white2tea “Small Batch” Shu Marketing & Selling Dreams

 

 

I have a good friend who is actually dying of terminal cancer.  He is one of the only people I have actually turned onto puerh tea who is native to Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada.  He is also one of the top new car sales people in Western Canada.  One of the first questions I ever asked him was how exactly he sells so many new cars every year when most people already have perfectly drivable cars at home and they really don’t need a new car.  His answer…

 “Matt, I don’t sell cars, I sell dreams.”

Isn’t All Puerh “Small Batch”?

Oxford dictionary defines “small batch” as Designed or relating to a type of small-scale production in which goods are made in limited quantities, often by means of traditional or artisanal methods.

Wait a minute… every Western puerh vendor’s raw puerh would meet this definition of “small batch”…. Every one… yes all Western puerh facing puerh vendors would then be considered “small batch”.  Look at this last post… David stated that his 2020 Tian Men Shan and Lao Jie Zi were around 10KG productions.  And look Tiago is producing a 4Kg production of Autumnal puerh… look at the puerh Yunnan Sourcing is producing most of it is 10KG, 50KG of puerh… all of that, meets the definition of small scale production compared to Big Factory productions or even larger boutique puerh vendors in mainland China and a lot of these other Western puerh Vendor’s puerh productions will actually be smaller than many white2tea productions.  So even though most sheng puerh productions from Western puerh vendors can be called “small batch” they simply choose not to use this marketing language.  However, we are talking about sheng puerh here and not shu…

Paul decided to come out in front by creating his own definition and marketing terminology catch phrases long before “small batch shu” was released to the customer.  For many months now Paul has been repeating the marketing key word over and over and over again on his social media.  Basically, the definition of “small batch shu” was a complete fabrication of white2tea and was created to be inclusive of his product while excluding the competitors’ shu productions.  No doubt he did this to differentiate the shu puerh white2tea sells from the shu puerh the competition sells.  It’s actually pretty brilliant.  One thing it most definitely does is put a wedge between white2tea and the pretty successful shu puerh productions of Yunnan Sourcing.

Over the last few years Yunnan Sourcing has been way in front of white2tea as far as developing their own popular shu puerh productions which are all agrochemical free.  Some are blends and others single origin shu - some are even gushu productions.  However, It is my understanding that Yunnan Sourcing usually buys plied material.  Yunnan Sourcing leaves the overseeing of these piles to artisans who have been doing it for many years/ decades as opposed to overseeing the piling work themselves.  This is mainly where the differentiation of the product lies with white2tea vs Yunnan Sourcing shu puerh.  Does Yunnan Sourcing shu puerh productions still qualify as “small batch shu”?  Maybe/Probably.  I guess it depends on how you define “small batch shu” .  Is it a wiser decision to let artisans who have been making a shu puerh productions and piling them for decades to tend to the quality of such things vs learn the skill in a few years and go at it alone?  Maybe?  Or maybe not?  Who really knows… the only way to know for sure is to the cut the marketing crap and try the actual puerh.

Is batch size more relevant than location?

I also find it hypocritical or at the very least unusual that Paul of white2tea is adamant that the location/ terroir of the material is irrelevant to the end product yet he finds it very important to educate us about the size of the production.  Personally, I would rather know where the raw material is coming from and whether it is gushu, zhong shu, or xiao shu, or terrace, the town, village and mountain of such material rather than getting the fluffy “small batch shu” marketing that really tells me nothing of the actual material itself.  Wouldn’t you? 

Or maybe you find it more relevant to know how much Paul is caring for his shu piles?  I am not consuming the batch size (or the wrapper) but rather the tea itself.  So I would much rather know about the material.  Whether something is “small batch” or not matters much less than whether it actually tastes good.  In the end it’s about the end product and lucky for white2tea their shu has been really gaining popularity over the last year or so mainly because some of it is quite good others not as much... but apparently this is not “small batch shu” anyways.

