Puerh Junky’s Ripeliday Season
Puerh Junky’s Ripeliday Season takes the reader through the mind of Puerh Junky during a time most generically called, “the holday season.” PJ thinks that the dark seasons are for dark tea, go figure. This 2022, as people busy for the arrival of the Rabbit, finds matters no different. Below he busily jib-jabs about a few ripes in the Puerh Junky Collection, aka shop.
’06 Old Geezers is the stout of the PJ Collection. It’s probably more dense than even the Boss Square. Stouts aren’t clear. Old Geezers is a stout, with a taste as you dig deeper of Chocolate Malt-o-Meal. Camphor fades, after first infusion, into a very slight hint that some may associate with cardamom. Camphor haters who don’t know what camphor is call it “hospital”, “linnament”, “medicinal” or “band-aid”. Great sweetness and lasting aftertaste that is sweet and sticky. Yields 4-6 long infusions of 2m. There’s only three in storage and won’t be replaced, last I remembered it was no longer avail.
With the ’05 Lucky 7572, meistra Du Qiongzhi ostensibly takes her cue from her ancestral factory, Menghai TF/Dayi. Having no experience with that production from Dayi and having drunk her ’01 Red Mark, fermentation seems light. This will have appeal for those keen on experimenting or in Du Qiongzhi productions. Strawberry Qwik that fades fast. High degree of clarity. Dryer storage, even though the paper is tea stained. Two on hand.
The ’11Peacock Gold, Fuhai leaves the mouth with a faint taste of band-aids after coating the mouth and throat in velvety milk chcolate. Respectable sweetness, chestnut color and high clarity. Silt and baby powder. Not as thick, sweet, or malty as Old Geezers.
The ’12 Arbor King, LME provides a study in schizophrenia. The upfront notes surprise with cured fruits before quickly shifting to dark cocoa. Real bitterness, with a light geosmin and camphor finish. The huigan is sticky bittersweet, as thick and enduring as the Old Geezers, with clarity about 3-5. However, it doesn’t have the longevity of Old Geezers.
Winter brings a heavier hand in brewing, with expectations of a heavier brew. Old Geezers stands out among the group for its ability to holdup and its coating huigan. The Arbor King hits a bittersweet spot and would be as good were it to last as long. It’s only an ’11 and closer examination reveals a good deal of “greenage” to the composition, so there’s reason to believe it will develop further. Fuhai’s Peacock Gold excels in clarity with milk coco, light geosmin and talc. It’s not as sweet and the huigan fades rather quickly. Finally, the Lucky 7572 is not so wintry, with strawberry malt in a comparatively light broth. It’s a prime candidate for summer cold brewing. Some of these samples can be found on the Ripe Sampler page.
