2019 Puerist Mengsong Dragonball: A Complex Evolving Mengsong

This is the second complimentary dragonball sampling I’ve done of Puerist’s offerings.  There is another that will follow this one as well.  The dragonball is the same material as this 2019 Puerist Mengsong 200g cakethat goes for approx. $75.00 or $0.38/g I do believe…

Dry leaves smell of faint spicy almost faint fruit.  I give the balls a 30 second rinse then wait a few minutes.  I give the pot a gentle shake.

The first infusion has a watery vegetal taste with a woody creamy taste that is quite watery still with the balls not opened up sufficiently.  There is a sticky mouthcoating developing with a fine peachy taste in the aftertaste even in this early attempt.

The second infusion has a woody almost bland bread onset with a full tight chalky mouthfeeling with tight dry lips.  There is a faint peachy taste that lingers in the aftertaste.  This infusion is still pretty faint and clear and pure in taste but strong in mouhfeeling and lip dry tightness.  The Qi is a bit sedating.  It almost tastes like an Autumnal production here.  There is an interesting bodyfeeling over the Liver and Stomach.

The third infusion has a watery bland almost bread woody onset.  It develops a faint elegant peachy, peach pie finish in the mouth.  Stomach expanding Qi sensation very mild.  The mouthfeeling mainly on the tongue and lips with little in the throat.  A faint astringency develops.  The mind has a sedated feeling to it.

The fourth infusion has a watery almost peach water dry wood onset.  The peach kind of disappears then returns.  It has a bit of a soapy Thrills gum edge to it.  The Qi is warming in the body and has a Stomach expanding sensation and lower ribs expanding feeling.  The mind is sedated.

The fifth infusion has an almost milky watery but long expanding soft faint peach taste.  The mouthfeeling is tight on the lips and sticky mild tight on the tongue with very little throat stimulation.  The Qi is warming and rib and Stomach expanding.

The sixth infusion has a peachy fruity pure clear taste.  It’s a simple taste but pure and clear and vibrant.  It causes a bit of salivation and has a bit of an oily chalky feeling in the mouth.  The aftertaste is a fading peachy juicy taste.

The seventh is a floral buttery almost fruity pear type taste.  It is pure clean and not that strong.  A bit of dry lips and thin sticky tonguecoating.  Slightly sedating Qi.

The eighth infusion has a bit of mild woody floral butter pucker very faint with a more brackish clear woody taste here.  A clean simple profile. Thin dry tongue coating.

The ninth becomes even woodier.  Less floral and fruity.  The sweet fruity taste is almost gone completely now.  There is a bit of astringency.  Thin woody with a building strength to it.

The 10^th has a soapy fruity taste in there with floral and woody notes.  This infusion has a full woody fruity saliva producing oily sensation once again.  The mouthfeeling is becoming stronger and so is the euphoria producing feeling.

The 11^th has a tangy juicy woody pear taste, very clean simple tastes, with a chalky/gripping mouthfeeling.  There is a flat bland finish- a bit floral dry wood.  Qi has a faint feeling in the lower ribs and a mild hypnotic feeling in the mind.

12^th infusion has a mild bitter dandelion leaf onset with a buttery woody finish.  Not much sweetness here.  Dry lips and tight mild tonguecoating with a chalky dry mouthfeeling.  Very cozy, warming, relaxing and euphoric Qi feeling.  I feel comforted and a bit spaced out.

13^th is a strong bitter floral buttery woody taste.  The stronger the bitter taste, the more pronounced the overall clear flavours.  The taste of this puerh kind of just fades into the distance without much coming or going.  The Qi is euphoric with a building underlying power now.

14^th is an almost syrupy peachy floral woody bitter up front taste that fades after a saliva blob of taste runs through.  Nice alerting Qi.

15^th is a syrupy woody faint fruity bitter that fades into the distance.  Dry lips and chalky tight tongue with very little throat stimulation as it has held throughout.  Qi is starting to give me a power surge.  Lots of dynamic change in the Qi sensation throughout this long session.  Very nice.

16^th a bitter splash of fruity floral taste drops into dry wood and fades.  Sticky mouthfeeeling and dry lips.  Nice vibrant Qi starts to build and course through the body.  I feel re-energized from the experience.

17^th an almost flat sweet gasoline like with woody bitterness onset that has a vegetal floral woody finish.  The taste is still changing here.

