Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
Tuocha, a compressed tea in hollowed hemispheric shape, is mainly produced in Yunnan. This 100g Tuocha is from Fengqing, Lincang, Yunnan.
The materials of Tuocha are from Fengqing large tea speices. Fresh tea leaves will be made into dry tea in traditional craft method after being picked, then will be pressed into nest shape. The appearance of Tuocha reminds you of mountain. While smelling the faint scent of Sheng Pu-erh, you will have the feelings of being in beautiful scenery of Yunnan.
Sheng Pu-erh has strong flavor for first sip. Yet the sweet aftertaste will bring you a wonderful impression. You can feel a hint of sweet as sugarcane remaining in your mouth.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Sweet! This Fengqing Raw Pu-erh Tea from Teavivre has an enjoyably sweet flavor, a sweetness that is balanced with notes of sharpness and notes of vegetation, wood and earth (think mushroom). As I continued to sip, I started to pick up on notes of stone fruit.
I like that with the very first infusion (following a 15 second “rinse”) the flavor is strong and well-defined. I could taste these flavors with this first cup, I didn’t have to wait until the third or fourth cup to start experiencing the lovely flavor. I usually find that Pu-erh tends to have a mellow flavor, but this is a bold Pu-erh, and I’m appreciating the differences that this tea offers.
Later infusions surprised me with even stronger flavors! I still experienced the amazing sweetness, fruit notes (I think I even tasted a hint of grapefruit!) and woodsy tones. Full-flavored with notes vegetation, but this isn’t like the same kind of “vegetation” that I’d experience if I were drinking a green tea. This is more like the vegetal flavor you’d experience from a woodsy mushroom. It’s deep and earthy and flavorful, but in the distance you can taste notes of vegetation.
A deep sweetness – the description above suggests a “sugarcane” like sweetness, and I agree with that assessment – is present throughout the sip, from start to finish. It lingers in the aftertaste.
A really enjoyable pu-erh experience! I managed eight infusions from this tea and I suspect I could have gotten even more – the flavor wasn’t quitting! This tea has many different flavors to explore – a delightfully complex tea.
And when I visited Teavivre’s webpage for this tea, I noticed that this will be part of the #3 Sale Round from August 4 through August 5. Mark your calendars!
Master Han’s 2014 Wild-Picked Sheng Pu’er Tea from Verdant Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Verdant Tea
Tea Description:
Master Han is excited to share his fresh, just picked 2014 harvest pu’er. This gorgeous wild-picked, loose leaf sheng pu’er is a unique opportunity to taste the pure, bright flavor notes of a young tea that is full of energy, smooth and absolutely ready to drink.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Back in March, I reviewed the Master Han’s 2013 Wild-Picked Sheng Pu’er Tea which was included in the February Amoda Tea box. I really enjoyed that Pu’er, so I was only too happy to sample and review the 2014 offering from Master Han. I figured if I liked that tea, I’d like this one too. I’m in good hands with Master Han.
The aroma of the dry leaf is interesting and appealing to me, because it doesn’t have the kind of earthy aroma that I would normally associate with a pu-er. Even a very young pu-er often has an earthy scent. And I do smell a slight hint of earthiness, but, it’s not the same type of earthy aroma that I would usually smell with a pu-er. The usual scent is earthy, as in earth … as in dirt. But I don’t smell that kind of earthiness here. This is more like a mossy kind of earthiness, like the kind of fragrance you’d experience if walking through a damp wooded area here in the Pacific Northwest (and we’ve got a lot of damp wooded areas up here). It’s more vegetal than earthy, and I like that.
The flavor is very refreshing! It is sweet and mild, tasting very different from what I would normally expect from a pu-er. Sure, I often expect a sweet and mellow flavor, but, this is just different. It seems to perk up the taste buds as it washes over the palate, it’s almost like a champagne-y, bubbly type of uplifting flavor. I’m not getting quite the creamy flavor that I experienced with the 2013 version of this tea.
This time, I taste rice. Like the sticky rice that I’d get in an inverted bowl shape on my plate at a Chinese food restaurant, with notes of sweet, buttery corn. Rather than the sweet, creamy notes that I experienced with the 2013 pu-er, I taste more of a sweet, starchy sort of flavor that is quite compelling. There are some hints of nutty flavors as well, like a creamy cashew flavor – unsalted and not roasted. I feel like I’m eating rather than sipping, and it’s a very satisfying experience. This is the tea I’d want to drink if I were feeling hungry and it was still a little while before mealtime.
The second infusion was not quite as softly, creamy sweet from the starchy flavor. Those flavors are still there, but they are not quite as up front and obvious as they were in the first infusion. With the first infusion, it was all about those flavors, and this time, they seem to have settled back into the background to allow the palate to explore what other flavors this tea has to offer.