Overall, I think that what white2tea is doing with shu “high end material” blends and “light/varied fermentation” is interesting and experimental and very forward thinking.  No doubt, to invent your own definition of something that is specific to what you are doing will save you from trying to continually describe it in longer terms.  I suppose that is part of what Paul is doing with his whole making up a definition thing.  Not too many people out there in the puerh world are doing much of this and Paul makes a really compelling argument for us to at least take notice of his direction of shu puerh production.  He has also dove head first into tackling some of the misconceptions about shu puerh and educating those new to shu puerh about some of the basics.  He is both educating the consumer about why they should buy and age shu while driving traffic to his site/products.  These are really well done articles as a whole.  He has aggressively sought to take back more market share from Yunnan Sourcing.  I hope it works out well for him.  And this is all coming from someone who really feels that shu puerh is not even really “original puerh” but rather an accepted evolution in the marketing of “puerh” throughout the years. 

The thing that I really can’t stomach is all the silly marketing that he has decided to attach to the whole thing.  Heck, he has even created an annual holiday to market his shu and to cue his followers to buy his shu.  It is actually quickly approaching called “Shulloween”…. Hahahhaha… good work.  That one always makes me laugh… its memorable and I think that’s the point… This year with all the “small batch shu” brew-ha-ha it should be extra festive.. 

It’s Just Shallow Marketing Language

If you Google “small batch marketing” you are quickly inundated by articles about car company Mitsubishi.  In 2019 Mitsubishi decided to start referring to its cars as “small batch” and market it as such.  Really they are just selling the same cars with the same features and made of the same materials but they simply re-framed the marketing on them and went with a trendy marketing phrase that really means very little.  To people who can see through the marketing it’s actually a bit sad.  In the end it’s just as if people aren’t actually selling product but are instead shilling marketing catch phrases …

…Or dreams…

Peace

 

 

Ranked! Western Puerh Vendor’s 2020/2019 Yiwu GuoYouLin Productions

This year I had unprecedented access to my favorite western puerh vendors Yiwu area Guoyoulin productions.  Some of these I had purchased samples or sample cakes but most I was given a free sample for review.  An interesting point is that a lot are at the $1.20-$1.25/g price range so they are easy to compare.  However, the ranking is simply the productions I liked best and the ranking below is regardless of price.  So, some of the lesser priced items, if ranked for value, could be a bit higher ranking.

1-      2020 Essence of Tea Tian Men Shan GaoGan ($1.20/g) is all about the very interesting, unique, Qi experience as explained in my initial post, it also has solid and unique flavours and mouth- and throatfeeling.  There is both an evolution of taste within each slurp as well as a wider change throughout the session.  The mouthfeeling also changes in the mouth as you swallow which is not as common.  I think this overall packaged would be hard to come by at a cheaper price especially for fresh puerh. This will give you an idea of why TianMenShan is so famous these days.  This is also the only of the list which I re-ordered.

2-      2019 white2tea Is A Gift ($1.25/g) cake sampled this one and really liked it.  It has very insanely good leaf quality as evident from the small varietal, likely Yibang leaves.  It is processed very very green and has a powerfully bitter approach.  Its weak spots are not enough nuance of flavor althought the floral creamy buttery nuances are quite nice.  The aftertaste abd throatfeeling are also a bit weak.  It has some really powerful Qi in there and great stamina.  I really like this one because Qi and stamina are what I value most, but feel like it was not flawless and had a few issues that prevented me from re-ordering. Recommend trying it.

3-      2019 Essence of Tea Yao Zhu Di ($1.10/g) is the best pure and true Yiwu Gouyoulin out of list and has a very honest and straightforward Yiwu guoyoulin profile.  Flavours of a long pure uninterrupted and deeply expansive sweetness with a quick arriving but long arch of cool pungency.  It goes over very nicely.   It is also something that can be both pushed hard or enjoyed light- either experience is a very nice one. A happy and rejuvenating energy to it.  It’s also one of the cheapest on this list.  This yiwu guoyoulin is very full and satisfying to me just maybe not enough to re-order… maybe.

4-      2020 Tea Encounter Guafengzhai Gushu Chaping (not yet released) has a very solid Guafengzhai profile of complex and more than usual sweetness of typical guafengzhai tastes that we all love.  With a nice stimulating feeling at the back of the throat and tongue and a nice happy and deeply energizing then relaxing Qi profile.  This one has some great, unique bodyfeeling as well.  If it’s priced on the lower end of my price prediction on my post, I might be tempted to buy one.

