Tag Archives: aged puer

Puerh Rating: Bamboo Ripe

Posted on by Yang-chu
08 Sep

The Puerh Junky Rating System (PJRS) takes on 06 Bamboo Ripe.  The Bamboo Ripe is the only other humid-stored ripe puerh in the collection besides the Operation Macau.  The Bamboo is stored with a higher level of humidity.  Both express what I consider to be the absolute best that humid storage can offer without any of the distractions.

After three rounds the total was as follows:

  • Aroma          10
  • Clarity          15
  • Sweetness   14
  • Viscosity        9
  • Astringency 14
  • Huigan         14
  • Qi                 10

The ‘06 Bamboo Ripe is a serious production.  It is possible that the aroma could have rated a shade higher but there is no doubt that it is comparatively light in texture, particularly when warm.  It is clear that this was fully the intent of the tea master.

Brewing times for this ripe are longer, as the block formed within the bamboo doesn’t separate easily even after numerous infusions.  Counterintuitively, the same block crumbles easily with  the fingers.

So far it has brewed for a total of about six infusions over three days.  Each day the camphor and sweetness intensify along with the aroma.  It is glass smooth.  An extremely well executed puerh.

Total 86/105.  A 

Puerh Cake Take: Peacock 9611

Posted on by Yang-chu
07 Peacock 9611, CNNP
07 Sep

This Puerh Cake Take concerns the ’07 Peacock 9611, ZC.  It’s the best cake among the KMTF ’07s primarily due to its durability.  I might be able to offer this in a year, if the stars align.  Presently, it might be interesting to augment the record on ZC’s ’07 productions.  First the specs. . .

’07 Peacock 9611, Zhongcha/KMTF

Regular readers know that for me Zhongcha is the Kunming Tea Factory.  Dayi is what they are, as is Xiaguan.  The ‘07 Peacock 9611 is among at least two other Peacock productions from that year, mentioned previously.  The Thick Zen is a peacock made of large leaf Yiwu material.  The Bada Peacock is minerally and increasingly floral with each infusion.  The 9611 is decidedly floral, comprised of very small leaves and buds.

Somehow, the 9611 in my possession was stored with heavy humidity.  The cake stored here in Los Angeles for at least a year before it could be considered drinkable to my person.  It does not possess the perfect storage traits of the Yiwu Princess, but it may given a few more years.  Presently, it is still laced with a certain dankness that I wish weren’t there. A handful of drinkers covet that taste.

The numbers 9611 are clearly displayed on the wrapper.  Following the traditional logic would suggest that this formula was devised in ’96, comprised mostly of grade 1 leaf, and devised by factory #1.  Along with the neifei is a piece of gold ribbon.  The characters above the numbers descriptively read “Peacock Cake.”  The wrapper and neifei are identical.

Gold Ribbon

Tiny Leaves Tinier Gold Ribbon

Reflections

There are some attributes of KMTF productions that I generally look for, primary are Zen and broth clarity.  I do not find that in most of their productions that they’re trying to imitate the Dayi taste, as is the case with many other factories’ productions.  When I say Dayi, I think I mean 7542 and/or 7543.  It doesn’t matter.  It’s thematically much heavier.

Breaking Dawn Puerh Glimmers

KMTF tries to express something much more subtle than Dayi.  Given its storage conditions the broth is incredibly dark.

That’s a shot from Jan 2019.  Here’s another shot brewed from clay, about infusion 13.

This puerh just never bottoms out.  The floral, hint of cinnamon from wet storage, and sweetness just continue from one infusion to the next.  This shot would have been day four.  The taste of the flowers is never jagged.  The quality of experience has that glassy smoothness of the Early Spring, but everything here is kicked up a notch without any wheat or malt notes.

Contrasting Floral Puerhs

There are two kinds of floral, a macho and a genteel.  Among the macho floral, again we have the Lunar Series from 6FTM.  This is the type of floral for people who like to get knocked over the head with very loud and aggressive tea.  Lincang productions from Fengqing and Daxueshan are extremely popular, with Mengku TF probably producing some of the best grade affordable puerh out there.

By contrast, genteel florals must express all the intensity of flowers found among machos but never at the expense of smoothness and subtlety. This is where the 9611 falls, along with the other Yang puerh folks, YPH.

