Grenouille, Stylin, Daxueshan

Grenouille, Stylin, Daxueshan provides storage and development notes on three offerings during the autumnal sweet spot of ’24.  Grenouille, re-upped in ’20, comes to the drinker by way of Haixintang.  Though obscure in the English-speaking world, they hold a solid reputation amidst the welter of puerh tea factories.  Stylin‘ flaunts courtesy Xinghai factory, probably the largest holding of any one factory in the Puerh Junky Collection.  Daxueshan holds the distinction of being from MKRS, a Lincang factory outfit that since inception has been particular about not using pesticides.  Let’s start by recapping weather/storage particulars for the past two years.

Weather

Oct ’23, Los Angeles, California witnessed early rains that lasted off-and-on through February ’24.  Sept ’23 may have been fairly warm though it was not its typical hot and this Sept 24 was abnormally cool.  Spring ’24 resembled weather patterns of the US hinterland.  In fact, the last two Marches have been noticeably different from previous years, March usually being one of the hottest months of the year before the gloom settles in.  A steady barometer for measuring spring weather happens to be the jacaranda: when they blossom and how long the blossoms last.  If many blossoms last into July, then you know you’ve had very cool temperatures relatively speaking.  That has been the case the past two years.  Now for the details. . .

Puerh Details

Puerh Details start in late ’22 when efforts at aggressive hydration proved too ambitious by April ’23, as bits of white frost formed in the big ripe box along with a box mostly for tuo and a few cakes singled out for da business.  By April ’24 the following year, most all boxes were either back to conservative hydration or no hydration at all.  It just wasn’t hot enough where bold humidity would yield desired results.  Grenouille was in the aforementioned tuo box of frost where hydration stopped in Aug ’23.  Since then the humidity has been given a chance to settle in sans any hydration.  The effect has imparted serious mushroom flavours without one shred of dankness.

Out of panic, hydration extraction occurred about the same time as above with a separate Xinghai box, which also includes BZZS.  After the joyous events following the Chinese New Year (ahem), a devil-may-care attitude led to letting the tea do what it would on its own.  Stylin‘, a denizen of this box and visted this Oct ’24, unleashed its best performance to date.  Originally being stored under fairly dry conditions, Stylin’s aging over the past few years involves incremental “juicification” while the intrinsic sugars emerge and deepen.  Given the extreme moderate temperatures, the lack of hydration appears to have been a good move.

Daxueshan gets stored along with other Lincang productions like Creme Florale and some Lancang offerings like Jingmai.  This box only affords a very small measure of hydration.  There’s nothing that can be done to change this aside from eliminating what little there is, which seems like a bad idea.  In any event the DXS is getting better and better.  It is now downright bright with an intriguing blend of tangerine and apricot.  Not mealy apricot either.

Take Aways

One take away tying these productions is sweetness, something that the ole Puerh Junky’s been waiting on for a minute.  This is not to say that they previously didn’t have some measure of sweetness, but now the sweetness lasts.  The texture and flavours are all deeper and more intense, with noticeably quelled astringency. The dryness is gone with Grenouille. There’s scorch up front that lasts but an instant before the onslaught of mushroom. Good sweetness, including a mischevious thread of bitter. Peach follows on the heels of the mushroom, and some infusions after sitting a few hours even yielded bold lemon.  Stylin‘ sounds in the medium-low register, light wood, incense, dried durian. Little astringency and bitterness. Savory with building sweetness from one infusion to the next. Round and full mouthfeel.  It’s a truly sophisticated drinking experience.  Both these two are savoury sweet, while Daxueshan has decidedly been moving in the opposite direction.  The typical floral character of DXS gets replaced by stonefruit and a hint of tangerine.

 

Winter Tasting 2024

Winter Tasting 2024 finds “Peej”, as he’s known on the streets, back to the arduous task of sampling.  His focus goes back to Xinghai factory, in the dispassionate manner of any hoarder.  He recently acquired an edition of the ’06 Bulang GS without the “special” stamp.  I guess this would make it the 3rd or late 2nd batch.  It you drink it like most teas, it’s hideous; if drunk like cognac or ouzo, then at least you’re prepared.

Bulang Old Tree (no stamp)

There’s that hella fennel, star anise, bitter grasses, like golden rod. . . white oak.  I’m using my slow pour floral zisha, 150ml at 6.7g, which I feel is far too much really, but I’m giving this intensity a go.  It’s deathly astringent and drying, but less so in the throat.  I think the easiest thing to call it would be black tea, dianhong, but this species of star anise is particular to Mt Bulang in Banzhang.  It’s a recuring theme in many Xinghai productions and is evident in the LME Quincy, and the Tiger, CMS.

