2011 EOT Nannou. I am very happy that this tea is brewing up too something nice again.
I was originally impressed with this tea and ordered three cakes. A while back though it became very bland and just uninteresting. Also losing much of its initial qi. I Feared that it was not going to age well. I am now happy that I have a few of these. It is still a bit awkward. But it seemed to be waking up and coming out of its dormancy. There is a potent cha qi and a vibrant mouthfeel. Good signs for the future.
May 24th, '15, 20:13
Posts: 682
Joined: Mar 10th, '11, 08:17
Location: on top of a mountain.
May 28th, '15, 04:16
Vendor Member
Posts: 510
Joined: Mar 19th, '12, 02:49
Location: Frequently Moving Around
Contact:
TwoDog2
Re: Official Pu of the day
This is an interesting piece of information for Puer drinkers to keep in mind. Tea's will sometimes go through a dormant period, or good/bad phases. As long as your aren't short of storage space, keep the teas around. Some teas that I have given up on have come back around. Others that used to be favorites are going through a less desirable phase.gasninja wrote:2011 EOT Nannou. I am very happy that this tea is brewing up too something nice again.
I was originally impressed with this tea and ordered three cakes. A while back though it became very bland and just uninteresting. Also losing much of its initial qi. I Feared that it was not going to age well. I am now happy that I have a few of these. It is still a bit awkward. But it seemed to be waking up and coming out of its dormancy. There is a potent cha so and a vibrant mouthfeel. Good signs for the future.
Glad to hear this one is back on track.
Re: Official Pu of the day
Today I have gone back to Teavivre's Fengqing Old Tree Raw Pu-erh Cake Tea 2013 while waiting for some raw pu'er samples from China.
Re: Official Pu of the day
Enjoying the 2014 Autumn Bing Dao from Yunnan Sourcing today. Great aroma and flavor with a nice long finish. Definitely rising in the ranks.
Re: Official Pu of the day
Sipping some yummy 1999 CNNP Old Tree cooked puerh brick tea from Canton Tea Company.
Re: Official Pu of the day
I'm drinking some Hong Kong stored tea in a "Yee Hop Fung Tea Co" bag. Mixed sheng and shou Puerh that a HK forum member shipped me from his local store.
It took a while for the funky musty taste to dissapate about 6 or 7 short steeps, it wasn't bad, but it wasn't good while it lasted, but now on day three up to 8 minute steeps and it is quite nice.
It took a while for the funky musty taste to dissapate about 6 or 7 short steeps, it wasn't bad, but it wasn't good while it lasted, but now on day three up to 8 minute steeps and it is quite nice.
Re: Official Pu of the day
70's Lio fu san cha korean border tea. Very earthy with a thick mouthfeel and deep, lasting sweetness. Always a great tea
Re: Official Pu of the day
2006 Gupuer Gold Mark half ripe cake from YS. This seems like it doesn't know what it wants to be. No surprise there I guess. Brews light so you need more leaf than usual. Flavor is good but a little nondescript.
Re: Official Pu of the day
Today's Pu: the 2003 青藤 (qing teng), courtesy of Taiwan's Wisteria house.
Today's experiment was a comparison between an unglazed Novak I've been breaking in lately and a small, high-fired tokoname kyusu. This tea had been sitting on the backburner for a while since It becomes bitter and unpalatable very quickly when brewed my usual yixing. However, using a very porous clay like the Novak (you can see how 'groggy' the inside is the second photo) tames this bitterness admirably, and now the tea is quite a winner. Fills my entire head and hits hard on the bottom end. The kyusu preserves some of the higher flavors and gives the tea a more complex and balanced flavor profile, but also brings through that original bitterness which can easily overwhelm the other flavors.
Had been worried about pairing this Novak pot, since it is so incredibly porous (and crackles quite audibly when filled with hot water), but this seems to be a good match. For every pot there is a tea, it seems. I can see now why some members here were quite taken with this tea back when Origin offered its Wisteria flight, I can also see how others might have had it once or twice and written it off. Lends credence to the concept of "cake as sample" I think.
Today's experiment was a comparison between an unglazed Novak I've been breaking in lately and a small, high-fired tokoname kyusu. This tea had been sitting on the backburner for a while since It becomes bitter and unpalatable very quickly when brewed my usual yixing. However, using a very porous clay like the Novak (you can see how 'groggy' the inside is the second photo) tames this bitterness admirably, and now the tea is quite a winner. Fills my entire head and hits hard on the bottom end. The kyusu preserves some of the higher flavors and gives the tea a more complex and balanced flavor profile, but also brings through that original bitterness which can easily overwhelm the other flavors.
Had been worried about pairing this Novak pot, since it is so incredibly porous (and crackles quite audibly when filled with hot water), but this seems to be a good match. For every pot there is a tea, it seems. I can see now why some members here were quite taken with this tea back when Origin offered its Wisteria flight, I can also see how others might have had it once or twice and written it off. Lends credence to the concept of "cake as sample" I think.
Re: Official Pu of the day
Admiral,
I'd be interested to know how this tea is when brewed using a porcelain pot. Instead of taking the tea down with a porous pot, try taking it up with a porcelain one and see what the difference is.
I'd be interested to know how this tea is when brewed using a porcelain pot. Instead of taking the tea down with a porous pot, try taking it up with a porcelain one and see what the difference is.