Final Views

The floral profile is not my favourite of puerh taste classes. The 9611 is nevertheless an excellent puerh by virtue of its durability.  Its enduring sweetness, clarity, and smoothness are all noteworthy.  The wetter storage conditions offer deeper insights into the intention behind the classic factory style craftsmanship.  It actually seems that now is the time to begin making calls about the ’07s, not when they were made ten years ago.

Amidst Puerh Junky’s stash, the 9611 is unique.  A floral wet-stored puerh that is sophisticated and smooth isn’t that common.  Aggressive storage can often rob the tea of life, but in this case I’m wondering whether the opposite applies.  Further perplexing matters is that small leaves and buds don’t usually brew that long.

 

Poisonous Puerh

Posted on by Yang-chu
07 Sep

Yesterday my wife got a chance to sample the “poisonous puerh,” what I think might have been the last infusion of ’07 Gold and Jade Filling the Mansion.  I started talking about it in terms of the shortcomings of the PJRS.

Her reaction was somewhere between a four and a five positive.  I didn’t prime her.  In fact, I had planned on having her try something else.

Every time I ask her what year it is, she guesses right.  She was surprised however to discover that it was toward the end of life.

The last infusion I let sit for about five minutes and it was quite strong.  There was more sharpness, but that could easily be attributable to over brewing.  At that infusion, I guessed 12, it still possessed a remarkably sweet huigan that lingered ever so pleasantly in the mouth.

She picked up on smoked wood notes, but couldn’t identify any spice, of which there is loads. Clove, ginger, and cinnamon just hang in the mouth.

As she went upstairs, she gave a giggle, smacking a bit as she continued to savor the lingering effects.

That Bel Biv DeVoe song comes to mind.  It’s that poisonous.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0QIrGy3tFg

Puerh Rating System Flaws

Posted on by Yang-chu
05 Sep

A couple weeks ago I rated an item I consider one of my very best and it came out to 86/105 on the Puerh Rating System. It reveals the flaws of the system. I’ve been drinking this over the past three days. Each day between 1-3 infusions. I haven’t kept track.

The system doesn’t track durability. I simply cannot drink more than three pots of anything at one time. If I do there’s something amiss. I should either grow bored by the third infusion or the tea should have proven sufficiently satisfying by then. Three’s enough.

Each day with this tea Gold and Jade Filled Hall is an intense experience. It possesses no flaws nor does it taste as though it requires further aging. The amber to jade broth is deceptively deep, very deep on the register evoking impressions of aged whiskey and spices. I don’t like whiskey and I have some that are too much like whiskey or tequila that I don’t like. This one is still quite sweet. Relentlessly sweet. Not sugary but with each infusion the sweetness NEVER fades

Infusion #12, I think. Full of sweetness and spice. Huigan ridiculous.

Still, it’s only an 86. That’s an A but at the lower end. Certainly to my mind it is better than some that *might score higher. I dunno. Most of what I drink tests out in the 60s. A ripe I consider outstanding only came in at 72. The best part of the system is how it guards against subjective bias. Taste profiles have no bearing on the quality of the tea itself. That’s what the description is for.

Puerh Battle Sept 3, 2020

Posted on by Yang-chu
05 Sep

Los Angeles, Sept 3, 2020, the site of a Puerh Battle featuring two up-and-comers from ’07.  It’s the Hideout, LME vs the Bada Peacock, ZC.  Both puerh cakes have been likened to being mirrors of one another in terms of minerality.  Each one, however, untested in terms of aroma, viscosity, and qi.  LME claims that the Hideout has won some awards, while the Bada Peacock has shown itself to be a sweeter representative from the ’07 Kunming Tea Factory class.  How will the pugilistic puerhs fair?

Tale of Neifei

Hideout disrobes showing a neifei that is in the spirit of Fuhai and Dayi.  It has the look and feel of money.  The Bada comes out in the traditional Zhongcha red and white, utterly confident and exuding a sweet faintly fruity aroma.

This Puerh Battle was commissioned by and under the rules of the PRS and presided by the self-appointed official, the Puerh Junky.

Infusion #1

This battle went two rounds.  The looks here are not deceiving.  The Zhongcha Bada Peacock is noticeably darker.  Whereas hideout scored a “4” in terms of clarity its huigan and qi scores had it losing in the first round.  The decisive factor was the heavy “4” in viscosity the Peacock delivered.  The Peacock is rich, sweet, and round out the gate.

