Chocolate Pu-erh

So, derk was going to send me a few pu-erhs to try. This turned into a sampler box with a huge variety! Thank you!

The brewed tea has a very subtle smell, possibly the pu-erh.
Ooh, subtle pu-erh flavors and subtle cocoa flavor. Of course, I prefer a stronger cocoa flavor. looks at chocolate bar on his desk with 90% cocoa solids Still, I like how the flavors are in balance, and it’s pretty amazing for a bag of tea I could pick up in a grocery store. Mmm.

Thank you Derk!

I had seen Derk’s review on this and wanted to try it but I just couldn’t pull the trigger on buying a box of it on Amazon. I admit I didn’t have too high expectations but I was really hoping it was going to be decent. I know I like Numi’s toasted rice sencha so wondered if I’d like this one too.

This is good. I really like it. Nice cinnamon, nutmeg notes, some other spices. I don’t really get chocolate per se (maybe cocoa dust) but I haven’t really found a chocolate tea that tasted like chocolate lol. I taste it more in unflavored teas, to be honest.

I’ll get a box of the teabags for traveling. :D

A not-so-guilty pleasure. Smells warm and decadent like a Mexican hot chocolate. Oh my. Not creamy. The flavors aren’t overwhelming and really complement the tea base which is fairly close to a black tea but with a shou puerh clean earth, mossy and mineral kick to it. Everything about this tea tastes very natural and inoffensive. A damn fine bagged tea and a real nice introduction for complete puerh newbies.

Another sipdown. This is from the travelling teabox and I enjoyed trying the types of puerh from Numi. I’ve been eyeing these but didn’t want to commit to an entire box. I enjoyed trying this and would consider buying a box in the future.

Lots of earthy cocoa and cinnamon, citrus, vanilla. This isn’t sweet at all, so don’t think this will be desserty. I like it, though. It reminds me of 70% cocoa dark chocolate (bittersweet chocolate). This is very chocolaty and dark, but the spices are a nice addition too.

Yum! I love having this after dinner because it tastes just like dessert without the guilt. Therefore I particularly enjoy having it with some vanilla ice cream!

This is one of my favorites. I use both the bagged and loose-leaf versions Pu-erh purists will probably frown on this tea, but I’m not a big fan of pu-erh and this one doesn’t taste earthy. The blend of flavors works very well together, and I think the tea enhances the chocolate flavor.

This was my first foray into Numi’s Pu-erh and I wasn’t sure what to expect. When I opened my one pound bag (another good deal), I was surprised by the strong spicy aroma that burst forth. Having a mouth full of sweet teeth, I was hoping that the dominant smell would be chocolate. However, so far the chocolate was missing in action. There also were yellowish chunks of…something…mixed in with the muddy brown leaves.

I steeped the leaves for five minutes at 212 degrees. The brewed color was a very dark amber, close to brown. The aroma that wafted from the pot and cup was full of spice, similar to ginger.

At first sip, the flavor seemed almost like I was drinking liquid potpourri. After a few more gulps from my cup, I kinda, sorta, maybe, tasted very faint accents of chocolate. The one thing I am sure that I did not taste was the expected leathery and earthy presence of Pu-erh.

I also thought that the overall flavor could have been bolder. The taste had no astringency while drinking or afterward.

Give this selection a try if you are in the mood for a Pu-erh tea that doesn’t taste like a Pu-erh tea. If you are craving a strong Pu-erh offering that is bursting with chocolate flavor, you might be a bit disappointed.

I liked this one iced or hot oddly. My roommate actually thought it was weed based on the musty Pu-Erh smell, but was pleasantly surprised by the chocolate. I had a similar reaction, and it was like a creamier, mossy light hot chocolate. The flavor profile was inconsistent with each bag, which is why I rated this lower than I think it deserves at its best. There were times were it tasted only like cocoa dirt water, or times that I got the full flavors that are already described on this page. Not worth close to nine bucks, though.

I purchased a Numi sampler not too long ago, and the Chocolate Pu-erh really stood out. The chocolate was creamy and understated without tasting artificial or like a carob product, really excellent iced. I’m going to have to commit to a full package soon.

I was really curious about chocolate and puerh hanging out in the same cup. It turns out they like each other :3 This tea honestly reminds me of Mexican hot chocolate. It has a nice creamy chocolate with a pinch of cinnamon and then an earthy note from the puerh.