I got my Pu from TeaSource.Com. It came compressed into little bowls weighing 2.8 grams. I was told by TeaSource to use a 2 cup pot, with boiling water and steep it for 7-10 min. I steeped it for 7, so I can get a couple more infusions out of it. Now smelling the bag has a NICE earthy aroma (at least that's what I am calling it).
When the time was up to pour the tea into my cup, I was surprised at the color. It was dark redish looking in the pot. When I poured it into my cup, the color was more like a Lipton tea color. To me, the aroma reminded me of fish food flakes. Not REALLY strong, but a hint of it. Luckily, it did not taste like it smelled.
Has anyone else tried this tea from TeaSource?
Jan 20th, '11, 20:08
Posts: 452
Joined: Jun 15th, '06, 13:04
Location: Lawrenceville, GA
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bearsbearsbears
Re: Puerh Tuo Cha
You had a variety called "shu" pu'er ("shu" means cooked or ripe depending on who you talk to). It's dark and earthy. The fishy smell is pretty standard for lower grades of shu pu'er. Search around in this forum a bit and you will find some recommendations for non-fishy shu pu'er.Kithikor wrote:When the time was up to pour the tea into my cup, I was surprised at the color. It was dark redish looking in the pot. When I poured it into my cup, the color was more like a Lipton tea color. To me, the aroma reminded me of fish food flakes. Not REALLY strong, but a hint of it. Luckily, it did not taste like it smelled.
Nope, but I've had plenty like it!Kithikor wrote:Has anyone else tried this tea from TeaSource?
Re: Puerh Tuo Cha
And the kind you had, the small tuo cha (2.8g per tuo) is usually among the lowest grade of all. It's one step above teabags, basically.
If you want to try some nicer puerh, consider buying some loose leaf stuff, or perhaps a small cake or two.
If you want to try some nicer puerh, consider buying some loose leaf stuff, or perhaps a small cake or two.
Re: Puerh Tuo Cha
Any ideas where I can get some?MarshalN wrote:And the kind you had, the small tuo cha (2.8g per tuo) is usually among the lowest grade of all. It's one step above teabags, basically.
If you want to try some nicer puerh, consider buying some loose leaf stuff, or perhaps a small cake or two.
Jan 21st, '11, 13:20
Posts: 452
Joined: Jun 15th, '06, 13:04
Location: Lawrenceville, GA
Contact:
bearsbearsbears
Re: Puerh Tuo Cha
In person or online? The latter is easier to recommend not knowing where you're located.Kithikor wrote:Any ideas where I can get some?MarshalN wrote:If you want to try some nicer puerh, consider buying some loose leaf stuff, or perhaps a small cake or two.
The last four posts on my blog are four shu pu'ers I bought from yunnansourcing.com and enjoyed: http://puerh.blogspot.com
Some of these are probably also available at Jas-etea.com, a US vendor who gets much of his stock from Yunnan Sourcing, and probably also from Dragon Tea House, Red Lantern Tea, and other ebay tea vendors.
Re: Puerh Tuo Cha
I was just going to suggest you go read BBB's blog, but he did it himself. Those are sensible starting points.
Re: Puerh Tuo Cha
Nice blog man.MarshalN wrote:I was just going to suggest you go read BBB's blog, but he did it himself. Those are sensible starting points.
I really enjoyed reading the china tea report 2011.
I see you have a slight disdain for vital tea leaf. Me too
At least the one in seattle had me disheartened by the direction they were leading people, not to mention all those big glass jars filled with mediocre stale teas bah
Re: Puerh Tuo Cha
Hey there- I remember trying that shu at TeaSource a year or so ago, and I thought the same thing. Mediocre, heavy, and kind of fishy...bleh
Don't worry, though! You definitely do not have to settle for fishy taste if that's not something you like.
Do you live in the Twin Cities area? I live there near TeaSource's physical locations, and there are definitely other tea shops in the area I would recommend you try for puer. The owner of TeaSource is passionately into Indian teas (goes there every year a few times!) but his Chinese stuff has never really been anything but ho hum to me.
Infinitea (in Uptown Minneapolis and Eau Claire Wisc) has a really huge selection of puers, and they're really great! I think they're also secretly working on converting everyone in Minnesota to puer.... I think they actually just got in about 10 new kinds of puer that they're super excited about, so it could be worthwhile to check it out. They're website is unfortunately rarely updated, so I think you'd have to go to the stores to see all the stuff they really have.
There's also Mandala tea / health center in Winona, MN. They've got a good selection of shu, with several respected names. He's super genuinely into tea if you sit down with him, so that would be a fun trip if you want to chat and learn.
There's also another place in Uptown called Associate du Te you might check out, but I honestly haven't been by in years. I can't recommend it one way or another.
If you don't live in the Twin Cities, my best recommendation for you would be to go out to your local tea shops and try puer for yourself, in a real place. If you're just starting to get into puer, it's a little bit like being dropped into the middle of the ocean! It's so hard to know what's going on or what you should be aiming for.
