gushu? 2016 Chawangshop Manmai Selected Gushu

I really like this one but some reason can’t justify purchasing more…

I snuck a sample cake of this 2016 Chawangshop Manmai Selected Gushu in my order of 2016 Chawangshop Bada.  A few days ago all the prices of these Bada puerh increased.  This rather nice one now sells for $69.00 for 200g cake ($0.35/g), got mine for $60.00 last month.

Whenever I hear the word it always makes me chuckle... it reminds me of a time in the history of puerh drinking when everything was apparently “Gushu” but yet no one really knew what gushu puerh actually was…. Hahaha the good ol days…

Let’s see why I like this one so much…

Dry faint distant dry woods and grasses and florals.  A distant meadow kind of odour.

First infusion starts off with a tangy sweetness and straw taste and a slightly buzzing/ tingling mild mouthfeeling.  The aftertaste is at first mild menthol then mango then a long cotton candy sweetness.  The mouthfeel is sticky and slippery.

The second infusion starts off complex with wheat, sweet, and pungent tastes all at once the mouthfeel is full and stimulating.  The aftertaste is an arm of this pungency but the sweet taste turns into a longer cotton candy like taste on the breath.  There is a bready almost warming spice/ baked apple pie faint base taste in the initial and mid infusions.

The third infusion starts of very viscous and full with dry woody, bready and sweet potato notes, the tea liquor is very thick and there is a warm pungency in it as well.  The aftertaste turns into candy floss.

The fourth infusion starts off slightly astringent and almost bitter with a thick viscous liquor that fills the mouth.  The initially flood of density gives way to a long cotton candy finish in the mouth.  The mouthfeel and tea liquor are intense and full.

The fifth infusion is very full in the mouth, it has a certain intensity to it but it’s not overly bitter or astringent but rather feels like a thick blanket in the mouth.  The initial taste is slightly vegetal and slightly hay and sweet potato.  The aftertaste is very long and sweet.  Bread notes and warm pungent notes a faint but interesting.

The sixth infusion starts off licorice, viscous, and oily thick.  There is a mild wave of cooling and then bread, pudding, homemade baking and a long sweet candy taste.  The Qi is stuffy in the head and makes the eyes feel blurry.

The seventh has a juicy dense dried fig taste upfront now with a thick and slightly bitter density throughout.  The aftertaste is at first sweet baking then into long candy.

The eighth taste more dense sweet upfront, and with long dried fruit tastes sweet cereal grains, sweet bread taste and a candy pop in the aftertaste and longer sweeter candy finish.  The mouthfeel and viscosity are nice and dense and thick.  The candy taste is minutes long on the breath.  The qi feels stuffy in the head.  This qi makes me just stare out into space.

The ninth infusion has a real thick oily onset of dried fruit sweetness in turns into bread then slowly into a candy taste on the breath.  These last infusions have lost some of that intensity of mouthfeel and slight bitterness and now feel very full but not overwhelmingly so.

The tenth has a high noted sweet onset then drops to a lower, almost dried fruit/sweet potato sweetness, then breads, then long candy breath.  The taste and density is real enjoyable here.

The 11^th has a high noted pungency to it right off the bat.  It has sweet potato, and breads in there too.  The breath is long, slightly grainy sweetness and candy.  The aftertaste is real long.

The 12^th has a buttery slightly bitter onset the mid profile is a nice bread taste then goes into a cool menthol on the breath.   Candy long lingering minutes later.

The 13^th infusion is much the same with the sweet bread note more prominent as well as the cooling pungency.  The bitter is gone here.

The 14^th infusion gets real smooth bready malty smoothness with nice cooling and long sweet taste.  Thick viscous liquid.

The 15^th infusion is very juicy sweet fruit, an abundant splash of sweetness, almost dry fruity like raisin, then mild cool, then sweet bread tastes, then candy.  This puerh is brilliant in these later infusions.

16^th is much the same delicious really.  Very full in the mouth very sweet, layered, and long.

I haven’t the time of day to continue to steep this one but I have faith that it would easily go 20+ infusions with amazing tastes.

Overall, this selected gushu is really enjoyable for its price.  Comparing it to the enjoyable 2016 (not selected) this one is considerably better even when the extra price is factored in.  Comparing it to the standard Bada these are both good and cheap in their own right.  There is a subtle thing about these selected leaves that doesn’t make me feel as good as it should and I chalk that up to mainly its youth and maybe its purity.  There is something in this puerh that makes me keep coming back to it despite this- it’s probably because of its thick viscous feeling, vitality, and nice qi.  Don’t let the price fool you, it checks out as gushu in my books.
 

Peace