"1980s Sheng Fangcha" Nada Sample

This sample from Nada was stored in a buncheong style Kim Jeong Soo jar for a few years. A few months ago the body was in need of an oldish Shang this was one of a few older peurhs that were consumed at that time.

The dry leaves have a dusty wood smell. The odour is quite faint. They are added to hot yixing and the first session begins.

The first infusion displays fruity, cherry-plumb notes which came out under woody camphour notes that stretch into dryness. Even after a good long rinse the tea tastes dusty and dry. The contrast between fruity/ wood and dusty/ dry is nice. The aftertaste is dry, dusty with hints of fruit- a continuation of these initial tastes.

The second infusion begins to awaken. It carries a creaminess along with the dusty taste. There are faint suggestions of black cherry even dry coco that underlie the very drying wood notes. The mouthfeel is light and silky.

The third infusion is very woody- camphour in taste especially the initial burst of flavour. Flavours end slightly fruity and then turn dry. The dry dusty tastes have almost disappeared. The mouthfeel is a bit tougher and dry. A light heat is felt in the upper and middle cavities which includes a warm sensation in the arms. The qi is mild, light, warming.

The fourth, fifth, and sixth, infusions are dominated by very dry wood notes accompanied by a dry mouthfeel. This dry wood taste dominates the taste and feel of the session.

The seventh, eighth, and ninth infusions become slightly thinner. This space in the cup allows for a wheaty-straw taste to appear. Sweet notes are hidden deep under the cover of dry wood and rarely peep out. This tea really dries you out.

The tenth, eleventh, and twelfth infusions turn watery. Sweet juicy plum notes appear in the initial taste before moving slowly towards a drier, sharper taste and feel. It too melts away slowly in the mouth.

This tea is taken for a handful more longer infusions. It is here where the depth of fruity flavours are realized and appreciated. Only after the gripping dry wood feeling has relented do these tastes become apparent. And so one drinks on for a few days until it becomes too watery.

Peace

2001 Yiwu Jin Yeh Hao from Nada Cha

One hates to pick favorites but this sample from Nada is one of the best teas ever brewed up in ones old little yixing pot. It shouldn't be that suprising that these big, juicy, 100% old growth, all hand processed leaves from the Zheng Shan region of Yiwu produce such amazing tea.

One opens the plastic baggie and dumps the sample into outstretched palms. Bring the palms toward ones nose, one took in the dank, freshly turned fallen leaf smell. It smells like a rotting tree just unearthed from being buried in soil. This scent immediately captivates.

The tea is prepared in a small yixing that only incurred a slight chip on the lid from the long journey from Korea to Canada. The energy of the little pot is a perfect match for the sample of big, full, dark chocolate brown leaves that are mixed with yellow and reddish varieties all of which look excessively healthy. The look of the leaves push curiosity to new levels.

This first brew is juicy and sweet and hints at unbearably complex underflavours, suggesting a nice long session. The tea is soft but immediately full in the mouth. Particularly, the nice light fruity air of this tea heightens expectations.

The following infusions draw out berry flavours from vague fruitiness that slip under this teas smoothness. Wet converts to spice on the tongue and lips. All of this takes place over a rich blanket of the taste of newly disturbed fallen leaves- such rich decadence. Fresh and juicy mingle with deep and rich. There is such depth in its earthiness.

The cha qi brings quick clarity and peace, its energy is undeniably soothing. One meditates deeply with this tea for hours- infusion after infusion after infusion.

One is strongly moved by the way this tea feels in the mouth. Someone with no sense of taste would even fall in love with this tea. The liquor is such a vibrant dark orange/yellow it makes the mini Sel Young Jin erabo style cup radiate with unrivaled pride.

Flavour modestly evolves and after the first 10 infusions is just starting to reveal its true self. Later infusions beget more of a woody caramel taste with just as much complexity as before. Actually this tea remains sweet and full bodied late into its twentieth to thirtieth infusions. Its mouthfeel remains somewhat full and a spiciness still haunts the breath.

Peace

2008 Nannuo 'Cha Chan Yi Wei'

This sample was a part of a package from Nada a while back. His taste in puerh never lets down, challenging ones definition of 'good puerh' with every sample. One has heard many good things about this tea that Nada personally pressed last year on Nannou Mountain.

This one emits a mild aroma from leaves that are well defined- a nice mix.

The kettle and mind are prepared, the tea steeps. After a while this is nothing special, that's why its special.

