Country of Origin: China
Leaf Appearance: dark, tightly compressed
Ingredients: raw puerh tea
Steep time: 30 seconds
Water Temperature: 212 degrees
Preparation Method: porcelain gaiwan
Liquor: amber
This tea was fairly robust compared to other sheng puerhs that I’ve had. It wasn’t quite the forest floor taste that you would get from shu but it had a definite earthy quality. There was an underlying sweetness that helped to keep the taste balanced. The mouth-feel was thick and a pleasant astringency led to a dry finish. The leaves were large and mostly intact. I was even able to spot a few complete bud sets. Older tea always makes me a bit contemplative and this one had me reminiscing about where I was in 2005. Tea for Me Please wasn’t even in existence yet! Both the tea and I have come a long way. Buying aged puerh can be an iffy experience. Disreputable vendors will still sell stale, poorly stored tea. I LOVE that Norbu states on the product page where the tea was stored in China and exactly when it was brought to the United States.
You can find out more about this tea here.