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Revisiting this 2006 DXS Yongde maocha pressed in 2013. The dry leaves are thick, large, whole and vibrant with a clean and crisp scent (raisin-like but a tobacco smell comes through as well). The tea soup is a rich clear orange color and emits a sweet fruity aroma. A thick soup coats the mouth and provides nice mouth activity. A tart grapefruit taste comes through with a sweetness that serves to balance the tartness. A light bitterness builds up after several cups but takes little away from the overall sweetness of the brew. This is nicely complex with good qi. Floral and sweet taste but for me the lingering aftertaste is the best part of this very special tea. This is almost as good as one of my favorite shengs, the 2009 Yongde DXS from Finepuer (unfortunately now sold out).

I have an interest in bamboo puerh teas because the method of production is so intriguing – fill sections of bamboo with tea leaves and then steam, roast, dry and age in the bamboo. The bamboo is reported to provide a unique sweetness to the leaves. I am able to appreciate the process by looking at this photo of a farmer making bamboo puerh: http://www.michaelfreemanphoto.com/-/galleries/the-galleries/countries/asia-australasia/china/yunnan/-/medias/ed820fb8-090f-11e0-bee4-852ca0e067a1-bamboo-tea?gallery=b6bf0ad4-0192-11e3-99e7-2bf391fc38b8&hit_num=1&hits=2&page=1&per_page=50&search=bamboo&search_in_gallery=1
The scent of this YiWu dry leaf is sweet with an interesting spicy note. The tea soup is deep dark gold in color. The wet leaves are whole and nearly 2 inches in length. The tongue and mouth feel alive and tingly after the first few sips. The initial taste sensations are earthy and spicy. The honey-like sweetness works well with a light woodiness. A bit of astringency is found in later infusions but not at all off-putting. Interestingly, I did not detect any remaining smokiness in the smell or taste. These leaves produce cup after cup of highly flavored sweet mellow tea. Multi-layered – sweet and woody with a light spiciness. This is a very approachable raw puerh.

Surprisingly unusual complexity found in this brick. The tea highlights the beauty of the leaf in repeated brews with full body and strong fragrances. Bold and flavorful is the best way to describe my overall impression of this tea. Clarity is found in the mahogany colored liquor. Built upon a base of musty wood as are many shu puerh but there is so much more here. Very smooth with a lovely berry sweetness. The taste of camphor is definitely found throughout the session and a light tangy citrus note comes forward in the 3rd or fourth infusion. There is clearly a bit of smoky tobacco in both the scent and taste but this subtle feature actually enriches the overall impact of the tea in a very positive way. (And I say that as one who is not particularly fond of smokiness in my teas.) The duration is on the shorter side with solid flavor throughout 6-7 infusions before thinning. Produced by the original Kunming Factory per Yunnan Sourcing. Carefully aged in the dry environment of Kunming. This is a wonderful example of a dry stored shu with nice age on it. Overall we have a sweet woody mouth feel with a mellow, sweet aftertaste that builds over a series of infusions. The flavor profile features notes of wet earth, wood, tobacco, berries, camphor and smoke all working together so very well. This blend is definitely done right and it is a very fine tea!

This is my second day with a Xi Kong from Yunnan Sourcing which I purchased due to an older tasting note found on Hobbes’ blog. I enjoy both Manzhuan and Yi Bang shengs (from Mengla County of Xishuangbanna) and Xi Kong is located between these two so I was quite confident about my interest in Xi Kong teas. Even though it is from an autumnal harvest, it is powerful and full of character. Beautiful whole dry leaves yield a fresh grass scent. The dark gold tea soup has a pungent aroma with hints of flowers and fruit. The sip has an enticing mix of fruity sweetness and malted wheat grain with the occasional hint of bitterness thrown in to catch you off guard. Solid endurance (11 infusions so far). I think this was a good purchase decision for I do love this tea.
Note: as suggested, I did increase my leaf amount by about a third since this is from an autumn harvest.