The Bulang Old Tree “Special” ostensibly is the second batch, as the neifei bears no timestamp.  Presumably, there is a Bulang GS “Select”, identical but for the designating stamp on the wrapper as well as the date stamp on the neifei.  The Special strikes me as having notes similar to the MKRS Daxueshan, a Lincang production.  Such are the hazzards of getting too hung up on terroir.  Daxueshan, nonetheless is on the “black tea” side of Lincang in contrast to Bingdao, which tends toward round and fruity, white grapey, pear.   Daxueshan area has a taste like Fengqing, in Simao, home to the largest and most famous producer of dianhong in all Yunnan.  There’s two cakes of this no-stamp version and price is quite modest, under $70usd.

Dianhong also goes by the name Yunnan Gold, or just black tea from Yunnan.  Oxidized productions are a specialty in itself.  The area of Fengqing is thought to be ideal for making black tea.  The puerh from this area tastes the same, with a distinctive rose nose and taste.  The 6FTM Lunar New Year Series possesses at least 30% Fengqing material.

BZ Wild King

The nose on the ’06 BZ Wild King evokes a sense of a spicy Smurfberry Crunch, lots of vanilla and blueberry, some nutmeg.  It hearkens to an era in the 80s, when Post cereals still existed.  While that opens up, should mention the run in I had with the ’07 Imperial Tuo, 250g raw.  It may get posted soon for a short spell.  It’s a very recent acquisition and has now entered a tasting rotation of sorts.  It has a personality akin to the Tiger Tuo.  A citrus pine vibe presents in the nose and liquor, some characteristic Xinghai apple and moderate sweetness with big astringency. Quite similar to the Green Peacock come to think of it.  The Green Peacock is a dreadfully good buy, more oiling, and one of the most well-received of ’23.

Goodness!  The ’07 BZ Wild King is nice in this ceramic shot glass.  It was just as good in the porcelain cup.  Smoke and wood, sweet then red-fleshed plum, super-intense Juicy Fruit factor on back end.  As usual, possesses that bracing astringency characteristic of Xinghai factory particularly before ’07.  There’s that distinctive medicinal note also found in the Bulang Old Tree.  BZWK has a top end note of swiss chard with vanilla, but turning more fully vanilla with spices like ginger and clove.  It’s on par with ’07 Mincemeat in terms of spiciness.  The sweetness is greater than usual for XH, but that’s definitely balanced out by the bold astringency, which is instant and reaching into the throat.  It may be testament to the “wild” in the title.

Stylin

The smoke evident in the first two infusions forms more of an accent than theme in the overall construction of the batch.  Smoke is much more evident in Stylin, from the same year.  Stylin’s leaves seem to be fairly small and expectations are that it will be intense.  The 6.7g used in the second case of BZWK proved more appropriate than for the Bulang Old Tree (special).  The nose is floral and fruity, sweet and the rinse is sudsy.  A definite aroma of honeysuckle and backdrop of smoke in the pitcher.  The smoke hits first followed by creamy and ferment-y butterscotch and then smoky, fruity, mineral-y.  Very nice sweetness.

The brew is lightest and longest-stored of the three sampled.  Intense smoked dryer sheet essence. Definitely more bitter than the BZWK.  The incense/dryer sheet essence fades to Juicy Fruit.  Stylin is first batch with a timestamp on the neifei.  A florid aroma coats the pitcher, there’s that “pissiness” of certain flowers, like magnolias.  The pissiness is disguised by the smoked wood in the broth.  It may be a puerh, but it’s tequila-identified. Puerh Junky knows next to nothing about tequila, but there is one type that is sweet and palatable like amaretto.  They call it “anejo.”

The third infusion appears slightly more coppery with some lasting suds befitting its dish-soap fragrance.  The really perfume-y puerhs are disgusting.  The flowers here are sultry and oppressive.  It’s pure perfume and the smoke is fighting a losing battle.  A bit of wintergreen and bitter grasses.  Astringent.  Cloying, like a woman seeking attention by wearing very loud perfume.  Although the perfume is evident in the nose, the taste is of ginseng, unapologetically bitter, spinach minerals, and a bittersweetness of Sweet-n-Low.  Feels now more like the cheap tequila that you’re just drinking for the hangover the next day.  Feels like it’s at least five years off for the lightweight Junky.