This cup feels thicker in texture, but it’s not as creamy. It’s more like a soup or a broth this time, whereas the first infusion was more like an infusion of rice, corn and barley. This infusion has some dry mineral notes to it. I pick up on some gentle floral tones and some warm spice notes with this infusion as well.
The third infusion delivered another very interesting cup! This is where some of the promised miso flavors that I read about in the tasting notes on the website came through. Still a delightfully brothy cup, I’m picking up on some savory notes this time around. I taste more of the aforementioned sweet corn notes too which is a nice contrast to the savory broth notes. There is still some of the dry, mineral notes as well, but they are less prevalent now.
Each infusion seems to deliver a deeper flavor with some new profiles to discover, but with subtle reminders of what was experienced in the earlier infusions. This tea is truly an adventure waiting to be be taken. If you are one who is curious to try pu-er, this is a good place to start for the simple reason that it doesn’t possess some of the characteristics that often turn people off when it comes to pu-er. And if you’re an experienced pu-er drinker, this is one you should try if for no other reason than to experience the quality of Master Han and Verdant Tea.
Fengqing Wild Tree Yesheng Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake 2013 from Teavivre
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
This raw pu-erh cake is grown and produced in Fengqing, Yunnan, which is the origin place of DianHong black tea. This Wild Tree Yesheng Raw Pu-erh Cake is harvest in spring of 2013. Between March to May, after harvesting the fresh leaves, tea workers will process them: fixation, rolling, drying, sifting, and then store the leaves in carton boxes.
As the workers use iron pan for fixation, and roll the tea with their hands, the leaves do not have good looks as machine-made leaves. Yet regarding on quality, this Wild Tree Yesheng Pu-erh Cake is a green food from nature, in the mists and clouds on high mountains. It is a tea worth being in your collection list.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The dry leaf aroma of this 2013 Fengqing Wild Tree Yesheng Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake from Teavivre is almost non-existent. This surprised me, only because I’m used to Pu-erh having some aroma, but I didn’t smell much of anything when I smelled the dry leaf.
Conversely, the wet leaves have a strong vegetal scent to them that immediately made me think of peas. Granted, peas are not my favorite vegetable (that’s putting it mildly) and because of that, they are not a food that I’m smelling on a regular basis. But when I smelled these wet leaves, green peas is what came to mind.
For those of you who are like me: timid when it comes to Pu-erh tea because of that strong, earthy and sometimes fishy taste and smell, you can rest assured that you won’t experience that with this Pu-erh. This is a very young Pu-erh, and it tastes much more like a green tea to me than it does a Pu-erh.
It has a vegetal taste, but it’s a remarkably smooth vegetal note. It doesn’t have that “crisp” or “lively” sort of vegetative taste that you might experience with a typical green tea. Instead, this has a very mellow vegetative taste. It doesn’t taste grassy. It tastes like mild steamed vegetables: like spinach, perhaps, only milder and sweeter.
There is a buttery note to this too, something I don’t typically experience with a Pu-erh. So, imagine that aforementioned extra mild, sweet spinach, topped with mushrooms that have been lightly sauteed in butter and then topped with thinly sliced almonds … only the almonds are raw. It has that sort of creamy, buttery taste that you might experience with a raw almond.
Later infusions brought out more savory flavors to the vegetal tones. Notes of salt and seaweed were contrasted by some newly emerging fruity notes. The flavor becomes deeper and more complex with each new infusion.
I like in “wild tree” teas like this that I can almost taste the “wild” in them. There is a note to these teas that I don’t often find in the more conventional farm grown teas.
I would recommend this Pu-erh to those new to Pu-erh so that they can experience some “different” Pu-erh teas, as well as fans of green tea. It’s a really unique tea experience … one definitely worth trying.
Master Han’s 2013 Sheng Pu-er Tea from Verdant Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Verdant Tea
Tea Description:
Beautifully complex, this young pu’er is creamy with citrus notes and a floral finish. Steep small and short infusions up to 10 times and experience this tea transforming on your tastebuds. Starting sweet, this brand new pu’er develops woody and nut characteristics. Enjoy the bright astringency of this tea as it layers over each steeping.
Learn more about this tea here.
Learn more about subscribing to Amoda’s Monthly Tea Tasting Box here.
Taster’s Review:
Yeah, I’m really behind on the February teas from my Amoda Tea Tasting Box! I’ve already received my box for March, and I haven’t finished sampling the teas from February! This Pu-er Tea from Verdant Tea – Master Han’s 2013 Sheng – is the last from my February box.
