young sheng. It brews a pale gold, the liquor is very nice, thick and hearty through numerous infusions. The flavor is good, basic, a little floral and sweet, but some sourness is pervasive. This is a nice quality tea, good but not great, and is priced fairly at $28.
This is an interesting tea. If you like Special Dark, you should give this one a try. It’s the same style. To me it tastes like a cross between a shu and a yunnan black. It’s got that golden bud shu flavor, coupled with some sweet notes typically found in yunnan black teas. Pretty smooth, though it is definitely somewhat bitter.
Brews a golden brown. Definitely a strong flavor, citrus and smoke in perfect proportion. Very high quality leaves. Some good bitterness, a little huigan, but I keep tasting a pronounced sourness which to me is a flaw. It is a pretty good tea, but I personally didn’t like it as much as the other reviewers.
Got a sample of this at the urging of one of our fellow sheng peers here on Steepster. It is a great choice if you are looking for a safe to drink young sheng. Kind of like YS Wu Liang. Very floral, kind of tasted like honey and pollen. I know, you are saying to yourself ’he’s never tasted pollen’ but it probably tastes like this. Sweet with no bitterness. The first couple infusions had a nice huigan, but that faded quickly. Pretty high kick factor if that is something you desire in your sheng. Also very reasonably priced at $34 currently.
This tea holds a special place in my heart, it was the first pu erh cake I ever bought, going back a couple of years. I was looking for an organic ripe, and this was practically the only one i could find. I drank the entire contents over a period of months, western style at the time. I noticed YS had a couple cakes in stock last week, seemingly from nowhere, as I was making my last order during the recent sale. I was curious how I’d like it now that I am an experienced ripe pu drinker.
The tea is pretty good now that i try it again. Not great, but good. It is pretty smooth, though there is still some bitterness and harshness. But it lasts through many infusions. Kind of a clean lighter taste, with hints of coffee. If you insist on an organic tea, though it’s not clear what that really means in China, this is a pretty good one.
Got this with a sampler from Life in Teacup. It has strong notes of fruit, with some woody mushroom flavors, and a slick mouthfeel. I steeped this rather heavily and found it thick. I agree with JC that it tastes a bit of humid storage, but not overly so. I found it pleasant.
I’d say this is a pretty good ripe. It is deep and earthy, has a nice caffeine kick, and lasts through a number of thick and hearty infusions. It has some chocolate notes. But it is not very smooth, with noticeable bitterness. Not bad at all, and I love that it is possibly organic.
