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White Moon Pu'erh (Sheng) from Tao Tea Leaf

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79/100

White Moon Pu'erh (Sheng)

Pu-erh Tea by Tao Tea Leaf

Whitemoon is a fantastically rich Sheng Pu’er. The tea gets its wonderfully complex flavours and textures from its unique processing. First the tea goes through the regular processing: plucking, withering, heating, rolling, (both heating and rolling are performed twice) drying and sorting. With most other teas the processing would be complete at this point, but there is one more step that makes Pu’ers special. The leaves are compressed tightly into a cake. These cakes are then set aside and aged allow for a slow fermentation to take place. This is what gives Sheng Pu’ers their characteristic flavours. This tea has been aged since 2007 giving it a lovely sweet flavour, almost sourdough like with a sweet honey-like malty finish.

Region: Jinggu, Yunnan Province,China.

Appearance: The dry leaves are an exuberant mix of colours and textures. There are soft white buds with many visible Tricomes. There are also light greens and browns laced through the mixture. The teas aroma is light and sweet, almost sourdough like, reminiscent of a white tea.

Taste: Whitemoon has a medium-heavy body that immediately coats the tongue. The taste is sweet with hints of apricot and fresh baked bread. Whitemoon tops everything off with a refreshing and very smooth honey like finish.

Steeping Guide:

Teaware: Glass or ceramic Gai Wan

Amount: 3g /1½ teaspoons

Temperature: 100°c (212°F)

Steeping Time: 1 to 2 minutes for the first two steeps and 3 to 5 minutes for the third and fourth.

*These steeping directions are for a traditional Gong Fu style tea, if you are brewing this tea in a regular cup we recommend steeping for 2 – 3 minutes.

2 Tasting Notes

Indigobloom
88
Indigobloom 2 tasting notes

Yes please!! wow. It’s been a loooong time since I liked a Sheng. Uncooked is usually too light for me. I prefer the heavy stuff!
But this… was so good! The first infusion was amazing, with so many notes to it I know I’ll miss some.
First off, it was very sweet, and bready. but not like any bread I can name. Something about it was familiar, I just cannot pinpoint how!! agh, drives me nuts. I’ve been trying to figure it out all day. It had a certain depth to it as well, that I really enjoyed.
My fave part though, was the menthol. Oh yes, it was very refreshing and yet mild. Highly enjoyable.
Tao tells me that this is a limited edition, aged since 2007 so I feel very lucky to have tried it. Esp since I almost put it back when I saw that it was uncooked!
Thank you Tao for sharing your favourite tea!!
Anyhow, I must try the last of this in a Gawain. It deserves a Gawain. Seriously folks.
Rating: 96

On a side note, I’m still grinning from my tea date with fellow Steepsters yesterday… but I’m also a little freaked out by the motorcycle accident that happened right in front of us. Spun out swerving to avoid a turning car maybe fifteen feet from us and bounced on the pavement like a rag doll. The rider was ok, he got up and walked around, nothing broken and only a scraped knee. Still, my heart was on overdrive for almost an hr after. See, 20+ years ago, my cousin, passed away because of just such an accident and ever since, those machines have given me the creeps. Even now, I can’t shake the feeling that it could have been SO much worse. The motorcyclist had excellent reflexes and did just what he was supposed to do based on what friends who drive have told me… and yet here I am imagining all sorts of terrible scenarios. and today… I am missing my cousin.
Sorry for the essay. I just had to get that off my chest. Anyone who drives, please be careful!!

Heaven. Heaven in a cup, seriously. I need to get more of this, if there is any left.
It’s different today, fresher tasting, but then I think the shorter steep time made a difference. (two min)
This is one of those teas, like that thread mentioned, that is going to haunt me til I get more. I could mainline this stuff.
Edit: forgot about the second steep! first one is A+, and the second one… D+!
It’s… milky and has a soft mushroom taste. I once loved mushrooms but seem to have lost my taste for them. So… I am lowering the rating. Will see what a third steep brings :)
Edit again: third steep is a bit better. I added 1/4tsp sugar and it’s now a sweet cloudy tasting (clear liquid!) tea. The essence of mushrooms is hanging in the background though it is overshadowed by the sweet breadiness I’ve come to love in pu-erhs. Also, I am loving this much more when cooled. Bumping rating back up, slightly.
Fourth Steep: Sweet and clay like. Some bread notes, but mostly clay. Or was this the fifth steep? I lost track!

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