Category Archives: The Junky’s Log

2014 Hekai Dragon Pearl Photos

Posted on by Yang-chu
16 Jul

Here’s some shots of the 2014 Hekai Dragon Pearl puerh taken over the course of three separate years.  Hekai is a Bulang village.  It is often the chief component of mater constituting “Bulang” productions.  Here’s a chance to taste the pure Hekai taste.

2014 Hekai 2015 Shot

 

2014 Hekai Dragon Pearl 2018 Shot

 

2014 Hekai Dragon Pearl 2019 Shot

Let the pictures speak for themselves.  Brewed in porcelain, this puerh is a sweet and satisfying summer beverage.  The cashed leaves would be excellent for a cold brew.

 

Bitter Tea: LME Puerh Dragon Pearl

Posted on by Yang-chu
16 Jul

The Lao Man E (LME) Puerh Dragon Pearl is a top-shelf study in bitter tea.  LME, distinguish from the brand, is a village within the Bulang mountain range.  It is next to Lao Banzhang (LBZ), the most famous village of the region, but also including Banpen, Hekai, and a few others.

Similar to LBZ, hallmark LME should be bitter vanishing into sweet.  When I bought this five years ago, it was the vendor’s most expensive offering. . . before coming to the ones priced in the stratosphere, Xigui, Bingdao, and LBZ.  I only bought a few and this is my second time enjoying.

Before fully opening, the puerh potion is sweet and light.  My wife astutely picked up some grapefruit notes.  The first three infusions were relatively long, stopping after four rounds.  An intimidating fifth infusion of 10s four hours later, had me back off to flash brewing what is nowa  total of 12 infusions.  It’s still going strong.  I anticipate at least eight more.

This dragon pearl has a seriously bitter taste, like grapefruit peel, complete with complex citrus essential oils.  Exhalations from the nostrils amplify those notes.  This bitterness bears a close relationship to Bitter Nail tea, particularly since Bitter Nail cannot be construed as astringent.  The LME is not rough like an immature production.  The qi noticeably relaxes and gets the skin glowing a bit.

I didn’t know what I was drinking the first time I had this.  Understanding that there is a category bitter tea helps to orient one’s taste buds.  Bitter tea is never going to be a fav, but it is nice to appreciate the personality of a high quality production.  It provides an unmistakable if ephemeral frame of reference for distinguishing between qualities of bitterness.

Revisiting ’07 Tippy Tuo Puerh

Posted on by Yang-chu
12 Jun

The ’07 Tippy Tuo Puerh bears no relation to the ’06 production bearing the same name.  Here in June of 2019 this little offering has transformed from the high-pitched notes of young flowers to a floral honey character with elements of humidity and pencil shavings emerging.

The dry smell is rich and inviting.  Wet, it emits a pleasing sweet honey floral aroma.  The ’07 Tippy Tuo bears a close resemblance to the ’06 XG Gold Ribbon production.  In both perhaps the most striking attribute is the sweet floral aftertaste.  It would be interesting to try these side-by-side.  Although the XG productions tend to be smoky, I don’t recall so much smoke with that particular production.  Similarly the Tippy Tuo is not smoky in the least.

First Infusion

Deeper infusions get aggressively astringent.  A subtle humidity lingers in the background.  Camphor cooling tingles the lips and zings in the mouth.  At the same time the sweetness of the broth wanes.  As the pictures note, the brew is quite murky.  This point is merely aesthetic, as I’ve never been able to discern anything from viewing the liquor that translates into taste, as far as raws are concerned.

Fourth Infusion

After the sixth round I tapped out.  Aftertaste is nice enough but the lack of sweetness made me lose interest.

Cashed leaves

Jade Mark Puerh Turns Five

Posted on by Yang-chu
02 Jun

The ’14 Jade Mark by the Kunming Tea Factory (KMTF) turns five this year.  Feeling a bit singed by a few delicious young productions that have been “oolong” processed that fade with age, I started to have my suspicions about the Jade Mark.

This is my second tasting of the year.  I can’t recall when the other was, but my suspicions grew even greater, even though KMTF is not likely to deviate from their traditional production methods, particularly the established recipes.  Still one can never be certain.

Scenic View with Neipiao

Another shot.

