pu-erh of the day. Sheng or Shou
Having the 2012 Xiaguan “Ma Hei”. This is a very nice young sheng. It brews a light golden color and has a almost no astringency and none of the “smokiness” Xiaguans are noted for. It has a very floral aroma after the first “wash” that transfers to the cup when drinking. It has a sweetness to it that most younger shengs do not have. It is very soft on the tongue and drinks very smooth and nice. The floral and sweetness are the two most upfront flavors of this tea. Very nice and soft for a young sheng. Not recommended for an upfront punchy tea but for those who want a soft calming one to drink this is one to try. The mouth feel and easy drinking have me rating this pretty good fo a young sheng.
I’m drinking the YS 2012 Autumn Mu Shu Cha today. I’ve not had puerh in a while now but am glad I returned to it with this one. I really ramped up the amount of leaf in my pot and the tea performs much better than it did before.
Having Bana Tea Company’s 2004 small tribute tea autumn harvest shou pu-erh today, and it is excellent. Beautiful dark mahogany with orange notes in color, with an extremely balanced presentation. It is slightly earthy with bright citrus notes, and to me is quite pleasant with a touch of natural sweetness. Still available at Amazon.com at http://smile.amazon.com/Small-Tribute-Pu-erh-Puerh-Tea/dp/B007M48HIE/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1391736325&sr=8-4&keywords=bana+tea, or direct from Bana teas at http://www.banateacompany.com/pages/puerh_teas-TributeCake.html
I had 2010 YUNNAN SOURCING “YI DIAN HONG” RIPE PU-ERH TEA MINI CAKE it is really good, nice for everyday drinking even :)
http://steepster.com/toadman208/posts/222616
I decided to sample my 1995 Vietnam Shou Beencha tonight. I don’t think the maocha was left to ferment for too long as the individual leaves are identifiable (Perhaps you could comment on this Mrmopar?). The wet leaves are beautiful – full leaves. They release a distinctive aroma of wood with honey-like subtleties. The soup is a dark red/brown colour with a smooth body that coats the mouth cavity with a sweet lingering taste. Very nice tea with a very long impression. Upon closer inspection, some of the leaves seem to have a green tint to them. Perhaps this tea is a combination of some sheng and fermented material? This tea is available at David Lee Hoffmans website.
This one sounds good. I’m going to add it to my wish list. I like well fermented Shou, they have a thick and malty character to them, but I admit I prefer lightly fermented when considering for aging.
I haven’t tried mixed (sheng/shou) beens yet, but I’ve seen a few. A way to tell is if the ‘greener’ looking leaves have high contrast compared to the darker ones or if they fit ‘shades of gray’ contrast where you can notice which got more fermented but don’t look like a separately created product(greener and somewhat tender vs dark and brittle).
Hey JC,
I agree! I also prefer a lighter fermentation. This tea does seem to have some slight green shades to some of the leaves.. now I am beginning to think the bing is a mixture of lighter and darker fermented leaves (as you mentioned) since the green is in actuality only a tint.. the general shades of the two leaves are more or less similar.
I have a couple of those sheng/shou mix cakes but I haven’t tried them yet. It is a common practice to blend in some older aged maocha with fresh maocha to get the desired flavor. I think the biggest sign would be a young sheng showing a color that is darker than it should be for it’s age.
2003 CNNP Mengsong Qiaomu Iron Cake. I’m not a big fan, it is one of the better ‘wetter’ storage Puerh I’ve had, but I have to agree that wetter storage takes away some complexity that a Puerh can develop. Still, a very nice Puerh, just not my cup of tea.
Drinking YS 2012 “Impression” sheng often lately, It’s big, sweet, and thick, and lasts fairly well for a plantation blend. Really great value, wish I’d got a tong at its original price, but I’ll definitely get a few more when this cake’s gone. Also makes me want to try Scott’s other blends now too.
Drinking a 2001 Wild tree Yiwu sheng today. I think the leaves in this tea are slightly older as the leaves are pretty big. This tea also has A LOT of twigs.. in some case, a single twig can be 3 inches long with 3 leaves spaced out along it. Interesting tea. It is EXCEPTIONALLY honey-sweet with no astringency whatsoever.. a nice tea for those who enjoy sweetness. This tea is available at The Phoenix Collection for $0.80 per gram.
I HAVE THIS ONE! I really like it, but I have to agree with you on the twigs. I’ve also found several tea flower buds. I like the sweet finish with floral notes. I can’t remember if I ever created a note for this one…
I actually enjoy the twigs! They give the tea a very nice aesthetic value. I haven’t come across any buds yet but that would be cool. The sweetness is really nice but it does not last very long, eh? It sort of dies off quickly lol. What do you think about this? I am considering to order more of this tea.. I really like it.
I like it too and yes, the sweetness can be short lived sometimes. I still have around 10-15gm left and I don’t drink it too often. I want to try others first. I definitely want to order some of that Vietnam Shou Been you mentioned. I’m always torn between getting a new one and re-stocking something I loved. I’m also trying to rid myself of some others so I’m not hoarding again :P
I’m not a big shou drinker but the vietnam border and vietnam beencha are pretty nice. Have you tried his big leaf green puerh 1995 private reserve? Its another interesting pu. I find he has interesting puerhs.. characters you don’t come across in some of the more popular puerh dealers.
You know what? I find it has a rice- sweetness to it… it reminds me of those rice-scented mini puerhs! Im beginning to wonder if this tea was scented.. its a very distinctive rice flavour.
I have. I confuse two of his loose leaf Puerh so I can’t remember which one is which. I agree that he has peculiar Puerhs. I found that he favors many reminiscent of tobacco and smoke, some with woody notes. That’s why I want to continue trying because I’ve found some that I keep coming back to and have become very fond of some of them. Like the hand made golden melon “Jin Ya Jin Gua”, the Ban Zhang ripe, Tibetan Brick (high grade). In Shengs the Qing Beencha, Aged Maocha, Bamboo Fragrance, Da Xue Shan Snow Buds and some others. Also, he has several loose leaf which is rare as it is. I want to visit some time and hopefully drop my jaw at the amount of Puerh I’ll see.
You have a point my friend! Also, I was confusing the tea I described before lol. The one I have about 10-15gm left is the “Aged Sheng Pu-erh Full Leaf, Lot #1WP 2001”, that’s the one that has tea flower buds. I’d recommend you trying that one. I didn’t like the Yiwu much in comparison. I still find it a nice tasting but not to re-order. I WILL reorder the 2001 Aged Sheng though.
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