New to Pu-Erh Tea, need help!

One of the intentionally aged teas, Pu-Erh has a loyal following.

May 13th, '25, 11:21
Posts: 1
Joined: May 13th, '25, 11:17

New to Pu-Erh Tea, need help!

by ptrckrggs » May 13th, '25, 11:21

Hey everyone, just getting into traditional tea and really leaning towards very dark tea... So naturally, I want to try Pu-erh! Below is my CONFUSED experience...

TL;DR: tried Pu-erh from local shop and I can't smell or taste anything exciting about this batch... Just smooth muddy leaf water. IDK what I'm doing wrong, help!

I went to my local tea room, and they talked me through some stuff and let me smell a bunch of tea. And I couldn't smell ANYTHING on their Pu-erh ($13.50/ oz (28g) )... I still have a small sample to try at home, thinking my nose was too confused by the other tea's aroma.

I get home and can't smell anything... And then I (western) brew a cup (212°F for 2 min)... and it's not BAD... But it doesn't have any distinctive flavors... just tastes like earthy leaf water! 2nd (3 min) and 3rd (5 min) brews didn't help either...
Am I missing something?? Did I get a bad batch, or am I just messing something up? Any help would be great!!