Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: The Essence of Tea
Tea Description:
The flavour is thick and pure, with a hint of bitterness transforming into a long sweetness in the mouth. The tea is balanced throughout the mouth and throat, with the strong qi immediately present upon drinking.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’m finding this pu-erh to be quite unusual from the pu-erh I’ve tasted in the past. Not that I would consider myself to be a connoisseur of tea by any means … I’m more of a novice when it comes to pu-erh. But I have tried a good number of pu-erh, and it is from those experiences that I can say that this one is a bit unusual.
The sip starts out sweet and smooth – nothing unusual there. But at the point where the palate begins to recognize and appreciate the sweetness, a savory bitterness arrives, and I find the contrast compelling. I don’t find the bitterness to be a distasteful one, so I find myself wanting a different word to replace “bitterness,” because so often it is used to denote an off-putting flavor, and this is not off-putting.
There is an overtone of smokiness to this pu-erh that melds pleasantly with the earthy tones. It has hints of woody notes in the background, and even some hints of mineral. As I continue to sip and throughout the infusions (I steeped this tea six times), I found that the aforementioned bitterness developed into more of a a sour note, which seemed to complete the sweetness in a very pleasing way.
This is a most intriguing pu-erh… I find the balance of flavor and contrasts to be so interesting that it keeps me sipping with curiosity. It also makes me wonder how different the 2010 Mansai Puerh Tea from The Essence of Tea might be from its younger sibling. Perhaps this is a tea I will have to try at some point.
Peacock Village 2004 Shu from Verdant Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Verdant Tea
Product Description:
The Peacock Village is unique in its perfectly light and clean body. It does not weigh down the palate with earthiness. Rather, it sparkles in its crisp sweetness. The very large leaves used are similar to the old tea tree leaf material in the Xingyang 1998. The first steepings yield a crystalline orange tea with tea oils swirling on top. The sweetness is like rock sugar and white grapes. After the preliminary steepings, the tea starts to unfold in darker buckwheat flavor and honey. Unexpectedly, there is something in the texture and aftertaste of dried oregano. As the tea steeps out, the grape-like fruit taste becomes dark elderberry, and the aftertaste is tinged with the warm spice of Thai ginger and peppercorns.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This tea made me a little nervous at the start. While the dry leaf aroma doesn’t possess a strong earthy scent, the liquor does smell rather earthy. And it is that earthiness that often puts me off when it comes to Pu-erh. But Verdant has not let me down yet, so I relied on my past experiences and took a sip.
Yes! Fortunately, the earthiness is not as strong in the taste. The first sip starts out with a fairly moderate earthy tone which quickly dissipates into a clean, sweet flavor. With each subsequent sip, I notice less of the earthy note, and more of that sweetness. It’s really quite lovely.
I brewed this Gongfu style as directed on the Verdant Tea website, except that I steeped the first infusion 30 seconds and added 15 seconds with each subsequent infusion. What I am drinking now is the results of the first two infusions (following two quick rinses). The taste is remarkably light for a Pu-erh, which tends to be somewhat heavy. Once the earthy notes subside, the flavor is sweet and crisp … almost like a honey that has been thinned with sparkling white grape juice.
The third and fourth infusions render a tea that has almost no earthy note to speak of. There is just a hint of earthiness somewhere in there, but, it’s back in background, and so easy to miss with the other lovely flavors in the cup. It has a warmth to it as if it had been slightly spiced. The spiced tones develop later in the sip, toward the finish, and the aftertaste imparts a tingly taste on the tongue as if I had just eaten something with fresh peppercorn. Not hot or spicy, mind you, but, just a hint of pepper. I taste lovely fruit notes throughout: the grape-y notes that I mentioned earlier are still there, and I taste something else too … pear perhaps? A very interesting tea, this Shu from Peacock Village, and I am eager to try the next two infusions.
My fifth and sixth infusions are even sweeter, reminding me a bit of the rock sugar candy that I used to love as a child (and if the flavor of this tea is any indicator, I still quite like that rock sugar candy!) The earthiness is gone. There is a dry sensation toward the finish and into the aftertaste … but it isn’t astringency. It almost feels powdery, like dry cocoa but it doesn’t taste chocolate-y, instead it tastes like warm spice. It is a curious sort of sensation, but not at all unpleasant. I’m quite enjoying the mysteries that I experience as I sip this tea.
For those who have thought that Pu-erh is not to your liking, I think you should give this Shu a try. It is quite remarkable, and unlike any Pu-erh I’ve yet to taste.
