Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: In Nature Teas
Product Description:
Wild Fresh Buds – Puerh, hand picked in the high mountains of Yunnan.
This naturally grown tea is a delicacy which is produced and delivered by Mother Nature without any human interference. It is the purest form of tea one can drink. The sweet taste and aroma are a feast and its endless health properties makes it a very special treat for the body, mind and spirit.
Taster’s Review:
This is really unexpected. Unexpectedly delightful!
The first thing I notice is the aroma – or should I say lack of aroma? Normally when I open a package of Pu-erh the surrounding air is immediately filled with that distinctive earthy quality. That didn’t happen this time. Instead, I was greeted with a very soft, vegetative scent that sort of reminded me of the salad bar when I visit Sweet Tomatoes.
Then I notice the leaves. They look like dry, white leaf buds. Very young leaf buds. Think of the earliest days of spring, when the tiniest of leaf buds begin forming on the trees. Yes, that is what they look like. Tiny, white, and covered with fluffy fuzz.
The flavor these soft, delicate leaf buds produce is amazing. This … THIS? … is Pu-erh? It tastes like no other Pu-erh I’ve ever tasted. It tastes light and crisp. Clean. Slightly vegetative. I wouldn’t describe it as earthy, at least, not in the same context as I would describe other Pu-erh teas that I’ve tasted. There are some earthy tones to this cup but it is more like a vegetal earthiness.
As I continue to sip, the earthy flavors develop slightly, but they never become overwhelming. What I taste mostly from this tea, though, is sweetness. The cool sweetness you might expect after biting into a crisp piece of celery.
One of the most surprising and delicious Pu-erh teas I’ve yet to taste! I like this very much.
Puerh (Yunnan) from In Nature
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: In Nature
Product Description:
Pu-erh, the great “connoisseur Tea”. The Queen of all Teas, known for its noble palate, taste and aroma. Also famous for its numerous health properties. Yunnan region.
This tea brews to a reddish-brown colour and has a distinctive liquorice, soothing taste.
Taster’s Review:
The more I drink Pu-erh, the more I am liking it. As I’ve mentioned before, I wasn’t always fond of it. In fact, disgust would be a better way to describe my feelings toward Pu-erh. But, since that time, I have learned how to brew Pu-erh and now that I brew it properly (well, properly for me, anyway), I actually quite like it.
The aroma of the dry tuocha is earthy but it is not as strong an earthy essence as some Pu-erh I have encountered. Once brewed, the liquor is quite light in fragrance. Likewise, the flavor is much lighter-tasting. It is remarkably smooth and even. The sometimes off-putting earthy flavor of Pu-erh is not present here. Yes, it has an earthy quality to it, but it is rather delicate and quite nice.
The description above suggests that this has a liquorice flavor, and I must agree, I can taste the liquorice-like note in this, and it resonates throughout the sip. This liquorice flavor highlights the deep sweetness to this cup.
this is definitely one of the most delightful Pu-erh teas that I’ve ever had the opportunity to taste. I like it very much.
Prosperity Cube Pu-erh Tea (Year 2003) from Red Leaf Tea
Tea Type: Pu-Erh
Where To Buy: Red Leaf Tea Company
Product Description:
From the ancient halls of Chinese herbal science comes a special tea that is designed to call out to the spiritual world; Prosperity Pu-Erh Tea! When civilization was born, Chinese healers developed the arts of Feng Shui, writing, and herbology, and the Prosperity Cube. The Cube is a compressed block of herbs that have been specially prepared with sticky syrup and a small square mold. A Chinese character is applied to the cube during the molding process, as a spiritual call for a certain quality. When shared with family, the Prosperity Cube can be amazingly effective in lifting the financial burdens of the participants. Packed with just as many health benefits as other tea varities, Pu-Erh tea such as the Prosperity Cube make excellent sipping teas for those looking for a traditional Chinese taste.
Tasters Review:
I’ve been a little obsessed with Red Leaf Tea Company’s Teas lately…they have such a wonderful selection! This is one of their Pu-Erh offerings. It’s their Prosperity Cube and it looks amazingly crafted!
Dry this had a hint of vinegar aroma to the nose – nothing I couldn’t handle tho. While infusing it started to smell woodsy and a little like syrup.
It infuses dark.
The taste is unexpected and interesting! Just when I am thinking it was more of a mellow bark-like taste is changes up to a syrupy type taste and just when I think I have that nailed it changes to a smooth and velvety rice-type hint and then I think it almost has some drier wine notes coming thru.