Jade Mark Closeup

Of course the weather is a huge factor in how a fine tea will perform.  Weather seems to be the culprit as the Jade Mark is concerned.  This morning’s session was in no way divergent from my initial impressions a few years back.

Infusion #1 10 seconds

High fruit aroma, zero bitterness, sweet, with a buzz of puerions at the edges of the tongue.  It’s the presence of the buzz, in no way diminished, that I’m happy about most, because that’s what fades in the oolong processed productions.

’14 Jade Mark Infusion #4

Altogether I went eight infusions and could have gone another two.  Yeah, the astringency builds but the sweetness remains.  It seems that it might actually be sweeter in the later infusions than comparable infusions from a few years early.

The oolong processed puerhs have their own charm, but if they can’t be aged then I feel that they cannot really be viewed in a traditional light.  Part of the fun of the puerh endeavor is monitoring the transformation.  I cannot possibly get through a cake, even 200g, in a year or two given the amount of sampling and monitoring I do.  A little transparency on part of the seller might be nice in this regard, since the working assumption with puerh is aging.  To some extent, not stating so strikes me as pawning fakes, more fake than the actual puerhs produced using traditional methods.  In any case, the ’14 Jade Mark is a traditional production that at five hasn’t faded.  My apprehensions seem have been more related to a hibernation that occurred during the colder drying months.  Whew!

Wax to Sandalwood: KMTF’s Beijing Olympics in 2019

Posted on by Yang-chu
31 May

This morning I had a fascinating session with the ’07 Beijing Olympics by KMTF, the overlooked factory among the “big three.”  I was in Beijing in the early ’90s when China first made an Olympic bid, so I wanted to capture a bit of this moment actualized in ’08.  What better way than a commemorative puerh cake, not counting the t-shirt my buddy gifted me?

I’ve had the ’07 Beijing Olympics since ’14,  having drunk only one cake episodically amidst the rest in the stash.  Other postings on Beijing Olympics have noted just how compressed this production is.  I had to use my chisel to wrest a couple chunks from the area comprising the hole weighing 8.2g, about two grams more than what I usually use in my newly anointed “Tasting Gaiwan.”

Dry in the warm wan, its incense aroma evoked the ’10 Tiger Tuo of two years ago.  Breaking with all convention, I brewed the first cup for about 5m in water initially at 208.  It was in no way excessive.  The same sandalwood aroma was evident in the taste.  Enigmatic.  The next three rounds were brewed similarly with the colour of the liquor generally lighter than infusions in clay given about half the infusion time.  Whether attributable to the being part of the cake core or the gaiwan, I cannot attest.

Altogether, I cashed out after 14 infusions of varying times and sharing with a 10:30 patient and an 8:00pm wife.  This cake has always captivated me (and probably always will).  Though I haven’t found it to be the best tasting ever, I’ve always found it to be one of the most intriguing.  Now that there’s this sandalwood, I’m positively stoked.  The ’10 Tiger Tuo mellowed through a number of stages but from the ferocious end of the spectrum.  Conversely, Beijing Olympics is quintessentially KMTF.  They don’t do “kick-yer-arse” taste.  I’ve tasted KMTF productions from the turn of the century that however old they tasted did not venture beyond Zen. Therefore, the presence of sandalwood notes suggests that it might transform into the dark richness that the best brash or Zen productions fade into.

Cashed leaves

Deeper infusions of the Beijing Olympics (5 < ) were fruity and minerally Zen.  I also detected back notes of talcum powder with tinges of ash, not in any smoky sense.  Talcum powder is a recurrent trait of KMTF and YPH craftsmanship.  There is sweetness, and the astringency is not noteworthy.  It is their characteristic Lincang/Menghai combo, with the ratio strongly in favour of Lincang.  What I don’t get is how this cake hasn’t appreciated compared to similar productions.

The Beijing Olympics puerh cake, mercilessly chopped and even more oppressively compressed, probably was not conceived as a political metaphor.  Besides, some of the best productions I’ve had have been unsightly or super compact.  I think we all know good productions when we know them.  Then there are those we endeavor to get our heads around within the capsule of storage temperature and age.  Now I’m stupid curious.