Try to avoid purchasing puer online for a little while until you've shopped around locally and seen what folks have to offer. Talk with tea shop owners and get their recommendations. Have them prepare the tea so that you see what it should ideally taste like before you take it home. Always try more than one steeping of puer at a teashop if you can, so you ca get an idea of how "patiently" the tea steeps, and how it's flavors change over time. For example, a tea might be really pleasant for the first two steepings, but then you might notice dryness building up in the back of your throat after the next two steepings. Or the tea might seem really yummy for the first three steepings, but then it'll just trickle and fade off into nothing worth thinking about. You don't want to by puer blindly, especially if you're just learning.
Most importantly, trust your own taste. Your tongue was made for tasting, so if it tells you that something tastes disgusting, you can trust it! Definitely be open and give things a few tries, but if you find you really don't like a particular flavor profile or a particular puer, you don't have to force yourself to like it. You might just have expensive tastes and need to go looking for higher quality stuff.
In my experience, there's no reason to settle for a fishy puer. Go somewhere else, and find something that tastes better to you.
One other recommendation for shu:
If your puer tastes too heavy and smells a little fishy, try using less leaves, or steeping for less time, or both! Tou cha encourages using one tou for each pot or cup, but your pot / cup might be a little small. Try breaking the thing in half, and see what you think. Or try brewing in a larger pot.
Or try steeping Chinese style with a gaiwan or a little little pot: only steep for a few seconds. If you don't have a gaiwan or pot, you can use a little wire brew basket in a cup. Pour the water over the leaves for just 10 seconds or so, and then pull the brew basket out.
OR! take the tou cha out of the bag? I sometimes find that bags can suck up flavor in a weird way, and add a linen-like flavor of their own. You might get a few leaves or particulars falling into your cup, but it might also be a fun experiment.
Again, if you're just starting out with puer, have someone who already knows about puer make some for you so that you know what it's supposed to taste like. Spend a weekend running around your local shops, and you're sure to find something good!
EDIT:
----Woah! I never meant to write so much! Well, that just shows how much there is to learn and talk about.
Don't worry, though! You definitely do not have to settle for fishy taste if that's not something you like.
Do you live in the Twin Cities area? I live there near TeaSource's physical locations, and there are definitely other tea shops in the area I would recommend you try for puer. The owner of TeaSource is passionately into Indian teas (goes there every year a few times!) but his Chinese stuff has never really been anything but ho hum to me.
Infinitea (in Uptown Minneapolis and Eau Claire Wisc) has a really huge selection of puers, and they're really great! I think they're also secretly working on converting everyone in Minnesota to puer.... I think they actually just got in about 10 new kinds of puer that they're super excited about, so it could be worthwhile to check it out. They're website is unfortunately rarely updated, so I think you'd have to go to the stores to see all the stuff they really have.
There's also Mandala tea / health center in Winona, MN. They've got a good selection of shu, with several respected names. He's super genuinely into tea if you sit down with him, so that would be a fun trip if you want to chat and learn.
There's also another place in Uptown called Associate du Te you might check out, but I honestly haven't been by in years. I can't recommend it one way or another.
If you don't live in the Twin Cities, my best recommendation for you would be to go out to your local tea shops and try puer for yourself, in a real place. If you're just starting to get into puer, it's a little bit like being dropped into the middle of the ocean! It's so hard to know what's going on or what you should be aiming for.
Try to avoid purchasing puer online for a little while until you've shopped around locally and seen what folks have to offer. Talk with tea shop owners and get their recommendations. Have them prepare the tea so that you see what it should ideally taste like before you take it home. Always try more than one steeping of puer at a teashop if you can, so you ca get an idea of how "patiently" the tea steeps, and how it's flavors change over time. For example, a tea might be really pleasant for the first two steepings, but then you might notice dryness building up in the back of your throat after the next two steepings. Or the tea might seem really yummy for the first three steepings, but then it'll just trickle and fade off into nothing worth thinking about. You don't want to by puer blindly, especially if you're just learning.
Most importantly, trust your own taste. Your tongue was made for tasting, so if it tells you that something tastes disgusting, you can trust it! Definitely be open and give things a few tries, but if you find you really don't like a particular flavor profile or a particular puer, you don't have to force yourself to like it. You might just have expensive tastes and need to go looking for higher quality stuff.
In my experience, there's no reason to settle for a fishy puer. Go somewhere else, and find something that tastes better to you.
One other recommendation for shu:
If your puer tastes too heavy and smells a little fishy, try using less leaves, or steeping for less time, or both! Tou cha encourages using one tou for each pot or cup, but your pot / cup might be a little small. Try breaking the thing in half, and see what you think. Or try brewing in a larger pot.
Or try steeping Chinese style with a gaiwan or a little little pot: only steep for a few seconds. If you don't have a gaiwan or pot, you can use a little wire brew basket in a cup. Pour the water over the leaves for just 10 seconds or so, and then pull the brew basket out.
OR! take the tou cha out of the bag? I sometimes find that bags can suck up flavor in a weird way, and add a linen-like flavor of their own. You might get a few leaves or particulars falling into your cup, but it might also be a fun experiment.
Again, if you're just starting out with puer, have someone who already knows about puer make some for you so that you know what it's supposed to taste like. Spend a weekend running around your local shops, and you're sure to find something good!
EDIT:
----Woah! I never meant to write so much! Well, that just shows how much there is to learn and talk about.
