Marco’s Blind Tasting “Gamma” (2013 Biyun Hao Mahei)

After sampling Marco’s blind tasting “Delta” it was still mid-morning.  I had started very early in the morning an hour before work and was definitely hoping for a powerful energy boost.  I ended up receiving a very elegant and somewhat energizing experience in the blind “Delta”.  With seeing some unexpected gaps in my work schedule and still looking for more power I grab the sealed bag marked with the symbol “Gamma”… and it ended up really kicking the shit out of me….

Dry leaves have a loose compression and smell of faint woody barely sweet smell. Smells pretty dry stored to me…

The first infusion is flat dry wood with a quiet perfume lingering and a mineral stone mid taste with faint candy finish.  The mouthfeeling is watery.  The taste has a unique sweetness and a bubble gum like finish.

The second pours a very reddish-brown colour… the onset is of thick oily very aging woody berries- strawberry, even orange tastes that lead into a deep camphor and caramel finish mixed with a layered faint candy finish.  The mouthfeeling is slippery and lubricating in the mouth.  There is a perfume quality to the taste.  The taste is very rich and deep with a lot of layers and nuance.  The taste is really viscus and oily and very dense and full.  The Qi is very strong and I feel a strong onset of euphoria and strong body feeling and floating face and lightness.  Chest opening and heart beats head tingling.  The Qi is very strong and the taste is very rich, deep and complex.  This is very expensive puerh I think.  I suspect quality Menghai region material here folks.

The third infusion is a thick oily dark rich berry coco coffee onset.  A thick rich lubricating mouthfeeling with a camphor taste.  There is a lingering coco chocolate and sweet candy breath.  The flavor presentation is very strong and dark and rich.  A thick comforting Qi layers with Qi complexity and euphoria and pulsing bodyfeelings.  The Qi is very strong in the body and in the mind.  I wanted power… now I cower in the corner from it… hahaha…

The fourth infusion has a very thick oily woody and top note of sweet blackberry layered in with rich coco flavours woody flavours rich comforting flavours.  There is a deep camphor resonance in the deep throat and lingers strong on the breath.  There is some creamy chocolate, slight caramel, and even long candy breath finish.  The mouthfeeling is very oily and lubricating and saliva producing.  The Qi is very strong and pushes me into an almost out of body feeling.  With a tingling down the spine, face, chest opening, leg numbing. Very nice, very engaging.  I think this is more moderate humid Taiwanese storage on this puerh.  There is a lingering perfume to this puerh.

The 5^th has a rich cherry fruit, mahogany wood, and deep rich coco chocolate onset.  With a perfume floral depth in a rich deep base of coco.  The flavours come on very rich and thick and oily.  The mouthfeel is oily and lubricating and simulates the throat to salivate.  There is a creamy moca late type of sweet aftertaste.  The mouthfeel is oily and slippery and very full as is the throatfeeling.  The Qi is really big and pushes me into a sweat.  My face, limbs, spine feel the qi pulsing through.  I feel a surge of energy but feel outside myself.  Qi feels more like Bulang to me it has that milky coco bitterness to it.  I think this is Bulang puerh.  It’s not factory bulang and is like a gourmet, top shelf, Bulang.  Higher quality material and maybe more powerful than 2005 Nanqiao Double Lion and would probably sell for more.  I thought maybe even Lao Ban Zhang but this one doesn’t have the elegance of Lao Ban Zhang its more Bulang through and through but very high quality.

The 6^th infusion has a cherry and woody onset with a coco chocolate finish.  There are perfume like florals that appear before the returning sweetness of milky sweet chocolate.  Big Sweat, intense Qi.  Mocha late coco bitter finish.  Big Bulang mind shattering out of body Qi experience.  The heart races- bodyfeels with concurrent deep relaxing.  The Qi is fuckin me up good.

The 7^th infusion has a bitter coco flat creamy typical bulang taste.  The Qi pushes out a big crazy sweat.  There is a mild fruitiness in the cooled off cup even a bready yeasty note.  But the taste has dropped off as most Bulang do here and we got a milky flat coco chocolate taste over a slippery not as oily mouthfeeling.

The 8^th has a mellow fruity woody cherry like initial taste in a slight bitter coco finish.  The Qi pushes me into a sweat.  Feel a strong intense push on the mind.  The flavor has flattened out considerably.  The mouthfeeling is more sticky/slight sandy/slight dry now with faint cooling menthol throat.  Mild milky coco finish.

The 9^th has a flat coco and faded fruity coco bitterness.  The taste has flattened out, something that is characteristic of all Bulang really.  I feel out of my body and like I’ve been hit by a truck.  The Qi is making me feel post workout here.  I feel a bit heavy and tired now.

The 10^th has a bitter coco and black current taste which flattens out into a milky creamy sweet bitterness in the aftertaste.  The density and complexity of this puerh has flattened out into a mainly bitter coco creamy sweetness with a flat sticky mouthfeeling.

The 11^th has a flat fruity bitter coco taste that holds into the aftertaste without much fuss.  There is some camphor left in there and a mildly stimulating but overly relaxing qi.

The 12^th has a flat almost fruity flat milk bitter coco with a thinning slight sandy mouthfeeling.  It has an evergreen forest kind of base to it.  Warming but relaxing post workout Qi here that follows from the more intense start of the session.

I throw the rest into a mug and grandpa it for a while and it gives off deep coco and vibrant berry sweetness but also a bit of smoke that was pretty mild/ non-existent in my flash steepings of the puerh.  The flavor is really yummy in this mug- quite complex, rich and sweet.  Coco bitter sweet berry deliciousness with a touch of incense smoke… brilliant puerh!  When will Teas We Like offer this masterpiece????

Overall, this is a really powerful Bulang puerh!  Its throws everything at you quickly early on with a very thick oily and viscous and rich chocolate feeling with pronounced depth of taste which has a complex offering of berry and cherry sweetness on top of coco and woods.  There is a vibrant perfume floral taste underneath which gives this Bulang some elegance and suggestions of Ban Zhang.  Strong milky bitter coco tastes so typical of Bulang.  The Qi oh… the Qi is strong.  Even stronger than the Nan Qiao productions from Teas We Like.  Big bodyfeelings in this one- the Qi doesn’t really get bigger than this!

Guess: Middle aged mild-moderately humid Taiwanese storage higher quality boutique Bulang production.  This one could easily be priced higher than the 2005 Nan Qiao Double Lion Bulang on Teas We Like.  Overall, it might be stronger in Qi and is a somewhat truer Bulang taste, feel and essence.  It has a gushu feel to it rather than a factory Bulang feel to it.  The Qi I think is even crazier than Double Lion.  I like this puerh a lot but I feel like it must be quite expensive…

Edit Aug 16/20: I went back and re-read all my first impressions on the blind samples Marco sent me and was least satisfied with this conclusion.  To me just reading the notes it sounds a lot like a darker Yiwu to me.

Answer: 2013 Biyun Yao from Teas We Like

Peace