Official Pu of the day

[Salsero]

am I wrong?

Indeed you are!

I'd love to have a cake called "Gathering of Heros," but I don't.

I am getting a little frustrated with all the spellings of that company in English.

• Yunnian
  Yuan Nian
  Yuen Nian

I suppose Scott is using the correct Pinyin transliteration, Yuan Nian for Long Ago Tea Company. That is, if they are really all the same company!

[thanks]

am I wrong?

Indeed you are!

I'd love to have a cake called "Gathering of Heros," but I don't.

I am getting a little frustrated with all the spellings of that company in English.

• Yunnian
  Yuan Nian
  Yuen Nian

I suppose Scott is using the correct Pinyin transliteration, Yuan Nian for Long Ago Tea Company. That is, if they are really all the same company!

It's extra funny because I've contemplated ordering it when I order next from Scott because of the name and buzz alone.

[puerhking]

am I wrong?

Indeed you are!

I'd love to have a cake called "Gathering of Heros," but I don't.

I am getting a little frustrated with all the spellings of that company in English.

• Yunnian
  Yuan Nian
  Yuen Nian

I suppose Scott is using the correct Pinyin transliteration, Yuan Nian for Long Ago Tea Company. That is, if they are really all the same company!

Lol! I know someone else got that cake.......perhaps it was PolyhymnianMuse. I have to say that the Gathering of Heros was my least favorite of the six I got even though it looks pretty. It just did not have much going on. I think whoever else got it thought the same thing. I would recommend the Yiwu, 8848 and the #4. I have not tried the Jiang Cheng. My two cents.

[shogun89]

am I wrong?

Indeed you are!

I'd love to have a cake called "Gathering of Heros," but I don't.

I am getting a little frustrated with all the spellings of that company in English.

• Yunnian
  Yuan Nian
  Yuen Nian

I suppose Scott is using the correct Pinyin transliteration, Yuan Nian for Long Ago Tea Company. That is, if they are really all the same company!

I would recommend the Yiwu, 8848 and the #4. I have not tried the Jiang Cheng. My two cents.

Would you consider a tong of any of them or maybe just a few of each?

[puerhking]

Would you consider a tong of any of them or maybe just a few of each?

I would consider tongs of the 8848 and #4 because they seemed to have bolder flavors and had more compression...especially #4. I would of course recommend basing this on personal evidence. I wonder if the tongs are traditionally wrapped in bamboo under that paper?

[PolyhymnianMuse]

am I wrong?

Indeed you are!

I'd love to have a cake called "Gathering of Heros," but I don't.

I am getting a little frustrated with all the spellings of that company in English.

• Yunnian
  Yuan Nian
  Yuen Nian

I suppose Scott is using the correct Pinyin transliteration, Yuan Nian for Long Ago Tea Company. That is, if they are really all the same company!

Lol! I know someone else got that cake.......perhaps it was PolyhymnianMuse. I have to say that the Gathering of Heros was my least favorite of the six I got even though it looks pretty. It just did not have much going on. I think whoever else got it thought the same thing. I would recommend the Yiwu, 8848 and the #4. I have not tried the Jiang Cheng. My two cents.

The only ones out of the 5 that scott has that I have are the Yiwu and the #4. I'll get back to you on the other 2 cakes that I purchased from yuan nian when I figure out what they are. I'm trying the yiwu right now actually. Here's what I think... This cake was pretty easy to break apart.

2007 Yuan Nian * Yi Wu Mountain * Pu-erh tea cake 357g
Quick Rinse
~8g in 140ml (I did the weighing out method that Sal suggested and it turns out my pot is 140 right on the dot, of course thats just with water in it)

40s, 1min, 2min, 4mins - Aroma of the leaf was a bit earthy and I also noticed the smell you might get of wet mossy wood. Nothing too strong, nothing off though either which is always good, just kind of light. The smell has a very clean and fresh quality to it. Color was a bit orange. I'm interested in how it will turn out with more age.

Astringency- none
Smoke- none
Dryness- just a little bit, the back of my throat is noticeably dry
Mouthfeel- Pretty light
Hui gan- At first this tea seemed to me like nothing more than really clean fresh water... but you wait just a little bit and there is this amazing sweetness that comes on and lasts a long time.
Flavor- Just a hint of that pu'erh taste. The most memorable thing is the sweet after taste. Later infusions introduced a nice cooling sensation in my mouth.
Overall value - This cake is $10 on the ebay store, $42.79 for a tong of 7 cakes if you email scott directly.
Purchase again - I would love a tong, will probably order at least another cake or two for storage to see where it goes.

And also...

