1999 Longyuanhao Shu Pu'er

A while back, I ordered a puerh sample pack from Verdant. I used about 4-5 g. leaf for about 6 oz. water. (My kitchen scale is still missing.). Still can’t find my puerh pick, so I broke the leaves up with a longer rinse. It’s sort of mediocre, somewhere in between the Guevara shu and the much better Ethical Agriculture one I tried yesterday. Nothing offensive about it — it’s just bland and boring, with no noticeable lingering notes so far. I’ll say more if anything comes up in later steeps. Smells sweet like dried tobacco leaf, but I don’t really notice much sweetness in the flavor.

Added: Woodier than I’d like. Not a fan of heavily oaked wine, and this bothers me in the same way.

Now on the 6th or 7th steep, and it really doesn’t change much as I go. The Ethical Ag tea lost some of its earthy mineral flavor as I took it through additional steeps, but this one doesn’t. I do not like it.

So far, my palate is pretty simple. I like unflavored teas that are naturally sweet. A little bitterness doesn’t bother me, as long as there’s some sweetness. This doesn’t fit the bill.

I made a deep, rich cup of this to accompany my reading on a cold, blustery, snow/rain mix day here. It is perfect and warming me and relaxing. Delicious.

I am so pleased I got back into reading finally! Hopefully I can keep it up all winter haha. See previous notes on this tea :)

As with all of Verdant’s Shu puerh, this one had a surprisingly clean scent that reassured me of its quality. Obviously it still had a certain mustiness, but it is a generally pleasant smelling brick. Nothing fishy, nothing dirty, nothing nasty. Just a reassuring, “old” smell.

I had this down in London and wasn’t really using optimal water, so I won’t review in too much detail for now, but it was definitely a flavoursome puerh with a lovely, deep coloured liquor (what else was I expecting? hahaha). I’ll bring it back home with me when I go down next weekend and do a proper tasting session in the near-future :D

Nothing that I can recall other than generic shu, still have a little left from a sample so maybe I will increase steep time/leaf. I almost think shu are better western brewed personally, as I always seem to find shu super thin and light with 30 s steepings.

This is a very nice shou! Quite an interesting find – Yiwu Mtn. material used in this brick. Large wild-tree leaves plus stems mixed to enhance the sweet wood flavor. Traditional stone pressing.
I don’t believe I’ve ever had a ripe using Yiwu material. The very dark wet leaves give off a sweet baked foods scent which becomes richer with spice overtones as you move through several steepings. Beautiful dark tea soup is syrupy and very soon the flavor matches with a deep dark sweetness. Nice complexity for a ripe puerh. Smooth and soothing in the throat with a long lasting aftertaste. There is nothing offensive or off-putting about this fermented tea. This is a great wintertime shou to warm up those cold days. Very aromatic; dark and smooth; deep woodiness; upfront sweet richness which continues throughout the session. I definitely like this tea and look forward to enjoying it many more times!
Update: Very flavorful for seven steepings but then it becomes rather thin.

I’m enjoying a rare quiet afternoon, several students have cancelled today, for various reasons (mostly probably because they didn’t practice over the break, & don’t feel like going out in the cold). So I’m cuddled up at my desk with this tea, & I’m loving it. It’s rich & thick, with a deep quality to it, a depth whose essence makes me think of the deep color of mahogany, or the sound quality of a bassoon. It’s not really something I can put into words, but it is much much more than taste, or even texture. It’s a beautiful thing :)

Yum. This is really nice. No fermentation taste. Just smooth and mellow!