Infusion #2

Again it is evident that the Bada Peacock is darker, more mature.  In the second round the Hideout thought it could dazzle with sparkling clarity, “5”.  It overall scored better in the second round than it had in the first.  Bada’s viscosity also took a step back making matters interesting.  However, the leaves had opened up significantly, enough  that by the second round the huigan had improved considerably, “4”, while the qi also ticked up to “3”.

The final tally:  Hideout 39/70; Bada Peacock 46/70

The battle was not close.  The ’07 Zhongcha’s are really starting to come into their own.  It’s becoming increasingly clear that time and storage are hyper critical for these productions and that the difference between their youth and age is considerable. . . to state the obvious but have it really sink in.

Contrary to these findings, the market price for the Hideout has climbed to about three times that of the Bada.  Up about six fold from when originally purchased, it has climbed more than at least one offering I consider better but in an entirely different taste class. The Bada, on the other hand, is an uncommon ZC offering in terms of availability and mineral vibe.  This is mineral note is characterized by rocks and toothpaste.  Both have it and it’s a relatively rare expression in raws, where the Dayi wood and petrol vibe is so religiously imitated.  LME and ZC both tend toward Zen, so they are easy casual drinkers, while cryptic enough to hold your attention if you so choose to give it.

In the subsequent day of testing the two findings were similar, but I felt that there was a bottoming out on the Hideout demonstrated by metallic astringency and bitterness.  Interestingly, a week or so prior I had brewed the Bada with a friend using the tetsubin and he remarked upon what he felt was a displeasing metallic quality.  Don’t brew with a tetsubin unless you’ve practiced with its effects on your production before hand.

Stay thirsty my friends.

 

Puerh Storage Take 2020

Posted on by Yang-chu
17 Aug

So on one of these tea pages to which I belong, some dude giving brewing advice confidently offered brewing Yiwus in porcelain. I had started making it a matter of rule to brew all young productions in gaiwan, and his suggestion made sense for that region.

Yiwu Sampler ’03-’05

There are many dogmatists who believe that puerh should only be drunk at such-and-such temp and only after 36 exhalations to the third star of Jupiter and only after a certain age, but my goal is to understand the production and the conditions that will bring the most of what it has to offer at the time being consumed.  For varying reasons this is not always possible. . . which brings us to a confession.

Many of you don’t know, but in certain circles I’m known as The Tea Punisher (TTP for short or Ole Dirty TTP). The productions I hate the most, I subject to the most abuse, leaving them about to weather the harsh chaparral climes of LA proper.

10th infusion of our ’05 puerh gem

I punish them; it gets as cold as 47 sometimes, the humidity down to 30.  It’s not that I like being TTP.  It’s just that I have an ever-growing stash vying for position in finite container space.  Container space must be earned, but I may soon be changing my tune given my eight-year synthesis on the subject, . . .  which I would only consider in the hypothesis phase, . . .  meaning that I am now experienced enough to share findings over a enough time.  For starters, even here in Los Angeles, where I keep the doors open often, indoor storage is not as good as outdoor.

Three Storage Types

I have been running three storage types, roughly associated with how precious I consider the production.

  • Dead Refridgerator (DR)– this is the most climate controlled.
  • Food-grade Rubber Containers (FRC) — medio o en extrema
  • TTP– In the open in the Batcave where the rest are snuggled.

I’ll cut to the chase.  The TTP “stored” tea is undoubtedly superior to the DR and at the very least equal to FRC.  Here’s where we can see a pattern.  DR storage is more like indoor storage.  The verdict is out on whether FRC is superior to TTP.  The former is more controlled in terms of humidity and open air exposure.  Humidity can climb to well above the ambient humidity and the heat can be much higher as well.  On the other hand, wild daily fluctuations in humidity provides a stress of a different nature.

Much attention has been placed on temperature and humidity in terms of storage, but if those were the only variables affecting tea, then Penang, Malaysia theoretically should have the best puerh in the world.  Yet, I didn’t quite come away feeling that way.

The fact is that the TTP method is the absolute inverse of a controlled environment.  My views are ambivalent.  There can be no doubt that the TTP method sacrifices aroma, but for productions void of aroma this is not an issue.  The conditions are safely averaging in the 55-75 range irrespective of season.  In most older productions fragrance plays a smaller role.  Therefore punishment comes at less of a cost.  Smoky productions will similarly be tamed earlier than where it cannot air out.  Tightly pressed cakes should be hardly fazed by the extremes.  In the next post I’ll discuss TTP as it relates to a particular cake that stuck me as noteworthy on a few levels.

