2005 Changtai Yun Pu Zhi Dian / Top of the Clouds

I thought this was nice, but I am really no judge of puerh. At 15 second steeps they all taste the same to me, mildly sweet and mildly earthy. Still enjoyed it though.

I had this tea quite a few days ago and was not impressed. I tried many different infusions of it and each infusion kept tasting like dirty socks. Just not my cup of tea.

This tea has a very pungent fruity smell with a light mint finish to it. It reminds me of menthol or light smoke in the smell. The apricot is distinct and delicious as well. I could only wish to have this bottled into a perfume of some kind. The taste is crisp, clean, clear, and most of all delicious. The vegetal flavor with its smokiness makes it a unique tea experience. This tea deserves to be drunk gong fu style and no other style. There is very little to no astringency in this tea which makes me love it so much more.

Getting this from the Sheng Olympics box.
I pulled the whole sample out to brew this one, a tad under 10 grams.
I got out the and gave a rinse and let it sit for a few minutes. I started out with a 5 second steep and did 3 for the big cup. The brew comes out with a nice gold color. The aroma belies a bit of humidity but not overly powerful.
The sips have a little smoky, just the least bit, and a bit of sheng sharpness with a touch of mineral on the front. The front to middle part of the tongue is where this one seems to go. The mineral goes to a sweet finish. It carries through with some camphor and mintiness in there as well. A nice warming tea on a cold Winter evening.

A very fine aged tea. There is a consistent mouthfeel that persists well after my cup is empty. The energy overflows steep after steep, my head races back and forth as my body cools to a soft chill.

The main taste of this tea is somewhere in the middle of astringency and bitter, but not either one more than the other. Grass, mild smoke, tobacco flavors stand out to me as the dominant flavors. It almost tastes like a burnt flower would, a little charred but full of beauty and underlying fruitiness.

This is stronger tea in almost every facet of it. The liquor is browner than most teas this age. The thick liquor leads for a superb mouth buzzing effect. Lastly, the feeling behind the tea is an energetic and clear headed one.

This was something I’ve been waiting to try. I let this settle for some time before breaking into it. The leaves are very dark from their time in slumber and carry an aged scent with some lingering bitter. I placed a generous amount in my warmed jianshui and gave it a shake. The scent was explosive! This aroma began as pertichor with some moss and parchment in the background. The scent deepened further into some raisin and date smells, and it further finishes with a wet tobacco tone. This was one of the most advancing aromas I’ve ever experienced. I washed the leaves once and then prepared for brewing. The steeped leaves keep a strong pipe tobacco and resin scent with them throughout steeping; however, I do note a steamed seaweed tone as well later on. The taste is slightly fruity with a drying sensation to start. The taste is a well mix of dried apricots and dates. The flavor kept this consistent drying tone for at least seven steeps. The qi began hitting me hard very early in the session. I did not like this qi. The feeling began in the stomach and quickly expanded to the eyes, temples, and top head. This made me very weak, blurred, and it upset my stomach quite a bit. This was a very powerful qi, and it did not falter even after a long pause. I think for next time I will be eating beforehand. The taste became phenomenal after the eighth steeping. This is a very fluffy brew. The flavors completely curbed and became sugary sweet. This liquor does actually taste like marshmallows; it’s amazing! The sweet syrupy drink kept flowing consistently for countless steeping. I’m glad I pushed through the dry and mixed fruit stage to get to this treat. I sipped on this tea for numerous hours before putting it to rest. The liquor actually grows opaque and tips off its color, but it still keeps that fluffy sweetness. This truly is the taste of the tops of clouds, and I really enjoyed this brew.

https://instagram.com/p/9WwGGazGYa/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel

I started sipping this one yesterday. I’m still sipping it today.
It is a lovely lovely lovely tea!! The first steeps were immediately sweet & fruity, and a few steeps in it developed a creamy marshmallow/vanilla mouth. I zipped over to crimson lotus thinking, “I need a cake of this one”, but there are no cakes to be had :(
Which is ok, because I probably shouldn’t be spending my money right now…
But it really is a lovely tea, just as lovely today as yesterday, with a lingering apricot aroma (the leaves smell awesome!) and taste, and a beautiful amber-orange color. I could drink this all day, and basically I’ve been sipping it for about 24 hours, so I guess I have!
Thanks so much Glen & Lamu for sharing a sample of this with me!

Final note: Today, in addition to still tasting sweet & lovely, it has that almost effervescent electric current of chaqi running through it, which is giving me a nice tea buzz from head to toe. Now I’d like to go take a nap…yawn…

First of all, a huge thank you to Crimson Lotus Tea for this sheng sample! Sorry it has taken me so long to write a note on it, I recall drinking the first half of my sample a while ago but trying to log it and the page not working on Steepster :( but luckily today it is working!

I didn’t have much left in my second half of the sample, but there was just enough for a gongfu session. After a short rinse of about 4s, I steeped for maybe 6 seconds in the gaiwan and poured into my pitcher then cup. The leaves smell nicely vegetal and slightly smoky. I used freshly boiled water left a few seconds to cool.

The first steeping is oh so mellow and smooth and sweet. It went down like nothing! A sweet aftertaste lingers, fruity, a mild apricot flavor for now. The second steep also smells lovely mmm, can’t even describe it it just smells good. The flavor is also delicious, even a bit sweeter I think, like a light marshmallow note with dewy leaves and a fruity aftertaste. It becomes a bit smoky as it cools, but nothing overwhelming, just tasty sheng-like tobacco notes. This is so good. It’s so easy to drink! I also haven’t had sheng in ages, so it is a very welcome change. I will continue to steep this throughout the evening, funnily enough, I chose a sheng hoping the caffeine would invigorate me to start cleaning. This tea, however, is providing more of the mellow flavors and feeling that cause me to relax, which is also not a bad thing haha. Maybe the caffeine will hit later :D

Overall, a delicious sheng, easy to drink and no strange notes about it, just clean, sweet tea with fruity notes. Creamy and light mouthfeel too, very light and fluffy. I recall enjoying the first half of my sample as well, so this is a winner in my books! Thanks again to Crimson Lotus Tea for the lovely sample!

Subtle and beautiful in complexity.. The tea doesn’t feel strong, but the taste fills you with light smoky, tobacco, and stonefruit notes. A deliciously crafted tea, to be sure.

I got a small sample of this pu’er from the Steepster Sheng and Shou Pu’er Travelling Tea Box!

This is a really nice, easy to drink sheng. I’m a mouthfeel addict, and I love how fluffy each sip is. The pu’er starts out light and a little fruity, buttery and smokey, with later steepings developing a nice apricot flavor. Final steeping are mineral and a bit of bitterness.