In the past year, I’ve had the fortune to taste both young Blue and Red Marks from the turn of the century.  None of ’em make me go wow like the Tulin productions seven year’s younger.  I’ve been waiting for some of the Zen ones in the collection to turn root beer on me.  This hasn’t hit that mark but I’ve good reason to believe that it will given these sandalwood notes.

 

Visiting Zhongcha’s ’55 Ripe Puerh

Posted on by Yang-chu
28 Apr

Since the request was something with camphor and chocolate, I gave my wife the option of either the Langhe Ripe Tuo or Zhongcha’s ’55 both from ’06.  She chose the latter.  The ZC ’55 is in its 13th year.  It has transformed from surprising astringency to velvety smooth, especially in the first infusion.  The first infusion, about a minute, is definitely the best.  Deep medium note camphor permeates the broth.  It’s my guess that it would perform even better grampa style.

Altogether, there were four infusions from the session.  As the camphor and thickness wanes, black tea tannins come through.  For the first time I noticed a hint of dried cherries.  By the last infusion, about four minutes, much of the viscosity vanishes, despite remaining a dark caste.  I also picked up some vegetal notes, which aren’t my favourite.

Infusion #2, 10s

The ZC ’55 is an exceptional ripe puerh.  Its strongest attribute is how it has been transforming.  The tannins continue to mellow, making the brew richer.  The camphor is much more evident now.  The chocolate appears more evident when the brew temp lowers.  Two pots in, the qi kicks in.  It warms the chest.  A slight sweat broke out on the brow.  It also stimulates the appetite.  Again, it’s not advisable to have on an empty stomach.

It’s Alive! ’08 Dali Tuo, XG

Posted on by Yang-chu
26 Apr

I recently posted on the ’08 Dali Tuo, XG, expressing disappointment with how it was aging.  It’s been warmer and more humid here recently so I thought I’d pay it a visit to see if my views had changed.  As the title suggests, they have.  My opinion aligns much more with my initial enthusiasm.

Let’s start with the aftertaste.  Intimidatingly astringent, the ’08 Dali Tuo simultaneously expresses sweet florality that lingers for better than ten minutes.  It permeates the mouth and reaches deep down the throat.  There’s a captivating balance between aggressiveness and gentility.  It is more floral than I remember, so I chalking this up to the quality of the raw material itself, part of its transformation.  I previously noted how harsh it was.  It still is quite edgy but the sweetness and richness have returned giving it a balanced quality that makes for a pleasing session.

The liquor starts out thick but thins out quickly.  There’s that trademark Xiaguan smoke and tobacco present.  After a bit of savory dumplings, the same sweetness in the aftertaste is noticeable in the broth.  Upon the sixth infusion, a healthy measure of bitterness emerges.  I might be able to push it for an infusion or two but won’t.

A sweet perfume characterizes the aroma.  It’s not a cheap perfume or a perfume you find in detergent; rather, it is classy and inviting.  In hs, I had a friend who used to wear expensive perfumes that conjured a sense of the Near East. Ones that were not mixed with alcohol, and possessed an alchemical awareness of all the humors.  Such is the ’08 Dali Tuo’s aroma.

Finally, the qi of this production is decidedly in the gut.  It definitely made me hungry.  There may be a slight body feel, but it’s the gut where I feel it most.  It doesn’t seem like a gut buster.  I would have noticed that by now.  However, my intestines are rumbling away.

I’ve been quite fond of the ’08 Dali Tuo and am pleased to find out that it hasn’t flaked out on me.  It’s sweetness and floral character expressed, particularly in the aftertaste, provide a satisfying tea session.  XG productions are notoriously smoky, yet here we find only a hint of smoke.  The ash that I previously noticed is nowhere to be found.  The floral notes are easily an octave lower than certain young spring productions.  Still, the astringency is formidable, and it tops out rather quickly.  Overall, I’m looking forward to how this floral character will develop over the coming warm and humid months.

Visiting ’07 Thick Zen Puerh

Posted on by Yang-chu
26 Apr

The review I gave on the ’07 Thick Zen puerh is accurate.  Since offering it, I’ve had it many times.  It’s most striking attribute is how rich the leaves look.  Excellent storage, glistening in its black brownish splendor.  The liquor produces a decent thickness and there is little astringency to speak of… or sweetness… or flavor… or qi.

