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Raw pu-erh n00b here, but this one gives me only astringency with no flavour payoff. I don’t know about cha qi or anything but this tea is just unforgiving to brew – the first infusion was lovely and light (but no particular fruity or floral notes) and gets astringent really quickly in subsequent infusions. No thank you and happy to be almost done with this sample.

[Brewed in an Yixing zisha teapot at 100˚C, 5s then 10s then 10s.]

Rating: 40

This tea has grown on me. Still has that fishy, musty flavour in the first couple of steepings but when I really push it in the fourth infusion it opens up into this lovely, mellow, comforting old friend. Love that “clean leather” aroma. Might consider buying a full cake of this if I don’t find anything else that catches my eye.

Rating: 74

Rinsed once.

First infusion (6s) smells of white grape skins (not sweet, a bit tannic). Tastes light and but quite bitter and tannic. Not pleasant.

Second infusion (10s): Still bitter with not much other flavours. It’s like bitter mineral spring water. Don’t like this tea.

Rating: 45

Okay I keep coming back to this tea and brewed at around 88˚C and it’s still fantastic (with no milk or sugar). It’s a little bland when you add milk, so best drunk plain.

Increasing rating to 84 and I might purchase a full size of this!

This time I brewed it at 85˚C and it was beautiful. Mellow but still flavourful. Classic Assam maltiness and a hint of vanilla.

Rating: 75. Only reason it’s not higher is because it’s quite fussy to brew (see previous review)

Wet leaves smell minerally, woody, and musty. A bit of sweetness like raisins.

Rinsed once.

First infusion: Liquor tastes woody and comforting, fairly astringent (probably because I steeped for like 15 seconds instead of 10s).

Second infusion: Cleaner, lighter, still musty and still a hint of dryness and slight astringency but not bitter. More enjoyable than the first.

Third infusion: The best one yet. Light, good body, no astringency.

I have to confess it tastes similar to the other raw pu er I’ve tried, but more astringent in the first couple steeps. It’s fine but nothing really stands out about it.

Rating: 81

Well, I feel silly now. Decided to try this gongfu-style because I’m considering purchasing the full cake during the Black Friday sale.

Unfortunately I am really rusty at brewing Pu ers gong fu style and over-brewed 10 grams of my sample (first infusion after rinse steeped for 20s or so). It tasted bitter, astringent, and much less complex than the Western-style. Next few steeps were pretty horrible too.

Had to start over with the last 4-5g of my sample. Let it steep for 5 seconds the first time.
First infusion very light, but with that mineral, slightly bitter-Chinese-herb scent that is so invigorating.

Second infusion light but great body, wonderful.
Third infusion again unobjectionable, paired well with my breakfast.

Fifth infusion I noticed a delightful herbal / medicinal flavour like Chinese dates or jujubes. Wow this is new. This tea is surprising.
Sixth: Hot mineral water

I guess I could buy this to brew Western-style as a daily drinker since it’s $56 for 500g, but truth is I don’t need a daily drinker since I don’t drink tea daily anymore. Also I’m not sure the “light refreshing mineral taste” is worth committing to a full cake. Would like to sample more complex shengs.

Rating: Back down to 84

Dry leaves seem very wet, packed loosely and easy to pry apart. Leaves smell smokey but tea liquor does not.

Rinsed once. First infusion: Tastes like mellow coffee, roasted, reminiscent of silky dark chocolate. Exceedingly smooth.

Second and third infusions nice, but nothing special. I wouldn’t buy the whole cake.

Rating: 82

Brewed Western-style because I was lazy.

Smells smokey like whiskey, and a bit musty, but with a bright and fruity element too, like raisins.

Tastes really refreshing, light, and has a mineral note like the illusion of drinking fresh authentic mineral water (haha). Another nice feature is that this tea is lighter coloured and doesn’t stain my teeth. This tea has really grown on me and I might buy the full cake.

Increased rating to 86.