I just made that five-years bit up to make myself sound like a knowledgeable soothsayer.  Stylin‘, despite its cunning that sounds lower on the register, still possesses a rambunctiousness that belies youth.  Right now, it’s quite dreadful.  The smoke and perfume are hideous and punishing, then the bitterness.  Experienced drinkers may enjoy this or prefer to sit this one out till it gets a few more years under its belt.  It might end up being for the ages if you can store on your own for a couple years.

Instagram shots here.

Did Puerh Junky Mention II

Did Puerh Junky Mention II continues its look into the past.  Last time we visited some of the stellar productions.  What distinguished them is the excellent storage.  The subsequent discussion continues by bringing to the readers attention productions that worthy of note.  Let’s start out with the cream note, shall we?

The ’04 Uncle Creme Florale and the ’07 Mengsong are both solid cream-drinking experiences.  Sweet and dynamic with pleasant camphor notes.  These two are great everyday drinkers or newbies who’d like a completely different quality of puerh experience that is free from the heavy muted notes of more humid-stored productions, while still enjoying the benefits of serious age.

Ripes have heretofore gone rather neglected.  The ’11 Peacock Gold, Fuhai is in a good place.  Excellent everyday drinker for those enjoying a balance between viscosity, sweetness, bitter and camphor.  Storage is succulent and composition fully expressed under current conditions and age.

Discerning ripe drinkers have almost universally glowed over ’12 Operation Macau.  Most commissioned productions are far from ordinary and Operation Macau is no exception.  If you’re interested in trying a next-level ripe that favours the palate of discerning Macanese standards, rich, sweet, humid, then this sets a standard against which all others can be judged.  The geosmin note excels.  This is one that people load on.

Those ripe-inclined interested in a bit of history should take note of the ferocious ’02 Purple Mark, 6FTM.  This is the only 6FTM ripe production offered.  It took over two years to resuscitate a production held in deep storage and fairly recently released.  Dark chocolate that seeps through the pores.  Perfect after dinner treat.  Can be brewed heavy handed but forget about thermosing!

The cries of the humid crowd have not gone unheeded.  There’s an entire “Humid Old” category set up for it.  Noticeably absent from the list is the Revolutionary Suspect.  Rested here in LA, CA since ’15, the production is alive with the notes of pine.  Though I recommend the full set among the Humid Old , particular attention should be directed toward the Simao Orange, which hasn’t been listed yet but for which there are a few available.  Acquired in Jan of ’23, it took only a few months for this production to blossom and a handful of others were acquired this (Nov ’23) and are still waiting their turn.  Explosive camphor along a backdrop of heavy humidity.  Compression is stellar and Guangdong storage albeit true to form didn’t rot the underlying material.  Those who like the fast-forward qualities of heavy storage should find this a true pleasure.

Amidst the humid and smoky into just smoky two bear mentioning.  First is ’07 Poison, 6FTM which is humid and smoky, and the ’06 Bulang Wild Big Tree, Fuhai.  Given the colder temps, these two will it the winter spot.  Camphor is prominent in both but through very different characters.  Poison would be characterized as “menthol”, while Bulang Wild would be cast as having a more medicinal quality.  Poison is more bitter, woody and in-your-face with complexity, while the Bulang Wild surprisingly is less bitter and low toned, green.  The latter was characterized by one drinker as being like scotch, which I wouldn’t know.  Sweetness with both is high.

 

 

Puerh Junky Visits Dali Tuo

Puerh Junky Visits Dali Tuo is a deceptively titled journal entry because we find Puerh Junky festively clad sniffing at something in a most indecorous manner.  Aye, he’s at it again, this time confusing Bob Cratchit for Ichabod Crane.  The camera zooms in and there’s something about the dude’s eyes that are certifiably “not right.”  It’s the amulet, yeah the spellbinder he’s pawing and sniffing at that’s got him all in a lather.  No doubt some of it has to do with the incantations scribbled upon the wrapper of the thing, the thing he holds.  The thing they call “a tuo.”

Dun-dun-dun.

There’s the hint of smoke and fresh-pressed cotton clothing in the tuo.  Yes.  It gives off a distinct impression of tobacco, something they no doubt smoked upon the Pequod.  It’s got a warm air about it, dressed impeccably in a fine high-cotton wrapper despite being 15yrs old, in the Puerh Junky‘s clutches for three years, stowed away without the light of day in the PJL, what everyone knows to be the Puerh Junky Lair.