Re: Official Pu of the day
closest thing I have to a porcelain pot at hand is my trusty gaiwan, but yes it would be worth checking in a truly neutral vessel. It may be that my tastes have simply changed to be more accomodating to bitterness.Tead Off wrote:Admiral,
I'd be interested to know how this tea is when brewed using a porcelain pot. Instead of taking the tea down with a porous pot, try taking it up with a porcelain one and see what the difference is.
What the novak pot takes away from the top end it gives back as strength of overall flavor. The kyusu gives a more complex and yet less "intense" brew, the novak a more powerful and less subtle expression. Neither one is better than the other, really, but the effect is quite noticeable.
Re: Official Pu of the day
Sometimes, when drinking puer, I can't help feeling like this recent xkcd comic.
Started the day drinking EOT's 2010 Nannuo. When brewed in a gaiwan this tea is actively sweet and pleasant with a nice calming energy. That is, until I finish the session, and the sweetness eventually breaks down and is replaced by an uncompromising roughness. And yet, I've been gaiwaning this one quite a bit. Today, I finally bothered to brew this tea with an yixing, with a higher leaf/water ratio. I could taste the roughness mixed within the sweetness, waiting to menace me as usual, but fortunately it never did.
Later, I decided to take the leaves out of their bunched up state and into a larger gaiwan to be able to more fully expand and finish things off. Feeling frisky, I decided to add four leaves (count em!), of 2012 Nannuo acquired from w2t, and went for a long steep. The 2012 dominates the brew, which kinda tastes like rancid hazelnut skins. Which, while not as bad as it sounds, is not really pleasant either. Causes some interesting tongue and top back of the mouth feel - dried peanut butter perhaps? Feels a bit spacey, so if it's not about the taste then it's good
Started the day drinking EOT's 2010 Nannuo. When brewed in a gaiwan this tea is actively sweet and pleasant with a nice calming energy. That is, until I finish the session, and the sweetness eventually breaks down and is replaced by an uncompromising roughness. And yet, I've been gaiwaning this one quite a bit. Today, I finally bothered to brew this tea with an yixing, with a higher leaf/water ratio. I could taste the roughness mixed within the sweetness, waiting to menace me as usual, but fortunately it never did.
Later, I decided to take the leaves out of their bunched up state and into a larger gaiwan to be able to more fully expand and finish things off. Feeling frisky, I decided to add four leaves (count em!), of 2012 Nannuo acquired from w2t, and went for a long steep. The 2012 dominates the brew, which kinda tastes like rancid hazelnut skins. Which, while not as bad as it sounds, is not really pleasant either. Causes some interesting tongue and top back of the mouth feel - dried peanut butter perhaps? Feels a bit spacey, so if it's not about the taste then it's good
Re: Official Pu of the day
I'm writing on my phone so I'll have to keep this short. I
visited Khun Zhang and his wife Shan Shan yesterday on Bangkok. She asked me what I wanted to drink. Music to my ears. A started with the 2007 Fulu Yuan cha. It tastes a lot like the 2012 version but stronger.very powerful qi but very astringent and not sweet. This one is truly designed to be aged long term.
Then 2014 Xigui and 2014 Guafengzhai. Both are excellent. The completist needs both; they are both fantastic, but The Xigui costs a lot less and is in no way inferior. I was tea drunk like I haven't been in a long time before we finished the first tea; after the second and third, wow, even more so. Tried both of these when they were very young; they have come a long way in just one year and I have reconfirmed that I don't really like brand new sheng but love when it's a little over a year old.
a fantastic tea outing with people who are a delight to hang out with.
visited Khun Zhang and his wife Shan Shan yesterday on Bangkok. She asked me what I wanted to drink. Music to my ears. A started with the 2007 Fulu Yuan cha. It tastes a lot like the 2012 version but stronger.very powerful qi but very astringent and not sweet. This one is truly designed to be aged long term.
Then 2014 Xigui and 2014 Guafengzhai. Both are excellent. The completist needs both; they are both fantastic, but The Xigui costs a lot less and is in no way inferior. I was tea drunk like I haven't been in a long time before we finished the first tea; after the second and third, wow, even more so. Tried both of these when they were very young; they have come a long way in just one year and I have reconfirmed that I don't really like brand new sheng but love when it's a little over a year old.
a fantastic tea outing with people who are a delight to hang out with.
Re: Official Pu of the day
2011 Dayi Silver Peacock Raw Puer (101) from JKTeashop.
First last and middle thoughts on this is it is bitter.
I'm brewing in a little stoneware carved teapot which makes half a cup of the Rice Pattern tea cup I use for most of my chinese teas.
There's a bit of sweetness staying behind once the bitter edge leaves after swallowing, but it's not a tea I particularly like... My first Sheng, and if I was a newcomer to teas and this was my first ever Puerh, I don't think I would be buying puer again.
This sample pack is going into the back of a cupboard to be ignored for a few months or a few years...
First last and middle thoughts on this is it is bitter.
I'm brewing in a little stoneware carved teapot which makes half a cup of the Rice Pattern tea cup I use for most of my chinese teas.
There's a bit of sweetness staying behind once the bitter edge leaves after swallowing, but it's not a tea I particularly like... My first Sheng, and if I was a newcomer to teas and this was my first ever Puerh, I don't think I would be buying puer again.
This sample pack is going into the back of a cupboard to be ignored for a few months or a few years...