I was hoping the a little time would bring out some interesting flavours, but it doesn’t.  It is very much in the vein of the Blue Mark.  It can be brewed as heavy-handed as you wish and it will never get bitter.  There’s no bottoming out either.  That is to say, there’s no point at which Thick Zen looses its initial character or turns undrinkable.

Depending upon what you have it with or your habit for sweets, you may be able to detect some apricot sweetness.  I’ve definitely found the peacock more pleasing in warm weather.  If it had more qi, I’d classify it as an amazing production… possibly.  It’s lack of transforming into a more complex expression makes it a larger leaf, autumn Blue Mark: quintessentially Zen, quintessentially Lincang.  I find the 9611 Gold Ribbon more interesting.

 

 

 

Bummer! ’08 Dali Tuo, XG

Posted on by Yang-chu
27 Mar

Aww man!  The ’08 Dali Tuo used to be so good, one of my favs.  Now it shaping up, or should I say “shaping out”, into being a potential major bummer.  It is turning out to being neither as rich nor as tasty as it once was.  “DLT, what went wrong?”

This is not a good sign and no, it’s not the storage.  Other productions like the LM Square puerh and Tippy Puerh Tuo have been aged in the same container to spectacular results.  It’s not Xia Guan per se.  The Nanzhao productions, both tuo and cake, have been stored differently but they are getting better.

I’ve recently sampled this production on three separate occasions with different vessels, so I’m not making the proverbial “hot take.” I don’t know what’s become of the sweetness.  Furthermore, a certain savory quality it once possess seems to be getting pushed out by hair-raising astringency.

’08 Dali Tuo 8th Infusion

One thing I noticed is that the brew isn’t particularly frothy.  I generally take froth as a sign of nutrient density, which is reflected in the richness of taste.  What I originally liked about this production was its richness.

’08 Dalituo Soup Soup Shot from ’16

Even though this shot is likely from an earlier infusion, it’s interesting to note just how much the production seems to have not changed.  Here’s another angle from a most recent shot, 26 Mar ’19.

’08 Dali Tuo Puerh 26 Mar ’19

The color is quite inviting, but it seems to be clearly fading as it ages.  This is not a good sign.

Beginning Root Beer Notes: Tiger Puerh Tuo 250g

Posted on by Yang-chu
21 Mar

Beginning root beer notes are emerging in the Tiger Puerh Tuo 250g.  What began as an overly aggressive, feisty production which transformed to incense is now mellowing.  Don’t get me wrong, it’s not mellow but I did move up from the typical 6.5 g to 8.  Today, I also tried it in the gaiwan .

I’ve been storing this since about Aug of ’16.  I’ve not made it through the first tuo I opened as it was too strong for my tastes.  Now is a different story.  The direction it is changing speaks to the promising prospects for it future.  There’s still quite a bit of astringency, but interestingly the bitterness is fading along with the floral notes.  The astringency has a kind of siltiness to it.  All of the macho seems to be converting into root beer.  All of the apple notes from its youth are gone as well.

Let’s take a look at an earlier shot of the liquor

Year of Tiger Puerh Tuo in ’16

Here’s a shot from 21st Mar ’19

Here’s a close up from a couple years ago…

2010 Tiger Puerh Tuo Closeup

Here’s one from 21st Mar ’19

2010 Tiger Tuo Closeup ’19

Now about the huigan and qi.  The liquor goes down smooth with that silty astringency at the edges.  As the liquor vanishes down the throat the cooling sensation of camphor and flowers emerge.  This sensation builds to a crescendo, reaching into the throat, and leaving the mouth tingly.  Some might find it a shade drying, while others may find that its cheekiness promotes salivation.  Perhaps both.  As for the qi, a pot or two should make you sufficiently stupid.  I felt both very extra-sensory and high from it.  It also produced an exceptional diuretic effect, whereby I p%%ed as if I’d drunk a gallon of beer, with just as much force!

At a cooler temp and a higher measure of tea, I’m picking up on some of the bitterness, pineapple/granny smith.  There’s also just a hint of petrol developing.  This production is no slouch.