pu-erh of the day. Sheng or Shou
Not drinking it yet but I did cave and buy the Master Han’s 2012 Sheng Puerh brick from Verdant. At $25 I couldn’t resist and I am thinking of it as an investment since I can try it again down the road if it isn’t to my liking yet. I’m an easy sell.
Today’s sheng – 2011 Yunnan Sourcing Yiwu purple tea (http://www.yunnansourcing.us/store/product.php?id_product=204). This is a pleasant young sheng which shows a grassy and slightly astringent side with an interesting “purple” note – almost like the unexpected aroma of a purple iris in bloom. A touch of bitterness at the end and the length of the flavors makes me think that this tea will continue to develop over time. I like it and am enjoying its uplifting qualities.
Today is a 2008 Hai Wan supreme cake. Drinking this one now. Warm malty with almost a mineral taste. Tart on the tongue dark in the brew. Almost wood like with a touch of vanilla. Front of cake has lots of golden buds. Dry smell almost like cocoa powder. Very nice for the afternoon tea. Multiple infusions keep lasting up to number 5 now.
That sounds really good. I’m still on the 2006 Haiwan Lao Tong Zhi. Actually, I should say that I am on it again. It was in reach, it’s cheap and it is very drinkable.
2010 Xiaguan Ancient Wild Tree Raw – pungent, yet sweet. Very nice smokiness. With the all wild tree leaves used, there is an intense chaqi, wwhich builds slowly. I can certainly see how the 2005yr version of this one goes for 350% more. Very nice tea at a bargain price. Going rates these days for the 2010 goes around $19-32 I paid the lower number for this one and wish I would have picked up a second. Guess I’ll do just that on my next tea purchase.
I guess I should have mentioned that this is the pressed cake version – like this one http://yunnansourcing.com/en/xiaguanteafactory/1532-2010-xiaguan-ancient-wild-tree-raw-pu-erh-tea-400-grams.html
I do have a couple of the 2011 tuocha coming though @ 6.50 each. I’m guessing they should be close in quality and taste. I do like this cake!
I am currently sipping on a ripe pu’er sample that Garret sent me. It’s 2012 leaf from the same grower as the Phatty Cake. It’s surprisingly coffee like without the bitter kick in the face. It has that same roasty nuttiness that I miss sometimes after having given up coffee drinking (Yay!). In later steeps, it gets a bit buttery. I really like this a whole lot. And I mean a whole lot. I am trying not to love it too much because I used my whole sample.
Today’s tea is the 2012 Yunnan Sourcing “Yong De Blue Label” ripe pu-erh tea cake which is described at http://www.yunnansourcing.us/store/product.php?id_product=291. My first steeping (a combination of steeps 2-4) after a 10 second wash is a pleasant tea with a hint of molasses and a young bright flavor with a bit of almost tannic astrigency. It is tasty, had just a hint of fermentation aroma at the front, and it seemed a good shu to me. Color was beautiful, a bright mahogany after the 15 second steeps. This tea was from a sample packet sent with my last purchase from Yunnan Sourcing.
I liked that one a lot too, it was super smooth, have a cake of it on its way on the slow boat atm.
Yeah I wish they carried it on the US site. Shall we petition Scott to carry it? I was very intrigued about this one. It is nice to know it carries good flavor notes. Now I shall have to acquire one…if I can sneak another order in without getting busted.
They do have it on the US site, as linked above, I mainly ordered from the .com site for other things in my order, namely their wuyi oolongs of which the us site has none at all, and for a bulk discount on 500g of a yunnan black I liked, the us site tends to only have the minimum size options available for loose teas.
Sorry for not posting in a while the better half has a broken ankle and the responsibilities have increased taking some of the writing away. Tonight is a 2008 menghai 7632 beeng. Bought this a while back to accompany the 2012 version of the same cake. In terms of leaf grade this one is only second currently to a Menghai 0712. I have been on this one for two evenings now and it still surprises me. At first I though it to be a little weak on the first infusion I did and was thinking maybe I shouldn’t have gotten this one. I let the tea sit in the yixing with the bit of steam while I put the first cup down. I was hesitant about how this was going to turn out. The second steep really woke it up meaning I should have rinsed it twice. The brew is much darker than the first infusion and I think I got it right this time. It came across as a bit of leather with a hit of fruit with an almost pucker like eating a half ripe persimmon. This tea continues to get darker on the second day and I even pulled some out to brew in the gaiwan. This one puts a small amount of the dry on the sides of the tongue but continues to be a pretty good one. I have had tea that i would be embarrassed to put a note up as they where ones I could not stomach and some that My simple words could not do justice. This tea is sweet , juicy , tart and a bit drying all rolled into one. It has been a very pleasant one to drink and will fall into the same category as a “high mountain charm” or a “wei zui yan” shou. It is warming and smooth to drink and I think this will go to the third day with good strength in the cup. I will put it slightly higher than the “adorned in red” cake but the two are nice and comparably have good aspects that I would choose in a shou cha. I did short steeps with water just off the boil and I will increase the steeps for the later rounds.
Just got my first brick. I have seen images of small tea picks to break the suckers apart with minimal damage to the leaf but as yet have not invested. Any suggestions for household items that can get me in? I’ve considered sterilizing a small screwdriver but it seems a little crazy.
Do you have a vegetable peeler with a sharp tip? If not an awl or the screwdriver would probably work. Spill the beans… what kind of brick did you get?
I’ve used a leather awl, a screwdriver, a fork, etc. My favorite is the leather awl. I’m awaiting my pick on the slow boat from Yunnan.
The 2012 Sheng brick from Verdant for $25. I figured at that price if I don’t like it I can try again in a while and if I never like it it’s not much of a loss. I also have a couple one ounce samples from various bricks kicking around but they are easier to separate as they have already been broken down a bit. Thanks for the ideas, hopefully all goes well! :)
Today’s sheng is a 2012 Yunnan Iceland Village Puer Old Tree purchased on ebay from the Royal Tea Bay Co. Evaluating very young sheng pu-erh is somewhat difficult for me. This particular example has a bright mouthfeel, and it is quite minty/mossy/alfalfa like with some astringency. It has good potential in my view and will reward aging. It is quite “zingy” at the present, and is waking me up! It came in a 100 gr. pressing, and I am going to buy another to age. Thanks to mrmopar for recommending this tea company whose shipping was quite fast (and free) to the US.
Glad you had a good experience. Cindy does a great job considering how strict China’s customs are. She is a pretty good agent if you need something special. I like it cause she takes paypal which gives you some buyer protection, but I don’t think you would ever have to use it with her.
1970’s Liao Fu San Cha
So far the oldest tea I’ve had to date along with the 1970’s Da Ye loose leaf, courtesy of Bev from listeningtoleaves. Absolutely delicious. Starts out with a thick oily sweetness on the sides of the tongue. Tingly across the roof of the mouth. Very active with good qi. Mellows out and turns in to a slightly sweet, oily earthy brew. Yum Yum Yum Yum Yum
Haha, ya it was pretty amazing. I met up with a local seattle blogger and she brought a whole bag of goodies for me including this tea, the 70’s da ye loose leaf from EOT, the 2003 HK henry 7542, 2001 original aroma thin wrapper, an aged baozhong oolong, and a bunch of others. It’s a great experience
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