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This is an excellent little number from pu-re.sk. It is very similar to the famed 9016 from 1995, also from the same purveyor, only it costs about one tenth as much. It is stout, slightly musty in the best way, and tastes of burnt coffee. It is hearty, I got close to 10 steeps of dark coffee brew, and could have gotten a bunch more that were light but flavorful. I gave up before the tea did. There is a 2003 version which I will try next.

All in all, it lacks some of the depth and complexity of the 9016, but it is a nice little gem. I just checked the website and the 9016 is no longer there. Looks like I got one of the last ones. Lucky me! Anyway, these are well priced tuos that are interesting and good.

Seems apropos to review this tea after trying the 1995 puer.sk ripe tuo. The two teas have a quite similar flavor profile: burnt coffee, bitter chocolate, and perfume, with a slightly woodsy background. They both brew up dark and deep. The white tuo is quite good, but just for comparison purposes, it is not quite as beefy or smooth, and doesn’t have much of a huigan, though it does have some. This is a very good tea, especially for the price. It also has a bit more caffeine. A solid performer.

“One shu to rule them all!”

That’s what I was led to believe by reading a blog post on this shu from the prolific pu erh blogger, Hobbes. He said he thought this tea sets the standard by which good shu should be judged. Them is strong words.

This really is a super tea. The first 5 steeps were thick and dark. It has just enough to of that old bookcase flavor to make it interesting, yet not overpowering. This shu has huigan that you can really taste if you are looking out for it, minty and mentholy, but again, not overpowering. There are hints of chocolate and perfume. It is not sweet. Absolutely no fermentation flavor, it is quite smooth. Just a wonderful flavor.

I took this tea through perhaps a dozen steeps this morning, all for about 10 seconds or so. The first six were very thick, the second six were less so, but still had plenty of flavor. All of these steeps were dark as coffee. When my hand began to shake after reaching for the 12th steep, I called it quits for the time being. The stimulation, or qi, is very nice. I feel wide awake and aware, but it is also gentle.

I’m going to go after this some more later or tomorrow. I bet I’m less than halfway through. I bet I can get a lot more from this shu. This tea has power.

I wish I could afford a tong of this, but it is 139 euros for 250g. I’m really glad to have some of it, and they do have samples available. Keep in mind that this tea brews perhaps twice as much per gram as an average shu, so it is actually not as expensive as it seems. The proprietor was very generous, and threw in a free handmade teacup with my order! And not a cheap one, it was an expensive one that I absolutely love.

I wonder what this tasted like when it was young? I wonder if any of my shus will turn out like this when they are 20 years old?

Update
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So I went back for a second round, and it lost a lot of its punch. These later steeps were light, but still had some good flavor. So I wouldn’t say it yields twice as much tea, necessarily, though if you like those light steeps you could probably go on for quite a while.

What a nice middle aged tea. Thanks to Brenden for putting a sample of this into the TTB. It brews a deep amber color, with fairly thick body. The storage has been dry. It is not terribly complex, I’d say it is nice and basic. Early steeps have some smoke, which eventually clears. There is little bitterness or astringency, which is part of why the flavor is simple and straightforward. Later steeps are more on the fruity side. I got plenty of infusions out of it.

A very good tea. I think you need to use more tea than normal given the nugget compression factor. That being said, the tea brews up nice and smooth, with chocolatey fruity notes. It is a high quality shu.

This tea is very different from any pu erh I’ve tried. It is very interesting! And so different, that I really don’t know how to describe it. First, I will say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. It has a wonderful energy. My fingers and toes were tingling after the first cup. And I feel just very wide awake and present. I often judge a tea based on how it makes me feel, rather than analyzing the flavors, and this felt very nice. That being said, the first steep was just surprising. It was very bitter, with almost a charred type bitterness. At first I thought maybe the leaves got burned in processing, but this was not the case after seeing the leaves. It was a very different kind of bitterness than one usually finds in pu erh. The flavor was – I don’t know, just different. You just have to try it to see what it’s like. Today, me and my wife got through probably 10 steeps. The bitterness cleared after 3 or 4. The broth was a bright and deep gold. The flavor kept changing, it was a very dynamic tea. It just kept getting better, and I found it quite addicting. We are going to have more tomorrow, as I’m sure there are a few steeps left to go.

CL has some pictures of the wild giant trees in the forest from which this tea was picked. From such trees, I can see why it would be very different than a typical pu. This tea is expensive, but really cool to try.

This is a delightful shu. It reminds me of Mandala’s Special Dark. It is silky smooth and very rich. Small plantation leaves hold up to a good number of infusions. I look forward to aging some of this, and to buying more when it becomes available again.

I tried the shroom today. It was very interesting. After my first sipping, I thought it was very light and not very complex. I was sure I was going to be disappointed. But I really wanted another sip. And then another. I found it strangely addicting. It really grew on me. I think the addictive quality is a testament to the quality of the tea. The flavor got deeper and thicker, and it lasted a long while. It was bright and citrusy, with a perfect amount of bitterness. I enjoyed it very much.

An interesting little ripe cake I ordered from royal tea bay (their prices are better on Ali express than on eBay). It is quite smooth, but with mouth puckering astringency. Very much like a dry red wine. Moderately deep flavored. The 200g cake was tightly compressed, so it took a while to open up. Once it did, it was a respectable and interesting tea.

I ordered a sample of this tea because when Allan raves about a ripe and scores it at 100, I just have to try it. It is definitely a good tea. Typical Xiaguan profile, with prevalent smoky undertones. Quite clean tasting and smooth, with fruity tart-sweetness that holds out for a long while. Also offers a solid pick-me-up if you want a ripe pu with a kick. Xiaguan is not my favorite, so I will not be buying more, but I suspect Xiaguan lovers will enjoy this tea.