5-      2020 Tea Encounter Wan Gong GuoYouLin ($1.21/g) is all about the big, mind stopping spaced out, contemplative Qi sensations!  Deep penetrating gushu menthol taste and throatfeeling with lots of subtle change of flavours as the session progresses.  Weakest point is the stamina.  Overall I really like this one!

6-      2020 white2tea Is A Gift ($1.25/g) is a solid above average Yibang which I quite enjoy.  It has some strength behind it and a very satisfying aftertaste.  The taste peaks slowly and has above average stamina.  Qi is warming and euphoric.  Seems more processed than the 2019 above and is a more balanced experience while still nicely standing out.  I like the contrast from the 2019 and cake sampled this one.

7-      2020 Essence of Tea Lao Jie Zi ($1.59/g) has a solid stereotypical unwavering mansa smoothness to it and preforms better at the end of the session.  Most aspects of this pureh are quite mellow.  Even when pushed hard it is steadfast in its soft smooth character.  It can be a bit hard on the stomach early in the session.

8-      2020 Tea Encounter Wa Long GuoYouLin ($0.65/g) is very stable throughout the session but engaging with flavours of bitter astringency and tart cherries and creamy sweetness.  There is an interesting but not push over smoothness to it.  Qi is low-moderate and has a hazy, relaxing, sleepy quality to it.

Overall, all of these Yiwu are good.  I can see some people who like something more smooth and elegant with less disruptive Qi to put some of the productions I listed at the bottom of my list at the top of theirs!  This speaks to the quality of all of these offerings.  Of note, is the solid showing by the Essence of Tea which leads me to believe that this might be their best year of production to date.  Also of note is that Tea Encounter has started pressing higher quality Guoyoulin productions that are competitive with the offerings from white2tea and The Essence of Tea.

*It should also be noted that Paul of white2tea doesn’t state weather his products are gushu or guoyoulin but I added white2tea Is A Gift productions in the list because they fit this price point and are likely gushu or potentially Guoyoulin Guoyoulin productions.  Besides, I just really like them.  It is widely understood that the sold out, but very expensive, white2tea Unicorn is yiwu gushu or guoyoulin.

Omissions:

2019 white2tea Unicorn ($1.75/g- Sold Out)

2020 white2tea Unicorn ($1.75/g- late release)

2019 YS production (didn’t release Guoyoulin)

2020 YS productions (Not released)

2020 Biyun Hao Longdui Guoyoulin (Teaswelike- Can’t Ship toCanada!)

Peace

2020 white2tea Mirage: Rustic???

'Cause what you see, you might not get

And we can bet, so don't you get souped yet

Scheming on a thing, that's a mirage

I'm trying to tell you now, it's sabotage

-Bestie Boys

This 2020 white2tea Mirage ($55.00 for 200g cake or $0.28/g) sample was my curiosity purchase in this early 2020 spring order.  Out of all the initial releases the description as follows had me wondering the most.

The 2020 Mirage is an experimental blend of newly scoped out villages. Burly returning sweetness in the mouth and savory aromas accompany a fleeting bitterness. Slightly smokey tea with an intensely rustic flavor profile.

Readers of this blog might know that I’m always curious about new puerh villages and areas.  In the past I have mused/predicted that Western vendors should bring us new and remote villages in the Bulang area.  The flavor description sure sounds like Bulang to me- an area which I have been exploring again lately… everything but the savory aromas… then again… Paul never lists the village, mountain, or areas anyway… is it new to him or to us???  It’s really so vague.

I am also always curious about what Paul means by “experimental blend” I mean, aren’t all new blends experimental?  Anyways, I get the image of Paul visiting these fringy areas in Bulang and potentially some others areas off the beaten path and then just kind of randomly blending them together.  This is maybe one idea of how this cake can be seen as “experimental”.

This 2020 white2tea Mirage wrapper, I think, is the strangest, and least attractive of the bunch but still I find it very interesting like I am starting through electric red blinds scoping something out.  It has a very eerie, agitating, almost aggressive feel to it that I think Paul was going for… after all these are villages he has scooped out and the description implies something strong and agitating.  “Intense” as the description states.

