18 Tasting Notes
This is my favorite CLT ripe, and considering I associate CLT with “great ripes” then that says something..
Not cheap, but worth at least a sample, for reference..
If someone asked me which CLT ripes to try out, I’d recommend this one, Iron Forge, and Nannuo Mini Mushrooms.. actually that would be my Ideal “ripe introduction sampler pack” in general
nice cheap Daily Drinker for that Yiwu taste, that will last you for a small number of good brews.
Used to be great value, but price jump made it only good value..
I’ve noticed a couple of times HLH teas getting a price increase of 10%-33%.. that’s fair play in the puer world, but a 33% increase can really make or break a tea’s value-for-money..
decent tea that gives out several good brews, but feels tame to me. maybe the initial price was good value and price increases diminished that , or maybe it is entering the weird maturing period puer has between the ages of 2-6 ..
I have a sentiment for ailao, since it was my first positive experience with young Sheng.
Nowdays I find the ailao taste rather un-exciting, but not necessarily in bad way, since there is some calming quality in the ailao experiance as a whole.. It’s hard to explain, but a good ailao just feels right, like it’s balanced..
So I was happy to hear about Scott releasing his “highest grade” ailao to date, especially since I’ve had a previous offering from him and it was a very pleasant.
I was even more happy to drink it since it was the best ailao I’ve had.
It was also not too expensive, which led to it selling out quite fast.
Regardless of that I’d still recommend trying it out, especially to people who want to check out the ailao taste. There is an autumn version up now, too.
To criticize this tea, it didn’t last as long as I’ve would’ve wanted.. but that’s a common problem at this price range.
This is a wild tea, so has that purple tea taste. In a whole the taste felt to me like a really fancy Taiwanese Dark-Oolong/Black-Tea, only with a much fuller body. That’s great, because since I’ve started drinking old tree Sheng mouthfeel is something I’m aware of and looking for.
Expensive, but at least delivers.
This is one of those teas that frustrates me..
It starts like a really good Mengsong, but tapers out after not so many brews.
I love the Mengsong taste, especially a rich full one like this tea starts with,
but struggle to justify the price tag to myself when it doesn’t keep up for at least a decent while..
In that sense the 2018 Plum Beauty (Bronze) makes more sense- it has a similar, though toned down taste, thinner, and brews out even faster, but costs a 1/3.. which is probably why it is sold out.
I might give up eventually and buy some in a sale though :P
This is an excellent bitter Sheng.
Beautiful leaves, long brewing session, and INTENSE bitter flavor that somehow manages to not be flat.
I really enjoyed it, and would buy a large amount if I could afford it.. Oh well.
Update: last time I brewed this tea the bitterness was too much and I suffered.. I guess it’s so bitter it’s on the verge of pain for me, and depending on my physical state I’ll end on either side of that ledge.
Update 2: Still can’t afford it, but bought 100g for blending with the sweeter Bitter End version, since the Xtra is so powerful..
Only had three Ruby 18 Blacks, but this was my favorite, since it toned down a little of this cultivar’s craziness and harshness, but kept enough to make it very different and interesting.
if you like the cultivar or looking for something different you should definitely get a sample.
