Country of Origin: China Leaf Appearance: dark, tightly compressed Ingredients: puerh tea Steep time: 10 seconds Water Temperature: 212 degrees Preparation Method: porcelain gaiwan Liquor: very dark, almost opaque I’m usually a sheng drinker but recently I’ve stumbled upon quite a few shou that really grabbed my attention. This inky dark number from +Crimson Lotus Tea was definitely one of them. After a quick rinse I started out with the recommended flash infusions of about ten seconds. I couldn’t believe how dark the liquor became so quickly. The taste was deeply earthly and sweet with surprising hints of spice. What I enjoyed most about this tea was the texture. For the first five or six…

Country of Origin: China Leaf Appearance: dark green, tightly compressed Ingredients: puerh tea Steep time: 30 seconds Water Temperature: 212 degrees Preparation Method: porcelain gaiwan Liquor: deep gold You all know how much I love my sweet and mellow Yiwu but sometimes I need a puerh that packs a punch. +Crimson Lotus Tea describes this as an “iron cake” and the name seems apt as even my sample size was hard to break apart. One of the things I love about puerh is that I’m still discovering it. This is the first tea that I’ve tried from the Xiaguan Tea Factory, one of the oldest in China. My first infusion was on the lighter side…

Country of Origin: China Leaf Appearance: dark, tightly compressed Ingredients: puerh tea Steep time: 30 seconds Water Temperature: 212 degrees Preparation Method: porcelain gaiwan Liquor: very dark, almost black You all know how much I love raw puerh. Shu has never really been my thing, mostly because a lot of what is out there simply isn’t good tea. +Crimson Lotus Tea threw a sample of this in with my recent order and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised. It was the first really cold day of fall and a darker tea just felt more appropriate. After a quick rinse it brewed up incredibly dark, so much so that it was almost opaque.…