This tea leaves a tingle on the lips as it enters the mouth. A tingle which lingers. A good tingle. The feeling in the mouth also follows suit. This pale yellow liquor is excessively creamy and sweet with hits of fruit in the nose. It is light, soft, smooth puerh but its mouthfeel is fuller than most with this profile. This is what one would expect from organic, old growth trees.

The next few infusions carry a sweetness that comes on fast then slips into spicy, banana-sweet creaminess. A dryness only begins to approach after the first few infusions and emerges after sweetness and flavours come and go.

This tea is a delicate one in flavour and in qi. This teas gentle nature unravels a soft, 'yin', downward flowing energy. A nice energy. A spring energy.

Further on, the fruitiness develops a distinct plum taste as the intense creamy and sweet tones drop off a bit.

Soon a lingering bitterness all but drowns out this tea's delicate taste. Fainter, tougher notes like licorice and a woody-caramel are sometimes present latter into the session under good brewing conditions.

A very nice tea.

Peace

1996 Menghai "8582" Puerh

This tea sample comes from Nada's shop, Essence of Tea. This classic bing looks like it is currently out of stock. Nada keeps a steady flow of tea coming in, so it will likely be restocked soon. The description on his site states that it was stored the last 14 years in Taiwan.

The dry leaves of darkish red-brown smell of clean muted, woody, maple sweetness. On an cold rainy Winter day, what tea could be better?

The first infusion brings with it grassy-wood caramel sweetness. It tastes very clean in the mouth. Although predominantly wood flavours, there is a flash of smooth maple syrup before turning back to wood. The mouthfeel is light, the aftertaste very soft, shy wood. The chaqi is already showing signs of warmth in the chest, where it gathers.

The second infusion has a somewhat empty initial sweetness. This taste is short lived as it flashes into caramel notes then to a slight earthy wood note. Slowly the sweet flavour wavers into a dry aftertaste and mouthfeel. The sweetness doesn't disappear but mellows and lingers in the aftertaste which is long lasting and quite soft. The warmth now travels up to the head and flushes the cheeks.

In the quick third infusion, the taste seems to stabilize. The initial sweetness is more pronounced, in it is a quick flash of complexity. This infusion is smoother in the mouth turning it dry in the end. The forehead is clammy and moist with a cloud of heat warming the chest and lungs. This tea induces calm, quite a relaxing puerh.

The fourth infusion sees the thin wood flavour drag out into dryness. Deeper flavours of earth notes have dissipated. Some malty coco notes are faint but recognizable. A slight camphor flavour pushes its way in. The initial sweetness at the start of the flavour profile has a flash of maple syrup.

The fifth has a richer sweetness to it that now mingles with lighter grassy wood notes. The finish is dry but has a slight velvet feel to it.

The sixth infusion is defined by a juicy wood flavour with soft, sweet high notes that bounce up at the end of the flavour profile. There is a more subtle spiciness to this infusion with subtleties such as floral rose peeking out.

The seventh infusion contains a bland earthiness that seems to be stuck in the throat. There is just a touch of spices amongst its primarily wood taste. The chaqi keeps one feeling warm chested and relaxed as one continues to enjoy this tea.

The eighth is smooth and woody with sweet, very light, almost fruity nuances. There is a soft, slight dry, camphor finish.

The ninth and tenth infusions contain dry woody-grass notes that sedate ones mind. There is a juicy sweetness to these infusions with plum notes in the cup. The mouthfeel has weakened considerably here.

A handful of overnight infusions bring light woody tastes with a sweet finish.

Link to Bret's (Tea Goober) Tasting Notes

~

Link to Zero The Hero's (Something Smuggled In) Tasting Notes

~
Peace

2008 100% Lao Ban Zhang (Nada)

With a long haul of young puerh consumed over the last few weeks from the Yunnan Sourcing Tasting Event, one thought it a good time to try another. The label in this sample says simply, "100% Lao Ban Zhang".

This sample was sent a while back but was not forgotten. Its very dark brown dry leaves present sweet pungently deep odours. One sniffs away until water boils. A few light coloured furry tips induce curiosity.

Mmm... Creamy notes are suspended on the tongue for a while, a strong tobacco melts into a slight sweetness leaving a full feeling on tongue, roof, and cheeks. Qi swings through ones body. This tea is strong. Tobacco undertones become stronger when more leaf is added.

The next few infusions tingle on the lips, the throat is stimulated, the feel of this tea covers all bases. There is a subtle fruity taste that blips in only in some sessions. The tea finishes very cool. The tobacco notes infringe upon sweet during these infusions, pushing them into the aftertaste. The yellow of the liquid mirrors the tinny chrysanthemum next to it. The qi moves briskly- energizing, stimulating , then sedating.