If you are one of the people turned off by pu-erhs because you may think they are wormy or earthy – try this one – it’s very different! And ANOTHER really great choice from Red Leaf Tea!
Organic Topaz Pu-er from The Tao of Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: The Tao of Tea
Product Description:
Native Name: Shu Bing
Origin: Central Yunnan Province, China
Plucking Season: Fall
Introduction: A cooked style pu-er, made at one of the few certified organic tea gradens in central Yunnan. Can endure many steepings, and does not become astringent. We don’t expect it to gain any flavor change over time.
Taster’s Review:
As I’ve mentioned before (several times), Pu-erh is a little intimidating to me. My first few experiences with Pu-erh were not pleasant ones, and since that time, I’ve been very hesitant to try it again. It wasn’t until about a year and a half ago that I decided to try to expand my horizons and try to develop a taste for Pu-erh. It is, after all, an acquired taste (for some of us at least! I do understand that there are some people that love this stuff right off the bat! For the rest of us though, it takes a little time!)
The dry leaf does not possess much of an aroma, and this was encouraging me, because it is often that strong earthy essence that I find off-putting when it comes to Pu-erh. However, after steeping, I noticed the liquor developed an earthy scent. Fortunately, though, it was not nearly as strong as some Pu-erh teas that I’ve tried, so I remained optimistic. Given the fact that I’ve been very pleased with other teas I’ve tried from The Tao of Tea, I had good reason to remain optimistic!
This is remarkably smooth. It is a bold, full-flavored cup with a pleasant tone of sweetness. In the past, I have often compared the sweetness of cooked Pu-erh to caramel, and while this does possess some of those “caramel” tones to it, I would say that this is not quite as caramel-y as some of the teas I’ve tasted. It is more like molasses, but without that molasses-y bitterness.
The flavor is earthy, but a subdued earthiness with a woody undertone to it. This is a very pleasant Pu-erh. Not one I would consider a favorite but, one that I am happy I had the opportunity to try and one that I wouldn’t turn down if I were offered it again. The Tao of Tea does it again!
Camel’s Breath Pu-Erh Toucha from Chicago Tea Garden
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Chicago Tea Garden
Product Description:
Origin: China, Yunnan Province
Harvest: Spring 2005, cave-aged until 2010
Taste: Very strong and earthy, capturing the essence of shu pu-erh.
Behind the Leaf: Though I have never had the pleasure of actually smelling a camel’s breath, these mini-tuocha smell … like what I assume a camel’s breath would smell like. Don’t let the name (or that description) put you off though. These pu-erh tuocha steep up a sturdy, dark, and intense liquor, producing a somewhat briny drink. The longer you steep it, the darker it will get– this is a tuocha you can leave in your pot and add water to throughout the day. These pu-erh tuochas are cooked or “ripened” pu-erh (shu).
Taster’s Review:
I’ve had this Pu-Erh cake for a while now. It was sent to me by a tea friend on Steepster, but to be perfectly honest, I was afraid to try it. It’s the name. I mean… drinking “camel’s breath tea” didn’t exactly appeal to me.
But really, if this is how camel’s breath tastes… it’s not all that bad. Quite tasty, actually, even if it is kind of unsettling for me to admit that I like the flavor of something called “Camel’s Breath.”
The aroma… well, it’s special. I can see why it’s called Camel’s Breath. It is strong, earthy and brine-y. A rather intense fragrance, to say the least. However, when steeped for short steeps in my gaiwan, the flavor isn’t nearly as intense.
It is an earthy flavor. It is brine-y. Even slightly fish-like. But, beyond those flavors, there is a sweetness that is just as strong, if not stronger, than the earthy, brine-y taste. And with subsequent infusions, I find that the sweetness develops. The second group of infusions (brewed in my gaiwan, I do a quick rinse, then after the rinse is discarded, I combine the next two infusions in one teacup, and then the next two are combined in the next group of infusions, and so on…) produced a slightly stronger flavor that was even more sweet than the first.
Using this short-steep method, I find that the flavor is relatively mellow in comparison to the aroma. It is a remarkably smooth brew without any hint of bitterness and no astringency. A very pleasant cup despite it’s rather intimidating name.
Moral of this review: Don’t judge a tea by its name, and don’t allow that name to influence your tasting decisions.