Puerh Rating: Cherry Blossom

The Puerh Junky Rating System (PJRS) takes on the Cherry Blossom.  The Puerh Junky is tasting the ’12 version of a Tulin production that also ran in ’14.  Tulin is most renowned for a few tuo they’ve made.  Their taste bears resemblances to Xiaguan in terms of smoke and husk.  Much of their excellent qi material hails from Wuliang Mt.

After three rounds the results were as follows:

• Aroma        13
• Clarity        10
• Sweetness 15
• Viscosity     15
• Astringency 15
• Huigan        14
• Qi                10

Reflections

Sweet Honey in the Rock

Shock.  I know that the Cherry Blossom is very good.  I didn’t know it was this good.  Let’s briefly note its perfect score in three categories: sweetness, viscosity, and astringency.  It’s astoundingly sweet and thick and as it wanes the astringency only provides balance to all that thickness and sugar.  It is NOT zero astringency by any remote stretch but the astringency is perfect for this production.

Here’s where I usually talk about flaws.  It’s clarity is challenged initially, but is perfect by the third infusion.  The Qi score actually reflects a balanced qi experience, not overwhelming.  I could have drunk more without feeling I would have done myself damage.

Conclusions

At the writing of this post on 3 Oct 2020 the Cherry Blossom has rated higher than any other tea– by seven points.  It rates better than the Gold and Jade Fill the Hall at 82, but that was in the early stage of testing the PJRS and hadn’t fully worked out the astringency scoring.  The point is that in terms of all seven criteria, the Puerh Junky is completely in the dark how a production will rate.

This is a tobacco class production but the tastes are much more varied and interesting.  The caption above Sweet Honey in the Rock captures it, but you have to throw in the smoke, cherries, and their blossoms.  Puerh Rating: Cherry Blossom

94/105, A