Spent the day with this one – a great selection using fine material from the Hekai tea producing area. Fragrant dry leaves which produce a clear tea soup – dark bronze in color moving toward orange. Thick syrupy mouthfeel with an appealing blend of tobacco, wood, citrus and molasses flavors. This is a rather interesting flavor profile which is noticeably smooth and mellow. All in all this is a great full-bodied, complex sheng and it holds up nicely for many enjoyable infusions. Today I steeped at 195 degrees but I think I’ll push the temperature to 205 degrees when I go back to these leaves tomorrow.

Easy drinker! Smooth and sweet. Great flavor. Nice rich smell – rather aromatic straight out of the wrapper. Beautiful cake. Easy to pick apart for brewing (mix of pieces and whole leaves). Yields a clear orange liquor with a penetrating taste without any smokiness. Offers a decent mouthfeel but it is slightly drying/astringent. Endearing notes of floral and fruity sweetness with a subtle amount of bitterness in the background. If I had to criticize something, it would be the modest longevity – 7 to 8 enjoyable cups before it becomes thin. Seems to be a solid tea for its current price of $49.50.

Drinking this now and I dare to say that I am really enjoying it! Jinggu is an area for tea leaves with which I am not terribly experienced or familiar. The main thing I know is that the Jinggu area has many mountains and villages producing high quality teas (many from older tea trees). The aroma of the dry leaves is clearly aged – mostly whole (rather large) leaves with a few stems mixed in. The tea soup is dark orange, with a hint of savory brown in its color. The texture is thick – smooth on the lips and filling the mouth with vibrancy on the tongue. Overall, there is an enjoyable mild bitterness but it is also quite sweet to the point of being nicely balanced; active in the mouth and throat; nice warming effect; lingering pleasant aftertaste.

Update: Three days later and still working with these same leaves. On the 12th infusion and steeping for 25 seconds. The leaves still have more to give.

This is a nice looking cake full of large whole leaves – there is some serious content locked into these leaves. Age has darkened the color to a deep brown. Two quick rinses to wash and awaken the tea leaves and we’re ready to be impressed……. The soup color is a mature orange tone and both floral and wood fragrances come forward. A smooth thick tea soup that presents a gentle rather complex mix of fruit (berry-like), honey, nuts and camphor. This mix of flavor sensations feels quite refined and pure and light with a lingering rich mouth feel. This is an enjoyable tea and it has it all - taste, mouthfeel, lingering aftertaste, energy and endurance. The discovery of a well aged cake such as this makes me very happy!

The raw material in this cake is from ancient, wild trees (800-1000 years old) on Wuliang mountain and the possibilities drew me to the tea. I was not disappointed. The leaves brew a lovely clear liquor and the wet leaves smell powerfully sweet, fruity and complex. The first brew is reasonably thick with a very interesting fruity sweetness – no bitterness or astringency detected. Some Wuliangs I have had before revealed smoke in the flavor profile but fortunately I did not find that in this tea. The strong sweetness is the main feature here – sweetness mixed with spice and citrus suggesting the healthy characteristics of the trees and environment from which it comes. Rather full in the mouth with nice, gentle, but long activity on the tongue promoting a lubricated mouth feel with a persistent warmth. An interesting “wild” tea – sweet, soft, lovely in its gentle aroma. The stamina of the tea is quite good but later steepings became a little thin in taste for me so I did not push the tea past 9 steeps. The tea’s primary taste is rounded and smooth – some people might say that it is too smooth but I found a strength of character which provides the tea drinker with interesting and complex textures. I am definitely a fan!

Received a very generous sample of this shou in a recent YS order. 2007 raw material used to form this brick. Easier to pick apart than many I’ve had. Clear dark burgundy tea soup which gives off a mushroom sweet aroma. Very smooth from the very first sip with a flavor profile mixing creamy mushroom and brown sugar. No off-putting fermentation smells or tastes to distract from the rich tea flavors. Decent longevity which provided me with eight enjoyable infusions. Currently $27 which seems like a decent price for a brick of this age and quality. Seems to be a solid shou for everyday drinking.