06 Tippy Tuo Puerh II

Exactly one year ago I received the 06 Tippy Tuo Puerh II.  Part two because it is the second order since April of ’15.  I presently have three storage variations of this production: 1) the original, 2) TTII, and 3) Bangkok stored 33 mth original.  I thought I’d introduce TTII by contrasting it with the original.

The Original can be reviewed here.  It’s important to note that this is a dynamic puerh.  It has gone through several phases, some of which were not so pleasant.  In particular, the early years in my possession sometimes produced sessions of considerable orange juice aftertaste.  Presumably, the TTI has already gone through this stage.  It has overall been dryer stored than the Original.  The original has been subjected to fairly high fluctuations in temperature and relatively high humidity since ’15.  One of the reasons was to cook that orange juice taste out.

Simultaneously, the Original expressed camphor menthol dank forest attributes and a punishing qi.  By contrast, TTI has no detectable camphor, not the minty kind anyway.  It is much softer with vanilla and baby power notes, thick perfumy , none of the aggression generally associated with it.  It has a personality generally expected from tippy material without any of the edges.

4th Infusion

The color of the liquor suggests a considerably younger production year than ’06.  The variability imparted by storage conditions essentially makes for an entirely different production.  Here is a considerably drier-stored phenomenon that may have played a role in the absence of sour and preservation of perfume.

The Original has entered a root beer phase.  Whether the TTII enters a root beer phase remains to be seen.  The Original always possessed a measure of astringency that gave it a real macho presence, while the TTII has a noticeably thick and round mouthfeel with an essence considerably more feminine.