Rose Tuocha from The Tao of Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Tao of Tea
Product Description:
The Tuocha refers to a family of bowl shaped teas, commonly available as Green tea Tuocha, Black tea Tuocha and Puer (aged) Tuocha. More recently, Tuochas have also become commonly available by compressing the tea leaves and flowers together, or by heat infusing them together. In making the Rose Tuocha, more mature leaves of the tea plant are selected in summer, sun-dried, steamed, oxidized to turn dark, then compressed along with rose petals into small bowls. Wrapped with paper, the Rose Tuocha are an ideal size (3 grams) for individual serving.
Flavor Profile: Sweet, smooth, very mild rose flavor with little astringency.
Taster’s Review:
This is certainly different … not at all what I expect when I taste a Pu-erh. Pu-erh tends to be quite a strong, assertive flavor, but with this Pu-erh, you need to throw everything you know about Pu-erh out the window, because it’s so unusual … but in the very best way possible.
When I steep Pu-erh Tuocha like this, I steep them in my gaiwan, using short steeps and multiple infusions. My first cup was the combination of the first two infusions (following a quick 10 second rinse). This cup is really quite light in flavor. A little woodsy with a mellow rose note that is pleasantly sweet. No sharpness, no strong earthy flavors. Smooth and only the faintest hint of astringency at the tail.
My second cup (the combination of the third and fourth infusions), brewed up darker and much bolder than the first cup. The color here is much more like what I’d expect from a Pu-erh, whereas the first cup was more like a black tea. The flavor is more assertive compared to the first, but, still, it is not that typical earthy flavor of Pu-erh. There are some earthy hints that seem to have paired up with the woodsy flavor that I mentioned with the first cup – creating more of a “damp wood” flavor than an earthy note. The floral notes are stronger here too. What this cup actually tastes like to me? Coffee … but without the bitterness and astringency. This tastes rather like a smooth cup of rich coffee.
My third and final cup (the combination of the fifth and sixth infusions) was slightly (only very slightly) lighter in color than the second cup, but the flavor has become much smoother than either the first or the second cup. The floral tone has emerged nicely, and I am still getting that coffee-like flavor that I had mentioned. Of the three cups, this one is definitely my favorite as it has become so unbelievably smooth.
This is an excellent Pu-erh. It would make a good starter Pu-erh for those who are new to the tea. And for those of you who really love rose teas, you should give this one a try … while the rose flavor here is a bit more mellow than a typical rose Congou, I like that this Rose Tuocha shows me a whole new set of flavors to the rose that I would have never experienced from other teas.
Puer Tuocha (Xiao Tuo Cha) from Tao of Tea
Tea Type: Pu-erh
Where To Buy: The Tao of Tea
Product Description:
Mini Puer Tuocha has a characteristic full-bodied and earthy flavor. Can endure long steeping times without gaining any astringency and can be re-infused at least three times.
Tasters Review:
I had a rough start with my Pu-erh journey. I have finally determined it wasn’t necessarily that I wasn’t a Pu-erh Fan, per say, it’s more like I am a bit more finicky with my pu-erh personal tastes, I guess you could say.
Having said that…one company that has really impressed me with their pu-erh’s overall has been Tao of Tea. With this specific selection from them I decided to try an infusion test. Below are my findings:
1st infusion…2 mins
This was a Lighter Brown in color and the aroma isn’t as wormy/fishy as most pu-erhs and I am very happy about that! The taste is VERY velvety and smooth and lighter tasting with slightly earthy yet honey and cocoa type flavors mixed in. 1st infusion rating based on personal tastes 95 – I really liked the taste of this one on the first infusion.
2nd infusion…3 minutes
I found it to be much darker in color and a bit more earthy/wormy in aroma but the taste is a hint sweeter and still quite velvety and smooth. I would say 90 or more for rating on this one…based on my personal tastes.
I’d hated to give up on this one because I KNEW this would be good for more than 3 infusions! It wasn’t slowing down anytime soon!
3rd infusion…4 minutes….
This infusion was even darker than the first two! It smelled earthy but not wormy at all. It was a bit sweeter than the last infusion but there is a ricey-type taste hiding underneath this time. It’s interesting…the aftertaste is a little nutty but malty and more black tea/bold tasting. Personal rating on this infusion about an 88-89 – still quite good!
4th infusion…4 minutes…
I could go on with more infusions with this one but have more tea from this great company to try so I will call it quits with this one…This infusion is just as dark as the 3rd infusion…it smells like black tea with a hay-like aroma as well with a more woodsy-taste as well as being more malty. I thought it was less sweet but still velvety.
I would still say upper 80’s even with it being the 4th infusion!
This is a very Sturdy Tuocha from The Tao of Tea!
Tao of Tea put a lot of thought in their Pu-erhs! The quality is good and they have been known to break Pu-erh stereotypes – at least in my book they have! If you have had some trials and tribulations with Pu-erhs in the past…give it another try and sample some of Tao of Tea’s Pu-erhs! Experiment with them! You just may find the right ones that will work for you!