Something else should be said about the term “rustic”.  This term has been trending to describe puerh over the last year or so.  Never have I seen it being used to describe a fresh puerh usually it’s used to describe something that is at least semi-aged and it most certainly describes something with more rudimentary, classic processing that results in some decent smokiness.  The fact that Paul uses the term “intensely rustic” to describe Mirage should signal to us that this puerh is something that is never really meant to be consumed young.  In fact, this is probably a kind of puerh that should sit in Paul’s Guangdong storage for many years before it should be seriously considered for purchase by most Western buyers who may not have the capacities or patience to age this out like it is intended.  Old school puerh was really meant to sit a long time in some pretty humid storage before consumption and it was rare to consume something like this fresh.  I think this is another way this puerh is “experimental”. Even though I have consumed a lot of puerh back in the day that would be considered rustic, none of it was ever consumed fresh.  In a way this will be a new and probably ass-kicking sobering experience for me.   So, I’m kind of approaching this sample from the point of view that this puerh might come off a bit harsh in its youth and is more for the long term…

In white2tea’s First wave Spring 2020 promotional email the description for this 2020 white2tea Mirage implies strength and power and stated “Fresh tea? Hit me in the face with it.”  If that isn’t a hint that maybe this should be approached with some age on it, then I don’t know how you could spell it out any clearer.

Ok, enough of that… let’s get to the tea… (as I gongfu defensively protecting my face from incoming blows)…

The heavily compressed overwhelmingly intense green and even random sparse yellow and reddish dry leaves smell of fruity floral vibrantly fresh sweet forest green there is a deep almost savory resonance to the dry leaf smell that is very nice.  It looks like possibly a few hunagpian and wild leaves in the mix of mainly conventional puerh standard varietal and pick.  I leaf it heavy and forgo the warnings about this puerh…

The first infusion has a watery deep salty vegetal woody savory taste.  The mouthfeel is nicely full right off the bat.  There is a strong returning cooling taste with fairly sweet foresty returning tastes.  There is a complex breath taste to finish as well.  This tea immediately feels very full right off the first infusion.  The Qi sensation also comes quickly and powerfully and I feel a rush into my head and a surge of energy.

The second infusion presents with a very thick tongue coating that comes with a thick type of savoruy vegetal sweetness and mild to weak bitterness.  The thickness in the mouth is impressive and the long thick dense flavours stay substantial for a long time as there is a cool pungency and long sweet savoury aftertaste.  The sweetness is thick and nuanced with the layers of complex forest and savour tastes.  The throatfeeling is also quick thick and pillowy with a deeper throat feeling and cottony throat feeling.  The qi delivers a strong head punch and is almost dizzing in its quick to move intensity.  I really like this experience so far.  The tastes remind me of Jinggu area puerh.

The third infusion has a very fresh puerh vegetal onset with some forest and savory salty tastes with a lingering mild bitterness and thick and juicy fruity presentation.  The complexity of taste floods in and sticks to the dense and thick mouthfeeling.  The Qi is an intense dizzying experience.  The full mouthfeeling and throat feeling and dense cotton cloud mouthfeeling is very full and satisfying.  The very dense mouthfeeling and throatfeeling really put the flavours in place and they linger minutes later in a foresty, woody, savoury, slightly bitter, and fruity sweetness.

The fourth infusion has a vegetal onset that evolves into a savouy, forest, bitter, smokey, salty, bland, sweet taste.  The complexity really shows of a balance of the 5 tastes but in an intense thick way.  The Qi is dizzying and my heart races from the intensity.  The bitterness is stronger here as is the smokiness.  The thickness really pins these tastes in there as the fill the throat like eating insulation and painting the tongue thick.  The result is a really full and long complex taste all the way into the aftertaste and breath.  The Qi starts to make me feel high a burst of energy. Saliva pools in the thick throat and hold the flavor long.

The fifth infusion has a subtle smokey bitter then savory then fruity thick sweetness in the thick mouthcoat and throat coating.  There is an overall Jinggu juicy fruity vibe in here that is very delicious and is more apparent in the infusion that has more of a quicker moving bitterness.  Sill lots of salty and savory tastes in there as well, foresty tastes- I like the thick presentation of feel and taste and strong upfront Qi.

