Official Pu of the day

[nickE]

2003 7581 Shupu from YS on a cold, snowy day. Really hitting the spot. Lots of mushroom notes in the first infusions. Creaminess becomes more dominant around the 5th with complex notes of mossy wood & soil. Extremely smooth due to its age and even some camphor showing up (mostly in the aroma). Nice.

[nickE]

2003 7581 Shupu from YS

2nd session with this. Really liking it!

[debunix]

Today drinking a mix of fines from two different puerhs, shu vs sheng unknown, but based on the price and supposed age most likely they were shus. Very nice mix with some richness and plumminess coming out in a stronger-than-usual infusion.

Good enough to not compost the remainders of the beengs, but these are not teas I would seek out again.

[debunix]

Actually, these 'fines' are holding up remarkably well and pleasantly for a lot of infusions. Perhaps my initial impression of these cakes as less than exciting was not really due to poor quality (they weren't particularly cheap, at $35 and $50 apiece from local shops), but because I have really come to prefer more intense flavors of younger sheng pus.

[shogun89]

2003 7581 Shupu from YS

2nd session with this. Really liking it!

I have this tea as well and wish i had more! I bout it from puerh shope a few years back for only $13. Now it is quite pricey stuff and i kick myself for not getting another 5 or so bricks

[shah82]

Now shu, one should probably get tongs of the stuff. Those are still somewhat cheap. Good Menghai shu from DTH, say from 2007, are still low enough that a tong isn't a forbidden idea.

Of course, if you don't like shu...

[nickE]

I have this tea as well and wish i had more! I bout it from puerh shope a few years back for only $13. Now it is quite pricey stuff and i kick myself for not getting another 5 or so bricks

Yeah, that was definitely a good deal. YS is charging $30 for it now.

Today I'm drinking scraps of EoT's Manmai that fell off the cake. Maybe a little more bitterness than usual due to the broken leaf, but exquisite nonetheless.

[nickE]

Sampling a cake of YS 2010 Big Snow Mountain (Yongde) today.

Great mouth/throat feel and tingling bitterness that stays in the mouth. The flavor is not overly complex or anything, but it is floral and overall quite enjoyable. YS is charging $16/250g which is a decent deal IMO. Good mix of leaves too: a few buds, some huangpian, mostly whole tea leaves.

Feeling some nice qi from this!

[bearsbearsbears]

Drinking the 2009 Lancang Ancient Tea Co. 0081 cake today at work. It is, as I expected, a good choice for the office. Forgiving and easy to drink, if monotone.

Yesterday was a blend of young sheng pu samples I mixed together, mostly from Puerhshop. Better blended than they were apart, for sure!

[iannon]

2002 Xiaguan "Jia Ji Tuo" Raw Pu-erh.. found it in a store locally..same thing looks like the sell over at YS. i am a Pu Noob so ..im exploring. anyone else had this?

[Marco]

2002 Xiaguan "Jia Ji Tuo" Raw Pu-erh.. found it in a store locally..same thing looks like the sell over at YS. i am a Pu Noob so ..im exploring. anyone else had this?

I have one of these
And I have to say I really like it - just tried once but it is worth its price.
For me it has a touch of wood and some smoke. It is mild and pleasant. And it makes really thirsthy
Curious to hear your thoughts about it.

ciao
Marco

[iannon]

2002 Xiaguan "Jia Ji Tuo" Raw Pu-erh.. found it in a store locally..same thing looks like the sell over at YS. i am a Pu Noob so ..im exploring. anyone else had this?

I have one of these
And I have to say I really like it - just tried once but it is worth its price.
For me it has a touch of wood and some smoke. It is mild and pleasant. And it makes really thirsthy
Curious to hear your thoughts about it.

ciao
Marco

well i liked the OTTI ones more..but i know they were also higher quality. its okaaay. although I am really new to pu and dont have much experience to speak of. my normal tastes run to greener oolongs

[nickE]

2002 Xiaguan "Jia Ji Tuo" Raw Pu-erh.. found it in a store locally..same thing looks like the sell over at YS. i am a Pu Noob so ..im exploring. anyone else had this?

With a Xiaguan (non-FT release), it's definitely going to be harsh/rough, especially if its been dry stored. I wouldn't expect too much out of it.

Speaking of mediocre tea, just had a session with the 2007 HLH Bulang. It was just plain bad today; no redeeming qualities. Maybe a slight fruitiness, but there is no mouthfeel, lots of astringency and a not-so-pleasing bitterness that I picked up on.

Shah: I recently saw you talking about Gushu "magic" and I think I get your meaning. When I'm drinking something that is real wild arbor/old tree, there is just something about it that keeps me drinking. It is even enjoyable well past when most of the flavor is gone. I think this is the real value of Gushu.

[Marco]

2002 Xiaguan "Jia Ji Tuo" Raw Pu-erh.. found it in a store locally..same thing looks like the sell over at YS. i am a Pu Noob so ..im exploring. anyone else had this?

With a Xiaguan (non-FT release), it's definitely going to be harsh/rough, especially if its been dry stored. I wouldn't expect too much out of it.

Speaking of mediocre tea, just had a session with the 2007 HLH Bulang. It was just plain bad today; no redeeming qualities. Maybe a slight fruitiness, but there is no mouthfeel, lots of astringency and a not-so-pleasing bitterness that I picked up on.

The Xiaguan Puerhs I tried have not been harsh at all. And there have been younger ones among them. And this one was really mild. Not comparable to the OTTI ones as ianoon mentioned. But it is cheap and really good for this price.
The HLH ones I tried are more on the harsh side - especially if they are young.
Seems to be a matter of company stile. Am I right on this?

Today I try some unknown PuErhs. I will be told which one they are when I am through. Nice blind-tasting.

[argus]

2009 Mengku Ancient Rhyme Sheng

Really hits the spot on a cold evening, thoroughly warming the body. Bitterness is quite subdued for an 09 and the cake itself is a beautiful one