“Seems to have blackened up a bit, it does,” he mutters to himself.

Lid removed, big waft of band-aids in the lid, while berries bubble from the cup.  That’s the five min warm cup warm up.  Wood.  No smoke or sugar jump out.  Still warm, complex, a bit cranky, scruffy.  It all comes together in the aroma of the rinse, perhaps berry predominates but now there’s smoke again.  Or wood.

The taste of the rinse is obscenely delicious.  Super sweet, kerosene and berry.  Smooth.  Slick in fact.  It was a headless move to drink the rinse, but such are the perils of conjuring the spirit of Ichabod Crane.  Besides, it’s a long 15m from the opening to the official first infusion.  The aftertaste is super slick.  Three drinking vessels tried: cracked ice Longquan celedon, porcelain glazed zisha (inner glaze), and glass.  The celedon cup gives an alarmingly sanguine finish.  All the while the wood, kerosene, sweet fester in the aftertaste.  From glass there’s a wicker front, a bit more astringency, which is a bit of a surprise.  The porcelain, wood and spice.

It’s aged extremely well.  The band-aid smell from the first infusion is now oppressive in the cup.  Aroma in pitcher is lighter, more nuanced.  Taste of berries shifts to black pepper in the throat, then to kerosene and band-aids.  Band-aids and berry in the aftertaste, then strawberries.  There’s some elements of the vaunted Forever Love in there, smokier presumably is the Dali Tuo.  There’s a kind of echo of smoke.  The note will bend kerosene or smoke depending on perspective.  Storage still clearly fantastic.

The second infusion has the smoothness and viscosity standout.  It’s more wood and petrol in the taste.  Not as sweet.  Tasting more like it’s done being all fruoux, fruoux.  An image of these dogs sitting about a card table smoking cigars comes to mind.  The Puerh Junky tries to distract himself with nicer thoughts like of Ahab and the Pequod.  There’s a lemon note endeavoring to make itself known, and some vegetal bitterness has definitely made itself known, maybe something like dandelion.  Room temp the sweetness and berry prevail in the porcelain cup.

The Dali Tuo gets more and more serious with each passing year.  It’s in a darker more petrolly place presently.  Maybe a year or two before becoming even more strait berry hard to say.  Instagram fotos.

 

A Night Visit with BZ Peacock

A Night Visit with BZ Peacock finds the Puerh Junky searching for an appropriate night cap, something with more bite and less dirt than the ’01 Yiwu Chashan.  He grabs the caddie about 1/8th full of Buddha Impressions, when he finds the gaiwan of BZ Peacock opened the previous day staring at him.

There’s no doubt that the BZ Peacock is now the best its ever been, this Oct 2022.  The two days of sitting have produced excellent results.  It’s very much on par with Wang Xia’s ’01 Green Mark A, which I’ve mentioned several times by different names.  It tastes like really good leather that’s been cured with the best of tallow and fragrances, like oud, sandalwood, and myrrh.  It’s bitter on the finish with an interesting yet characteristic apple sweetness and sourness of many fancier Xinghai productions.  This time it lurks amidst a a strong layer of smoked hickory.

The Buddha Impressions isn’t this woody, but like Grenouille and Zou Binlang’s Cinnamon, they all are of a similar profile.  Buddha Impression is more peppery and ferment-y, with amaretto notes.  Fuhai’s ’07 7536 can be added to the mix, but its notes are more commonly found in any kitchen cupboard, namely bay leaf and clove.  The ’07 iteration is reported to be unique, to which I can attest to only from an ’04 in the stash, which is decidedly heavier stored and perhaps more in the vein of the 7542.

Certainly, one of the more curious aspects of all these productions is absence of a punctuated camphor note.  Perhaps this will emerge, is only a product of storage, or its absences is particular to these productions.  The ’05 Silver Pekoe, Tulin seems to demonstrate that storage plays a significant role in the camphor note.  Its first iteration received heavy storage, expressing strong sour notes on the back end during the first four years of possession.  The second iteration had that baby powder note but after a year of good heat and humidity transitioned into camphor.  In the first, the camphor deepened, while the sour waned winding up with a dense camphor explosiveness.  The second, has settled into the Grenouille and Buddha Impression neighbourhood.  The second definitely stored under much drier conditions.  In the final assessment, there’s no doubt that explosive camphor is closely correlated with humidity and warmth.