The sixth infusion has a strong juicy fruity onset in a thick mouthfeeling and thoatfeeling.  There is some savory and foresty tastes, mild-moderate bitter, an almost buttery and very juicy fruity onset.  I am certain this is Jinggu material.  The Qi is big in the mind and races the heart- a very stimulating qi.  You can feel some bodyfeeling in the pounding and opening chest.

The seventh has a thick full buttery mouthcoating there is a mild to moderate bitterness and thick strong returning juicy fruity tastes.  There fruity tastes have a vibrant juicy presentation which pushes out high noted florals at its peak.  There is still foresty tastes, savory tastes.  Surprisingly there is not really smoke in this sample, which just appeared mild in the 3^rd/4^th infusions.  Qi is invigorating and refreshing on this warm and humid summer day.  I’m getting some interesting face tingling from the Qi and strong uplifting mood.

The eighth has a quick bitter that pushes a thick dense juicy fruity taste out in the full tongue coating.  There is a coolness that returns sweetness and lots of savory and forest in the aftertaste.  The throat remains thick and pools saliva in the mid throat.  The mind swirls with giddy excitement.  The thick presentation of interplay between savory-salty and sweet-juicy-fruity that is held in by a significant throat and mouthfeeling is super enjoyable not to mention the building intense Qi that is racing the heart and making me want to go for a run…

The ninth infusion has a bitter and savoury salty onset with more of an expansive slow moving sweetness here.  The thick mouth and throat and saliva trapping is the perfect situation for a mild cool pungency to push a nice salty returning sweetness that is a bit fruity with faint suggestions of candy and forest tastes.

The tenth infusion has a bitter fruity onset and a salty savour almost brine finish.  The bitter builds with each infusion and as it does it leaves less sweetness in the profile.  The throat pools with saliva here but mainly savory and salty tastes return in the aftertaste.  The Qi is still a very very powerful push- the mind scatters under the intense qi.  I get he feeling that this is a blend of both terrace and some arbour materials likely mainly from the Jinggu area.

The 11^th has a bitter almost fruity forest onset with a longer salty savory finish.  There is some floral that comes with salty and some lesser fruity tastes.  Overall, there is more bitter and salty than sweet or pungent.  The cooling in the throat becomes more apparent and a floral savoury taste lingers in the mouth.  The saliva pooling in the throat traps some nice floral juicy fruity tastes.  There is a candy lingering that is becoming more and more as the infusions go on.  Big strong alerting qi with heart beating and racing.  Vigor consumes me.

The 12^th has a bitter onset with more of a salty forest finish with a bit of sweet fruit.  The cooling pungency pushes out a long savory taste.  The returning sweetness is more of a floral sweetness than juicy and fruity.  The thickness of the mouth and throat is a bit less as bitter takes over.

13^th has a bitter mellow fruity thick coat taste with savoury coming before a mild coolness pushes out savoury woody forest tastes.  The thickness is back.  There is a nice long candy breath aftertaste now that pairs nice with salty tastes in the long aftertaste.

14^th has a foresty savoury mild bitter sweetness at the onset.  There are some floral notes in the saltiness as well and a long salty with candy caps off a long breath tastes.  The mouthfeeling is thickcoating and throat is thick as well. Saliva continues to pool in throat holding the long aftertaste there.

15^th has a smooth rich creamy fruity taste with a long creamy fruity taste and subtle candy breath.  The mouthfeeling is fluffy and thick on the tongue but not as strong in the throat.  The Qi is invigorating.

16^th has a smooth rich almost woody creamy onset with a touch of mild bitterness.  The thickness in the mouth and throat are becoming less now.  There a long creamy tropical fruity savoury with a thin candy glimpsing through in the aftertaste. Some body sensation can be felt on the face and brow and in the chest.  The Qi in the mind is a strong push.

17^th has a rich foresty salty roasted nut sweetness over a chalkier mouthcoating.  The sweetness is more in the aftertaste a subtle fruitiness and more obvious salty taste.  There is a faint bitterness and quick moving coolness in the throat.  The taste is still really full and satisfying this late in the session.

The 18^th has a mellow juicy creamy thick fruity taste.  The taste is very full and strong even this late into the session.  It has a juicy fruity nuance, some savory notes, mild cool pungent in the throat and long sweet aftertaste that is almost candy like.

