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!
Golden Yunnan Black Tea from In Pursuit of Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: In Pursuit of Tea
Tea Description:
This hand harvested black tea is meticulously crafted from a white tea varietal and pile fermented for 45 days. Truly a labor of love and one of the finest examples of hand-made tea available.
Read other Steepster thoughts on this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is the second tea from my Steepster Select tea that I decided to try: Golden Yunnan Black Tea from In Pursuit of Tea. I was very excited to see this company featured in this month’s box (with not just one but TWO teas!) because I can’t recall ever having tried teas from them. I love it when I’m introduced to new-to-me tea companies!
And this tea is fantastic. The dry leaf is gorgeous with curly leaves of chocolate brown that are tipped in gold. Beautiful! There isn’t a strong aroma to the dry leaf, but the brewed tea smells rich and sweet, with notes of earth, leather and tobacco.
The flavor is complex with earthy notes. I taste notes of tobacco, malt and honey. I find that the tobacco is particularly noticeable if I slurp to aerate the sip, and the drying sensation toward the tail of the sip seems to enhance the tobacco notes. There is an undertone of caramel and a hint of cacao to this cup as well.
A very masculine cuppa. Toward mid-cup, I start to pick up on notes of leather in the distance. There is an interesting balance between these savory notes of leather and tobacco and the sweetness of honey, malt, and cacao.
The second infusion is even better than the first! I don’t say that often about a black tea … in fact, I don’t often take a black tea for a second infusion because it isn’t often that I find one that holds up in the second infusion, but this tea definitely does.
The flavor of the second infusion is sweeter than the first, with the tobacco notes less prevalent. The earthy tones have softened here, making way for the delicious honeyed caramel notes and rich malty notes of this tea.
A remarkable Golden Yunnan! I did not find this tea on the In Pursuit of Tea website under Black Teas; however, it does appear that this tea may be available through this samples listing. This is a must try for Yunnan enthusiasts out there, and really, anyone who appreciates high quality tea!
2005 Lao Lin Cang Ancient Arbor Sheng Pu-erh Tea from Life in Teacup
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Pu-erh
Where to Buy: Life in Teacup
Tea Description:
Production Year – 2005
Season – Spring
Production Region – Yunnan
Factory – Lao Lin Cang Tea Factory
Style – Sheng
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The dry leaf aroma of this 2005 Lao Lin Cang Ancient Arbor Sheng Pu-erh Tea from Life in Teacup is a gentle, earthy scent. Generally, I find myself kind of put off by the strong earthy notes of Pu-erh but, this is such a subtle earth scent that I’m not finding it off-putting at all, and the sweet tones are very intriguing.
I steeped this the way I would typically steep a Pu-erh – in my gaiwan. I steeped the first infusion for 45 seconds (following a quick 15 second rinse), and the flavor was earthy and sweet, with a woodsy note to it that is sweet. There are hints of a fruit-like note to this as well. It’s a mellow tea with a pleasant sweetness. There is also a cleansing astringency to this that I don’t usually find in a pu-erh.
The second (1 minute) infusion delivered a flavor that is less earthy and more sweet. The woodsy note has developed and I am tasting more of the fruit taste now too. The finish is sweet and the aftertaste is clean.
The next two infusions, I noticed that the earthy tones began to develop, and these tones meld together with the fruit and woodsy notes, and are softened by the sweetness. Subsequent infusions, some of the earthiness begins to taper, and I find a nice balance of fruit and sweet wood tones.
Overall, a pleasant Sheng – mellow and relaxing. The sweetness of this one keeps me sipping!
