Spring 2015 Jingmai Midas Touch; Sheng

I am dedicating my 300th note to this lovely young sheng.

I had two gongfu sessions with a ceramic gaiwan, but this review is based on the third session with my Jian Shui pot. Did a 10 second rinse. Steeping times: 5 seconds, 5, 8, 10, 12, 15, 18, 25, 35, 50, 70, 90, 90, 120, 150, 180; 5 minutes, 7, 10.

The dry leaf has a powerful aroma – very buttery and sweetly vegetal. The wet leaf aroma evolves the more I steep the leaf, beginning with the same buttery note, slowly becoming sweeter and sweeter, ending with pure apricot.

The soup is light yellow, incredibly clear right off the bat, and medium-bodied. I confess that I didn’t eat much the day of this session, but this would prove that Midas Touch was not harsh on the stomach. It’s easy-going. (ymmv, actually)

The first infusion is light with a slightly bitter grassy note and a silky texture. Between the second and tenth infusions – the bitterness now completely gone (so fast, wow!) -, the grassy, vegetal notes gradually wane as peaches and apricots ever so slightly become stronger, first making their appearances in the aftertaste. At this point, I lowered the water temperature to 190. Huge difference. Pure fruit begins with the eleventh infusion. While no longer silky, the texture is wonderfully smooth.

Of the several 2015 shengs I’ve tried from CLT, this is the most flavorful. It is packed with energetic mouthfeel. I drank nine infusions in only THIRTY MINUTES. I simply kept going without even realizing and had to force myself to take a long break. I drank all 19 infusions between 1 and 5 o’clock. You would think I’d be well over-caffeinated, but as I wrote before, Midas Touch is easy-going for a young sheng so intense in flavor.

I would highly recommend it, but it’s all sold out. This is what I get for only purchasing a sample and then waiting several months before having a fantastic session………

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Admittedly, I am far from a pu head. I normally drink green teas and light oolongs. Cannot stomach black tea and the few times I’ve tasted puerh I spit it out because it tasted like dirt to me.

So it was with great trepidation that I tried this sample received in a recent swap. I have to say this one was actually quite nice. It tastes like a strong white tea with prominent hay, grass, and marine undertones. The earthiness is there but it isn’t off putting nor offensive and starts mellowing at the 3rd infusion. The seaweed taste also fades away at this point to make way for light vegetal notes and a hint of pleasant bitterness. The earthiness tamed down by the fourth infusion which was most enjoyable one yet. I wondered if perhaps I was starting to acquire a taste for puerh? Fifth infusion was a lighter, green tea-ish flavor and the final two steeps tasted metallic.

I got a little hopped up after drinking it (in a good way), so this is a good one if you’re looking for caffeine. Overall, this was a great introduction to sheng for a beginner like me. While I doubt I’ll turn into a puerh aficionado any time soon, it’s opened up my tea experience and made me more willing to try other puerhs in the future.

Thanks to Stephanie for a great sample!

Pu’erh TTB 2015 Tea #8

I can’t even…
This is the first tea I have on my Christmas list (yes it’s about that time to prepare it)

Absolutely mind blown by the freshness of this pu’erh. It reminds me of Japanese tea in a way. Smooth with a hint of sweetness associated with the vegetable tones. Clearly this is a top notch pu’erh and I’m not looking at price until after it’s purchased

Many thanks to Glenn and Lamu for the chance to sample this amazing sheng!

After twice rinsing the 7 grams of leaf I was struck with an aroma like balsamic vinegar and sweet steamed spinach. In the full bodied and mouth-drying soup I tasted the peppery start mentioned by others, as well as sweet edamame, with a little bitterness that faded with each steep. The energy was very pleasing and noticeable. If only I had more!

Love this pu’er! It was nice and fruity with peaches, apricot, cream, and edamame notes. The balance of thick texture, bitter and dryness made me very happy. I got 13 infusions.

I drank this together with CTL’s 2014 Planet Jingmai Sheng

Full review on Oolong Owl http://oolongowl.com/crimson-lotus-tea-20142015-jingmai-sheng-comparison-tea-review/

I love a good Jingmai! This is a spectacular brew. The leaves are easily compressed, long, and so fragrant. This cake has the traditional Jingmai characteristics. The leaves are dark and resinous and carry a strong tangy and almost citrus scent. I placed a chunk in warmed yixing and shook em up. The aroma from my brewing vessel was sweet and fruity. I washed the leaves once and prepared to brew. The steeped leaves are soft, vibrant, and sweet. I love Jingmai for its full flavor. This has a complex balance of succulent and potent. This brew is hard, yet it finishes smooth and soft. The initial sip starts with a slight pepper taste, and it finishes with a strong green tea mixed with honey suckle. My yixing yielded a bronze soup for many steeping sessions. However, there was only a very faint huigan. The qi from this tea is a rising effect. I almost didn’t notice it. I can feel a background effect that boosts me. I was given motivation to complete my task, and the relaxation to focus on precision. This was a nice golden brew. This is something special, and I will invite others to try it.

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Wowzers, thanks very much for the sample Kieblera5 aka KIEBS!

This tea was an ALL DAY tea for me. I drank on it for 8 hours straight. The first few steeps it tasted like a cross between a green and a sheng. Very buttered sweet green veggies for me, and then it opened up and became fruity complex sheng flavor, and just ended up honey sweet gold by the end. Very much a FEEL GOOD tea. Felt so pleasant and happy all day drinking it. A little buzzed but not crazy tea drunk. Very VERY nice!

Wow. This is the best young sheng I’ve tasted to date, though I am still fairly new to pu. I’m extremely impressed. The first steeping was thick and viscous, which is something I find very appealing and often lacking in shengs. The flavor was both very easy going, like “Whispering Sunshine”, but it also had a touch more bitterness and was more bold and aggressive. I think those are good signs, especially for aging. The flavor has pollen in the background, and honey sweetness in the foreground. It is very tasty. The steeps were very thick for the first five or so. I got quite stimulated and a bit tea drunk for about an hour. The next five were a little more bitter, still fruity, and of course less thick. I really love this tea, it is of very high quality. It’s not cheap, but I think it stacks up very well against teas of this price range. My strategy for sheng buying these days is to spend more per tea on fewer teas that are of high caliber. This fits the bill! Thanks for producing an awesome tea, Crimson Lotus!

Okay, I’m officially in love with jingmai. Unlike the other reviews posted, I didn’t find any bitterness in this tea. It’s a delicious and sweet tea, laced with complexity and overall satisfaction. This held up well to multiple steeps. It’s a great drinker right now, but I’m sure will be just as good or even better with a little aging. Hands down the best young sheng that I’ve had. I’ll take more of this any day or night. Glen, can we talk about tong pricing? :P

Thank you Crimson Lotus Tea for this sample. This was very tasty. I am more of a shou drinker but I enjoyed this a lot. It was slightly bitter in the early steeps, took about three to four steeps for the bitterness to go away. There was no hint of smoke that I noticed. It developed a flavor of apricots just like the best young sheng does. I gave this tea ten steeps and I’m sure I could have gotten four or five more steeps out of the tea at least, but ten was my caffeine limit for today.

I brewed the entire sample, about 7g in a 100ml teapot with 200 degree water. I gave it a 10 second rinse and a 10 minute rest. I steeped it for 5 sec, 5 sec, 7 sec, 10 sec, 15 sec, 20 sec, 25 sec, 30 sec, 45 sec, and 1 min.