As the sessions pushes onward the qi becomes stronger as the flavour becomes more gentle. The harsher tobacco edges smooth out and this tea becomes a lot lighter and enjoyable. The aftertaste, now shares most of the grit. The compounded affect of many back to back infusions can push the mouthfeel over the top, almost choaking one as one chokes back this delicious tea.

Because of such power this tea can be enjoyed through many, many, many infusions. Even when other teas would have turned into water this tea still gives birth to lively, light, sweet tea. The mouthfeel and qi push this one through.

Ones body surges with energy, almost making one ill. It's time to call it quits.

Peace

2010 Essence of Tea Bang Wai

This tea is another of the fresh new sheng offerings from Nada at Essence of tea. This one is from the village Bang Wai near the famous Jing Mai.

As steam from the boil fogs the inside of windows, one examines the dry leaf. The loosely pressed leaves smell of musky, rich tobacco. The note is noticeably sweet.

These leaves are placed in yixing and flash rinsed. The first infusion bears a distinct mild corn taste with bean flavours that also come and go gently. There is also an earthy, slightly mushroom taste somewhere in the mix. The taste starts a touch creamy and finishes a touch dry. There is something almost meaty about the taste. The aftertaste is of bland pungency.

The second infusion has a very mild, smooth creaminess at first, then corn and bean flavours follow. There is a present bland taste that occurs with these flavours but is more apparent in the finish. The aftertaste is also much the same but also with more of an overall bland taste to it. The mouthfeel has a certain thick viscosity to it.

The third infusion has more of an overarching pungent sweetness that emerges. The mild, slightly creamy vegetable flavours really start to come out here. The chaqi is already apparent and all indications point to a strong qi sensation with the core of ones body starting to warm.

In the fourth infusion much of the sweetness and mild vegetable flavours have dropped off considerably. Left is a slightly sweet flush of cream which trails off to mild pungent tastes that hint at tobacco.

The chaqi is very warming for such young puerh. The core of the body seems fortified with qi as the warmth is held tight.

The fifth infusion is mild and creamy at first then turns watery. There is a slight sweet pungent mushroom taste that is a touch spicy. The flavours of this tea are quite mild across the board although they show enough complexity to keep one amused. The mouthfeel is not strong as well but is sticky and blanketing.
The sixth and seventh infusions start with a sweet note that fades into a flatter, grainy/ corn sweetness. There is almost a candy-like quality to the very very mild sweetness found throughout this tea. A mild floral aftertaste develops.
Although this tea is characterized by mild taste and feel the chaqi is quite the opposite. It makes ones mind turn and turn while ones body feels extraordinarily calm and light.

This tea doesn't go bitter nor does it really wash out, it has a strange kind of stamina which carries these mild flavours for many infusions. One ends the session with a renewed sense of energy within.
Link to Adam's (The Sip Tip) Tasting Notes
Link to Hobbes' (The Half-Dipper) Tasting Notes
Link to Sabestian's (Vacuithe) Tasting Notes
Peace

2024 Essence of Tea Lineup

 

Okay this is not an every year thing… maybe it’s like every second or third year thing… I’m not sure exactly… some years I have purchased them all like I did in the early pandemic times in 2020.  Other years David reaches out and offers samples for review like this year (and like he will probably do next year;) He has been sending free samples of some of the finest teas since the first year of this blog (when we referred to him as Nada) and dang-nab-it… he just continues to do so!

He reached out with a comment that MattCha’s Blog might be the longest running and most active tea blog… and he might be correct… it should be noted that he also sent them after a recent comment on a post asking if I could really tell the difference between Cha Wang Shu and Wan Gong areas…. Of course… but we are going to sample a few good ones from here to be certain the 2024 Essence of Tea Wangong Ma An Shan and the 2024 Essence of Tea Cha Wang Shu… hahaa

Stay tuned as I post these delicious puerhs…

Peace

2010 Essence of Tea Man Mai

This tea comes from the village of Man Mai in the Bada region and is one of the latest offerings from Nada at Essence of Tea. The dry leaves smell pungent, creamy, and mainly sweet. The predominant sweet odour is more like the sweetness of vegetables than that of say sugar, honey, or fruit.

