Mangnuo Tengtiao Cane Tea Sheng Pu-erh from Ancient Tea Tree 2014 First Spring

Note: this feedback is taken directly from the review on my tea blog.

The 2014 Mangnuo Tengtiao is a beautiful tea. And the leaves kept delivering delicious bowls of liquor. I used water that had been boiled then cooled. The first infusion was 30 seconds and I added 10 seconds for each subsequent steep. The color of the liquor progressed from a pale green to a deep yellow, even darker than the liquor pictured on the right, then gradually lightening to a pale yellow. And what of the flavors?

The first infusion yielded a light green color and a licorice finish. The second infusion dry like minerals and rocks and sweet like cassis. The liquor was noticeably darker at the third infusion. The flavors were more intense and raisin was a dominant flavor. I thought, “Boom!” after sipping the liquor from the fourth infusion. The astringency kicked in; there was a lot of fruit flavors including a bitter note like a grapefruit peel. The fifth infusion produced a dry liquor with apricot and stone fruit, raisin, and grapefruit flavors. The liquor smelled a temperate rainforest or a wet woodland. By the sixth infusion, the liquor had begun to lighten in color. The dominant notes became wood and raisin. I would definitely drink more of this pu-erh!

This tea brewed up persistent dried fig flavors and a light acidity that grew into a tangy, relaxing soup with light buttery sweetness. The flavors were delicate all the way through the session, almost as delicate as the tiny unfurled leaves. I took the leaves to 14 steeps before they quickly dropped off but each brew before then had great quality.

I’m finally breaking into the Wymm Tea samples I got a while back. :) I have to agree with everyone who has complimented the packaging – it’s just lovely. 6g in the gaiwan, one rinse with boiling water, and I think the first steep was boiling too, then 90 degrees after that. A whole bunch of roughly 10 second steeps, and now I’m up to about 20-25 seconds.

This is a lovely clean and fresh-tasting sheng. It causes a bit of tingling on my tongue, maybe a slight bitterness that’s more of a refreshing feeling than anything unpleasant, and then gradually a sweet aftertaste has been building up in the back of my throat. I’m having trouble identifying any specific flavour notes besides “delicious sheng” but I’d say there are definitely some grassy and maybe some fruity notes in there. I’m pretty sure I’m at least 8 steeps in and this is still definitely going strong. Yummmm.

A sample from Wymm. Dry leaf aroma is familiar sweet like young sheng, but when the leaf is wet, a floral aroma emerges from the sweetness. One rinse. First steep was a flash steep and the flavor was too mild to really get anything from it. Subsequent slightly longer steeps of +/- ten seconds brought out more flavor, but still the brew is very light, somewhat sweet, with no discernible bitterness upfront, but it has that floral/medicinal (honeysuckle?) note that doesn’t usually sit well on my admittedly peculiar palate. Nice to try, but not in my wheelhouse so I wouldn’t likely go for this one again.

Thanks to Wymm Tea for sending me a sample!

The dry leaf of this was tightly packed, thin, and spindly, and the colour was dark green with white flecks. I put the entire sample (6 grams) in a gaiwan and gave the leaves a quick rinse before settling down into the first set of steeps. I kept the first 7 steeps fairly short, ranging from 5 to 12 seconds in 90°C water.

The first steep didn’t taste like much, but the flavour really opened up in the second and third steeps. I tasted grass and apricots, and the brewed tea was a pale amber colour. The aftertaste was long, lingering, clean and grassy — this tasted an awful lot like a green tea that had been suddenly transformed into a sheng. A few steeps in I started to notice some bitterness and astringency, but despite this, the tea was incredibly light and fruity, with a thick and nearly syrupy mouthfeel.

After the seventh steep I took a break, I brewed up a fresh pot of water, gave it a quick rinse to get the leaves warm again, and went to town. However, this second session was much bitterer to start with. Had the tea originally tasted this bitter? I didn’t think so. After a few steeps the bitterness toned down and the fruitiness returned, but I don’t know whether it was the tea that changed, or whether I did.

It got lighter over time, turning a pale yellow instead of golden, but there was still a subtle fruity flavour into the final steep. The leaves themselves smelled lovely – tart, tangy, and floral. By the end, they had greatly expanded in size and were a lovely mix of russet and olive.

Full review at: http://booksandtea.ca/2015/09/wymm-tea-sheng-and-shou-samples/

So, I guess this is Wymm’s signature tea? I ordered a sample, and it seems like it’s included in each of the sample packs you can choose from. I had a nice afternoon session with it. It’s sweet up front, and continues to be sweet as long as you do short steeps. I also noted some butter and hay notes and some bitterness in the finish. It has low to medium thickness. It was good, but nothing stood out to me. I think overall, it’s kind of light for my tastes. Good quality though.

an awesome tea

little glass pitcher method (grandpa style)

when I smell the leaves dry, they smell sort of musty.

when I smell the leaves wet, they smell nice and honey like.

when I smell the brewed tea, it smells nice and honey like.

when I taste the brewed tea, it tastes like honey.

I rate this a 90 because it seemed to only taste like honey

many thanks to Amanda ‘SoggyEnderman’ Wilson for this amazing tea

Another sample sent by Wymm Tea.

I’ve done a few infusions of this, and can probably get a few more. The initial infusion I found to be sweet and fruity. I didn’t notice any bitterness.

Later infusions I found some bitterness, but it not overpowering. The fruit notes seem to have dissipated, but I am still finding this to be surprisingly honey sweet and a little floral.

This latest infusion I’m finding some hay notes, and the ever present sweetness. The bitterness has subsided, and now only appears in the finish.

I am really enjoying this. It is so good. Thank you so much for the samples, Wymm!

A company’s signature tea says a lot about the direction they are heading. This was a marvelous and unique tea. I opened the truly beautiful wrapping to reveal a small bunch of Maocha that was dark forest green with strands of silver and brass. The dry leaf carried an apricot and slight tobacco tone. I placed these long strands in my warmed yixing and gave them a whirl. The damp leaf had the scent of raisins and figs; I knew this would be a treat. I washed the leaves once and then continued on to brewing. The initial sip was very delicate. The flavors did not fully come out until the third steeping. This is an incredibly light and subtle sheng. The young sheng carries very little, if any bitterness. The qi was partially nonexistent except for a plateau effect. This brew was sweet and succulent. The drink had a dominant light and winter honey tone with undertones of nectar and honeysuckle. The taste grew sweeter with each steeping. I was able to pull 20 steepings out of this brew. The liquor was a pale golden colour with a light taste. I did not note any “richness” in this brew. It left my mouth with a lingering back of the throat sweetness and simmering tongue feel. Personally, I enjoy a bold and powerful sheng; this is why I prefer young sheng. If you are like me, this wouldn’t be your “cup of tea”. The brew was sweet and soft, like a spring flower. I prefer to be dropped to the ground and wrestle with the sheer force of qi, hahah. This was still a beautiful brew, and it kept me satisfied for the morning. Thank you for this opportunity.

This is a better sheng than what I thought it would be. Once brewed the leaf looks fantastic and I actually found the taste to be less bitter than I have experienced shengs to taste like.

I drank all of what I had of this in one day because I just had a root canal and I wanted that tea drunk sensation and to hydrate myself a lot :)