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Ah, she woke up over five months. I was relieved at that first sip, as I’ve been struggling with my crock humidity since moving up the mountain. I feel like Sisyphus, incessantly fighting my way up from 60%.

Anyway. Zisha pot. Clean barnyard in the first steep; candied orange peel in the bottom of the cup. Absolutely some smoky tobacco in the wet leaves, with an incense-herbaceousness like burning sage or rosemary. Cigarette, clove… but not a clove cigarette. Camphor, tang, deep tobacco notes. Mildly strappy. Qi/caffeine made me restless and hungry.

I had a little side-by-side of the paper tong and bamboo tong versions of this cake. Paper tong carries more easy sweetness, pastry or dough qualities, and brightness. Hoo, that bamboo tong… I know it’s supposed to be the less desirable, but I loved it. More earthy, it tasted of wetter storage (not sure how much of that can be pawned off on the tong material versus actual storage), thicker tobacco, fuller mouthfeel. Paper tong felt like I was tasting the clean tea notes; bamboo felt like opening the door to the beauty of processing and all the layers each decision and year can add to an already gorgeous bunch of leaves.

My paper tong sample was the last little nugget I had from derk (thank you again!). The compression was quite tight compared to the bamboo tong chunks from LP. I’m looking forward to finally digging into my paper tong cake and having another sit down with these two.

I like a Cang’er. Pretty straightforward tobacco and sweetness with the expected doughy top note. My cake was not as pretty as the multi-colored leafy beaut that LP has on his website. Compression not too gnarly for an iron cake, though I should have strained after throwing in all the fannings my pick made. /leafspit

I feel a bit like a caveman with this tea — my second session with it. I get the bread, camphor, prunes, berry, tobacco… most of the notes that folks have mentioned. Less tree and forest, I suppose. The overall impression is just a light Yunnan that doesn’t much thrill me, and the notes so subtle… I feel like I don’t know why I’m hunting around in here except that I was told to. I might focus on this one for a few days, until I’m out of it, and see what I learn.

Hoo, it seems I’ve overestimated my current capability to triumphantly return to Steepster with gusto. Life continues to be busy, and I’ve missed logging a lot of tea that I’ve poured down my gullet. Patience with myself is the hardest patience to practice.

I started this session last night and ended it this morning. The compression is so tight that the large bundle I broke off never broke up on its own — a phenomenon I had not experienced yet. After several long and frankly underwhelming steeps, I finally reached in and broke that thing up manually, then hit it hard and long for 2 or 3 licorice-laced cups that were legitimately enjoyable. I’ll be curious to see what a better break-up does for these leaves right from the get go.

Steepster! I have missed you so. I am still getting settled in my new home, but I’m starting to finally feel the pull to sit quietly for tea and contemplation. I’ve been so busy getting packed and then unpacked… I have taken a lot of distracted fly-by tea in the last month.

My very first session in the new place was Floating Leaves’ Lala Shan Hong Shui, which I don’t regret doing even though my unfiltered tap turned it evil. A good lesson in the power of water. I poured some out on the land and sat in gratitude anyway.

I want to do a big update on my cupboard here and really get tuned into my leaves as autumn settles on the mountain. I am looking forward to catching up on all of your musings over the last month. Here’s to new chapters, my friends.

I need a clapping emoji for this tea. I clap forking hella clap adore CLAP this clap clap clap clap stuff.