Brand new to the world of Pu-erh...

One of the intentionally aged teas, Pu-Erh has a loyal following.
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Jul 21st, '08, 13:19
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Brand new to the world of Pu-erh...

by michaelskar » Jul 21st, '08, 13:19

Having read so much about pu-erh teas, I recently tried some. I popped in at a local Whole Foods and noticed they had a "Pu-erh Classic" loose-leaf bulk pu-erh from Rishi teas available and I figured I'd try that as I could buy just a little to see if I liked it.

While I'm sure this is not the greatest way to get introduced to pu-erhs (as, based on price alone, this is obviously not "high grade" pu-erh), I must say that I found the taste to be amazing! Having read all of the strange descriptions I found myself agreeing...it DOES taste like a wet basment or water off the forest floor...it really DOES taste like earth and decay...but truly in a GOOD way!

One question: How many times can you re-steep the pu-erh leaves? I am brewing mine 7 oz at a time.

Anyway, not to ramble...just wanted to share my first experience with you folks.
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Jul 21st, '08, 14:42
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by shogun89 » Jul 21st, '08, 14:42

What is it, sheng or shu? Sounds to me like you got a shu, you should be able to get about 6-8 brews.
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Jul 21st, '08, 14:46
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by Beidao » Jul 21st, '08, 14:46

Welcome :D
The noise comes from the other side of the mirror
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Jul 21st, '08, 17:32
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by heavydoom » Jul 21st, '08, 17:32

i love the appearance of cookd pu erh, the first few infusions, it looks like medicine or a herbal drink for some illness.
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Jul 21st, '08, 18:44
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by Geekgirl » Jul 21st, '08, 18:44

TomVerlain wrote:unless it has aged quite a bit, and become expensive.

:lol:
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Jul 23rd, '08, 09:30
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by hop_goblin » Jul 23rd, '08, 09:30

It depeneds on the quality of the tea. Generally steep it until the color becomes thin. In the case of shu a good quality shu would be able to be steeped for 7 times or more. But this is a ball park.
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Jul 23rd, '08, 11:42
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by Wesli » Jul 23rd, '08, 11:42

The shus I have last somewhere between 6 and 12 steeps. This is when I brew them with really short infusions. If you're infusing for minutes at a time, I imagine you'll only get 2-4.
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Jul 23rd, '08, 12:25
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by Salsero » Jul 23rd, '08, 12:25

I find that often shu will poop out on me much earlier than sheng. The other night I had a Puerhshop offering, 2000 CNNP Grand Red Label, that did a lot of infusions and was quite nice.
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Jul 28th, '08, 22:10
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Re: Brand new to the world of Pu-erh...

by tony shlongini » Jul 28th, '08, 22:10

michaelskar wrote:Having read so much about pu-erh teas, I recently tried some. I popped in at a local Whole Foods and noticed they had a "Pu-erh Classic" loose-leaf bulk pu-erh from Rishi teas available and I figured I'd try that as I could buy just a little to see if I liked it.
I couldn't help but notice how well shaved you are. :wink:
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