1999 Vietnamese Cooked Loose Puerh

Last of this Pu-erh from Ian (and by the way where is our friend IAN?)

It’s been months since I reviewed this Pu-erh…and a lot of Pu-erh has been DRUNK by me. Or should I say has been DRUNKEN. That’s better. I’ve been drinking Pu-erhs for months since then and enjoying myself.I’ve had lots more experience with and can tell a real difference between review 1 and what I am tasting in this review.
This flavor is not horribly bad. There is a nose and taste to the
Pu-erh that resembles bean sprouts and is dusty tasting. I did a rinse of the leaves so that’s not an issue. You’d almost swear that someone threw in a small handful of potting soil because the sour earthiness is present but not in the usual warm and inviting way. I wish the flavor was more caramel or salty rich flavored but it’s not. The mushroom taste that I detected the first time around, well…it got lost in the dustiness. I looked in the cup and it’s cloudy. Not that great a Pu-erh.
No bells and whistles. Ah.

This is good confirmation that my taste must be improving. (Now Amy Oh had better not make a comment about me being a tea snob…I’ll get sensitive!)
We all become transformed after a time by the access to the fantastic variety of wondrous tea’s. It’s bound to happen that we change and appreciate quality tea…and that our palate developes.

Onward and upward!

The last of my sampler pack of this variety, and it ended up being a little bit more leaf than I’d been using before. This brought out the sweetness nicely and bumped up the earthiness a bit, but the tea still avoided veering off into bitter or too strong territory. It stayed extremely smooth and mellow, and gave me an appreciation for how much pu-erhs can vary – this one and the Camel’s Breath tuocha being at the opposite ends of the scale from one another. Both great and interesting, but for different reasons and with very different taste profiles.

My puerh experiences are getting better and better. First I’ve found green puerhs, which I think I’ll need to explore more, and now this one.

This puerh takes that dirt or fishtank flavor that you find in other puerhs and transforms it into something mellow, smooth, and really tasty. If I had this puerh without every trying other puerhs, that description wouldn’t make sence. I might come up with rich and slightly earthy, but not dirt

I like this a lot. I might even be able to get the hubby (who has not liked a puerh, ever) to like this.

If Canton ever has another free shipping sale, I think I might buy this. (Note, if you’re reading this O! People from Canton Tea Co, please wait a while! I need to clear some cupboard space. :)

On a challenge from my benefactor, QuiltGuppy, I steeped a cup of this today.
The dry aroma is dusty, like the dirty actors in a Sergio Leone Western. While steeping, visons of gardening danced in my head. Freshly plowed soil with hints of fertilizer mixed in. The first sip was a perfect blend of the dusty odor, heavy earth notes and a touch of peat bogginess. A 1999 vintage, it is not as old as dirt. It does however, taste like it.
Thank you QG, for helping me reach a conclusion today. With so many fine Oolongs, Blacks, and Greens out there, I am giving up on Puerh. If I get the urge for some, I will simply move some furniture, collect a little dust, add a dash from a vaccum cleaner bag, and use a potting soil base. I think I could come pretty close.
No offense to you Puerh lovers, but to reuse an old and tiresome expression, this is not my cup of tea.

Not as rich as I would like to be, but decent so far. Will try more.

Jack: “It’s older than you, Ricky! It smells like Chocolate.”
Jason: “It’s not tea , it’s butt. It doesn’t taste as bad as it smells.”

Brewed in our Medium Dark Yixing Pot

Smells like dirt.
Tastes like mud.

I seriously CAN’T believe this is a puerh! This is incredibly smooth and sweet! Much more so than ANY Puerh I have ever had! It’s a tad on the mellow side for actual kick or strength but I am overly impressed with this! WOW! Now this is a puerh for me!

Before Brewing:
The leafs are nice! I purchased some pu erh before, but the quality of these leafs are just a tad better (bigger, more unbroken & more even in color) The smell is different. It reminds me of… What’s the word… It’s opposite of spring… FALL!

After steeping:
The color of the liquid is very dark orange (typical pu erh orange). It’s smells very woody – very pleasant. And it taste woody too with a smoky feeling. It’s so different from my usual pu erh that I want to make another pu erh to compare it with. The aroma changes in the mouth. It’s woody at first, smoky after swallowing and sweet when the smokey flavor recedes.

All in all – I like it!
It is the best unflavored pu erh I ever had and I didn’t have to force myself to refill my cup. It’s not a “YUM!” moment, but I am so happy to find a pu erh without flavor in it that’s drinkable!

So here is a: “YUHUU!!!” instead :)

P.S The english language is so funny!
Do you realise you got 72 meanings for “fall”. That’s like crazy.

This took me by surprise; it’s so unlike any other pu-erh I’ve had.

This tea is very loosely packed and the leaves are long and twisted. I’m glad it was handled gently so they weren’t crumbled. The fragrance is of a freshly mowed lawn. This isn’t unusual for say a green tea, but pu-erhs are usually more earthy. This was fresh and clean.

When brewed, you have a rust to almost cranberry colored tea. The fragrance is slightly mossy, but young. Here I picture a vibrant patch of newly sprouted green moss after a rain as opposed to something older.

This is a really sweet pu-erh. It’s an odd flavor profile, but what comes to mind first is cucumber with a touch of white grape juice. This was totally unexpected for a pu-erh and was an enjoyable discovery.