2008 Bulang Imperial Ripe

I had this to wake me up. I’ve been meaning to get to it, and I’m happy I finally made the time. The brick is tightly compressed and carries a dry earth and decayed wood scent. The leaves are small, dark, and spotted with brilliant gold. I warmed my teapot and popped it in. The scent became thick and grainy. I was picking up notes of oatmeal, decayed wood, maple, and some fermented fruit in the background. I washed the leaves twice to open them up. The steeped leaves give off a fairly different scent consisting of a sharp earth smell with some tangy pine resin. I could also take in dry coco nibs in the background. The taste was good. This brew begins with a nice drying sensation and has a full body. I was tasting a lot of earth and dark wood flavors, and a pleasant sour note finished the taste off. Around the third steeping, I experienced a pleasantly sweet aftertaste. I liked this brew; however, it quickly faltered off. I felt as though I was just starting to get into it when it completely watered down on me. My brew was clear and becoming light, and it had a watery murky taste. The qi was calm and nice and warming. This was a relaxing yet focused feeling, and I enjoyed it. I ended up dumping this and finding another shou to satisfy my craving.

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This is wonderful. As for the price… I’m not sure, pu’erh at $6 an ounce if affordable and in comparison to oolongs it is cheap; however, with my recent research it seems that ripe pu’erh bought correctly can be much cheaper if you purchase full cakes or find the right seller. BUT I don’t care, storage is an important factor and these seem to be wonderfully stored and once it breaks up after the 3rd infusion it gives a brisk cup with a leftover feel of molasses in your mouth. Kind of sticky, but it has that leftover very subtle sweetness that a ripe has and I really really enjoy it.