Nannuoshan 2013

Sipdown (143)!

This was the last of my Nannuoshan samples; and again I’m sorry that I was a little bit late getting them all up.

Did a shorter Gong Fu session with this one in my CS Gaiwan when I got home from work. Not counting the short wash I did, I had three very nice infusions. I probably could have gotten a fourth, but it’s just past midnight now and I’m thinking I should probably stop drinking tea and go to bed soon. I keep yawning; and the caffeine from this is probably gonna kick in soon if I don’t fall asleep first – and that’d really mess up my sleep pattern.

What I did when drinking this one was take a whole bunch of jot notes, similar to what I did for the Hua Xiang Rou Gui from Nannuoshan, and then go back and kind of condense them and make them a little easier to read. So, these are my compounded thoughts from each infusion:

- 5 Sec. Smells very sweet & fresh; quite different from most Pu’Erh I’ve experienced. Strong notes of buttery spinach or green beans, kind of creamy. Floral finish. Just the tiniest bit astringent/bitter.

- 10 Sec. Buttery/Spinach Notes – Wondering if I jumped the steep time up a bit too much; this is a little more bitter/astringent that the first steep, though still not something I can’t handle. Floral with sugarcane and honey notes. A little bit woody. I keep expecting a musty/earthy taste which is what I’ve come to expect from most Pu’Erh but this is so much more different.

- 10 Sec. Finally identified the strong floral note I’ve been experiencing! It’s Lily! Fairly bitter; dry wood notes. Still kind of buttery/creamy, but not nearly as much spinach notes.

If I had continued with a fourth infusion, I don’t think I could have gone for the full 20 seconds like recommended; even ten was a little too much for me. Overall, I thought that while this was very different, it was really good. I’m not entirely sure if my ‘tea vocabulary’ is extensive enough to 100% convey what I was tasting – but hopefully I’ve done an apt job.

Thank you again Nannuoshan for all the samples! Of the four I requested, the Rougui was my favourite, though all of them were good and great learning experiences!

o Quantity: Full sample packet/ 110ml
o Water temperature: 100°C
o 5-7 infusions: 5-20 sec.

Stream of consciousness notes (ie. Don’t think too much, don’t care about grammar, just write what you are experiencing as you experience it)
o Dry leaf aroma: prunes, raisins, sharp sweetness, camphor is overshadowed by fruits, camphor notes are more prominent when aired out
2 sec wash
o Throat: camphor and then plums, faint hint of maple syrup, sugarcane sweetness
o Wet leaf aroma: prunes at the forefront and then a faint amount of camphor
o Liquor color: medium light tan – bit of red
o Liquor aroma: warm cream and honey first mixed with a faint amount of camphor, followed by a faint amount of prunes, sweetness is not sharp
o Taste: Incredibly mellow, notes of camphor hit first and then prunes, the overall sweetness that coats the mouth is from the honey and cream notes that are very faint. Medium body. Medium length. the camphor note lingers the longest and remains in the throat.

o Will do latter infusion notes at a later date. (My body is not used to young sheng as I typically consume it for medicinal purposes.)

o Final thoughts: This is the last tea that I tried from Nannuoshan. I am so incredibly grateful to have been given the opportunity to try such a vast variety. Thank you very much, Gabriele!

Thank you to Gabriele and nannuoshan for this sample. It’s such a generous one!

Gabriele sent eight teas to sample over the course of the next week and I am starting the day off with this one. Packed with the teas and all of my beautiful teaware was a typed note filled with personalized steeping recommendations for each of the teas I requested. For this particular one, it was recommended that I use the entire package in my gaiwan. This will be my first time ever to use a gaiwan so I have to admit that I’ve been nervous about it all morning. I’m so worried that my inexperience will somehow negatively influence the taste of this beautiful tea. I did watch a couple of videos earlier today and Gabriele directed me to some photos on Facebook that took me through the process. It seems so involved but also so much more of an experience.

The dry leaves of this tea are almost too pretty to take any further. They are long and lovely and smell so sweet! Most are dark like fresh-tilled earth; some are white and fuzzy with a coat like a Jack Russell terrier. Still others are bordering on shades of nude or wheat. They twist and curl at the ends like unmade corkscrews.

I told a friend last night that we had bought a gaiwan and he jokingly asked if that was the method where you just pour tea all over everything. I wasn’t sure what he meant but now I think I understand. I poured water over the leaves and immediately tipped the first infusion out over all of the pieces to warm them. I made a terrible mess, of course, but the tea tray seems to be well prepared for such a thing. The leaves are starting to unfurl and now have more of a savory aroma, something like spinach or turnip greens.