I come back to the pot the next day…

18^th & 19^th have a creamy woody almost plum peachy faint fruity taste.  Thin sticky tongue coating with dry lips.

I mug steep this out…

It give off a very floral soapy Thrills gum taste.  Tasty floral and vegetal taste.  Surprisingly not much bitter or astringency.

Overall, this puerh in dragonball form offers lots of dynamism of both taste, mouthfeeling, and Qi throughout the session.  This is partly due to its tight compression but also from its raw material.  It has lots of subtle flavors of floral and tart fruits, peachy notes and more syrupy notes as well as bitter dry woods, vegetal notes and bitter dandelion tastes.  The first half of the session is pure and faint with a clear peachy taste.  The later infusions thicken up and add elements of bitterness to the sweet.  During even the pure simple tastes of the early session there is lots going on with the Qi sensations with this one as well and same for the mouthfeeling that is sometimes very saliva producing and other times very gripping and dry.  Lots of variability here.  Bodyfeelings are not as common but appear as warming body, feel limbs, and rib and stomach expanding feelings…

Lots going on here people for those who like dynamic, evolving, and complex puerh with a nod to the Mengsong character.

Peace

2019 Zheng Si Long Autumn Yibang Ma Li Shu: Building Power

I have been sipping away at this semi aged 2013Puerist Ma Li Shu that I purchased last year and wonder how this will compare?  This 2019 Zheng Si Long Autumn Ma Li Shu goes for $51.18 for 200g cake or $0.26/g. Thanks Tiago for sending this satisfying sample...

Dry leaf is of a mossy sweet floral woodiness.

First infusion has a watery floral with a soft returning creamy sweetness.  A strong heady Qi seems to be coagulating in the mind.

Second infusion has a soft creamy pear sweetness over a pure clean watery body.  There is a base taste of dry wood.  The taste is pure light and clear.  The mouthfeeling is as soft as the flavor with a sticky lips and mild mossy faint toungcoating with faint lingering cooling in the throat.  Qi is a mild spacy relaxing feeling.  There is an Asian pear aftertaste minutes later.  There is a faint opening below the ribs.

The third infusion there is a woody dense pear taste and orange peel that moves fast to a light pure icing sugar finish.  There is some mouthwatering over a fine clay like taste.  There is long pure sweet pear-sugar aftertaste is really nice minutes later.  Nice relaxing mind stopping Qi.  Slight opening bodyfeeling in ribs and chest.

The fourth infusion has a creamy sweet candy and floral pear like dense high-noted complex light onset which comes with a quick moving bitterness with a faint sugar that bridges the gap.  Very Sticky, almost dry, lips and clay mouthfeeling with this complex sweetness is really nice here.  Light limbs and Open chest sesnsation and mid slowly effects. Very nice infusion with a Qi sensation that is really strong in the mind and pushing me into an extreme spaced out.

The fifth infusion has a peachy banana woody mild bitter pear like onset.  There is a clay puckering monthfeelnig with very dry lips.  The aftertaste is a bit dry woody with a sugary finish, slight candy, Slight more woody.  Big Qi sensation.

6^th has a quick bitter lemon peel with pear and slight floral creamy surgar-honey.  Nice sticky lips and clay thin coating on the tongue.  Faint rubbery woody taste that fades when the sweetness returns into a fading out of pear taste on the breath.  Mind stopping Qi.

7^th Ooops… a good few minutes went by… very dense peachy taste, almost soapy floral peach with dense clay sticky tonguecoating and dry lips.  A bit bitter but not overwhelming so.  Strong floral presence in the accident strong push.  Big Qi is chest and relaxing mind.

8^th is left to cool as work gets a bit busier than I imaged and I’m honestly pretty spaced out from the Qi here… peach-pear with a touch of orange rind and faint slight wood that turns to a fading candy on the breath.

9^th has a peachy woody a bit of bitter orange peel.  Faint cooling at top of throat turns to sugary candy peach woody.   Very satisfying if not that complex right now.

10^th is left to cool and I get a more woody dry bitter balanced with creamsicle tastes.  Big open chest Qi.

11^th has a bitter woody orange peel with an almost creamy sweeter finish with a gripping but dense tonguefeeling and relaxing spacy Qi.

12^th has a bitter dry woody with underlying peachy suggestions.  The mouthfeeling has become quite strong and gripping on the tongue and lips with the upper throat opening as it has throughout the session.

