Ancient Shu Pu-erh Tuo Cha

I am brewing this up in the Yixing. I gave it a quick rinse. The first brew of about a minute was strong. This liquid is a purple red. The flavors intense and complex. It is a treat. Thank you Amy Oh for your kindness.

I’ve been holding these for two years, and I used a weird brewing process today (3 of these in a 32 oz teapot, three infusions) so this review might not generalize well. I rinsed these twice before brewing.

Musky and soil-like, with some coffee overtones and a hint of dark chocolate. The aftertaste is mild, with more dirt and a faint hint of caramel. Noticeably bitter, but at the same time it does have some of the pu-erh sweetness. As it sits and cools (or maybe as I get used to it,) the bitterness is subsiding and the sweetness is becoming more pronounced.

I’ve been experimenting with different brew settings for some time; today’s experiment was good but not the best. Similar settings once yielded a wonderful dark chocolate flavor — one the best pu-erh experiences I’ve had — but I haven’t been able to repeat it.

I’m normally a fan of oolong, but find myself compelled to explore – especially Pu-erh. Oolongs can have such varied and complex flavors and from what I’ve tasted so far, so can Pu-erh.

I have several older cakes I’d purchased a couple of years ago. One tastes fishy and the other like mushrooms. I love the one that tastes like mushrooms! Is it dorky if it reminds me of sitting in a dewy forest under mushroom umbrellas! (Shhh …) In looking for more similar to that, I purchased some of this Pu-erh Tuo Cha by Rishi.

The Pu-erh Tuo Cha cakes are dark and fairly hard. If I score with a knife I can break one in half with my fingers. The brew is inky dark with a little red. The taste is smooth, deep and almost smokey with a few notes of mocha. Not bitter, but it gets strong quickly.

If I search with my taste buds I can find just a hint of that mushroom taste. Perhaps this batch has a lot more aging to do. I think this is fairly “fresh” as it was purchased in Rishi’s new boxes instead of their old tins. I rather miss the tins, but understand. The box is 3.21 oz (91g) and contained about 12 cakes.

I didn’t feel a need to rinse first, but I’ll try that next time. Good for multiple infusions. Steep times varied with second and third steeping. I want to explore more Pu-erh!

As I read through earlier reviews some adjectives that others were using pretty much sum up this tea. People describing it as – fishy, seaweedy, murky and the like. I’ve tried this cake several times Gong Fu Cha and with different parameters to try to hone it in. It’s just a bit unruly for my liking. It really is murky and thick. I think it depends what you’re looking for in Pu’er. Fishy and murky generally don’t suit my tastes. This one takes several steepings to even start getting to something interesting and classic tasting.

Like it’s Sheng contemporary offered by Rishi I would be interested in seeing how this one ages but there really isn’t any reason to drink it right now in my opinion. With so many good and affordable alternatives out there I think this is one that I would maybe try once a year to see if it’s changed favorably. Nothing too special.

It had been a while since I had made our current lot. I had forgotten how great this batch is. This lot is made from many grades including some pu-erh palace. It has great complexity and very nice body. The leaf size is very small because it is made up of higher grades but delicious. I will put away my 2005 lot and enjoy this lot, now!

It has been a while since I have had one of these and I neglected to do a rinse before steeping. I picked up three or four of these at the bulk tea section of my Whole Foods, which also carries packages Tea Embassy tea as well. I live in a good place to be a tea lover! The first steeping was at under boiling water for two minutes and the taste was really bland. Second steeping was with boiling water for a minute. It is a little bitter, kinda earthy, but not very enjoyable. Third steep, boiling water. Maybe 20 seconds… much better. Fourth steep was for a minute. Tastes good, but not as delicious as I remember this tea tasting the last time I had it. By now I’m totally geeked out on caffeine and need to end this experiment before I get the jitters any worse! Learned a few lessons that I can look back on next time I’m in the mood for this tea, so that is a win.

This is my first real foray into the world of pu-erh!

I rinsed the puck with hot water for 10-15 seconds, and then steeped for about 30 seconds. For some reason, I didn’t expect the puck to fall apart so quickly. After a short amount of time, the tea was already dark like soy sauce, and I won’t lie, it smelled like fish.

The taste was malty, smooth, savory, and yes, a little bit like fish. The fishy taste subsided after the second infusion, and each subsequent brew was a little bit lighter and sweeter. I increased brew time slightly, but by the last infusion, I still only brewed for about 1 minute. Even the 6th cup was still a rich reddish mahogany color, but by then, the tea was losing its flavor and intensity.

Although my description might not sound too appealing, there is something mysterious and alluring about the smell and taste of this tea, and I enjoyed every sip. I loved smelling the earthy, savory aroma of the leaves between infusions. Drinking this tea is something to plan to do periodically throughout a whole day, as you have to do it justice by brewing at least 5 cups (even the 7th or 8th infusion would probably be pleasant). Other than that, I look forward to my next pu-erh day.

i am just starting to get into pu-erh and I figured this would be a good segway into it. At first, which steeping this tea smelled like kitty litter that was infused with caramel pieces. But, after it was done steeping, it just smelled earthy,keeping the caramel. My first infusion I made a little too weak- I think i added too much water in my teapot by accident. Oh well, live and learn, right? The liquor is a really dark amber color, almost coffee like. The tast was a bit bitter and earthy but the sweet overtones of dark chocolate and caramel worked nicely together on my palette. Overall, I like this tea, it isn’t super earthy, which is what I was expecting, I am pleasantly surprised with it.

I love Pu-erhs like this. Very creamy and earthy. Good for multiple steepings. Don’t use too much water at any one time to get everything out of this.

Great earthy smell. Full-bodied and lots of deep earthy flavors! This is probably the darkest tea I have seen. Looks like a cup of coffee. If placed next to drip coffee I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. A very excellent puerh tea. I would definitely buy this one again.