I guess it just goes to show how I tend to procrastinate when it comes to pu-erh teas. And I really shouldn’t, because I have enjoyed most of the pu-erh teas that I’ve tried in the last couple of years. After learning the proper way (or at least the proper way for ME) to brew a pu-erh, I’ve come to appreciate a good pu-erh. And this one from Verdant is a good one!
Then again, I can’t think of a time when I’ve been disappointed by Verdant Tea!
This pu-erh is quite special. The aroma is not at all what I’d expect from a pu-erh. Usually, I detect some earthy notes – even from a young Sheng – but, all I smell here is a strong vegetative note that falls somewhere between kelp and steamed spinach.
After a quick rinse, the first infusion was steeped for 1 minute. Normally, I would go for just 30 – 45 minutes, but, I got distracted and it steeped for a full minute. This cup was light and refreshing! Sweet! It has a creaminess to it that I don’t recall ever experiencing with a pu-erh tea. There is a distant nutty tone to this, and a crisp, bright citrus note.
My second cup (also infused for 1 minute) has a stronger flavor. There is a slight floral note to this cup – again, not a flavor I’d usually associate with a pu-erh – and it is somewhat sharp. This cup is less creamy and delicate than the first was. I can also taste the woodsy notes start to develop and the distant nutty tone start to emerge.
Subsequent infusions brought those woodsy notes forward, and the warm, sweet nutty flavors were more pronounced. The citrus notes were still present in the third cup, but by the fourth cup, I couldn’t find them without really focusing on the flavors swirling around on the palate. The fruit notes seem to have melded with the other notes. The same is true of the creamy notes that I noticed in the first two cups.
Most of the flavors started to taste more mellow and unified with the third cup and this seemed to continue with the infusions that would follow. The floral notes were delicate in the third cup, but I really enjoyed their presence. I liked the slight sharpness and the contrast it brought to the cup.
Despite my misgivings about having a Pu-erh in my Amoda Tea box for February … I really enjoyed this. I shouldn’t have been so apprehensive – it is, after all, a tea from Verdant Tea!
Fengqing Raw Pu-erh Cake Tea 2006 from Teavivre
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
This Raw Pu-erh Cake Teavivre choose is from the representative Pu-erh production area Fengqing. Fengqing is the original place of the world-wide famous Dian Hong Tea. And it is also a classic place of Yunnan Pu-erh. It is a place in Lingcang which is one of the four famous Pu-erh production areas. The taste of Fengqing Pu-erh is mellow and sweet, deeper than Pu-erh in other production area. And it usually has the flowery flavor of Dian Hong Tea.
This Raw Puerh Cake is special for the two seasons resource from the same Arbor Tea Trees. Some are picked on March which we called “Ming Qian” or “Chun Jian” leaves. This is the best tea leaves in Spring Tea because it contains more nutrition and tastes mellow. Some are picked on September which we called “Gu Hua” or “Paddy Flower”. This is the best leaves for Autumn Tea because the aroma is stronger lasting longer. The Autumn Tea (Paddy Flower Tea) also has special flower fragrance. This Raw Puerh Cake is made by the two kinds of tea resource which were carefully blended by certain proportion.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I know I’ve never made any secret about my first disappointing experiences with pu-erh but since those early days, I have learned the way to brew the tea for the best flavor and I find that I now enjoy an afternoon now and then sipping on pu-erh tea. And I’m really enjoying this Fengqing Raw Pu-erh Cake Tea 2006 from Teavivre.
The dry cake has an earthy scent to it, but I found the aroma to have more of a vegetal scent than an earthy one. But the reverse is true for the brewed tea: I’m finding the fragrance of the brewed liquid to smell more earthy than vegetative.
The flavor is both vegetative and earthy. The first infusion (following a 15 second rinse) tasted light and slightly dry. Earthy tones, yes, with hints of vegetation. It is quite mellow with a slight brine-like taste to it … I can almost taste a hint of salt, and I think that’s where I’m getting the aforementioned dryness from. Overall, I found my first cup to be lightly sweet and pleasant, with a mild, soothing taste.
I noticed more earthy notes begin to emerge with the second infusion, and a slight mushroom-y sort of flavor. The brine-y note from the first cup was no longer present, however, the dryness remained (although it was significantly less noticeable in this cup). Still mellow, the flavor deepened with this infusion, and it is still sweet and enjoyable.
With subsequent infusions, the earthy notes began to subside a little, making way for a more well-rounded flavor that I found to be both sweet and savory, with it leaning more toward the sweet than the savory.
I enjoyed the mild character of this tea. It was soothing and relaxing to sip, and especially nice after eating something spicy (wings!) … I found that it helped calm my belly after that meal. A very pleasing pu-erh!