13^th is a bitter orangey floral wood onset that is a balance of flavours with bitter being the strongest.  There is still lots of flavor here.  This puerh has great stamina!  Powerful Qi in the chest and mind but not at all harsh on the body.  The 14^th is much the same with still a strong presence and flavor.

The mug infusions afterward are super flavourful still with a bitter and sweet blend of tastes.

Overall, nice complex light sweet fruity florals a touch of bitter and dry wood.  Nice sticky almost clay faint mouthcovering.  Big spacy Qi in here.  Nice to drink now and space out or just age it out very dry for the powerful Qi experience.  I had a great day with this one.  This is a good value option for those looking for Qi and power and don’t want to break the bank.  It was a busy day but I was so spaced out I didn’t care… hahhahha….

Vs 2020 Tea Encounter Autumn Chawangshu.... these are almost the same price and both Autumn.  The Chawangshu is more complex and Balanced with less stamina as it gets weaker fast.  The Ma Li Shu has a power that builds throughout the session but has less balanced taste that tends to be more varied highnotes throughout most of the first half of the session.  The last half is a nice bitter and sweet balance.  Both nice cheap options with enough elements to enjoy for their price.

Alex’s (Puerh Notes) Tasting Notes

Peace

2019 Zheng Si Long Autumn Mang Zhi: Marketing Budget Single Origin Puerh

Okay, I know Tiago and me are both strong believers of the benefits of full size puerh cakes.  But, let’s be honest… there are also many advantages to offering Xiao Bings too.  Maybe one of the biggest advantages is that a cake can be had at a much lower buy in price.

Okay, I know Tiago and me are both strong believers of the benefits of Spring cakes.  But, let’s be honest… there are also many advantages to offering Autumn puerh too.  Maybe one of the biggest advantages is that a cake can be had at a much lower buy in price.

Okay, I know I kind of just repeated myself there.  But you can see where I am going with this right? The combo of xiao bing with Autumn production makes for a really affordable option for those who can’t afford or don’t want to spend the money on fresh puerh these days.  Zheng Si Long offers a solid Yiwu single origin puerh experience for those who wish to explore single regions on the cheap all the while having your very own cake which is kind of fun.

Tiago sent me a complimentary sample for review of one of these autumnal 2019 Zheng Si Long- the 2019 Zheng Si Long Autumn Mang Zhi($46.47 for 200g cake or $0.23/g).  I imaged he probably sent this one because he knows I really enjoy the Zheng SiLong Mang Zhi and also because I think the 2016 is a pretty solid Autunal puerhfor the price…

Dry leaves smell of creamy, woody, florally, fruity complex odour that is not particularly strong but complex.

First infusion starts with a pondy woody watery onset with hay notes underneath.  There is a clear vegetal base to this first infusion almost rubbery woody and almost floral.  Not that much sweetness.  The mouthfeel starts to fill up with a rubbery squeaky kind of feeling.

The second infusion starts with a very present woody taste slight rubbery woody and almost a woody floral type of finish.  The mouthfeel is full and squeaky.  There is a puckering full sensation in the mouth with a very faint floral, not that much sweetness.  The cooled cup is a floral orange creamy butter sweetness over a vegetal base.  The Qi comes off pretty relaxing.

The third infusion has a lime fruit sour orange woody floral taste.  There is some complexity coming out in the taste with sour, salty, and not quite sweet notes emerging here.  The taste is both interesting and enjoyable and ends in a faint sugary woody floral cream woody.  The mouthfeeling is a bit sandy and soft not too full with a vacuous throat.  The Qi is relaxing to the point of zoning out chill.

The fourth has a jazzy fruity perfume woody strong condensed initial taste.  The base is woody and vegetal there is a sugar sweetness in the finish with a fruity sweet layering.  The mouthfeeling is chalky with sticky lips.

The fifth infusion has a woody slight bitter juicy condensed fruity perfume onset.  The initial tastes kind of drops leaving a vegetal and woody base and some floral tastes with a faint sugar.  The mouthfeeling is a thick chalky coating not much of anything really goes on in the throat. 

The sixth infusion has a chalky floral orange fruit taste over a vegetal woody base flavor.  The initial taste is a spark of tastes then it fades into a creamy sweet almost orange creamsicle flavor over woody vegetal taste.  The mouthfeeling is thin chalky and the throat is empty.