2007 Yuan Nian * #4 Raw Recipe Cake * Pu-erh tea * 357g
Quick Rinse
~8g in 140ml

35s, 50s, 90s, 2mins - This cake is compressed a lot more and was harder to break apart. The leaves had a malty aroma to them much like a black tea would have, although not as strong. This sheng was also quite a dark shade of orange for being only a year old.

Astringency- very little
Smoke- a hint, more-so in later infusions
Dryness- just on the front of my tongue at first, as I went through the session it spread through my entire mouth. It was light though, nothing unenjoyable.
Mouthfeel- Light, but savory like how hot chocolate would be.
Hui gan- Comes on slowly, gets really strong in later infusions and carries for a while. Amazing!
Flavor- I like this one, it has good flavor without having an overpowering smokiness or off flavor. It has a nice balance right now but ageing to mellow a bit of the smoke would be wonderful.
Overall value - This cake is $9 on the ebay store, $39.71 for a tong of 7 cakes if you email scott directly.
Purchase again - I am strongly considering buying a tong of this one, not only for the taste but the cost. Even with the shipping for china it would be worth it to have this one to try after a couple years of ageing, and sample along the way.

P.S. I hope I'll be able to pick up more yuan nian cakes down the road. They seem to be made of good quality leaf and look really nice. What was the companies first year of production?

[Goose]

[shogun89]

am I wrong?

Indeed you are!

I'd love to have a cake called "Gathering of Heros," but I don't.

I am getting a little frustrated with all the spellings of that company in English.

• Yunnian
  Yuan Nian
  Yuen Nian

I suppose Scott is using the correct Pinyin transliteration, Yuan Nian for Long Ago Tea Company. That is, if they are really all the same company!

Lol! I know someone else got that cake.......perhaps it was PolyhymnianMuse. I have to say that the Gathering of Heros was my least favorite of the six I got even though it looks pretty. It just did not have much going on. I think whoever else got it thought the same thing. I would recommend the Yiwu, 8848 and the #4. I have not tried the Jiang Cheng. My two cents.

The only ones out of the 5 that scott has that I have are the Yiwu and the #4. I'll get back to you on the other 2 cakes that I purchased from yuan nian when I figure out what they are. I'm trying the yiwu right now actually. Here's what I think... This cake was pretty easy to break apart.

2007 Yuan Nian * Yi Wu Mountain * Pu-erh tea cake 357g
Quick Rinse
~8g in 140ml (I did the weighing out method that Sal suggested and it turns out my pot is 140 right on the dot, of course thats just with water in it)

40s, 1min, 2min, 4mins - Aroma of the leaf was a bit earthy and I also noticed the smell you might get of wet mossy wood. Nothing too strong, nothing off though either which is always good, just kind of light. The smell has a very clean and fresh quality to it. Color was a bit orange. I'm interested in how it will turn out with more age.

Astringency- none
Smoke- none
Dryness- just a little bit, the back of my throat is noticeably dry
Mouthfeel- Pretty light
Hui gan- At first this tea seemed to me like nothing more than really clean fresh water... but you wait just a little bit and there is this amazing sweetness that comes on and lasts a long time.
Flavor- Just a hint of that pu'erh taste. The most memorable thing is the sweet after taste. Later infusions introduced a nice cooling sensation in my mouth.
Overall value - This cake is $10 on the ebay store, $42.79 for a tong of 7 cakes if you email scott directly.
Purchase again - I would love a tong, will probably order at least another cake or two for storage to see where it goes.

And also...

2007 Yuan Nian * #4 Raw Recipe Cake * Pu-erh tea * 357g
Quick Rinse
~8g in 140ml

35s, 50s, 90s, 2mins - This cake is compressed a lot more and was harder to break apart. The leaves had a malty aroma to them much like a black tea would have, although not as strong. This sheng was also quite a dark shade of orange for being only a year old.

Astringency- very little
Smoke- a hint, more-so in later infusions
Dryness- just on the front of my tongue at first, as I went through the session it spread through my entire mouth. It was light though, nothing unenjoyable.
Mouthfeel- Light, but savory like how hot chocolate would be.
Hui gan- Comes on slowly, gets really strong in later infusions and carries for a while. Amazing!
Flavor- I like this one, it has good flavor without having an overpowering smokiness or off flavor. It has a nice balance right now but ageing to mellow a bit of the smoke would be wonderful.
Overall value - This cake is $9 on the ebay store, $39.71 for a tong of 7 cakes if you email scott directly.
Purchase again - I am strongly considering buying a tong of this one, not only for the taste but the cost. Even with the shipping for china it would be worth it to have this one to try after a couple years of ageing, and sample along the way.

P.S. I hope I'll be able to pick up more yuan nian cakes down the road. They seem to be made of good quality leaf and look really nice. What was the companies first year of production?

