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Dry leaves dark and smell syrupy and fruity. Reminds me a bit of a heicha I’ve had. SO thinks it smells like coffee beans. I do a rinse and then a steep.

First steep tastes kind of coffee-like and a bit of smoke. There is a bit of sour stonefruit in there for me. I am again reminded of that heicha. SO gets vegetal, which she’s not a fan of. She also picks up on the smoke, which she doesn’t like in tea. Roasty notes are there, but I’m not really getting chestnut.

The smell of the liquor transforms after the first steep. I honestly don’t really have the words to fully describe the smell or flavor that I get from this point on. It is drying on the back of the tongue and throat. There is definitely some camphor, some tobacco and there is a nice, focusing cha qi that I was definitely not expecting.

Of course, this is not a true puerh, and I wish that there was more information about it, but since Butiki is no longer around, all I’ve got to go on is what was posted here. All-in-all, this has been a very interesting experience that I will have to further explore in the future!

Another that I got from Haveteawilltravel.

Dry leaves smell roasted with a hint of sweetness, carries over into liquor, which is a nice deep red.

Sweet, roasty. Deep earthy sweet scent clings to cup. First sip of the second steep has a bit of bitterness, followed by nuttiness, like eating a walnut. The next couple of steeps come with a pretty stone-fruity aftertaste that lingers for a good while.

This was pretty good, and as far as I can tell, Nepali no longer has this on their site, so I’m glad we were able to try it!

I knew I was going to need something a bit spicy that I could steep a big mug of to keep me warm for a while this morning, so I stole some of this from the SO’s housemates. I wouldn’t buy it, but it served its purpose!

I feel like I must just be preparing this wrong. Trying it today, it was basically the same experience as the first time I had it. I don’t know if it’s me or the tea, but I don’t think I’ll be bothering with this one again.

Can I just say the UX on this site leaves a lot to be desired? There is no reason for me to have lost as many notes as I have…

That being said…this was my first puerh and this was the last of it. I was looking for something to mindlessly drink and warm up with until lunch yesterday, so figured it was a good chance to finish this stuff off. Threw a ball into the gaiwan, did a fairly long rinse and then steeped. The liquor was still pretty light and fishy, so it probably needed more rinsing. Second steep was darky, with a more deep, sweet aroma, and it tasted better, as well. Earth and mushroom notes got pulled out during the few steeps I did, but this didn’t deliver on flavor very long.

All-in-all, I appreciate this tea for introducing me to puerh, which I have already gone much farther (and better) with, and still have much farther to go.

SO’s request this morning was something to help her wake up, and she often drinks coffee as well as tea most days, so I figured now was a good time to try this. LP threw this in with our last order, so thanks to him, as always!

This is my first time having tea blended with coffee. The dry blend smells like coffee, but I can also smell the nuttiness of the tea leaves. Poured 14 grams into my Ingenuitea and nearly filled it with 90C water. I’ve basically just been using the thing for waste water, so it’s a thing I decided to scrub the tea stains out of the thing last night. It’s all nice and clean and fresh for us today.

It’s interesting watching the leaves unfurl since I use a gaiwan most days now. The liquor of the first steep is quite light, which initially makes me wonder if it needs more time.

According to the SO, who is the coffee drinker between us, this smells like a medium roast coffee. It also smells nutty and roasty, not surprisingly, and it has a creamy texture.
It tastes “like tea and coffee had a baby.” With milk. Overall it’s quite light and quite enjoyable.

The second steep actually ends up split, as SO isn’t ready for it yet, so I take some first. It comes out darker and the flavors come through with a bit more strength and I get some earthiness and a stronger sense of the tea and the coffee being blended together. So doesn’t take hers until a few minutes later, so it’s even darker, and I take a sip of it and it’s stronger, as well. I feel the caffeine really hard after this steep, and now my head is swimming, so I don’t know that this is one I can physically drink much of.

All-in-all, I enjoyed this one and it was a unique experience, but I will have to drink it in much smaller amounts it seems!

I promised to drink a black tea that morning, so we dug into the samples from Upton and this was the one we were most likely to both enjoy.

The dry blend smells very nice, the spices seem fresh and strong, and the resulting cup doesn’t fail to deliver on that. The liquor comes out dark and strong without too much bitterness, but the tastes are concentrated enough that we do decide to add a splash of almond milk and a couple of drops of honey, which helps even it out nicely.

Overall, I think we were both able to enjoy it, but it wasn’t particularly memorable, so we’ll try some different ways of preparing it with what we’ve got left.

Sweet chocolatey aroma and a nice, rich taste to match. The cocoa and nuts really stand out in this. Great choice to end the evening on, and I’ll have to give it a more dedicated solo session soon.

Having a session with mom and the SO. Both of their first time trying this one.

First steep has a strong cocoa flavor for me. Second steep does, as well, along with some hints of coffee. Funny, the SO says it tastes like mineral water, she’s mad that it tastes like no other puerh she’s had so far. Mom is picking up on a bit of coffee but doesn’t have much more to say. Both of them are feeling the qi, though, as am I.

SO doesn’t really like the taste, but mom likes it for the qi, as this is her first time feeling it. It’s got us all nice and relaxed, so I have no complaints.