I brewed this tea several weeks ago, so the following review is based on memory and the somewhat sketchy notes I took at the time of brewing. I also wasn't able to take any pictures.
First, let me say that I thoroughly enjoyed this tea. I had a 10g sample which I divided in half to brew 5g on two separate occasions. The first was by myself and so I was able to take rather detailed notes and the second was with a friend where I was able to relax and enjoy the tea with some fine conversation.
The color of the broth was not quite as dark as I was expecting, but was nonetheless an appealing honey amber hue. The broth was quite clear and free of sediment. The color darkened to a flame red, cinnabar hue with the second infusion and became even darker, close to scarlet, on the third.
The nose of the tea was pleasant with notes of honey and a faint smokiness. The post-infusion tea leaves gave off a sweet, slightly raisiny aroma.
The first thing I noted when tasting this pu'er was its clean, crisp, smoothness with a hint of subtle sweetness. The flavor was rather up-front, but in a pleasant way, exhibiting mildly smokey notes of dank bark and sweet tobacco. Every now and then I'd get an ever-so-faint hint of dark chocolate. The sweetness, while declining with each successive brew, continued to express itself rather well for multiple infusions.
Overall, a great tea-drinking experience. This tea is well-balanced, comfortable and smooth to sip.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
My first review - [2006 : 大益 7592 熟饼]
I decided to write a brief review of this '2006 Da Yi 7592 Shou (fermented) Bing.' It's one of only two drinkable puers I brought back with me from China, so I've been drinking it pretty consistently for the past month or so. Drinking it so much recently has probably given me a pretty skewed perspective of it, especially since I haven't had much else to compare it to, but I'll try to remain objective.
First, here's a couple photos:
(As you can see, there's only about 1/3 of this bing left)
So, how to describe this 2 yr. old shou bing? The first word that comes to mind for me is, "passable." In other words, it's nothing extraordinary, nor is there much to complain about.
The color of the broth for initial brewings is of a dark carob, almost coffee tone. When held up to light there are some nice medium red tints that come through. In subsequent brewings, the color of the broth lightens up nicely but still retains some leathery tones. In terms of clarity, it's definitely not as luminescent as would be desired and almost creeps into the 'too opaque' zone. I'd put it at about a 6.5/10 on the murkiness scale (10 being very murky).
This 普洱's bouquet is actually not bad, with mostly earthy notes accented by tinges of caramel.
My main complaints about this puer are that the flavor is a little too mellow and body is too light. The initial flavor is woody but is extremely toned-down and could definitely be a little more prominent. It leaves much to be desired. The tea comes through a little bit better in the aftertaste, exhibiting slightly stronger woody and faint molasses notes. While the flavor is not outstanding, it certainly isn't disagreeable. Again, I would describe it as "passable" or "drinkable." The 口感 (kou gan; mouth-sensation) is fairly smooth and agreeable, but isn't anything special.
The stimulating effect isn't too forceful and develops slowly over several brews. The right amount of pick-me-up while not being overwhelming.
As I said, I've been drinking this tea almost exclusively (in terms of puer that is... i still drink wulong, long jing, bi lo chun, etc.) for the past couple of months. It's treated me fairly well, actually. While I certainly long for higher quality aged sheng chas, this is a decent fairly-young shou cha for affordable daily drinking.
Overall score: 67/100
I hope you enjoyed reading this (my first!) review. Any feedback is welcome and appreciated!
First, here's a couple photos:
(As you can see, there's only about 1/3 of this bing left)
So, how to describe this 2 yr. old shou bing? The first word that comes to mind for me is, "passable." In other words, it's nothing extraordinary, nor is there much to complain about.
The color of the broth for initial brewings is of a dark carob, almost coffee tone. When held up to light there are some nice medium red tints that come through. In subsequent brewings, the color of the broth lightens up nicely but still retains some leathery tones. In terms of clarity, it's definitely not as luminescent as would be desired and almost creeps into the 'too opaque' zone. I'd put it at about a 6.5/10 on the murkiness scale (10 being very murky).
This 普洱's bouquet is actually not bad, with mostly earthy notes accented by tinges of caramel.
My main complaints about this puer are that the flavor is a little too mellow and body is too light. The initial flavor is woody but is extremely toned-down and could definitely be a little more prominent. It leaves much to be desired. The tea comes through a little bit better in the aftertaste, exhibiting slightly stronger woody and faint molasses notes. While the flavor is not outstanding, it certainly isn't disagreeable. Again, I would describe it as "passable" or "drinkable." The 口感 (kou gan; mouth-sensation) is fairly smooth and agreeable, but isn't anything special.
The stimulating effect isn't too forceful and develops slowly over several brews. The right amount of pick-me-up while not being overwhelming.
As I said, I've been drinking this tea almost exclusively (in terms of puer that is... i still drink wulong, long jing, bi lo chun, etc.) for the past couple of months. It's treated me fairly well, actually. While I certainly long for higher quality aged sheng chas, this is a decent fairly-young shou cha for affordable daily drinking.
Overall score: 67/100
I hope you enjoyed reading this (my first!) review. Any feedback is welcome and appreciated!
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