19^th has watery woody savory bitter tastes with a mild cool throat and returning candy breath.

I put the next steep into a long infusion… minutes later it gives off very satisfying slightly bitter, very salty vegetal and creamy full fruity sweetness.

Overall, this puerh is not that rustic in that it:

1-      has none to very little smoke

2-      is not harsh to drink and is not hard on the digestion even this green

3-      doesn’t have any signs of charred leaf material or factory chopped leaves

4-      doesn’t display a strong Bulang area character

However, this puerh does have some bitterness but it isn’t harsh in anyway and adds to the depth of taste.  Also, it is likely that there is plantation material in the blend as evident by the strong terrace puerh type Qi and the cheaper price.  However, I feel like it is maybe cut with arbour or older material.  If I sampled this blind I would be convinced that there is some arbour material in here but the price tells me otherwise.  The stamina of this puerh suggestions stronger material.  This also indicates to me that the price is of decent value for something like this. 

This puerh has a strong Jinggu area fruity sweet vegetal salinity feeling to it but it also has a general profile that reminds me of Menghai but maybe that’s just the plantation feel to it. It doesn’t have the bitter coco upfront which drops off mid-profile like a typical Bulang nor is it that fruity-floral.  To me this is likely Jinggu but could possibly be cut with some clean Bulang as evident buy the intense Qi.

This puerh has many good points that really satisfy me.  Its taste is thick and has an excellent balance of sweet, salty, bitter, and pungent tastes.  The savory and sweet tastes are strong and interact nicely with the moderate to mild-moderate bitterness.  The thick mouthcoating and throat coating make for a very dense presentation.  The Qi is strong factory old school Rustic Qi but that is really the only thing really rustic about this one.  I think this one actually fails as an authentic rustic but is really flawless in its overall thick burley energy filled execution.

To compare to last year’s 2019 white2tea Dangerfield (which I also quite enjoyed) of the same price this 2020 white2tea Mirage is thicker, denser, more cohesive in presentation and more engaging and intense.  Where the Dangerfield is more compartmentalized with a longer more elegant presentation that mimics Naka well.  Of the two I much prefer this one and believe it will age better but is also surprisingly not really that harsh on the stomach if you wanted to drink it now.

This puerh is no mirage… it’s the real deal… a Sure Shot.

Peace

2020 white2tea Is A Gift: Can't Have It All

white2tea 2020 Is A Gift

iam_pbr Jury is still out on that

-white2tea’s Instagram

Sometimes the worst brings out the best in people.  It’s been a rough year for some people but a lot of good has come out of it as well.  This is especially true as people are deeply reflecting on what matters to them in life.  I think the turmoil of 2020 has most definitely brought out the best in white2tea which is very good if you like puerh.

First, Paul had the 2020 white2tea Umbrella 200g no strings attached free puerh cake.  That was pretty amazing!  I took a pass on that cake but was moved to support white2tea this year in a purchase that spoke more to me… so here we are…

Then on May 15^th came white2tea’s first wave 2020 Spring release and I would say the art direction on the wrappers is visually and artistically stunning.  Quite fresh and vibrant looking wrappers.  The descriptions and wrappers continue to improve year to year.  Paul’s continued his promotional email launching the cakes with a very short description was proven to be a hit in years past and was just as enjoyable for me this year.  This year the wrapper art seems less “graphic design” and more “artistic” they are really visually stunning this year.  Paul’s photography seems to be featured more and more year to year and the wrappers are looking more like art pieces in a gallery than design.  Beautiful esthetic.  In this first wave was the release of this 2020 white2tea Is A Gift ($249.00 for 200g cake or $1.25/g). The email description was “isn’t this all a gift?”… I agree that it kind of is…

Wave 2 came on June 7^th with another goody- a charity cake named 2020 white2tea Good Man in a Storm which Paul apparently discounted from $35 for 200g cake to $25 for 200g cake.  The best part was that 100% of that money would go to charities that fight against systemic racism in the USA.  Black Lives Matter!  With a brand name that could mistakenly conjure up “white pride”, it was probably a good idea to clarify.  Let’s be perfectly clear- Black Lives Matter.  Paul’s bold statement on racism states the obvious in a turn over the last few years to cakes and wrappers which have a theme of social justice.  Spring 2020 Wave 1 release had wrappers and design elements that suggested that this year Paul’s artistic vision would focus a bit more on Social Justice as I jokingly implied in this post. 

