If you are new to pu er. Or have tried pu er and just… can’t… STOP! And try this one. For starters, you don’t need to break this one up with a knife. And second, there is no worry about fishy aromas or flavors. The only thing that may bother you is that this tea has been sitting in a tangerine for three years. BUT that is exactly what makes a good pu er. Time. Granted each is different. Citrus and tea has to be found in certain categories and done in a certain way (in my opinion). Rooibos and pu er, yes. Green, nope. But then again it also depends on the producer. Sorry, I’m rambling.
Be sure to rinse the ball once before consuming. Heat your water and give is a good wash for a few seconds, making sure it enters and exits the top and bottom through the leaves. This helps remove dust and whatnot as well as helping to wake up the leaves. Obviously, the tangerine will play the keynotes on this palate piano. They are strong and somewhat reminiscent of camphor with the zingy spearminty feeling it leaves. But you will also find earthy notes of dry leaf and dirt. Good dirt. Out of curiosity (and about 6 sessions) I peeled away the tangerine and left the tea in my gaiwan. Even without the peel present, the hygroscopic properties of tea show their finest with the very forward tangerine notes still very strong. However, I am not discovering a bit of the leaf notes that were harder to discern before. The cloudy dark liquor reveals notes of deep earth, tropical barks, and far north pinewoods and mahogany to finish.