For my first true steep, I could not seem to get the water in fast enough to empty the gaiwan. By the time the water filled the vessel, the timer in my head was already at six seconds and I was rushing to get it into the pitcher before the bitterness set in. The color of the tea liquid is reminiscent of the flesh of a yellow peach. The sweetness has returned in both flavor and fragrance, but there is a trace of bitterness there which I know is my doing. I can also taste an underlying fruitiness, but the specific fruit is set on evading me. I’ve slowly been adding caffeine back into my diet (but only in the form of tea) and I can feel the effects here. It’s almost that feeling of having one cocktail too many, a wooziness in the head.

I completed five infusions total with each one gentler than the last. It was amazing to see the tea start as thin twists and over time open into full leaves. Toward the end, the leaves still carried their vegetal aroma. The liquid was also bitter through each steep, but not excessively so. Once I become accustomed to using the gaiwan I would like to try this one again. I think there is so much there that I was unable to tap into.

Infusions
4 ounces water + 212 degrees + 6 sec, 7 sec, 10 sec, 15 sec, 15 sec

Thanks a bunch to nannuoshan for this sample! The dry leaf is a nice mixture of green and gold. I only had enough sample for one session…about 6g. I rinsed the leaf twice at 5 seconds each and then steeped it for 5 seconds. Because of my gooseneck kettle, I was barely able to finish pouring the water over it at 5 seconds! You have to be quick!

The wet leaf smells like dried fruits! The liquor is a pretty amber color. There were some other reviews about this one hitting strong after 5 seconds, so I went more gradually than usual and had three or so 5-second steeps, and then I started to add time with a 15-second steep and then a 25-second steep and so on.

From the beginning, it tastes like dried fruits and apricot. There’s a hint of sheng bitterness, but the short infusions prevent it from overpowering the flavor. At the 25-second steep, I noticed it was getting sweeter and that it was having a calming effect on me. It just kept going and going, getting sweeter and sweeter. I lost count of how many infusions I enjoyed. I was going to stop a number of times, but the developing sweetness kept calling to me, making me steep it “just one more time”, which actually became several times! The spent leaves are whole leaves and they look so fresh, like they were picked yesterday.

With longer steeps, initially there was more bitterness. I think it would be worth it to let this one age for a couple more years to mellow it out, especially since that dried fruit flavor is so delicious! I may pick some up with that in mind!

Pics of the session:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/97273956@N03/15911361573/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/97273956@N03/16344088350/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/97273956@N03/16344088310/

Long and twisted grey-brown leaves with plenty of furry white buds. Leaf size is moderate for sheng. Slightly sweet marine aroma with notes of peach and clay.

This is a mild, friendly sheng with a light yellow infusion. Slightly brothy with umami, yet very clean and fresh. Slight floral daphodill flavor with clay and woody notes. Slight rock sugar sweetness.

By the third steeping the bitterness becomes more prominent, but is still pretty mild. Slight tobacco note, leather, peach, grain, and sandalwood. Good lingering aftertaste. The qi is mild, but very relaxing/sedating in nature.

After brewing, the leaves are long and slender. Olive green color with fairly plump purple-ish stems and prominent veins. A nice mild sheng.

Another sample from nannuoshan. The directions on this one warn not to steep for longer than 5 secs unless you can handle the intensity. This is probably what i’m least a fan of with this one :) I accidentally steeped this one for about 10 sec and it was too bitter for me. While i didn’t mind the taste of this one…it’s a little finicky for me as far as a puerh goes. that being said, if you DO steep this one with the short steeps, it’s a pretty smooth puerh and worth the time spent enjoying it. it’s refreshing, slightly sweet and enjoyable! thank you again gabriel!

I decide to start my day with a Pu-erh and Nannuoshan 2013, a Mao Cha which seems very appropriate.

I am first impressed by the swollen and the green and brown colours of these long folded leaves .

Let’s leave these beautiful leaves unfold in their bath at 100 ° C.

They unfold perfectly in less than 4 minutes and also reveal their bright green and an incredible length.

This is a spring tea , a Mao Cha is a form of Pu-erh loose leaf, uncompressed cake , which accelerates the aging process.Mao Cha is the stage preceding the compression of the leaves to make a cake.
The liquor is an extremely pale yellow , almost transparent.

Regarding the taste, this Pu-erh is excellent,the liquor is lively , refreshing, fruity. I detect hints of plum and apricot. I have not noticed a strong astringency , just a small touch that accompanies all the tasting, from the beginning to the after taste and brings an undeniable personality to this pretty Pu-erh . I love it.

Gabriele thank you for this beautiful selection.

You can see pics of the dark green leaves here : https://thevangeliste.wordpress.com/2015/01/31/nannuoshan-2013-mao-cha-nannuoshan/