So other than in The Skinny, I have never had a pu’erh where the pu’erh is the main component, and am anxious to try it. I have a sample from Verdant of the 07 Xingxang I believe, and I also ordered the big 250 g brick of Old Comrades back during Cyber Monday. But I have been nervous to try them yet. And I’ve had a sample of this sitting here waiting patiently until I was ready. And tonight, I am going for it!
The dry smell is soo heady and spicy! Yum! It’s fiery and beckoning, I don’t know how to describe it other than spice. I did a rinse with boiling water, and then steeped for 1 min. In my infuser, I put a big hunk of the pu’erh, and tried to get about a tsp of the other ingredients as well.
I will admit, once removing the steeper and smelling the leaves, I got a lot of spices, but a scent I at first couldn’t place…then I found it! It was like a cedar planked salmon, mmm, then I thought what fishy? No way, it was like a yummy roasting dinner in the oven type of fish, and that may have partially been due to my super short rinse (not an expert at that yet at all haha). However, no fishiness AT ALL in the smell of the cup, just in the infuser. Mmm, the tea itself has a light spice, and I can smell that ginger…yes, I love ginger.
This tastes so good. It’s very difficult for me to distinguish what the pu’erh on its own tastes like as I haven’t had any straight pu’erh, but this tea is realllly good. It’s spicy, and warming, and yummy. It feels like I am drinking a savory meal almost. I do get a slight tingling on my tongue which is very intriguing, as I read about it but did not expect to notice it as much. There’s cinnamon too, and a bit of sweet to go with the warm spice of the peppercorns.
Overall, I am very excited to have tried this, and I like it! Yay! Hopefully I can get the nerve to try my straight pu’erh soon now that it’s not as scary. I just looked on Verdant’s site, and this is sold out, so I can only hope it comes back so I can get either another sample or maybe an oz to play with. Meanwhile, I will enjoy re-steeping this all evening.
ETA: On my third cup of this and it is still absolutely delicious. The caffeine isn’t messing with my stomach at all, I actually think the ginger and pu’erh combo are perfect for it! This is so tasty, I want more, but I must sleep at some point tonight haha.