 

Puerh Junky’s First Half of 2020 Best Five Puerh

Posted on by Yang-chu
28 Jul

Just thinking about the puerhs I’m most avoiding drinking because I like them so much, and well because there’s still so many of these other rascals to check up on.  I know they say that it’s a bad thing to go by the wrapper; but who are they?  Really.  I ask.  Is anything really even more important in puerh than the wrapper?  Really?!  I ask.  Of course not!  So what I’m saying is that below is a listing of the five most irresistible puerh wrappers to my mind over the last six plus months.  First the honorable mentions:

Honorable mention #1: ’10 Tiger, MK— They came out with two types of Lunar New Year productions at least this year.  I just sold the last one and I’m pretty shaken.  I was very proud to have found that wrapper.  The raw material of the paper was nothing to sneeze at either.  A production aged magnificently with still some sharp floral notes but coated in deep tones that I associate with root beer.  Such a find.

Honorable mention #2: ’05 Tulin Tuo 250g– That bastard is pricey.  Quite similar to the ’07 6FTM production.  Tulin is hands down the most underrated factory.  Their paper and boxes are the best around. I’ve had this longer than the ’07 but both are effectively new.  Striking is that the ’07 bears maturation a good five to eight years older than to be expected for its size.  The ’05 Tulin Tuo is about where you’d expect given good storage.

250g Tulin raw

Honorable mention #3: ’05 Fohai, 6FTM– I have a few of their tuo which are quite old and very bland no matter how long I steep them.  This cake is positively one of the best I’ve ever tasted in the floral category.   The pitch is high but not sharp.  Not perfumy like jasmine, Jingmai, or many spring teas.  Sharpness is what I associate with the 6FTM house taste, certainly their Lunar Series.  Not this.  It’s bright and soft at the same time.  Very special.  The “Fo” of Fohai is Buddha, so I thought that would be a good wrapper.  This puerh easily could have been in the top five but listing the same factory twice starts to look suspicious.  Besides, I like productions with darker notes.  This is going to be bright floral to its very end.

The “Don’t Even think about it“– I’ve thrown the fake 8582 out of my working memory, even though I’m mentioning it here.  Yeah it had the perfect fake wrapper and a great neifei, which is why I bought it. Yes.  I only bought a tea for the fake neifei.  That qualifies me as faux Puerh Junky, it seems.  Anyway, there hasn’t been a person who has not been brought to their knees by the power of its qi. “Luke, I am your father!”  I don’t even think about it because I don’t want to feel wistful about not having it around.

And now the list– drum roll

#5 —’12 Ripe Brick, XG— Classic gongting material, this comes on with a rush and vanishes just as quickly. Rich, sweet, Guandong stored, dark red beauty. Wickedly lush body feel.

#4– ’12 Peacock Ripe, LME— LME is my new fav in terms of ripes. I have never detected any vegetal notes.  Richness is solid without any paper notes.  Sweet without distracting fruitiness.  Holds up infusion after infusion.

#3– ’08 Imperial Roots— The three of us were sitting in the kitchen. They were yammering but had the time to remark how very good the tea was.  I’m ecstatic watching this XG production mature.  It was flawless in my new pot.

#2 — ’07 Lunar Series II, SFTM— I basically just got this and I’m crushed. It screams outside its wrapper, as if doused in gasoline spiked with peppermint.  I didn’t know 6FTM could do such things.  It’s very naughty.  The wrapper is a destroyer!

1. ’02 Green Mark, “GPE”— I don’t know whether my hate or dread is greater. . . actually it’s dread.  This is a deadly production also newly acquired.  It reminds me of what my ’01 “7532” Du Qiongzhi production is approaching, but this is already there. It’s like drinking tequila.  You might not like it but you know the well-crafted stuff compared to the mass product.  Come to think of it, this Green Mark is quite a bit like tequila.  I had been thinking whiskey.  Taste aside, the qi is Mike Tyson.  Never had I been knocked out in the first round and the same happened in the rematch the following day.  It took me eight days to get through 6g.

The quest for wrapper continues.

Puerh Cake Take: Red Star

Posted on by Yang-chu
05 Jun

This Puerh Cake Take is on Red Star, a ’11 Xiaguan raw iron cake.  I chose it to round out a trio of floral puerhs that I had just written upon.  It turns out that didn’t happen because the Red Star didn’t cooperate.  Shall I proceed?