The seventh infusion has a mild bitter wood with vegetal and faint orange floral underneath.  The mouthfeeling is a chalky thin puckering with a cottony full finish.  It finishes vegetal and almost creamy sweet. There is lots of flavor here for sure just not as much mouthfeeling and absent of much throatfeeeling.  The Qi is quite mild and relaxing almost hazy in the mind.

The eighth infusion has a woody slight bitter onset with sour orange and floral finish.  The dense flavor over stimulating mouthfeeling are enjoyable.  There is also a metallic taste developing in the mouth over a flat sticky dry thin mouthfeeling.  Hazy mild relaxing downer Qi on this overcast day- my mind feels overcast.

The ninth infusion has a bitter woody onset that quickly leaves an orange sour sweetness behind in the tight chalky thin mouthcoating.  There is a vegetal bitter woodiness underneath.  A cool cup is more creamy sweet woody slight orange sour savory taste.  The taste is complex and interesting but has little to root on a thin tight chalky mouthfeeling and empty throatfeeling.   Relaxing.

The 10^th has a woody slight bitter orange not that creamy floral taste.  It’s like all the interesting flavours come at the same time and don’t stick around much but that initial blast is really nice.  Flat tight full coating.

The 11^th infusion has a sour sweet orange woody vegetal taste.  Tight slight chalky full mouthfeeling.  Relaxing Qi.  This puerh is very stable throughout the infusions.  I like the interesting burst of flavours here- bitter, savory, and sour.

`12^th has a watery, vegetal, slight bitter orange taste with some woody almost coco base woody profile.  There is a grain/ hay subtle nuance that pops up in the aftertaste minutes later. 

I mug steep out the rest and it gives off thick olive vegetal slight bitterness with a wood-floral nuance.  The taste is still quite concentrated and give me a calm alert feeling inside.

I overnight steep it and it is actually quite complex in flavor the next day with chalky, woody, creamy sweet, fruity, bitter, lots of tastes in there over a thick full chalkiness.  The fruitiness is quite long in the mouth and lingers for a long time.  It’s interesting that the gongfu had not much aftertaste where the overnight steeping of the spent leaf had lots of aftertaste which tells me that it will grow into its aftertaste as it ages a bit more.

Overall, this Autumn Mang Zhi offers a dense complex burst of varied tastes initially that fade quickly but are quite satisfying and thick when they arrive all at once.  Like a big blast of flavor and then quick fade.  This aspect is nice and enjoyable.  There isn’t much for either length of taste, aftertaste, nor is there much throatfeeling.  The Qi is a relaxing hazy mind effect.  In the end I liked the contrast between flavor bursts and relaxing haze.  I still think a much better Autumal Mang Zhi is the 2016 Zheng Si Long Autumn Mang Zhi offered at Tea Encounter that was selected by Tiago after a wider sampling of Zheng Si Long Autumal productions over the years.  Still this is a solid autumnal puerh single origin puerh for its 2020 price- if that is what you are looking for.  I enjoyed it.

Peace

Puerist “Made Round to Go Round” Mystery Dragon Ball! (2019 Puerist Naka)

Hey this is fun- a Dragon Ball!  I have no idea of providence nor age so this one is a mystery to me- a blind sampling.   It is the only suggestion of some marketing something, marketing anything really, from Mark Turner of Puerist!  OR maybe it is just simply a form of kindness?  We all need more kindness these days….

Dry leaves smell of faint dry woody barely sweet almost honey.

After a 30 second long rinse the wet leaves smell of a creamy sweet, floral woody bittery green fresh odour.  The material is likely from the last year.

The first infusion I do a 30 second steeping again with a woody candy floss long candy onset that evolves into a candy finish.  Did anyone say candy? This tastes and feels like Yiwu to me.  There is a watery slippery mouthfeeling and long candy over dry wood flavor with expansive sweet candy in the aftertaste after low pungent.

The second infusion is another 30 second steeping is a woody creamy sweetness with a dry woody base taste which starts sweet candy and ends in the mouth more candy.  There is a carrot/ raspberry almost woody vegetal edge that comes out in this infusion.  The mouthfeel is a bit slippery and slight gripping.  Not too much sensation in the mouth.  This infusion tastes more like Nannou to me.  There is also the faintest smoke that is almost unrecognizable and very faint astringency.  There is a long faint peachy almost woody taste even many minutes later.