Finally, BZP lasts forever.  It isn’t a quaffer, so a gaiwan is likely to last up to 5 sessions of 450ml each. I’ll relate something from my days in Beijing to this end.  There was a retired Frenchman with whom I drank cognac on a couple occasions.  We only had one teacup’s worth each time, sipping.  Contrast this from the HK context, where they were drinking XO in tumblers as a “classy” sign of extravagance.  Yeah, you can quaff BZP if you like, but it doesn’t feel like that type of tea to the Puerh Junky. . . but what does he really know anyway?

p.s. BZ Peacock sale till Sun.

Sweet Mesquite: BZ Peacock Autumn 2022

Sweet Mesquite: BZ Peacock Autumn 2022 comes with yet another enigmatically titled blog entry about the ’06 BZ Peacock, XH.  Quite a bit has been blogged about this.  As of autumn 2022, it earns another entry to chronicle the results of the summer.  Autumn is harvest time.  In Los Angeles it’s the peak time for capturing the results of summer storage.

BZ Peacock is now noticeably sweet.  It’s not entirely the sobering whiskey/tequilla of even a few months back.  The sweetness commingles with a bitter/dry mesquite and fleeting fruit notes.  A few infusions in, this fruit takes on the character of apple pie from slightly sweet and sour apples baked in a wood-fired oven.  The sour detected in couple previous sessions hides less now, though it doesn’t overpower the overall composition.  Altogether, it an impressive combination of dish detergent and laundry after a hike that included a campfire.

It’s not ashy or sooty.  Furthermore, it’s fair to make associations with kerosene and pencil shavings along with lemonene.  It’s still a little bit jagged, but that is how many people prefer their tea.  Comparing it to the Green Mark A, Wang Xia it is still a shade clumsy, like a tequila or whiskey you can tell that’s good but just needs a little more time.

The qi is still notably aggressive, particularly in the head.  It is very heady.  As far as other Xinghai productions go, the BZ Peacock is highly representative, though it may be a factor more intense.  It’s hard to say because all Xinghai productions around this time are burly and complex.  It’s price is certainly intense. . . presumably because of its qi and direct Peacock lineage.

 

Puerh Junky Discusses Peacocks

Puerh Junky Discusses Peacocks because in the course of searching for interesting Xinghai productions, the Peacock comes up often.  Well, while looking at interesting pictures I clicked upon a site heretofore unknown to me that serves up a bevy of interesting articles.  One of them read An Explanation of the Banzhang Ecological Big Cabbage, and Peacock Series; Banzhang Old Tea Big and Small Cabbage (班章生态茶之大白菜·孔雀系列详解!班章老茶之大小白菜!).

In it, the role of the founder of Jindafu, He Baoqiang, is discussed in light of the emergence of the “organic” and “green” certifications.  These certifications were marked by a cabbage seal.  Long story short, the Banzhang shengtai materials that Mr He produced in cooperation first with Menghai TF and subsequently Xinghai became known as Big Cabbage and Peacock, the former because of the certification insignia and the latter the wrapper.

Big Cabbage Insignia

Now it may be just a coincidence but if it is, that sir name He seems to be extremely common among the well-regarded puerh.  Curiously, the pricey Fujin also has a similar Dayi and Xinghai history and their founder also bears the sir name He.  There is also a Mr He Shihua who is recognized as a tea meistro who is commissioned in the making of a few productions, has productions listed in the Puerh Yearbook, and has even ascended to the level of having some of those productions faked.

Here, copycatting must be distinguished from fake.  One of He Shihua’s production line is unmistakable, featuring red traditional Dai tribal script along a white backdrop.  I acquired one such production, not because of any He Shihua awareness at the time, but because it was from Gupuer, a factory I follow.

Here, we have a copycat because Mr He’s name doesn’t appear on the wrapper and the GPE logo is emblazoned within the ring of bazhong.  Fakes, also known as tiepai, don’t have their own logo.  Years later when I stumbled upon Mr He through searches on Fujin, I ran into this wrapper without any logo but essentially similar enough to create confusion were one haphazardly scouting for He’s productions.  This doesn’t entirely resolve the matter.

From its early days, GPE commissioned some heavy hitters in the production of offerings, sold during the early naughts under the bazhong wrapper.  It is quite plausible that the wrapper above from ’13 is actually a reflection upon both their Zhongcha and He Shihua history.  The jury is still out.  This is a huge but worthwhile digression as wrappers are often telling a story that eludes those of us with only a scad of knowledge about the history.  Here we’ll depart from the He part of the discussion to address a couple peacocks in the Puerh Junky Collection: the BZ Peacock and the Peacock Brick.

