Purchased from Teavivre on a whim as pu’erh is a variety of tea that’s fairly new to me. I used the gong fu method to brew. To start, I gathered one tuocha, rinsed it, and then proceeded to give it time to open up on the first steep. The toucha is dense with an earthy scent and tones to match. I was reminded of the fragrance of alfalfa. The taste starts surprisingly mellow with a color that quickly resembles caramel. On the second steep, the color was darker and it took on a brothier scent, with a significantly dryer mouthfeel. For the third steep, the liquor was increasingly darker. The fragrance proliferated the gaiwan and the mouthfeel transformed into what I can only consider to be a ‘warm hug’. An interesting progression to say the least. I will spare you the details of every steep, and leave you with one simple note….this is an easy drinking tea, great for a cold day when you may find yourself in an explorative mood.