The first infusion is prepared and light sweet hay with subtle floral is present. The predominating flavour is of strong mushroom which is almost meaty in constancy in this oily infusion. Light flavours slowly fade in the mouth to a slightly dry grain character. There are no harsh ups and downs when drinking this tea just a smooth ride that fades into the horizon. The chaqi descends strongly from head down the spine from just the first sips.

The second infusion is more very fungi, very mushroom tastes, that fade into a very light touch of creamy sweetness that underlies everything. This delicious sweetness is the last to slowly fade into dry graininess. There is a very soft grainy and light mushroom aftertaste that is left behind.

The third infusion pours a pale greenish-tinged yellow. It has some bean notes mixed with mushroom and the sweet creamy base. The soup is pretty oily then ends up grainy and slightly sandy in the mouth.

The forth infusion still tastes of strong mushroom but has some slight malty brown sugar notes tucked in there and finishes more sweet that the preceding infusions. The chaqi is quite strong but in a very mellowing kind of way.

The fifth and sixth infusions are much more mild but still contain an initial burst of flavour that turns quickly over to a dry, lightly sandy mouth feel. These infusions start to develop more of a musky tone to them. The aftertaste is mainly sweet and contains a slight suggestion of floral.

The seventh and eighth infusions start to carry more of the grainy profile the whole way through but it starts and ends sweet and even a touch floral.

The later infusions still have some flavour especially in the initial burst. The feel becomes grittier but still shows nice stamina that carries very mild flavours. The chaqi is still strong-mellow it too lasts for a long time.

Link to Adam's (The Sip Tip) Tasting Notes

Link to Hobbes' (The Half-Dipper) Tasting Notes

Link to Sabestian's (Vacuithe) Tasting Notes

Peace

1993 Menghai "7542"

One has been enjoying this sample purchased from Nada of Essence of Tea off and on throughout the winter. Today, on this blossoming spring day, the last of it is poured into a warm pot. But before it is relinquished to yixing the odour of the dry leaf is taken in deeply. It emits a smell of faint talcum and rose and faint fallen leaves. There is almost a lick of coco in the dominant, dusty, dry storage smell which is the most notable tone here.

The first infusion presents with rich maple velvet sweetness upfront which fades into dry wood cherry, perhaps maggony. This flavour is thick in the mouth and contains a certain tangy-sweetness which is mainly present in the inital burst of flavour. The whole evolution is vibrant and sweet. The aftertaste is malty that fades into wood notes and suggestions of coco. The mouthfeel is velvety and thick throughout and ends slightly dry and fuzzy especially the back of the tongue and cheeks.

After the first few cups the chaqi is immediately apparent with the forehead getting a bit clammy mild heat waves throughout the body from inwards to out, then back again, from down to up and back again.

The second infusion is prepared and a sweet malty-caramel creamy cherry and slight rose walnut burst flows into mahongany wood. The sweet taste is carried throughout leaving a slight woody menthol like taste on the breath. The mouth is still velvet, slight dry though, and thick as it starts reaching down into ones throat- pushing some saliva into one's mouth minutes later. The face flushes, a sign of the chaqi. The forehead gets soft and clammy, as does the mid-upper back, chest, and even upper arms as the qi flows in a wave undulating over one's body.

In the third infusion the initial sweetness has lessened and is more of a champhor, malty, more diffuse, sweet taste that works its way into a dry woody flavour. Dry hay and cereal notes are found in this pot but are less apparent than the malty-champhor tastes. The aftertaste is woody and dry with faint, barely there, caco notes floating in the distance. The mouthfeel is slightly dry and gripping and less velvety and smooth initally but gets replenished mintues later as fresh saliva coats the mouth. The warmth of the tea now migrates mainly to the head.

The fourth infusion presents with with some of those velvet malty-sweet wood notes but this infusion has cherry wood, camphor, and earth beetroot tastes. The sweet tastes bridge to wood and a slight menthol aftertaste is left in the breath and on the mouth. In the middle of all this are fruity notes that are not so strong but are noted along with a flash of spice which appears in this infusion as well. The mouthfeel is much of the same, it kind of cools the throat as the saliva retreats then returns again. The warmth makes its way to the lower extremities.

The fifth and sixth infusions share much of these delicious tastes. What is noted in these infusions is a more prominent, relatively fresh, cool camphor evergreen, grassy wood nuance that is sometimes a bit spicy and presents mainly in the aftertaste and returning sweetness. The middle of ones body is the receptor of warmth. It warms the stomach here rising to the upper portions of the body and trickling down to the lower thorax and lower limbs.

