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“I’m not sure what possessed past me to buy a 2oz bag of puerh tuo chas, when I don’t even really like unblended puerh. But I did, and now I have to drink through that fact… It’s still raining here,...” Read full tasting note
This aged Yunnan puer is shaped into small bowls, or bird’s nests. Use one bowl per small pot. When steeped a short time, it is bright and full-bodied. When steeped longer, it is a strong, earthy, almost musty flavored tea. Approximately 30 ct. per 4 oz.
This tea was made by the Menghai Tea Co. in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, China.
The flavor of all puer teas evolves over time. This is because there are naturally occurring active micro-organisms in the leaf which change the aroma and the flavor of the tea over time. All dark teas (including puer) can be wonderful when they are “young” ie, less than 2 years old. Each year after that, the flavor will get a little richer, deeper, more complex. Many people store dark teas, particularly puers, for years before drinking, because they really enjoy that more fully evolved, more complex, stronger flavor. So feel free to experiment with steeping times and storage times to find the best method to get the flavor you want from your dark tea.
Suggested Steeping Instruction:
Use 1 rounded tsp (3 grams) per 8-16 oz of water, rinse leaves with 205° water for 4-8 seconds, discard rinse water. Then steep with 8 oz water at 205° for 8-20 seconds. Good for multiple steepings. Steeping for longer time periods will produce a progressively stronger cup.
Ingredients: Chinese puer tea
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I’m not sure what possessed past me to buy a 2oz bag of puerh tuo chas, when I don’t even really like unblended puerh. But I did, and now I have to drink through that fact…
It’s still raining here, so at least it seems appropriate for the weather. I placed one tuo cha to steep in 350ml of 205F water, and just left it there for about ten minutes before straining.
There is a strong leather aroma from the steeped tea that is quite pleasant — I’ve been working on a project in our local special archives collection, the Idaho and Pacific Northwest History Room, and it reminds me of that old book smell, though smokier, and with a bit of a peppery spice.
Tastes pretty good, too! The earthiness is rich and deep rather than the dirt/potting soil taste I usually get. There is a bit of a wet rock/plant taste, but again, it’s very smooth and not that “swampy/marshy” sort of taste. And the leather/smoke/pepper flavor is so strong that it really gives it some dimension.
Pretty impressive for cheap tuos.
Flavors: Earth, Leather, Pepper, Smoke, Smooth, Spices, Wet Moss, Wet Rocks
Book smell :) (inhaling imaginary scent)
I love book smell! Being a librarian fits me. :-)
Playing in the archives sounds like fun! I am the unlikely custodian (it has absolutely nothing to do with my job description) of a history of our school district originally written longhand by a sweet octogenarian retired history teacher. I helped transcribe his work back in the ‘90s (he researched us clear back to the 1890’s) and have managed to keep the electronic files viable, but with too many more Windows mutations, I’m afraid we’ll lose them, so I’m in the process of actually printing out hard copies and sharing them with some other staff members so that they aren’t lost once I’m no longer there.
Oh good, a puerh you like! See, I feel like puerh is usually an acquired taste for most. I also love to drink puerh on rainy days and old book smell. :D
I seem to get most of the really gritty/dirty/marshy tasting ones. Whenever I don’t, I tend to like it just fine. Our rain is persisting (very unusual weather for this area!) so I’ve been drinking a lot of pu’erh and houjicha.