Unblended Brick • 2006 • Shou

Desperately needed a real weekend but had too much work to do, so I just squeezed in an hour or so at the teahouse for a quick escape and reading break. I try to make a point to try something different when I go, and this was the pick this trip.

It’s a really wonderful tea. Clean and sweet, super-drinkable with nothing that might turn you away. I guess there was sort of a date thing going on, but mostly just brown sugar sweetness. Uncomplicated but not boring, which made it a good tea to sip while reading a somewhat attention-demanding book. Admittedly the very soothing teahouse atmosphere tends to amplify the effects of anything consumed there, but definitely felt more energized/calm (and not slightly spacey like sometimes happens to me with too much tea in too little time) when I left than when I arrived. It’s the kind of thing I wish I had for late night creative endeavors, or long days reading.

A small bag of this might have followed me home. So much for not buying more tea this month.

I don’t like shou and I’ve tried a bunch. Actually I find it to taste boring and one dimensional but the best cha qi I ever got was from the first shou I had. Well, this is fantastic.

Dry leaf smell is leather and dirt. Wet smell is compost, wood and something alluring but faint (I think melon). I just know it smells great. I don’t have a problem with the “dirtiness” of shou but this one is so dang clean.

Taste is clean, creamy, dates, melon with a very noticeable lasting cooling.

Energy is strong but very relaxing at the same time. Perfect for nature and meditation.

I really can’t express enough how fantastic this is…I rush back to the gaiwan

This tea is a fantastically balanced pu-erh, with powerful and clean energy. I drink this regularly, and I would say it’s my favorite shou pu-erh by a fair margin. If you’re in the U.S. and you haven’t any of these teas from Hidden Peak, there’s a good chance you don’t know how good pu-erh can actually be.