I remember the Red Star expressing a strong early spring signature with some of the trademark XG smoke.  I didn’t consider it typical of an XG production, not particularly smoky. Now I do. Easily a tobacco class, certifiably middle-age puerh.  The taste is starting to strike me as more like whiskey than tobacco because of the smoke.  There’s something that I suppose is peaty, something minerally, and saccharine sweet, but now that smoke takes a much more center stage.

April ’16 Photo

Red Star now shares the XG house taste typified by the Dali Tuo.  However, where petrol fruit seems to be the theme with the Dali Tuo, Red Star is starting to take on a more medicinal bent.  Along with that is ashtray and edginess that could stand to age out, if it ever does.  As I said, I didn’t really notice the smoke in its first two years.  Stranger still, smoke is one of the attributes that would most predictably age OUT not age in.

It’s been a fascinating discovery aging raw puerh.  This iron cake has been stored in Los Angeles since April ’16.  In that time it has changed in an unpredictable fashion revealing a personality of its own.  Similar whiplash occurred with the Vanilla Palace, but with the Red Star the flowers have transformed into the XG taste as opposed to vanilla and root beer.

Compared to some of the middle-aged raw puerh that I’ve been drinking recently, the Red Star strikes me as a bit more utilitarian.  For a factory that is 50% state owned with a significant percentage designated for Tibet, “utilitarian” probably strikes XG is fine.

Puerh Cake Take: Mangosteen

Posted on by Yang-chu
05 Jun

This Puerh Cake Take is on Mangosteen, a ’12 production from the Kunming TF.  This raw cake is interesting because it was made from ’07 raw material before being steamed and pressed in ’12.  The cast of the liquor is inordinately light, resembling something from the ’14-16 range.

Mangosteen has undergone marked transformation since ’15 and the most possibly in the last six months.  It used to be high pitched.  Evocative of black tea.  There was a sparkling camphor finish.  The viscosity was light and by the fourth infusion it was on its way out.  It maybe lasts a couple infusions more but the mouthfeel is much rounder.

Mangosteen is the new name for this raw Zhongcha organic puerh because that’s what it tastes like.  Mangosteens are an intensely creamy-vanillay-juicy-sweet experience with quick citrusy kick.  There was nothing that struck me as fruity about Mangosteen in the past, but the aroma is quite clearly very much of berries.  In the first few infusions the fruit taste only comes on the back end.  At the front is a thick cloud of creaminess and siltiness.  The sensation is luxurious.  Actually, a note from a year ago mentioned the creaminess.

One consistency with this treasure is its throatiness.  I noticed this this morning with the first pot and saw that I mentioned it in the product description.  There’s a term for it called “houyun,” which is considered a particularly noteworthy trait since better productions have it.

Full Frontal Floral Puerh

Posted on by Yang-chu
30 May

Full Frontal Floral Puerh references the Lunar Series of our puerh cakes offered by the Six Famous Mountains Tea Factory (6FTM).  Here, we are visiting the ’09 Ox.  This raw puerh’s storage differs from all the other productions in the series.  Let’s start with the storage then.

Slow Elusion First Infusion

All of the 6FTM lunar series productions until acquisition have been Kunming stored.  Additionally, up until 2009, cakes were pressed tightly.  The Ox then marks a change in terms of compression density and processing.  I’ve tried the Ox from two different vendors four years apart but the storage was identical, suggesting inputs by the factory and not just storage conditions alone.  This input involves heat and humidity.

These stressed conditions give the impression of Guandong storage.  Its tonality is lower than the Rat or the Pig, one and two years older respectively.  The warmer storage mutes some of the aggressiveness while still full frontal floral.

Just yesterday I sat with six grams in my designated floral production pot, 150ml.  The experience was surprisingly thin.  Today, I added .5g and the experience was considerably richer and fuller.  After the fourth infusion the roundness thins out and a mineral taste vies for attention with the flowers.  There is a measure of bitterness throughout and considerable astringency.

The aftertaste in the Ox is sweet and floral in the initial infusions but quickly fades compared to productions from other years.  Consistent with all from this series, the qi is formidable.   You can feel this in the stomach, chest, and eyes.

The 6FTM floral does not seem to develop into root beer.  In this regard it is similar to YPH productions.  However, whereas the lunar series possesses an aggressive nature possibly approaching Zen, the YPH trademark is universally Zen at every stage.  By contrast, the Tiger MK is macho floral and root beer, but is not part of a bona fide series as with 6FTM.