2009 Bu Lang Gong Ting

My first time using my yixing pot (after a seasoning).
I sat with my Zojurishi (sp?) and enjoyed multiple steepings which were seamless with that wonderful machine from Mandala!

Steep One: 30 Seconds (after an initial rinse)
Light, Juicy mouthfeel, Dry in back of throat, Mushroom flavors, Spicy, Creamy, and my favorite flavor.. Leafy!

Steep Two: 45 Seconds
Leafy, Oaky, More Creamy than first steep, Autumnal Flavors and aromas like being in the woods after a light rain in Autumn! Love it!

Steep Three: 1 Minute
Leafy aromas with an amazing mossy flavor again the wet leaves in Autumn flavors but more prominent!
Drier, Earthy, Hay, Tingly, Mushroom.

Steep Four: 1:15 Minutes
Light, Clean, Milky, Nutty

Steep Five: 1:30 Minutes
Weaker on flavor in this steeping, Mellow, Leafy, Sweetness coming out!

Steep Six: 2:00 Minutes
About the same as the last cup but sort of getting weak. I went for another steep anyway.

Steep Seven: 2:30 Minutes
Mossy, Juicy and now Fruity!

Steep Eight: 2:45
No real flavors present although a light golden color. No notes taken, by this time I was absorbed into a movie (Red Tails – GREAT movie!)

Overall I was surprised to find I did not get any of the chocolate notes as in the description but was not disappointed! I think I will allow this to age quite a bit and re-visit it later on.
I did enjoy it very much and there were some wonderful flavor notes and a few surprises even once I began to think it was past it’s steep-ability!

A nice tea with mellow flavors through out that over all remind of me my favorite season! You can’t beat that!

On another note. My husband at first said it smelled fishy. Again that FISHY word but I proved something to him and myself.
I said rather than fishy think of it as MUSHROOMY!
He disagreed so I made him go get an organic mushroom from the fridge!
He took a bite and said OMG your right!!!

I think the two flavors are similar in some ways but distinctly different enough. Plus for most mushroom is more palatable to stomach than “fishy”.

ALSO he drank with me the entire time! I was sooooo shocked and happy!
:)

Loose leaf pu-erhs are a great thing to have around the office…

I got this today from Mandala and couldn’t wait to try it.

First steep for around 45 seconds is earthy with a nice forest floor aroma, slight bit of chocolate, clean and smooth. There’s a bit of sweetness in the finish too. So far I like it!

Second steep also around 45 seconds. Color is a bit darker now and it has a great creamy quality… delicious and luscious for a pu-erh with no muddy flavor, I like this very much.

I think I will let Garret pick all of my pu-erh teas from now on. :)

I think this was my first ever transcendent tea moment. From the first sip, I was immediately in love with this tea. It was perfect. I was in utter awe while enjoying this tea. I am a former coffee drinker. You just don’t get that from coffee so this was a kind of milestone for me.

1st Steep- 30 seconds
Very leathery and, it’s going to sound strange, but there is also a note of parchment. I’m a book lover so this first steep worked very well for me. The smell of parchment and leather always brings happy memories. There was also a bit of bittersweet chocolate on the finish.

2nd Steep-45 seconds
The dark chocolate really came out. There was also a nutty hazelnut flavor. I loved this steep. I’m not a fan of Nutella but that is what it reminded me of. Maybe I just like it in tea?

3rd Steep-1 minute
The third steep is always my favorite for some reason. There was a lovely vanilla bean flavor with a brown sugar finish. In a way, it kind of reminded me of crème brulee with the brown sugar crackle on the top.

4th Steep-1.30 minutes
I got a lot of cinnamon. Very light and naturally sweet. There was also still a bit of the brown sugar flavor with some honey coming through. I love this steep almost as much as I love the 3rd one.

5th Steep-2 minutes
Honey. This steep was just one note but it was intense. And delicious.

6h Steep-3 minutes
This final steep was suddenly very fruity. Like peach. Maybe my taste buds are in a tizzy but it came out of nowhere.

Yet again, there came a point where I had to stop brewing this tea because it got late but I could have brewed this tea over and over again. This tea was perfection. Complete and utter perfection. I loved this tea. I wish I had bought more than an ounce of it because I could drink this everyday.