Sipdown, 143. From looking at other “Random Steepings” notes, I believe that this is Sil’s “grocery store puerh”, the tiny little foil-wrapped tuocha. Having bought tea myself in a Beijing grocery store, I know that there is a substantial difference between grocery store tea in China and that in the states. I brewed in my gongfu teapot but it probably was still too big for this tiny tuocha.
I gave this a few rinses because it smelled rather pungent at first (i.e., a bit fishy), but that washed away pretty well. I was left with a smooth, woody puerh that really wasn’t half bad. Granted that shu puerhs are generally not my thing, it was pretty decent. Mostly wood with a bit of earth, a somewhat creamy texture and a hint of sweetness.