The third infusion I go 25 seconds and it gives off… a thicker brothy soupy grassy type of sweetness that is thick and dense and overlapping with a moderate oily viscosity.  There is a floral and sweet peach that emerges from the dense soupy grassy woody tastes.  The mouthfeel is a moderately thick sandy sticky.  The Qi is felt a bit in the chest and makes the mind feel clear.  This infusion reminds me of Bada.

The fourth infusion is a 20 second infusion and delivers woody slight dirt grassy taste with sweet candy which expands in the mouth.  The grassy pondy soupy woody with candy.  There are nuances of dirt tastes almost coco with carrot like nuance.  The mouthfeeling is an almost tight sticky with a mild throat feeling and increasingly sticky lips.  The Qi is really mild and focusing with some Heart beats.

The fifth was a 10 second steep and has a buttery grassy woody taste with a underlying creamy candy sweetness that is highlighted more in the aftertaste.  The sweet candy and almost peach aftertaste has a slight woody almost astringent base.  There is a long peachy creamy woody sweetness minutes later.  The mouthfeel has a bit of pucker chalkiness even on the tongue and this sensation reaches deeper into the throat this infusion.

The sixth is a flash infusion for a while here and delivers very floral sweet highnoted melon and peachy floral sweetness.  This infusion has a really nice uninterrupted honeydew melon sweetness throughout, which is almost sugary at times.  The taste is draped over a soft but almost sandy not really puckering mouthfeeling and very mildly stimulates the top throat.  There is a mild fresh melon coolness at the finish.

The seventh infusion has a woody onset with distinct candy like sweetness.  There is a creamy fluffiness to the sweetness and long candy like taste that is definitely tasting very Yiwu.  The mouthfeeling has developed very nicely in to a fluffy sticky full feeling thing.  Qi is very mild and focuses the mind a bit.

The eighth infusion has a woody dirt carrot and candy taste to it.  There is a long sweet candy melon aftertaste over a woody base.  The mouthfeeling is nicely thickening with a sticky pucker and stimulating the throat to hold the candy aftertaste for a long time afterwards.  The Qi is mild and focusing.

The ninth infusion has a mild woody chalky woody not as sweet now kind of icing surgery sweetness.  There is a slight woody brackishness in the taste now and less elegance.  The mouthfeeling is sandier and almost dry with not much going on with throatfeeling, Qi or aftertaste now.

The 10^th is still at flash but the liquor was left to cool and it gives off a simple woody almost maple syrup with expanding sweet taste.  The mouthfeel is sticky with slight sandy pucker fullness.  Mild alerting Qi.

11^th has a woody buttery floral aspect to it the sweetness has a caramel edge to it now not the fruity sugary quality it had at the start of the session.  Soft chalky and slight sticky drying full mouthfeeling.  It still has a brown sugar finish now and a nice moderately oily texture.  Relaxing and focusing Qi.

12^th has an orange peel creamy sweet almost caramel sweetness to it.  It ends in a caramel and fresh honeydew melon sweet finish.  There is a deeper mid throat opening here with longer nuanced sweet melon and caramel aftertaste.  The mouthfeeling is more of a moderate-mild chalkiness with a relaxing mild Qi.

13^th has an orange peeling almost orange coco chocolate taste with an emerging creamy almost floral orange blossom sweetness with a longer caramel finish.  The throat is opening deeper here with a nice chalky mouthcaoting.  Almost floral orange caramel finish in the mouth.  These last infusions have been really smooth and enjoyable.

14^th This infusion has more coco orange peel slight bitterness with a more gripping mouth and throat feeling.  There is less sweetness here and more of a dirt woody coco. 

15^th infusion has a pondy grassy soupy woodiness almost a grassy sweetness.  There is only faint sweet edges left over a sandy sticky mouthfeeling.  Mild relaxing qi.

16^th infusion has a bitter woody taste that is almost coco and not really peachy floral.  I leave the session here only to come back a mug steep out the leaves tomorrow during the work day…

The grandpa steeping of the spent leaves should be quite powerful because the leaf hasn’t completely unraveled from the small tight compact ball shape completely.

The leaves are a bitter woody almost coco and a bit of spice peppery pungency.  There is a coolness in the throat but not that much fruity sweet left - just some on the edges.  As the mug cools more of a floral bitter dirt almost sweet pear and orange taste almost jasmine taste develops.

Conclusion, this production is likely 2018/ 2019 and has some qualities from Yiwu, Bada, and Nannou.  I am left wondering if it is a blend of different regions?  I enjoyed this easy drinker.  What goes ‘round comes ‘round.

