Another small sample out of the Puerh TTB! Brewed 4g up in handy 60mL gaiwan. After really enjoying the 2015 Reprise cake, I was interested to try the OG Wild Monk that people seem to have raved about. The dry leaves had a bit of a smoky aroma to them, which only intensified after a rinse. There was also some fruity and perhaps woody notes to the leaf aroma.
There was a bit of smoke to the first two steeps, but it wasn’t unpleasant. Other than the smoke, those two steeps had a bit of a fruity finish and were thick and creamy in the mouth, leaving a bit of a tingling sensation on my tongue.
By the third steep, the smoke was gone, replaced by a few different flavors which interplayed nicely. There was a hint of cinnamon, along with the fruity sweetness. The fruity notes weren’t intensely peach or apricot or anything, but were pretty laid back. By the fifth steep, I was also getting a bit of a sugary sweetness in the front of the sip.
This tea had some pretty powerful qi – even with the small amount, I was really feeling it by this point in the tea session. Felt pretty tipsy and fuzzy-headed. In terms of flavor, this tea really hit its stride around steep six as well. A great balance of bitterness and sweetness. There is just a touch of mouth-drying going on, but not too bad at all. I tasted fruity and light aromatic woody notes in the tea. This flavor carried on through another eight or more steeps – so I got a decent amount out of that little 4g sample!
I can see why people were excited about this tea – it’s definitely a good one. Very balanced flavors and hard-hitting qi. Hopefully Mandala makes it back online soon, though I’m fairly certain this tea was already gone beforehand.
Flavors: Fruity, Smoke, Sweet, Wood
