Mandala Phatty Cake II: The Sequel

Beautifully smooth and creamy. Just made butter tea with it, and now I’m jittery though. This has never happened before. RAAAAWRJkleeeeeee

This is a very tasty shou puerh with a great deal of fermentation flavor left. There were strong chocolate notes in this tea as well as a very earthy flavor. I also picked up on the leather notes in it although I did not notice much of the list. Perhaps I was not paying close enough attention. I think this a tea with a lot of potential. That is why I will put this away and age it for a while before drinking again.

When I brewed this the first steep was over brewed because my brand new teapot was clogged from being seasoned. Also, it pours a little slowly. I adjusted the steeps downward and got better results. The first steep was very, very earthy. By the third steep the flavor improved. By the fifth steep it was markedly better. It should be noted that it never completely lost its fermentation flavor. I guess I have become accustomed to older, better aged shou puerh.

I steeped this 6 times in a 207ml teapot with 7g of leaf and boiling water. i steeped it for 10 sec, 5 sec, 10 sec, 15 sec, 30 sec, and 1 min. I had to adjust the time after the first steep because the tea was over brewed.

This was from the $5 Ripe Puer Sampler. MAN this was some good shou! Such a strong, rich flavor. Reminded me of dark chocolate, just not bitter. It brews up pretty dark in color as well. The taste was much sweeter than other ripe puerhs I’ve had. It also had a really interesting savory smell that’s kind of hard to describe. Another review mentioned leather. Maybe that’s it.

I used boiling water in my 4 oz yixing pot and did 3 steepings (rinse, rinse, 5s, 10s, 15s). I soooo wanted to have more, but I didn’t want to go into caffeine overload (which is very easy for me). I’ll be saving this for tomorrow to enjoy again!

This was my very first Pur-eh and I was in love at first sip. Complex notes ranging from earthy to a hint of vanilla, maybe a slight molasses flavor. the depth of flavors and complexity was amazing. I got 4-5 steeps from my sample packet before there wasn’t much flavor left. This I am planning to buy soon. :-) I did a 15 second rinse, let the tea rest for about 5-10 min, then did 15, 30, 45 second infusions. the last steep was quite long since it was loosing flavor, but still tasty.

This is the last tea from my ripe puerh sampler from Mandala. Visually, looks similar to the other cake samples. It’s one big chunk and the leaves are dark brown. Dry scent is somewhat sweet and woody with a bit of pond or fishy smell. I did a 15s rinse and then 30/45s steeps. I then went back to 30s, hoping it would change the flavor a bit. I think this one is just not for me. :P

Brewed aroma was quite earthy and leathery with the slightest bit of vanilla sweetness and that characteristic woodiness that I’ve found in the other puerhs as well. Taste-wise, I found this tea to be somewhat less complex (and less enjoyable) than the others in the sampler. It mostly tasted earthy and woody with mineral and smoke notes to me. There was also a heavy leather flavor to it. The vanilla and sweetness poked their heads out a time or two, but not enough to make me want to drink any more. I guess this one is just too robust for me! I’m a sweet gal! ;)

My second puerh from the sampler. This one I found to be similar to Noble Mark in that I tasted a cedar wood note, but not as prominent, and some unsweetened cocoa notes. Overall, it was pleasant, and I liked the first steep best, even though I think this could be resteeped forever!

I can’t really sleep tonight so might as well drink good tea, right?

I had this tea twice today. Such a lovely shou.

I like how sweet and smooth it is. I find myself craving it.

It’s not overly complicated and complex, but sometimes, that’s just what I’m seeking.

I have mentioned that this tea was like a hug on my last review and I stand by it. Definitely a hugger!

At this rate, the little cake won’t last very long.

Sorry Mandala for not being more eloquent tonight…

Pic from earlier:

http://instagram.com/p/slg21QQh7c/

Sipdown! I am sleepy and cold, had surprise but challenging company last night then not enough sleep today. I had a cup of my usual but it wasn’t enough so I wanted around and threw whatever I found in the pot and now its working its magic, lifting the fog and filling my palate with scents and tastes of the forest in the sun! Now I must use the awakening to fininsh my work!

I did spend a moment looking at teas to order soon as the cupboard is growing bare of blacks and pu erhs and with fall fogs arriving, I want more of these. I’ve decided to work my way through Mandala’s offerings so I will start to build my order as soon as this work is done!

My first tea from my first Mandala order. (I like their name, it makes me think of art.) Anyway, this smells like what I associate with pu-erh- dark and earthy.

The flavour has a bit of spice and minerality. It’s a very rich and smooth too. My brewing method is what I would call ‘Western electric kettle- single serving mug’.

Hoo boy, this tea was strong! I steeped it over 10 times last night in a gaiwan, it was a great learning experience for me. This was my first shu pu’erh tea, so I was going in a little blind. When I took my first sip my first reaction was SUPER EARTHY. At first, the intensity of the earthy flavor was very overpowering and intense. Don’t get me wrong, it was highly enjoyable, I had simply never experienced this type of tea before. As the steepings moved forward, it mellowed out a bit and some new flavor began to peak out from behind the earthiness. The most evident flavor note to me tasted similar to a REALLY dark chocolate. It was a subtle bitterness similar to dark chocolate, yet the tea remained creamy and tasty. Overall, I truly enjoyed my first shu pu-erh experience, and I can’t wait to break some more of this tea out soon!