Identify my tea!

[Deleted User #14259]

I recently got 2 bricks of puerh, one online and one in San Francisco. The online one isn't too different from every other puerh I've had, it's earthy but with a lot of mushroom. The second is pressed very tight into the cake (it's an effort to break off a chunk) and the taste is very sweet and it has a tendency to get really bitter if I leave it in my thermos for some time.

Is the second pu described cooked perhaps? Or just really bad? It was $9 so I'm inclined to believe that either way it's low-quality.

[tenuki]

Is the second pu described cooked perhaps? Or just really bad?

isn't that the same thing?

[Proinsias]

I think it's more of an art form that's very easy to get wrong, like raw it should also be left around for a while but more to air out much of the processing as opposed to improve the tea - super fast aging that needs a long time to disguise the fact it was speed aged.

There is always the chance you tastebuds are just plain silly and I'm wasting my time.

[tenuki]

There is always the chance you tastebuds are just plain silly and I'm wasting my time.

most likely.

[hop_goblin]

I recently got 2 bricks of puerh, one online and one in San Francisco. The online one isn't too different from every other puerh I've had, it's earthy but with a lot of mushroom. The second is pressed very tight into the cake (it's an effort to break off a chunk) and the taste is very sweet and it has a tendency to get really bitter if I leave it in my thermos for some time.

Is the second pu described cooked perhaps? Or just really bad? It was $9 so I'm inclined to believe that either way it's low-quality.

Sounds like shu or cooked but can't really tell w/o a pic

[Deleted User #14259]

No pic, but it does look the same as any other brick, abeit with more tan leaves I suppose. I'm drinking some now and the smell is pretty much the same as every other puerh I've had, more smooth than earthy, and the taste is similar, but like I said, it has this weird sweetness to it, and it's quite bitter in a bad way.

No worries if you can't figure it out, I admit my tasting notes are lacking. I think it's raw but just a low-quality tea.

[Dizzwave]

Hey Miles,
Even a really good pu-er will be bitter if you steep it too long. I've tried some pretty good ones, and in general (for either cooked or raw) I get best results by steeping for no longer than 20 seconds. For the first 2-4 steeps anyway. Then I start ramping it up. Leaving a chunk in your thermos, you're guaranteed a bitter brew! Some people like it, nothing wrong with it, but feel free to experiment a bit.

I've gotten some decent pu for around $10 a brick/cake, so don't rule it out as a bad one yet. Whether it's cooked or uncooked, well, does it turn dark red or brown after a few seconds' steep? If so, it's probably cooked. If it's light green, it's probably raw. Don't listen to the cooked-pu haterz.... I love it, and so do many others.

[Deleted User #14259]

I've gotten some decent pu for around $10 a brick/cake, so don't rule it out as a bad one yet. Whether it's cooked or uncooked, well, does it turn dark red or brown after a few seconds' steep? If so, it's probably cooked. If it's light green, it's probably raw. Don't listen to the cooked-pu haterz.... I love it, and so do many others.

Light green? Is that a characteristic of raw puerh? I guess I've been drinking cooked this whole time because all of my puerh is reddish brown to varying degrees. To be honest, I thought pu was pu until coming here and learning the difference.

It does get dark very quickly (10 seconds), as opposed to some of my other ones (mainly loose-leaf) which will stay pretty light no matter what. I tend to steep it for 30 seconds or less and then increase it after 5 steeps, the process I learned at a local tea place.

Hmm. Well it really isn't pleasant to drink so perhaps I'm best off sitting on it for a while and seeing what happens. Maybe it'll age well.

[Dizzwave]

I didn't know about raw pu-erh until recently either! It took some internet research, buying samples, trying a few different kinds, talking to people who have treaded the path before me, etc. But yeah, most stores that cater to the pu-erh layperson seem only to carry the cooked stuff. I only liked the cooked stuff at first, but now the raw is growing on me.
Another thing about aging... When they "cook" the pu-erh, they're essentially composting it, which is more or less equivalent to aging it very quickly. So aging a cooked pu won't have as big an effect as aging a raw pu (which still has all of its, umm, whatever is in there that gets processed by the microbes in the aging or cooking process). Still, it does have some effect -- I've tried some cooked pu-erhs from the early 90s that are *way* different ("mysterious" might be a good word!) from anything I've tried from the past 5 years. But I've also tried some cooked ones from the 90s that just aren't that great. I guess it depends on a lot of factors....
Anyway it's a fun learning process. I only recently got "serious" about tea, and my wife, friends, and coworkers think I'm crazy.
I probably misstated some things in here, so you wise ones, please correct me.
Anyway, If it's a bad tea, let it sit, get some other stuff and try it out! Good luck......
Dave