2015 Organic Raw Pu'er. One Family. One Farm. One Tea.

This tea is fantastic. I’m really having trouble criticizing anything about it Nicholas. Yet, oddly enough, I’m also having trouble finding anything “new” in this tea. It’s a great tea for sure and it gives you everything you’ve ever wanted in a Pu’er. So why is this one amazing? Because it does every little thing it’s supposed to do perfectly and nothing more. Every single aspect is empowered and bursts forth. You really get a feel for the leaves’ essence, which is brought out beautifully. It’s a masterpiece. Second best tea on Steepster and best Pu’er by far.

I have to admit, I am sorry to say actually, I’ve had this tea for a month’s time and am only opening it just now. In the first moment I smelled this, I knew I would appreciate it. Such a lovely toasted grain and fruity aroma! Or like nectar heavy flowers in my mother’s garden. I can’t believe this tea isn’t actually full of honey and flowers haha!
Mmm ambrosia. I don’t think I’ve ever had an oriental beauty I liked so well, especially not from ordering on the internet.
I need to drink this with others next time instead of being so selfish, that would be my biggest criticism! Haha!

Thanks!

Thanks for the fast shipping.

I just tried this for the first time recently. I ordered a sample and it was great! Can someone tell me if the bings are any good?

I initially reviewed this in the wrong place and was asked to move the review here.

This is the best raw tea I have drank in ages. It is very sweet in nature. There was almost no bitterness, even in the first steep. I really didn’t notice any bitterness at all. It was not a weak tea. It had a nice golden color to it. If this is a good example of Yiwu teas I like them. It is a pity Misty Peak doesn’t make ripe tea too.

I brewed this eight times in a 120ml gaiwan with 7g leaf and 200 degree water. I steeped it for 10 sec, 10 sec, 15 sec, 20 sec, 30 sec, 45 sec, 1 min, and 1 min 15 sec. I might go back to this tea later for a few more steeps.

Got to try this one the other day. I followed their brewing instructions using water temperature of 185F. This was the first time I’ve used a temperature that low for pu’erh. I had good results with it and while it might just be because this tea is so good, I’d still like to try that out with some of my other shengs.

This tea was ready to drink after only one rinse. Some shengs are a bit rough and lots of time I do a few rinses/steeps before I even start drinking. Already after one rinse this tea was smooth and silky on the tongue with no bitterness or smokiness at all. There was a bit of sweetness in the first infusion.

I did quite a few infusions and didn’t keep track of them all but I enjoyed this tea a lot. The apricot notes were stronger in later infusions when the leaves opened up. I noticed peppery notes on the 4th infusion and later.

I had quite a few infusions (each one being only 2 oz approx.) . However, even with all that tea I did not feel a caffeine rush or get a bit jittery. I felt calm and relaxed.

Overall, an excellent tea!

Autumn 2013 Sample
I’ve only ever had one raw puerh before, from Teavivre, so getting an opportunity to try this is a treat. Something I noticed, is that while to me ripe puerhs smell like pond water, this wet leaf smells like a fish tank, a little cleaner and greener and fresher than pond water.

6g, ~5oz water, 180F, 10 sec rinse, and then 15,15,18,18,20 sec steeps. I then switch it up, and do 1,2,3 minute steeps.

The first couple if steeps are dark vegetables with lemon zest and the barest font of apricots. I can’t quite put my finger on the exact veggie this tastes like, I know it, it’s on the tip of my tongue, but I can’t remember. Darker than spinach, sort of meatier or fleshier than kale, more complex than green beans.

Third steep is my favorite. The veggies are very muted and the peach and apricot come out to play. By the forth steep, though, the fruit tones down, the veggies crank up and they meet with the veggies just slightly powering over the fruit. And there’s also a tough of a mineral note.

Sixth steep, I decided to start experimenting. One minute seems to pull the fruit back out and mellow the veggies, and the result is soothing and calming. It just continues to get sweeter through the 9th steep. The mineral note sticks around, sort of grounding the tea, and adding a depth and complexity that might not be there otherwise. But mostly it apricot and peaches. Maybe some pear.

Autumn 2013 Yiwu Mountain 200g cake

Sometimes you read these descriptions of wines, cigars, and of course tea. “Oak, vanilla, blackberry, cocoa,” etc. Then you go to try it and it’s like, ummm, yeah, not really.

Well, let me tell you this. PEACHES PEACHES PEACHES. Honestly, if I was blindfolded and someone put the wet leaves to my nose, I would swear on my life it was freshly sliced peaches with a slight hint of apricot as it cools down. And if I proceeded to taste, still blindfolded, I would swear i was drinking mashed up peaches with hot water.

This is just fabulous sheng. No bitterness. No astringency. No smoke. Pure sweet nectar.

The only thing that prevents me going higher is maybe a lack of complexity or 2nd or 3rd wave of flavors. But what’s there is absolutely delicious.

Make sure you brew at a lower temp than most shengs. My first brew was too hot, and it tasted flat. You need to be in the 180 range. 10-15 seconds in the gaiwan.

The leaves are gorgeous. You can tell this is artisan craftmanship and made with passion.

This autumn 2013 pressing is delightful. From a cake, citrus aromatics arise, with beautiful clear orange color when brewed, and gentle but deep flavors. Absolutely stellar sheng with just a touch of bitterness on the finish which leads to a salivating sweetness. Really good.

Oops I posted this review in the wrong spot originally…

Thanks to Nicholas at Misty Peak Teas for providing a sample of this tea!

This is an extremely SMOOTH and SWEET sheng! Yet still very lively and bright tasting. Extremely yummy. I wish I could afford a whole cake :)