Hawt Puerh: Monkey 6FTM
On Monday to mark Labor Day 2020, I decided on Hawt Puerh: Money 6FTM. I didn’t subject it to the PJRS. I just wanted to check in to see where it was, already having ascended to the top-self of Puerh Junkiedom by virtue of its collectability.
Monkey Closeup
The ’04 Monkey is the first in an extremely popular Lunar Series by 6FTM. It’s made from early spring material. The recipe has never changed. It’s a punchy floral qi-heavy, mouth-blasting forbearance. It expresses the quintessential Fengqing character.
This rascal has been aging in Los Angeles since ’14. It probably is responsible for the wrapper fetish. It has been stored between the controlled conditions of the fridge and hot/variable container. Maybe two years ago, to baby the wrapper, I placed it in a cardboard box, one slightly different from the normal puerh boxes but one used for that very purpose nonetheless.
Untattered Wrapper
Reflections
First, that box has contaminated some of the taste. I’ve placed the Monkey in plastic and back in the box and will check in on at end of year. The taste isn’t particularly strong, but I don’t like it. On writing this, I’m going to take it from the box and keep it in plastic and check at year’s end.
Second, it is simply not possible to drink this and not compare it to Poison. Both are 6FTM Lunar productions. Poison came into my possession in Jul 2020. It is Kunming stored but by people who really know what they’re doing. Poison is more aged and as active as Monkey. Monkey has old-book (can you say cardboard) note with root beer, as the floral notes emerge with each infusion. Poison is pure root beer and there isn’t any other layer. It’s pure Poison.
Infusion 3
Third, the durability of the Monkey is a great disappointment. I only goes five infusions before starting to fade and it actually bottoms out in the 7th or 8th. Poison doesn’t bottom out, EVER.
Conclusion
The ’04 Monkey is a “hawt” puerh commodity. It has a pleasing depth of flavor and dynamism in the mouthfeel. Still, five infusions is a shade short for most productions, particularly of this age. I don’t ever recall noticing such a short lifespan previously. It was brewed in gaiwan and infusion times were the typical flash-10s. In short, Poison casts such a shadow over Monkey that it is only possible to be mildly entertained by it, not floored. If one is a committed wrapper junky or a collector it’s worth having, otherwise its price extreme for the judicious junky.
