50

Trying this in the gaiwan today. Have just enough left to do something else with it. Not sure what. Maybe try it in the yixing again.

I am somewhat intimidated by pu-erh, though I like what I’ve had of it generally speaking. I’m just never sure I’m “doing it right” and since pu-erh can be pricey I’ve been reluctant to start with some of the things I know to be good in my stash.

Let me say that another way. It’s more accurate to say I believe them to be good based upon the word of the companies I’ve patronized because, as recent threads here have indicated, there’s a lot of room for everything from misunderstandings to getting ripped off particularly with regards to pu-erh. Which is one of the reasons it intimidates me.

In any case, most of my experience so far has been sort of the toe in the pool method rather than diving in head first. Because intimidated.

So here’s another toe in the water effort. I went for very short steeps after rinsing. Starting in the immediate range (1-3 seconds) and increasing by five seconds each time.

1. Very dark and opaque, like black coffee. Smells like a saddle. Tastes a bit salty and a little like potting soil. I think this is what tasters mean when they say mushroom, as raw white mushroom doesn’t taste like much to me except a little like dirt, and that’s what I’m getting here.

2. Same look to the tea, if anything a bit darker and a bit more opaque. Rather like flat cola. Still some leather in the aroma. But smoother and something else, too. Tobacco, maybe. The flavor is less salty, and actually quite smooth. It just doesn’t taste like an awful lot to me.

3. Color is the same. Less leather and more earth in the aroma. Gosh, this steep still doesn’t taste like much but it’s weird. It’s like the tea is trying to taste like something but can’t quite pull it off. A little like meat, maybe, but not in a lapsang sort of way. More like a shroomy meatiness.

4. No change on the color. No change on the aroma. Flavor is still trying to be something more than it is. There’s a tad of sweetness this time around.

5. Still dark brown but no longer opaque. There is something that makes me think of gravy in the aroma, though I’m not sure why as the salt and leather is pretty much gone. Perhaps its flour? The flavor is sweetening up some, and becoming leafy. There’s no leaf flavor listed among the options except autumn leaf pile, so that’s what I’ve picked.

6. Color similar to 5. I no longer think of gravy when I smell the tea. The flavor is brighter, and I can taste the water through the tea, which I think is a signal to me to stop here. I suppose I could push it further and see if anything miraculous happens in later steeps but I’m not excited enough by this to do that.

I have to rate this less as compared to other teas since I haven’t had many pu-erhs (certainly not many recently) and more on an absolute scale.

Assuming I’m doing it anywhere close to “right,” even if this tea was still available I can’t imagine buying it again. It’s not offensive, it’s just not really there. (The Numi bagged pu-erhs have more flavor than this does.) It makes a better cold brew than hot, and it’s hard to imagine that is how a pu-erh should be.

I’m rather gratified that other reviews didn’t find much flavor in this either, so I can’t conclude it’s just me. I want to develop a taste for puerh and I’d be horrified if I was missing the necessary taste buds to do so.

On the upside, it does seem to have made my digestive tract quite happy.

Flavors: Autumn Leaf Pile, Dirt, Leather, Mushrooms, Salt, Tobacco

Preparation
Boiling
mrmopar

There is no right or wrong way to brew puerh. Just experiment and make it how you like it. Took me a while to get my basic preferences down. You will find the zone. Do you tend to like green or black tea? That may help tune you into what type to really get into.

__Morgana__

Thanks mrmopar. I like both black and green, mostly depending on mood and time of day.

mrmopar

Have you tried any Menghai shou yet? I have some YS shengs that are getting nice as well.
I would probably stick to big factory or our top producers active on here, Shou is real tricky if not produced correctly. Good shou won’t have all the off notes to it. I normally won’t drink shou younger than 2 years old so it has had time to settle.

__Morgana__

I don’t think so. I have a number of samples and also a few cakes but I haven’t broken them out yet. I intend to get on that soon. :-)

OMGsrsly

Hahaha! I LOVE these descriptions! Kinda how I’m feeling about the tea I’m drinking right now. It’s a little of a few things, but mostly not tasting of anything specific. :) (It could be nice with a little cinnamon stick added to the leaf. Cinnamon & shou is a favourite combo of mine.)

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mrmopar

There is no right or wrong way to brew puerh. Just experiment and make it how you like it. Took me a while to get my basic preferences down. You will find the zone. Do you tend to like green or black tea? That may help tune you into what type to really get into.

__Morgana__

Thanks mrmopar. I like both black and green, mostly depending on mood and time of day.

mrmopar

Have you tried any Menghai shou yet? I have some YS shengs that are getting nice as well.
I would probably stick to big factory or our top producers active on here, Shou is real tricky if not produced correctly. Good shou won’t have all the off notes to it. I normally won’t drink shou younger than 2 years old so it has had time to settle.

__Morgana__

I don’t think so. I have a number of samples and also a few cakes but I haven’t broken them out yet. I intend to get on that soon. :-)

OMGsrsly

Hahaha! I LOVE these descriptions! Kinda how I’m feeling about the tea I’m drinking right now. It’s a little of a few things, but mostly not tasting of anything specific. :) (It could be nice with a little cinnamon stick added to the leaf. Cinnamon & shou is a favourite combo of mine.)

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I got obsessed with tea in 2010 for a while, then other things intruded, then I cycled back to it. I seem to be continuing that in for a while, out for a while cycle. I have a short attention span, but no shortage of tea.

I’m a mom, writer, gamer, lawyer, reader, runner, traveler, and enjoyer of life, literature, art, music, thought and kindness, in no particular order. I write fantasy and science fiction under the name J. J. Roth.

Personal biases: I drink tea without additives. If a tea needs milk or sugar to improve its flavor, its unlikely I’ll rate it high. The exception is chai, which I drink with milk/sugar or substitute. Rooibos and honeybush were my gateway drugs, but as my tastes developed they became less appealing — I still enjoy nicely done blends. I do not mix well with tulsi or yerba mate, and savory teas are more often a miss than a hit with me. I used to hate hibiscus, but I’ve turned that corner. Licorice, not so much.

Since I find others’ rating legends helpful, I added my own. But I don’t really find myself hating most things I try.

I try to rate teas in relation to others of the same type, for example, Earl Greys against other Earl Greys. But if a tea rates very high with me, it’s a stand out against all other teas I’ve tried.

95-100 A once in a lifetime experience; the best there is

90-94 Excellent; first rate; top notch; really terrific; will definitely buy more

80-89 Very good; will likely buy more

70-79 Good; would enjoy again, might buy again

60-69 Okay; wouldn’t pass up if offered, but likely won’t buy again

Below 60 Meh, so-so, iffy, or ick. The lower the number, the closer to ick.

I don’t swap. It’s nothing personal, it’s just that I have way more tea than any one person needs and am not lacking for new things to try. Also, I have way too much going on already in daily life and the additional commitment to get packages to people adds to my already high stress level. (Maybe it shouldn’t, but it does.)

That said, I enjoy reading folks’ notes, talking about what I drink, and getting to “know” people virtually here on Steepster so I can get ideas of other things I might want to try if I can ever again justify buying more tea. I also like keeping track of what I drink and what I thought about it.

My current process for tea note generation is described in my note on this tea: https://steepster.com/teas/mariage-freres/6990-the-des-impressionnistes

Location

Bay Area, California

Website

http://www.jjroth.net

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