Thanks again Mark!

 

Edit: I was informed by Mark Turner of Puerist that these Dragon Balls are of the same material as the 2019 Puerist Naka “Middle Aged” (Zhong Shu) which goes for approximately$38.00 for 200g cake or $0.19/g when converting back from Canadian currency.  Which makes it a really solid budget single area puerh.  This Naka isn’t as powerful in Qi as more expensive Naka but its flavor is complex enough that I thought this one might be a blend so that says a bit about its quality for the price.  Another interesting thing about this puerh is that it is the first that I know of that is marketed as “Zhong Shu” or middle aged trees (between Xiao Shu and Gu Shu).  I wonder if other vendors will use this marketing in the future?

 

Peace

 

Marco’s Blind Tasting “Zeta” (2019 Ha Giang via Tea Addicts)

So far the blind samples that Marco has sent me seem to be very very different from each other.  The “Delta” was quite elegant with a nice energy to it, the “Gamma” was very delicious, powerful, out of body experience, and the “Alpha” seem to be a very dry/sealed stored factory production.  This blind sample labeled “Zeta” would turn out to be an interesting comparison to “Gamma”…

The stone compressed younger/ drier looking dry leaves smell of strong smoke after snipping the sealed package…

First infusion has a very sweet almost vegetal and mineral but fruity smoky onset and steeps out surprisingly darker than I thought.  It has a flat creamy sweet finish, almost floral.  This first steeping reminds me of Bulang area.  It has some nice complexity right of the bat and is nuanced and sweet.  There is a lingering sweet creamy aftertaste.  It has a lubricating oily feel to it.  I can feel the Qi in the head even in this first cup.  Could be a younger semiaged very dry Malaysian stored Bulang?

The second infusion has a sweet root beer, creamy sweet milky and very milk chocolate taste.  The mouthfeeling is very oily and lubricating and paired with the creamy velvety sweetness of milky sweet chocolate and root beer taste it results in a smooth, oily, rich, decadent feeling.  There is a spicy warm pungency in the throat and a sweet plumb and kind of floral aftertaste.  There is a certain elegance and smoothness to this initial taste.  The smoke is more of a faint backdrop in this second infusion.  This Bulang is very smooth and has an obvious layered complexity to it.

The third infusion has a sweet root beer/ sarsaparilla onset taste with some smoke.  It tastes more herbaceous and less milky chocolate.  The taste is more roots and sweet, not TCM medicine, something more complex and light and sweet but yet still mild-moderate smoke.  This is more of an herbaceous Bulang at its core but has some nice smoke-milky-chocolate Bulang taste too.  There is an oily feeling in the mouth and throat with root beer finish.  Mouthfeeling is sticky/oily and throatfeeling is opening mid-deep.  The Qi is a calming but smooth type of alertness- a focusing alertness.

The fourth infusion has a forest, milky, less root beer, more creamy sweet subtle smokiness.  There is a rich velvety feel and taste to this Bulang which I find really interesting and unique.  Although it is mild-moderate smokiness the rich smooth oily and creamy tastes are very elegant.  The pungency is a warmer spicy pungency, dried orange peel, and there is even a warmth building in the body.  It kind of tastes like Christmas cake or spiced bread- the taste is spicy and herbaceous layered on oily sweetness.  The effect is very enjoyable.

The fifth infusion I drink the cooled cup and it gives off a smooth creamy root beer oily smooth taste with a touch of smoke.  The smoke is really background and not char but an elegant smoke that layers with the creamy root beer sweetness- liked a nice smoked creamy root beer… that sounds delicious doesn’t it?  Because it is…  This is really tasty with a nice focusing energy to it. 

The sixth infusion has a forest creamy milky taste with a smooth finish of creamy sweet root beer.  There is not really much bitter in this Bulang- a feature that adds to its smoothness.  The mouthfeel is becoming less oily and more soft/sticky.  The throat still opens deeply with a warm spicy pungency. The Qi has a strong deep focusing energy to it and I yawn and stretch my body while my mind feels relaxed and a bit sharp.

The seventh infusion has a creamy less thick root beer taste.  The depth of the root taste is somewhat complex but the interplay between, milk, creamy, chocolate, spices, herbs, ect is gone now.  It’s now mainly a one dimensional taste.  The mouthfeeling and throatfeeling are much less oily and more soft/sticky.  Qi is really relaxing now.

