This is one of the premier Nan Qiao cakes offered by TeasWeLike. This is the second Bulang Double Lion release, the first being the famous and twice the price 2005 Nan Qiao Double Lion. This 2006 Nan Qiao Double Lion goes for $165.00 for 357g cake or $0.46/g and is billed as a good value proposition compared to the 2005. These are actually quite different… let’s see if it’s worth it to pay less…
Dry leaves smell of bready sweet smoke is quite delicious.
First infusion has a creamy sweet BBQ taste that has this squirt of mouthwatering with a flat almost metallic taste. Long cooling breath with some sandy grains taste and mouthfeel that is sandy in the mouth. The significant sweetness and long cooling breath are notable. You can definitely feel the Qi in the chest. It’s strongly beats the heart and has a release of heat.
Second infusion has a slight smoky less sweet quality upfront. Slight mesquite. The mouthfeel is sandy and the energy is pretty strong in the chest and warmth. The mouthfeel is slight drying and in the breath an almost berry sweetness in the throat.
Third infusion has a more bitter with a flat woody almost but not coco. There is an earthy tree bark almost vegetable herby taste in there that is characteristic of some Bulang. Strong mouth puckering dry feeling in the mouth. Dry bitter feeling with teeth squeak.
Fouth infusion has a herby woody smoke bitterness and an underlying trying to be creamy sweetness. More bitter smoke here and much less sweet. There is a bready sweetness building in the aftertaste located in the throat. The energy comes from the heart and moves upward. Dry grabbing squeaky mouthfeeling.
Fifth infusion has a vegital herby woody less Smokey bitterness. There is some lesser sweetness and more flattening of tastes. Sandy drying slight squeaky gums and teeth mouthfeeling. There is still a strong energetic feel especially in the chest and mind but also a slight high from the resulting energy surge.
The sixth is much the same a bit more bland but still strong. Slight vegital herby woody bitter. Not much sweet anymore. There is some strong chesty heart beats and rising energy. Strong powerful surge clears the mind.
I come back to the leaves the next day…
The cooled down left overnight remaining liquid of the 6th infusion tastes of mesquite BBQ. With a slight gripping, slight drying mouthfeel with squeaky teeth and gums.
7th is a bit sweet creamy and oily with some faint herbs and BBQ mesquite more of a silty finish.
The 8th is put into an overnight thermos infusion…
Vs 2005 Nan Qiao Bulang Double Lion- The 2005 Nan Qiao is significantly better and the price is around twice as much ($325.00 for 357g cake or $0.91/g) but why???? First of all in sampling the 2005 after the 2006 they are a lot closer in back to back sampling than my memory tells me. The 2005 is much more sweet and has thicker denser flavours, the 2005 also has more coco chocolate bitter sweetness. it’s this very strong long sweet taste with the bitter coco that really elevates this 2005 Bulang. The 2006 has only glimpses of this but has an overall more complex and evolving taste throughout the session with very obvious classic herbs Bulang taste profile, the Qi is similar maybe the 2006 is actually a bit more intense… the Qi is pretty close, the biggest difference between the two is really the mouthfeel- the 2005 has a thick oily mouthwatering feeling where the 2006 has a more undesirable dry gripping squeaking gums and teeth feeling. As result of the above, the 2005 has more stamina than the 2006. I feel like the 2005 has more humid dry Malaysian storage compared to the relatively drier Natural Malaysian stored 2006 but the description of the 2006 suggests the other way around… Overall the 2006 has an undeniable Bulang character and complexity where the 2005 sort of does fancy things… depends on my mood if I’m going to want to cake this next time and save a bit or just stick to drinking the 2005? I like the straight up Bulang-ness for the price … yeah I’m thinking cake it! Hahaha …
Peace
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