A review of Chocolate Pu-erh by Numi Organic Tea
Company: Numi Organic Tea
Tea Name: Chocolate Pu-erh
Tea Type/Varietal: Pu-erh
Region:
Steeping Vessel/Amt. Leaf: cup/ tea bag
Plucking Season:
Liquor Color: reddish cinnamon
Leaf Characteristics:
- Steepings
1st Steeping:
Water temperature: 200 Fahrenheit
Time: 5 minutes
I purchased the Numi Sampler and I decided to try some of their sampler today. It is the chocolate pu-erh and I steep one tea bag with hot water for a good five minutes. I like when pouring the water into the cup how the tea was coloring immediately…dispensing its substance at the cup’s bottom; in that after the tea was steeped for the right amount of time I stirred it a bit mixing all of its content.
With this first steeping the tea smells pungently strong of dampness and raw earthy smell. After inhaling the aroma a few times one can actually begin to notice the chocolaty aspect of this tea. I take a sip and another sip and it is the dampness that I taste at once. It is moisten earth with a veiling of chocolate and cocoa and I like this combination.
2nd Steeping:
Water temperature: 190 Fahrenheit
Time: 4 minutes
With later steeps the water is slightly cooler so I steep the same bag for less time and the tea color is lightly yellowish cinnamon and smells of raw moisture/dampness but not as strongly as with the first steep. I can take in the chocolaty aroma mixing with the cocoa and the nutmeg even. It seems as the tea is cooler the aromas come through more.
As I sip and take more sips of this tea I can begin to discern the layering for this tea. The tea’s base will always be that of a raw and pungent aroma…a dampness that at times permeates, thus the term “Poo-Air” perhaps. As this is the challenge that is presented to first time drinkers of pu-erh; to getting past this pungent odor and once past it one is met with a velvety smooth cup of cocoa and chocolate that is laced with nutmeg and vanilla bean from the creamy texture arriving and sweetened naturally with the cinnamon. Yes all of this is in this cup of tea and time is allotted such a discovery and pleasurable task.
I was able to have three cups of this tea and each time the teas’ nuances surfaced most pleasingly. I could taste the vanilla bean slightly with the cinnamon and nutmeg. There was creamy milk like quality which I suspect was from the vanilla bean.
In all this tea has lovely color of rustic cinnamon which lightens to a peach color with several steeps. Teas’ aroma is robust and earthy; it smells of dampen earth when first sipping and taking in the aroma. With later steeps the tea evolves to smoother notes like the velvety smoothness of the chocolate, cocoa powder, nutmeg and the vanilla bean gives the tea that over all milky quality like from a honey dew melon.
All of this is possible with one cup of this Numi Organic Pu-erh.
