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Sirentian drank 2018 Yunnan Sourcing "Guardian" Blended Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake by Yunnan Sourcing

261 tasting notes

Date drunk: 6 Feb 2023

It’s funny how “letting go” of expectations can sometimes allow you to see the best in something. I’d made up my mind to finish off this sample as a daily drinker, and decided to just brew it casually on a fast-paced work morning – 4g in a partially-filled 140ml Yixing pot, at 100˚C (instead of my usual 90-95˚C for shengs). 1st infusion tasted a bit astringent and overbrewed when hot, but was decent when cooled down. I combined 2nd and 3rd infusions into the same cup to drink while working. Wow the liquor tastes so nice and light, breezy, yet still flavourful… puts me in mind of green mango / green papaya, and springtime. I should brew shengs in this manner more often :)

To me this tea (at this stage) is mellow and smooth, fruity grounded with astringency and a bit of spice, but still not mind-blowing. Now I get a bit more of the hype around this cake, but as it would be used as a daily drinker for me, I still can’t justify paying USD 92 for 357g of this.

Rating: 70

Preparation

Boiling 0 min, 15 sec 4 g 3 OZ / 100 ML

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Amateur tea enthusiast here. I told myself I would start with studying Chinese teas when I first encountered good tea at Song Tea in San Francisco in 2016, and it’s now 2023 and I feel like I’m still just beginning to scratch the surface of Chinese teas.

Maybe someday I will move on to Indian, Japanese, Korean, etc. teas…

For my day job I work in tech as well as write some fiction on the side.

The next step in my tea journey is to start training my nose with an aroma kit to get a more precise handle on floral notes.

My Tea Rating Scale: (adapted from @benmw)
100 : Unforgettable, life-changing tea experience.
95–99: Extraordinary – Beyond impressive.
90–94: Impressive – Deep complexity, extreme clarity, or unexpected discovery of wonderful flavor. Made me reconsider the category. Would always want to drink this if I had the chance.
80–89: Delicious – Nuanced, balanced, clear, and complex layering of flavors. Would probably buy this tea again.
70–79: Very Good – Nuanced flavors, perhaps not as balanced or complex as the next step up, but clear and very enjoyable. Would consider buying again if the price was right.
60–69: Good – Clear flavors, representative of the category, but doesn’t set a standard. Good as an everyday tea. Would not buy unless desperate (e.g. when travelling without access to better tea).
50–59: Average. Would not pay money for this, but would drink if it was provided FOC.
30–49: Below Average. Would not drink this again even if it were free.
0–29: Undrinkable. Could not even finish the cup.

Location

Singapore

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