BZ Peacock and Peacock Brick

The BZ Peacock’s real name is BZ Old Tree.  If you recall the opening paragraph about the title referenced, the name BZ Old Tree should ring a bell.  The name BZ Peacock was only given to reference the wrapper, but clearly Xinghai was varying a theme in which it played no small role in developing.  Xinghai has quite a few of these peacocks from this era. Here’s a pic of the one most highly prized, the Banzhang King:

The presentation here is iconic Xinghai.  The peacock is an image that is used by several other factories, Xiangming and Du Qiongzhi’s Pengcheng to name just two.  The center varies from one factory to the next and you can see Xinghai’s logo in this one.  Usually, the images will read Peacock Country at the bottom.  It’s the Puerh Junky’s guess that this Peacock Country logo references the Dai hill tribe/nationality, but this is only a guess.

Here’s the same icon but at the bottom reads Silver Peacock, the name of the production. It doesn’t appear that in terms of the vaunted peacocks that ripes factor at all.  That makes sense, as ripes by and large are not taken very seriously no matter how good or expensive they become.

’06 BZ Peacock

At least some of the vaunted peacocks are noted for possessing a smoky character.  In fact, it appears that these were the productions that put smoke on the map, something that seems strange since Xiaguan is known for their smoky offerings.  Perhaps it has something to do with smoky productions from Banzhang and the Bulang region more broadly.

Factoring greatly into the fame of the peacocks has to be qi, though I’ve not read anything about this.  When the name Banzhang comes up instantly there are expectations, positively none which interest the Puerh Junky.  Once queried about whether I thought the BZ Peacock had real BZ, I replied that I didn’t care because I only got it for the wrapper from a factory I follow.  It should be noted, however, that among those who have tasted it and are not inclined to comment upon the qi, remarks were volunteered about how “warming” it was.  Onto the brick.

Recent discoveries on the vaunted peacocks has afforded the Puerh Junky even greater appreciation for Liming’s Peacock Brick, which bears neither the shengtai nor gushu additions.  There’s no reference to BZ either.  It does have the smoke, however.  It also possesses great sweetness, texture, and durability that distinguishes it from most ripe bricks.  The smoke is not heavy and there’s no char effect.

Here’s a write up on my qi experience with the Peacock brick.  I originally picked it up in ’15 and after the few I had for offer were snatched up by one buyer, more was purchased in ’19 at more than twice the ’15 price.  Perhaps the peacock craze started to sift down into other factories beyond Dayi and Xinghai.  After my readings, I decided to check the box for any telltale signs tying it to “the peacocks.”

Little Cabbage Insignia

There it is.  The haloed cabbage insignia, the independent verification of being a “green product,” which certifies legit production and environmental standards but not the soil, a step down from but often a stage toward organic.  In short, this little Peacock Brick checks all the boxes for being a legit peacock.

Wrap up

Aside from tasting for yourself, this post should go quite a distance in shedding light upon the subject of famous peacocks from the naughts.  A nice tidbit on the origins of the Jindafu and Mr He Baoqiang tied in Xinghai’s role in the formation of a now legendary series copied far and wide.  Finally, Liming got its two-cents worth in as to why it at least deserves a seat at the table among its more celebrated relatives.

Puerh Junky Visits BZ Peacock

Before going into a Xinghai rant, Puerh Junky Visits BZ Peacock, the ’06 red ring version.   There is also a “coffee” ring version, referencing the colour of the ring on the wrapper.  Its name is taken partially from the wrapper design, though it’s actual name is BZ Old Tree.

Sometime in the early naughts, Tobacco Class puerhs started to gain steam among enthusiasts.  Among them, it seems that two stood out above the others, the Big Cabbage and the Peacock.  The former is recognizable by a big green bok choi that is also synonymous with being organic and the latter is not recognizable at all given the popularity of the peacock as an enduring totem among the hill tribes of the region.  These both seemed to be first innovated by the Fujin TF, which at the outset worked and wrapped through Dayi/MHTF before moving onto Xinghai.  The wrapper of the Big Cabbage is not discernible from any other Bazhong wrapper from the era, but the price commanded would leave one truly agog.

