pu-erh of the day. Sheng or Shou
Another Mengsong area sheng, 2018 Bang Long from Yunnan Sourcing.
Finding myself too taken by the energy to appreciate tastes and textures. Heavy calm in my body, rushing and anxious in my chest. Sensories amplified.
I am finding the tea to be rather biting and acidic in the throat. Standout taste is candied orange peel.
90’s Camphor cake from Liquidproust teas.
Straight up camphor and tiger balm in this one. Up front notes with some smoke and bitterness in the cup. If you are a fan of one punching you in the mouth with that oily mouth coating this would be the one. If you aren’t sample before you get one. It is either the notes you like or wouldn’t. I don’t think there is a middle ground on this one but for me this is straight up my alley.
Flavors: Bitter, Camphor, Oily, Smoke
A few years ago there was a great deal of controversy about Verdant Tea selling sheng puer from Qianjiazhai that was labelled as single tree sheng with the age of the trees being claimed as 1800 or 1300 years old. Having been introduced to the region (Mt Ailao) by Yunnan Sourcing, and liking the flavor profile, I purchased the single tree shengs from Verdant Tea, and have continued to do so. Now I don’t have a clue about the age of the trees, but I do know that I thoroughly enjoy the tea. I recently brewed the 2017 version of what is labelled as Qianjiazhai 2017 Single Tree Sheng Puer cake from the Zhenyuan Dongsa Cooperative through Verdant Tea, and quite like it. It has the piney, olive flavors that I like from the region, but also a certain minerality and depth that says old tree to me. It also creates quite a salivary response in me. It does seem fairly “unique”, and the newer and still available cakes are reasonably priced for the quality in my view. You can read more about them at the verdanttea.com website should you care to. Be well, Jim
2011 Yunnan Sourcing “Man Tang Hong Number 2” Ripe Pu-erh tea cake
https://steepster.com/teas/yunnan-sourcing/35576-2011-yunnan-sourcing-man-tang-hong-number-2-ripe-pu-erh-tea-cake
Spicy, smooth and bright; full of clean, dark TCM flavor, bread dough and petrichor. No bitterness or astringency. Best drank as a digestive due to acidified aftertaste.
Continuing my slow exploration of Verdant Tea’s sheng puerh from Qianjiazhai, today I broke out the 2015 1000 year tree version. I put a photo of the wrapper on the tea’s profile. It has the earthy, olive, eucalyptus, earthy, bitter taste at this time that I associate with the region. Maybe it was my mood on a rainy, meditative day on the north coast of California, but it somehow felt that I was communicating with the tree that these leaves came from. I have no idea about the tree age, but the tea really did have a sense of depth, grounding, complexity, and ancientness in its taste. If you have any, it is worth trying at this point. By the way, the cake has dramatically darkened over the years I’ve had it, and rather looks like a gnarled tree limb. Best, Jim
I can’t be arsed to peel myself out of bed to confirm right now, but I think I have some (2, maybe?) Ailao region teas from YS. You’ve got me excited to check and get to tasting them tomorrow!
Anyone heard from mrmopar recently? Thanks.
mrmopar has been active recently in the Liquid Proust discord. Let me know if you need and can’t locate an invite link!
My wife and I enjoy shou that:
- is Full-bodied, thick, rich, creamy smooth
- produces a full-mouth feeling with a long pleasing finish
- w/o obvious acidity, astringency, or bitterness
- Retains this profile & is complex enough to enjoy for multiple steeps
Notes of interest:
- Chocolate, honey, caramel, stone fruits, sweet potato, barley, fresh baked bread
Notes not of interest: Floral, vegetal, woody.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated (especially if they’re organic or free of pesticide residues). Thanks!
Long time popular Shou: https://yunnansourcing.com/products/2020-yunnan-sourcing-hui-run-ripe-pu-erh-tea-cake?pos=1&_sid=f23bcd1ed&ss=r
Sweet smooth and textured. Ages very well too. I just finished the 2011… delicious stuff. Another good one is:
https://white2tea.com/collections/2020-ripe-puer-tea/products/2020-brown-sugar
These are easily approachable and perfect for morning quick sessions.
A puerh I started with were Waffles from White2Tea. Definitely easy going tea. Also I liked YS Impression, but not sure which year, probably 2015. But the latter one isn’t much for you.
Crimson Lotus 2017 Storm Breaker
derk, Thanks for the suggestion. It sounds very appealing. I should’ve mentioned that we’re hoping to find an enjoyable & affordable daily drinker.
It’s simply what I was drinking this morning. Based on your tastes and budget (this is one pricey shou!), I wouldn’t recommend. Have you ever tried Mandala Tea’s shou? They’re usually excellent quality with the notes you desire but not as affordable as factory cakes or many of Yunnan Sourcing’s pressings. Many of Mandala’s shou are claimed to be unsprayed or pesticide-free.
Agreed, Garret @ Mandala has offered great tasting shou for many years. I also have noticed the cost/g tends to be more than YS. Perhaps a good Black-Friday/Cyber-Monday sale?
I haven’t seen them offer organic shou. It is possible some tea farms are growing organically but haven’t yet gone through the necessary time & expense to earn organic certification. Pesticide residue testing would be reassuring but would further add to the cost.
Any other thoughts or ideas would be welcome.
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