Well, the notes on the website state that this tea will hit maturity in 2010 and peak in 2015. I have enough to try it now, and then hopefully remember to try this four years from now. The dry leaves smell creamy and smooth (I love the smell of cooked Pu’erh), and they have a bit of spice in the aroma. I notice a few stems in amongst the leaves, but the leaves are quite prettily twisted and twirled.
Rinsed, then steeped in a gaiwan for 30 seconds, the wet leaves smell even more creamy, still with a bit of spice, a bit like a nice brandy in a way. The liquor is a very bright and clear amber colour. For what it is worth, this tea looks great. I pour the first cup and sip…and sip…and sip. This tea is great. The flavour profile is not very bold, but it is delicious in its own simple way. There is even a strange hint of sweetness in the background.
The second and third infusions go by quickly as I thoroughly enjoy the simplistic wonder of this tea. I highly recommend it and give it an 87/100 on my personal enjoyment scale.
See, a dragon hoards puerh for years.
+1 on Bonnie’s thought!
And I am Smaug, eh, Bonnie? :) Yes, I don’t have a pumidor but I am trying to keep my teas in suitable condition for them to age. I suspect they will take longer than if I had a special storage areas, but it is worth a try and will be interesting to see how they fare ten years down the line.
Your climate is actually not bad. Mine is too dry and mrmopars too humid without balancing it with the humidor. You are Smaug…but every good Scots tale needs a dragon and some scary ones turn out to be ok in the end (or I being Gandalf can change you into something else like a little fairy…ha ha). (This is all inside joking about a who are you in Lord of the Rings test we both took.)
If I am Smaug, does that mean that I am RuLong? That probably means ‘dirty dragon’ in Chinese, knowing my luck! :) I should test the atmosphere here and see what the humidity is. I know that the temperature will not be high enough, because we rarely have the central heating on, and when it is on, the thermostat is set to 15 degrees (59 Fahrenheit).
Burrr! It’s 10 Fahrenheit today….COLD! (Even colder at night) with snow…Arctic blast came rolling down. Great tea drinking weather. I started my day with a lapsang souchong from Angrboda. Already have the tree up and wreath over the fireplace. Snow days are for tea and cooking. Come on over!