Am I just now trying this one, that I removed from MzPriss’s teabox a while back? Well, at least it’s a pu-erh, the only tea that ages well. I was reminded how much I love ripe pu-erh when I tried another one the other day. Mandala, you’re great, but this one doesn’t match the chocolate of the other. I like em strong, better than coffee. The leaves even looked similar (very long rather than tiny leaves crammed in a cake) as well as both being from 2012. However, with this one, the brew basket looked half full as the other one, though I’m pretty sure I was using the amount of leaves I should have. The chocolate of the other probably came from SO. MANY. LEAVES. This isn’t a bad pu-erh by any means, but watery tasting compared to that chocolate explosion of the other day. I would COMPLETELY agree with the description of this one (though I’ve never had sugar cane, so I can’t compare that note): “Light and silky. Creamy milk chocolate with a nutty background, hints of cedar, sugar cane and malt.” Very accurate! It’s very sweet like some sort of syrup, a little nutty, a little like mushrooms, a little malty, a little like cedar all adding up to lightness. Milk chocolate rather than dark. All three steeps were the same.
Steep #1 // just boiled // rinse // 1 1/2 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 2 min
Steep #3 // just boiled // almost 4 min
Edited to add: Looks like this one is made from leaves from 2011, not 2012.
Mmm noble mark!