First let me way those are some great reviews you provided us with! Well done!! The #4 sounds very good. It sounds as if it is like a 8582 or a similar menghai blend. I am highly considering buying a tong of this. I dont know quite just yet. 2500 grams of tea for about $70 including shipping is an amazing deal. I may also just get 2 of each cake but then I wouldn't have the pleasure of a tong. . . . Iwonder why they are soo cheap. . .?

[shogun89]

Just contacted Scott and he says he'll ship a tong for $60. Sounds like a great deal but maybe a little too good. Its a very tough decision. Taking a gable on this could result in a great deal or a bunch of sucky tea. I dont know what to do!

[Manatoa]

A 2000 vintage Mengku brick bought from DTH a few years ago. If I recall correctly it was intended for the Tibetan market. The face of the brick looks really nice but beneath the surface is nothing but dust and fannings. Brewed gongfu style it clogs pots and creates the most horrible bitter and rubbery soup more suited to tanning leather than to human consumption.

Brewed up with 5.5g in 12 oz Chatsford, rinsed twice and steeped for 1 minute with 180F water it's actually really nice. It still has warning hints of ku, but there's a thick sweet huigan in the mouth and throat. Flavours of leather and plum linger in my mouth with only a hint tire swing There's a nice warming qi as well.

I seriously contemplated composting this brick until I tried brewing it occidental style. Now I wish I could get more. It might even age well. I think the above method might work well with Baoyan bricks.

Cameron

[Manatoa]

Just contacted Scott and he says he'll ship a tong for $60. Sounds like a great deal but maybe a little too good. Its a very tough decision. Taking a gable on this could result in a great deal or a bunch of sucky tea. I dont know what to do!

I'd go with less tea that you know for sure you'll like. Buy $60 with shipping of the '08 8582. If you don't have much of a tea budget it's always best to go with what you know. Resist the urge to buy "budget" tea. You can always include a sample cake in your order.

Though you may not like to hear it, I'd really avoid buying a tong of anything at this point. Get a few cakes that you like for now, pick up a summer job, and then go nuts! If you're not buying to age, getting large quantities of any one cake is a bad call. Always keep in mind that a cake is 3/4 of a pound of tea and you'll be drinking it for a while. A tong is a year's drinking for me.

Cameron

[tony shlongini]

'07 Xiaguan gold ribbon tuo.

Nice, but not nearly as concentrated as some of the Fei Tai branded tuos- Xi Zi, Nan Zhou, or the 250g Jin cha.

[PolyhymnianMuse]

Just contacted Scott and he says he'll ship a tong for $60. Sounds like a great deal but maybe a little too good. Its a very tough decision. Taking a gable on this could result in a great deal or a bunch of sucky tea. I dont know what to do!

I'd go with less tea that you know for sure you'll like. Buy $60 with shipping of the '08 8582. If you don't have much of a tea budget it's always best to go with what you know. Resist the urge to buy "budget" tea. You can always include a sample cake in your order.

Though you may not like to hear it, I'd really avoid buying a tong of anything at this point. Get a few cakes that you like for now, pick up a summer job, and then go nuts! If you're not buying to age, getting large quantities of any one cake is a bad call. Always keep in mind that a cake is 3/4 of a pound of tea and you'll be drinking it for a while. A tong is a year's drinking for me.

Cameron

I have to agree. If you were buying blindly the only thing I would really go for bulk with would be your more famous recipes. Of course the cake we were talking about is very good and I personally will be buying a tong of it (for ageing, I'd say I'd give it a try after 2-3 years storage), you may not enjoy it at all and thats just the nature of pu, and much of everything else. I would say pick up a cake, its cheap and if you like it you are that much more sure of it

You could also go this route...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Yuan-Nian-Tea-Compa ... m153.l1262

I'm sure if you emailed scott direct he could give it to you a bit cheaper, but you get a sample of each cake

[shogun89]

I appreciate all of your opinions. I am still trying to decide on it. I did ask Scott what he thought about it compared to the 8582 and he said like the 8582 it has a strong balanced flavor but it contains better leaves and he thinks it will age better. So I guess one reason I am following this cake so much is the fact that it has the potential of beating out one of my favorite cakes, and for the price that is amazing, so I guess thats why I am willing to take the risk. Also I was thinking if I dont like it myself I could always sell it off to others here in the us for like $15 which gives me a profit but is cheaper than someone buying one cake. I just dread the thought of getting a sample cake to try and find myself loving it and going back to order a tong to find it all gone.

[tony shlongini]

'08 Menghai 8582 (801)

Racy, vibrant, and almost head spinning at first, it settles down (a bit) by the fourth or fifth infusion. Definately one to lay down, but fun to drink, chock full of bright high notes.