The eighth infusion has a forest, almost creamy, not really root beer not that smoky taste.  I would say it’s more kind of forest and faintly bitter.  The mouthfeeling is a more soft tight feeling.  The throat is less opening.  The Qi is more a relaxed focusing now.

The ninth infusion is a root tasting kind of forest even slightly fruity tasting with a faint bitter almost but not really coco taste underneath.  There is more of a flat aftertaste of coco.  The mouthfeeling becomes a bit sandy.  There is a bit of complexity here but on a more shallow level as this puerh is thinning out here.

The tenth infusion comes out more watered down root beer faint chocolate.  It still really tastes good but is fading considerably.  The mouthfeeling is a sandy/chalky/soft sensation.  This mouthfeeling and taste is quite enjoyable even here. 

11^th has a more almost dirt coco taste to it.  There is just a faint background smoke in there with a kind of mild root beer aftertaste over a sticky tongue.

12^th I add 15 seconds to strengthen it up a bit… and it comes out a bit stronger but a nice chocolate flat milky creamy onset with more of a root beer finish.  I really like this Bulang. It has a really smooth taste, mouthfeeling, and Qi for a Bulang… a strong velvety Bulang.  Humm… not sure if it is even Bulang but that’s kind of how I decided to evaluate it.

13^th I add 20 seconds… and it starts a bit watery smoke initially with a flat forest taste almost creamy milk taste with barely detectable root beer finish.  The mouthfeeling is slight sticky and tight.

14^th I add 30 seconds to the flash steep and get nice foresty tastes, slight creamy.  In a stick sticky dry mouthfeeling and slight throat stimulation.  This Bulang has very good stamina for a Bulang and because it doesn’t have too much bitter or smoke or astringency you can really push out the flavours at the end here.  I also really like the deep mood influencing feeling of wellbeing that this Bulang induces.  It’s a deeper reaching Qi experience rather than a typical intense Bulang experience.  This is also very nice.  Just like the “Gamma” I wonder if it could be Ban Zhang or even other area..???

15^th is a 40 second steeping beyond flash and it gives off a bit of dirt coco faint smoke taste and slight bitter foresty kind of taste.  The bitterness is stronger with this 40 second steeping and give more of a griping mouth and throat feeling with faint coolness but not much returning taste.

16^th I go back to 20 second steeps…there is a smooth fruitiness left in the cup with a faint pungent that pushes out a creamy sweetness.  This is still very flavourful despite its simplicity here.  The complexity at the end of the session here is the diversity between steepings.

17^th infusion I steep it 30 seconds…and it is a bit pondy/woody bitter almost fruity and creamy sweet.  Not complex at this point but still quite enjoyable. 

18^th is 40 seconds longer than flash and gives off a mildly smoky creamy sweet simple taste with a slight almost fruity edge. It has a bit of a creamy sweet but kind of woody bland finish.

The stamina is at least partially due to the long big but tight rolled leaf that is apparent in viewing the wet leaf…

Overall, this is a very decedent, refined, smooth, and somewhat elegant Bulang in taste, feel, and Qi.  There is just a subtle reminder of Bulang toughness in its background smoke, its strong deep plunging Qi, and when pushed too hard some standard Bulang bitterness that is still accessible.  It has excellent stamina for a Bulang and feels comfortable in the body and mind.  This makes me think that this is not even a Bulang but I have no other region that comes to mind.  This is kind of a mix of the bitter and creamy sweet Bulang profile, the herbaceous woody medicinal Bulang profile, and the fruity, floral, less bitter Bulang.  I would say that the first infusions are more herbaceous and the later are more bitter creamy sweet with a bit of the fruity less bitter tossed into the first half of the session!  In this way this Bulang is quite balanced and complex instead of the profile of most Bulang which is often very strong and polar.  The Qi really left me in a great spot.  This is a great classy Bulang, if a Bulang at all.  To many things point this to being something not Bulang, but what?  Ban Zhang- don't think so.  I don't know.

Guess: This is a semi aged 10-14 years very dry Malaysian or possibly dry Taiwanese storage Bulang?

Answer: 2019 Ha Giang via Tea Addicts

Peace

 

2019 Essence of Tea Yao Zhu Di: An Essence of Tea’s Yiwu GuoYouLin Comparison

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2019 Zheng Si Long Ma Hei = Thicc!

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