Puerh Junky has only been gathering peacocks for wrapper appeal.  The BZ Peacock had been in his sites for some time for this reason, totally ignorant of the buzz around the peacock of the tobacco class.  I picked up my first round as a test in ’19 and when I went to get more the price more than trebled.  The search was on.

I personally pay very little attention to the names of productions.  I’m in it for the wrappers, as already stated, and factories.  Xinghai happened to be a factory with a peacock logo or name, so that’s how I happened upon them.  It started out with mostly ripes, but I slowly started exploring some of their raws.  Xinghai set sail in ’02 and in ’18 they were bought by some entity that I haven’t cared to do any research on.  Right now, that’s not so important, as the BZ Peacock is the object of discussion.

Tobacco Class productions range due largely to house and production conception.  I previously offered an unrelenting Xinghai brick for the price of dirt, which I called Lapsang Bulang.  That brick holds the distinction of being THE smokiest and most carefully crafted brick ever encountered.  The leaves were big and whole.  The brick broke apart easily with the leaves in tact.

That’s a Jul 2000 shot, which the program won’t let me caption without creating mayhem in the layout.  In any event, Lapsang Bulang is serving as a foil to demonstrate what the BZ Peacock is not.  BZ Peacock’s smoke is more like incense.  There is a whiskey, tequila oak-stored quality about it.

Before getting more into the drinking, something should be said about how remarkably unrefined this production is.  It’s really the quintessence of the old-school factory style: hard pressed, ugly, and chunky.  Prying leaves is a joke.  This is a Menghai/Bulang creation and elegance in pressing at this time did not figure.  Don’t look for that Yiwu elegance here.

This rougueness carries over into the presentation, sorta.  Thoughts of drinking this makes me cringe a bit.  It doesn’t have that in-your-face smoke.  In fact, it’s not the smoke at all that elicits the fear.  It’s the qi.  Maybe it was “one of those days,” but even from the second cup of the first infusion earlier this week absolute oppression occurred.  I guess you could say like whiskey or tequila.

Below is what it looks like from the rinse.  There’s zero humidity.  There’s no Guangdong.  There’s positively no humidity.  The rinse, yeah I’ll drink the rinse, has a bit of sour and smoke, and surprising sweetness.  Already, I feel it and a sense of dread comes over me.  Only one cup. The pic show’s crystal clear now.  It instantly gets my throat.  Must be the day, as I have no prior recollection of that.  The sour note in taste and aroma are the most interesting traits.

Rinse

After the leaves have woken, the pot has a sour, mesquite, and Redman Tobacco sweetness aroma, in that order.  I toss the rinse, as I want to last and upon standing am already feeling it. Only one cup!  I decide on 10s in the bell pepper pot, even though earlier in the week I flash infused infused in gaiwan to proper results.  I’ll modify later but am going for a more forceful experience this time, though am using less leafage, 6.7g in 150ml.

I don’t think I’ll last more than four rounds.  I keep thinking of the Simao “A”, which I’ve learned was crafted by another tea meistra Wang Xia.  The BZP has the taste is of pure tequila without the volatile distraction of the alcohol.  There’s an exquisite note of vanilla which finishes the sip.  The taste is smooth in the mouth.  Surprisingly sweet.  It’s not too much time, an appropriate first infusion. The vanilla is definitely winning major points.  The brew is not in the least crude, at least at this point. With devil may care attitude I have another cup and pour another, but now I’m definitely feeling it in my head and chest.

Infusion 1

I’m not sure I can go on.  I think there’s a feeling of anxiety coming on, though I’m not the anxious type.  The sensation in the chest and head aren’t fun.  I feel dread.  I honestly can’t go on.  My hands are on the shaky side.  My body tells me that’s enough.

I tap out after three cups from two infusions.  I’m going to brew a little “7588” Fuhai to settle down.

Portrait “7588”

Earlier in the week while sitting in the sun I was able to power through to about six, with gaps interspersed.  That’s when the the incense to center stage.  Also, the huigan is floral.  The smoke-fade-to-flowers sensation may be quite common, but I cannot think of any off-hand.  The floral presence in the huigan builds with each infusion.  It’s quite nice.  Cask-type productions usually carry with them a measure of bitterness and the BZ Peacock is no exception.  I went two days with this and it never bottomed out.  The incense carries throughout.  It’s a cross between these two pieces, Sylvian and Black Sabbath.  Like I said, not for lightweights.

