Meng Ku Rong Shi

Leaves didn’t stink as much as usual :)

I rinsed a few times and then steeped for 10 seconds. Color is red, Smells like pu-erh but not too strong.
It’s very yummy and gentle for a pu-erh. Leaves a lasting nice scent in my mouth. It’s hard tho for me to compare this to anything other than other pu-ehrs.
Anyways nice one. I like it a lot!

This is a sample I’ve had for a really long time, but never opened. I am really pleased that I finally did.

This is unlike any pu-erh I have had to date, and in a very good way. I rinsed twice and then steeped in the gaiwan with boiling water for 10, 15, 20, 30, 40, 60, 120, 240, 260 and 480 seconds. And for once, I didn’t feel in a rush to get through the steeps.

Because this tastes more like a Yunnan black to me than a pu erh. Yes, it has something of an earthiness to it that makes me know it is pu erh. But unlike other shus I have had recently, this one’s primary flavor profile isn’t earth, leather, and mushrooms.

Instead, this has a sugary sweetness to it. The note starts as a dark and heavy one, like molasses and evolves into brown sugar by around the sixth steep. Around the second steep, I even got something a little like cocoa. I hesitate to call this malty, because it doesn’t have the sort of depth I associate with maltiness, but it is mild and smooth.

There was a slight fishiness coming from the packet, but it washed completely away in the rinse. The liquor started very dark, like bourbon, and over time lightened up to a more medium amber.

While the tea didn’t undergo a dramatic transformation, it was sweetly delicious throughout.

I’m a little afraid I liked it because it wasn’t like pu erh. But who’s counting?