No. 4 – Dian Hong Congfu Black Tea from Joseph Wesley Black Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Joseph Wesley Black Tea
Tea Description:
At the foot of the Himalayas in southwestern China, the great tea masters of the Yunnan Province have been hand crafting some of the world’s most unique teas for centuries. Yet, not until the 20th century did this region produce the unique Dian Hong Gong Fu (Yunnan Black) tea. Joseph Wesley’s Black Tea No. 4 is a spotlessly clean representation of this newly famous tea. With its crystal clear red liquor, beautiful golden buds, robust and malty taste and exquisite construction, Joseph Wesley’s Black Tea No. 4 is as much a work of art as it is an unforgettable tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Last week when I reviewed Joseph Wesley’s No. 6 – Bai Lin Congfu Black Tea, and loving that tea as much as I did, I found myself wondering how the other two teas that I have from this company would compare because … quite simply I loved that tea. It was easily one of the very best black teas I’ve tried.
And as I sit here and sip this No. 4 – Dian Hong Congfu Black Tea from Joseph Wesley Black Tea, I find myself amazed yet again by this company! Another outstanding black tea from them.
It IS different than I remember the No. 6, though. The leaves look somewhat similar, with their dark, curly leaves and lots of golden tips. These are really beautifully crafted leaves! I love that this company doesn’t just sell tea. They sell GORGEOUS tea. And it isn’t gorgeous because there are lots of “things” added to the tea. There aren’t fruit bits or flowers or herbs or spices – not that there’s anything wrong with those things added to a tea, I quite enjoy teas with all of those things in them – but I also like that this company has chosen to focus on the beauty of the oxidized Camellia Sinensis leaf, because it in itself is quite a thing to behold!
But I digress!
This Dian Hong is slightly different from the previously reviewed Bai Lin. That tea had a slightly more velvety mouthfeel, while I notice a little more astringency to this cup. This tastes and feels more “clean” and brisk, and there is a certain refreshing aspect to that.
There is a pleasant malty tone to this tea, and a very enjoyable bake-y taste to it with sweet notes that are reminiscent to the caramelized crust of a freshly baked loaf of bread. There are also hints of a smoky character in the distance, and I find that slurping the sip will help to elevate these smoky notes.
It’s a bold tea, with a strong, full-bodied flavor. This is the kind of tea that I’d recommend for those mornings when you just can’t seem to shake the sleepies. You know the kind of day I’m talking about, right? When you know you have to get up because there are things that need to be done … but you just want to stay curled up under the covers and sleep? This tea will give you that “get up and go” kind of vigor you need to get your day started.
The sip starts off sweet with hints of malty caramel and a brisk earthy flavor. As the sip progresses, I notice the distant smoky notes and the warm, bake-y flavor that I mentioned earlier. The sip ends with a slight dryness, and the palate feels clean and refreshed … and ready for another sip.
Another beautiful tea from Joseph Wesley! If you like really good black teas, you really should be shopping with this company. Their teas are top notch!
Grand Yunnan Imperial Black Tea from Le Palais de Thés
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Le Palais de Thés
Tea Description:
The subtle flavor of this flowery, mild tea is known as the “Mocha of teas” or “Surgeon’s tea”, as it has the power to revive without over-stimulating the nerves. A splendid leaf with plenty of golden buds.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The description above suggests that this Grand Yunnan Imperial Black Tea from Le Palais de Thés is “subtle” and “mild,” but I disagree! I would replace the word “subtle” with “smooth” … and then replace the word “mild” with the word rich! Because those are the words that first came to my mind when I took the first couple of sips of this tea. It’s remarkably smooth and rich. Not at all something I’d classify as subtle or mild.
This is very much what I’d expect from a good quality Yunnan tea: a rich flavor with notes of malt and that freshly baked bread sort of flavor, with notes of fruit and flower in the distance. Middle notes of spice, like a gentle pepper. Nothing over the top or something that I’d call “spicy” by any stretch of the imagination, this has pleasant, mellow peppery notes that enliven the palate.
It is a medium to full bodied tea. It is robust without being overly aggressive. It offers a more “well-mannered” way of invigorating the drinker … this doesn’t give me a kick in the butt to get me going, but I can still feel it at work to offer me a sense of alertness without the over-stimulation.
A really good Yunnan tea. A nice tea to enjoy in the later morning or early afternoon. Nice as a latte, but, I prefer it served straight. The mellow spice tones are very much appreciated on this cold, autumn day!