2010 Xing Hai Raw Beeng Cha from Canton Tea Co.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pu-erh

Where to Buy:  Canton Tea Co.

Tea Description:

Another classic puerh from Xing Hai, made from authentic leaves, grade 5 –7, harvested from the large, mature tea bushes of Meng Hai.

A good quality raw puerh, it will keep improving for 10 years or more. For best aging results, store in a well-aired location with a constant temperature. The Xing Hai Beeng Cha is a young puerh and shows the classic characteristics of mild flowery notes with a traditional bittersweet finish. It will develop more woody notes as it matures.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

I know I’ve mentioned this before, but the more I am sampling different Pu-erh teas, the more I’m realizing that I really do like them.  I still suffer a bit from a couple of bad experiences concerning Pu-erh, but, really, the number of good experiences I’ve had outweigh the number of bad at this point.

unfortunately, it's too overcast to see much of a sunset today, just a sliver of orange in the distance ... and not very easy to see in this picture.

This is a really nice raw pu-erh, quite sweet with pleasing floral notes.  I don’t think I’ve had a pu-erh where I really noticed such well-pronounced floral tones before.  Usually, I taste earthiness, and yes, I taste that here too, but, I don’t think I’ve had a pu-erh where the focus is more on the notes of flower over the notes of earth.

The sweetness is very molasses-like … in fact, had I not prepared this cup myself, I would have thought that whomever did prepare it for me added a dollop of molasses to the cup.

Overall, the cup is very smooth – no bitterness, no astringency – and it has a very mellow character.  A very enjoyable cup of tea, I find it to be an especially enjoyable tea to enjoy in the early evening while watching the sunset.