2007 Ontario Te Ji Shou Pu-erh

This was my first loose-leaf and Shou Pu-erh tea. The first steep was an extremely dark amber/maroon shade, and with each successive infusion, lessened to a brighter shade of red with a lovely dirty earth(is that even a thing?) aroma. I remember the smell and taste being exactly what I needed at that moment; it hit the spot and gave me the pick-up I was looking for. The flavour was typical of a pu-erh: earthy, musty, strong, bold, and honestly, these flavours by themselves can be overpowering, but in this tea they were very well balanced; not overwhelming at all. My two teaspoons lasted about 13 cups before I gave it up. Overall the tea is delicious and long lasting, making it very economical. I would definitely buy this again.

I brewed this morning and forgot what I was doing and let it steep for 3 minutes like black tea. It was tremendously over brewed and bitter. I dumped that in the sink and gave it 30 seconds, much better. I get the notes of sweetness and camphor. I also get the notes of leather, although this is the first time I remember identifying that note in a tea. Overall, it is a very good tea as long as you ignore the directions on the package to give it three minutes and give it much less time.

I brewed this twice in a 18oz teapot with 7.1g leaf and boiling water for first 3 min, and then 30 seconds. The 30 sec steep was much superior.

Method: 5 g, 5 oz, 200 degrees, rinse 10-10, Brew 15, 30, 45, 60, shou yixing

Aroma: Mild cave

Flavor: I was at my Mom’s house for a little barbie today and overdid it. I came home, fed the pups and immediately started making some shou. But which shou??? I somehow had several WP shou samples, and since I tried the tuo earlier, I went with this loose sample. Only 2 rinses were needed to get past the dirty flavors.

The first 15 second steep didn’t seem very strong, so instead of adding 5 to each subsequent steep, I added 15. Worked out great! I like this shou, and I’m hoping it aids in digesting the rather oily foods I was consuming earlier. <3

I ended up in the cowboy boot store on my lunch hour today. I came home to this shoo. The dry leaf had a very slight shoo aroma. I gave it a quick rinse @ 205, let it sit for a bit and started with a 1 minute steep. WHOA – it’s as black as Jerry Jones’ heart.

The first sip took me right back to the cowboy boot store with a nice smooth leather taste – yes, it tasted JUST like the boot store smelled. This is a big-ish leather, but not overwhelming like some. It has had time to age and smooth and it’s just lovely.

Subsequent steeps of 20s, 30s, 45s and then 1 minute and 2 minutes and it is still going. The leather has mellowed though still present. I’m enjoying the mellow body sensation – this was exactly what I needed this afternoon.

I stayed out late seeing one of my favorite musicians, Dave Alvin last night and this tea reminds me a bit of Dave’s voice – well aged, leathery and delicious: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSU9vIzFCzk

And here’s a pic: http://instagram.com/p/rvJkVHQx20/?modal=true

This was my first experience with shu. Holy Monkeys. I’ve tried one sheng too and it seems like I am way more of a fan of shu (shou? Is there a difference? This is the level of knowledge I’m starting with). First, I followed this handy dandy guide written by Brenden of Whispering Pines and it worked for me really well.
www.lifethroughthepines.blogspot.com/2014/07/gongfu-style-for-medium-shu.html

I have to be honest, when I first smelled this tea I was very apprehensive. It does smell a little barnyard-y when you brew it, but kind of a pleasant barnyard smell that reminds me of horses. I was slightly taken aback by my first sip just because I had never tasted anything even remotely like it before. However, the more I sipped the more I adjusted and the more I liked it. To me this tea is just LEATHER in a major way, which happens to be one of my favorite scents. There’s also a somewhat mossy note in there. There’s a lightly sweet finish with the cooling effect of camphor. That sounds like a weird combination. It IS a weird combination, but I freaking like it. The later infusions became smoother and sweeter and I legitimately felt high….not that I’d know anything about that of course 0:-). It definitely gave me a heady, buzzed feeling. There was happiness and giggles (by myself, like a crazy person). It felt too fun to be legal haha