In the seventh and eight infusions the previously mentioned subtle woody spiciness also pops up in the initial tastes. The slight fresh cool everygreen-menthol returning taste is less apparent- in these infusions a coco taste is faintly recognized in the spice.

The ninth and tenth infusions present with a plumy sweet wood initial taste that transitions slowly and gradually into a modest wood flavour. Flashes of these very soft fruit notes peek out then vanish into sweetness. Floral notes are even spotted in this initial sweetness. The aftertaste is sweet and long in the mouth, all of it is under the umbrella of dry wood tastes. The mouthfeel has thinned only slightly.

In the eleventh infusion, the sweet almost creamy start flashes plumb and cherry and even a touch of almost greenish fresh tastes before fading gracefully into wood. The plum comes back with a subtle floral in the breath. The mouthfeel is dry with a returning soft moist feeling.

The twelfth infusion still has much to offer with light sweet fruity notes still quite prominent and a mouthfeel that still stims the mouth in much the same way it did at the beginning of the session but now it is much less rich. One runs out before this tea does and so it is put into a series of hours long and overnight steeps to pull all of its aged goodness out.

The tea is taken through four more infusions like this resulting in sweet distinct plum-florals in a cold but oily rich broth. The fifteenth infusion was of note where sweet strawberry notes had the backing of enough mouthfeel to be throughly enjoyed.

Link to Zero The Hero's (Something Smuggled In) Tasting Notes

Link to Wu Xing Cloud's Tasting Notes

Link to Shibumi's (Fucanglong's Tea) Tasting Notes

Peace

When To Drink Fresh Young Puerh and Tasting Notes From 2010 Essence of Tea Man Sai

Young puerh has very harsh chaqi that can be detrimental to your health. Middle aged and the elderly should never drink fresh young puerh. There are definitely some constitutions that should also never drink young puerh. Its harsh raw energy tends to attack the middle jiao and can lead to many health problems in those who can't handle it. This is especially true for those with cold constitutions and/or digestive or bowel problems. Very young raw sheng should only be consumed by certain people and in certain seasons.

When the fresh puerh tea of the year starts to trickle out, one is always very tempted to try it out immediately. In the spring, young puerh is still too raw and harsh for consumption and is recommended against. The summers here in Victoria are dry and not that warm, the raw bitter taste of very young sheng is also quite harmful. So one usually waits until the cooler days of late summer or warmer days of early autumn, when the energy of nature starts to descend, to try out the latest seasonal offerings of fresh sheng puerh.
One has been tasting allot of Nada's fresh puerh from Essence of Tea over the past few weeks. Expect reviews of his teas scattered throughout the next few months. The first sheng will be this cake from Man Sai.
It's lightly compressed dry leaves are quite long with creamy, very sweet, tangy tobacco smells coming from them. Boiling water splashes from the tea table and it is time for some tea.
The first infusion is full of strong creamy banana sweetness which melts into dry. There is a deep underlying pungency to it with subtleties of hay and some beany, light earthy notes. The feel in the mouth is very smooth and finishes dry and very sweet.
The second infusions has strong initial creamy sweetness that moves into a somewhat pungent flavour then turns dry and tart. The aftertaste is quite sweet. The mouth feels coated in a thick gooey layer that is somewhat chalky in consistency. The sweet notes of this tea are strong and almost seem to drown out its deeper notes at times. The chaqi is very alerting. This tea has nice strong qi.

The third and fourth infusions follow the same creamy sweet to pungent to tart and dry. There is much more flavour in these infusions with earthy mushroom notes detected in the pungent middle and tropical fruit notes caught in the predominantly sweet aftertaste. The sweet nature of this tea hogs much of the profile from the initial taste to the aftertaste. There is a deep throaty feel to this tea.
The fifth and sixth infusions are more round with a smoother body and long aftertaste. There are some slightly deeper earthy notes and some spice that seems to naturally come out here as the strong sweetness seems less greedy. Straw, beans, and light wood are reflected in the complex pungent middle.
The seventh and eighth infusions have a very sweet floral touch to the initial sweetness which skips along the tongue into a less pungent, more light woody bottom. The chaqi here is inducing a nice sweat as it goes deep within.

The last handful of infusions at the end are still sweet with dry wood notes and still lots of depth though of the lighter variety. When things get too light the session is called to an end but with a smile on ones face.
Link to Adam's (The Sip Tip) Tasting Notes
Link to Hobbes' (The Half-Dipper) Tasting Notes
Link to Sebastian (Vacuithe) Tasting Notes
Peace