 

 

Puerh Report: Tin Water Blues

Puerh Report: Tin Water Blues is part of an on-going look at the development of various tinned puerhs.  Here “tinned” is broadly construed to include raw puerhs stored in clay and porcelain as well.  Tin Water Blues is the Water Blue Mark stored about six weeks in a big fancy porcelain vessel with a tight-fitting porcelain lid having a foil underside.

I tested the Water Blue Mark as many as three times in that period, with a stint where the lid was left ajar.  It didn’t gain anything from porcelain.  A case for the blues if I’ve ever heard one.  It seemed to get airier when what it needs is to continue to cook through some of the smoke while letting the more complex spices and fruits develop.

I moved it to a kraft bag seal pouch, which I use for posting larger samples.  I’ve had some success with these storing a few items.  I consider their storage different from clay and perhaps porcelain in that it is sealing in flavor as opposed to seasoning it with a great deal more air exchange through clay.  Porcelain may not do this and might be best for stuff you want to keep as fresh as possible.  Porcelain aside, this vessel is so impossibly large that it might be best for sancha.

One must consider the change in season and variances in brewing vessels and brewing amounts.  The Puerh Junky using a scale much less lately with raws.  A scale still finds use with ripes more interested in testing performance relative others in the collection.  With raws I’m paying more attention to compression and eye-balling.

The most recent eye-balled session with the WBM stored in the kraft bag for around 10 days is a success.  Altogether eight infusions were had on day one.  At the eighth, which got a minute, an interesting thing happened. . . it got sweeter, while the smoke toned down.  Rocks and sugar.  Infusions the following morning were both sweet and savory.  The production has taken on a more serious tone, savory along with petrol, in the vein of the 6FTM Tuo and other considerably pricier items.  By the 12th infusion it got boring, but the shift at eight bodes well for what WBM is becoming.

I guess not all blues has a sad ending.  I’m at a stage now where I’m much more willing to make quick calls in my six-ring circus of storage.  It’s largely a matter of fine tuning given the variations I have at my disposal and what the tea prefers.  Volume and density is a major axis along which storage hinges.  Right now WBM is in a density phase.  We want more depth and richness to cook the fruit and spices not air them.

Puerh Junky’s Three

The Puerh Junky’s Three is pretty much like any other story.  There’s good guys and bad guys and the bad guys turn good and the good bad and everyone has a drink to just forget about it all.  Choose you heroes carefully.  You might get snakebitten.  Here I take a foray into three 6FTM productions.

Step right up, I got your snakes here. The ’13 Snake is the tenth edition of the Lunar Series and is relatively young.  The production struck me as a sweet Riesling, with clear taste of honeydew and a sweet aroma.  The experience was short lived, as it starts to wane precipitously after the fifth infusion, but those are all very good infusions.

I decided to follow such a young production with the 07 Tinned Pig, which was tinned probably mid February 2021.  This 6FTM production is more resolutely pressed, but it’s been broken down to chunks.  Here the production didn’t really start to hit its stride till about the fifth infusion.  I switched from clay to gaiwan, as a noticed a hint of metal that I think the red clay was bringing out.  I got an additional four infusions and when pushed it didn’t bottom out, remaining sweet and textured.  Overall, it expressed a colour and nature that could be mistaken for a very good production from around ’15.  No doubt compression accounts for much of this youth.  At the same time, it is very round and smooth.

Finally, I went with another production from ’07, Poison. This production is in an altogether different class.  By the third infusion and drinking w/ my wife, we both tapped out.  The brewing  was perfect, with each round a bit darker than the previous.  It’s open from the first infusion and just wows with each subsequent infusion, but it’s a lot to process.  So you tap out.

June 2021 will be around one year LA storage for this raw puerh cake.  In that year it has continued to wow me.  The camphor is starting to make a turn toward down right medicinal beyond root beer.  There’s also an interesting sour that affects the salivary senses.  Something about the woody productions that go beyond the leafiness of the Tobacco class, a Spirits class if you will.  It evokes senses of whiskey and tequila, digestive liqueurs, with spices like clove and star anise.  Vanilla, sarsaparilla, but with an edge evocative of spirits aged in oak and mesquite.  Oh, and smoked bubble gum, even locquat.  It is anchored by some serious bitterness and sweetness.  You tap out again at the 9th-infusion.

In terms of Spirits class productions, Glee comes to mind.  The Jade Rabbit and the 6FTM Tuo both exhibit spirit attributes as well.  They’re all good studies in excellent productions.