These wrappers started to show up last year with the art on 2019 white2tea Road2Nowhere and the predicable release of 2020 white2tea Road2nowhere.  This cake which was released as 50 limited cakes and was still available for purchase until today.  I think this speaks more to the current economic state, the demographic of white2tea’s consumers, as well as a so-so review by Cwyn N of last year’s cake.  So far I haven’t read a review yet that would convince me to drop the $128.00 for 200g cake.

The artistic statement which is 2019 white2tea InB4 also looks at worker equality which is evident in Paul’s rare detailed description of his wrapper and cake name.  I always felt that the 2019 white2tea Duh is meant to be a strong statement on gender equality/ woman’s rights.  In the same vain as the shot blurred in camera InB4 (Love Always Wins) and Is A Gift (Be Nice), the 2019 Duh has “This Girl Can” blurred.  All of these shots are likely blurred T shirt logos.   “This Girl Can” is a charity that aims to reduce the gap and inspire woman to be more active in sport.  Then the title “Duh” juxtaposed with the blurred image suggests that gender stereotypes are more ingrained systemically than a simple catchy phrase or hashtag can simply reverse.

OK… Lets get back to Is A Gift…

It’s this simple… Last year the 2019 white2tea Is a Gift spoketo me.  Although it was one of the best 2019 puerh I had tried- I hadn’t sampled so widely in 2019 so that doesn’t say much.  Despite it being a great gift it had some flaws to it mainly in it lacking a deep throat feeling or complex aftertaste.  However, I still really like this 2019 but just couldn’t overlook the flaws to buy more for this price.  So in come this 2020 white2tea Is A Gift… will it out preform the 2019????

Dry leaves don’t seem as compressed as last year’s cake.  Very tippy small leaves smell of Tuitti Fruity odours with a deep forest base.  Not as high noted or piercing green smelling as last year’s 2019 but deeper smelling forest.

First infusion has a mellow woody forest vibe.  Some soapy floral notes developing in the aftertaste.  A sweet sugar finish, creamy, soapy floral.  Mainly soapy fragrant floral tastes in a cottony fuzzy mouthfeeling.  The perfume stays on the breath for a while in the sticky mouthcoating.

The second infusion has a floral bitter soapy almost sweet onset.  There is a slight creamy butter and rainforest base.  The mouthfeeling is cottony, full, and sticky the throat opens to a deep soft pungency where mainly floral tastes linger and fade.  The finish and aftertaste and throatfeeling of this 2020 is immediately better than the 2019.  The Qi is alerting in the body.

The third infusion has a foresty onset a moderate bitterness that turns quick to perfume and dense soapy handsoap florals.  Cottony full a little sticky mouthcoating.  There are woody tastes underneath the bitter and a mid-throat opening with some mild cool pungency which throws the soapy across the aftertaste.  The Qi has a building headiness to it with a nice alerting feeling.

The fourth infusion has a pretty intense bitter buttery floral creamy sweet onset.  The bitter really splashes up into the roof of the mouth and there is a touch of peachy mango taste.  The bitter is definitely building in intensity. The mouthfeeling is slippery stone.  My mind and head start to wobble and float.  There is some hypnotic feeling in my mind.  A mid depth throaty light depth that a mild pungency touches.  The result is a long perfume soap aftertaste on the breath.  The peach fruit taste returns minutes later.  Saliva pools in the mid-throat as thick peach taste coagulates there among distinctly strong perfume.  The mouthfeeling has a thick slippery feel to it.

The fifth infusion has a bittery buttery almost forest taste which has a distinct thick perfume floral soapy finish.  The mouthfeeling is slippery and the bitter is pronounced.  The throat sees a mild pungency mid-depth which traps soapy floral tastes for a long perfume aftertaste.  There are suggestions of peach taste under the strong bitter and floral soapy onset.  The Qi has a moderately hypnotic feeling to it, less intense than the 2020.

The sixth has a distinct bitter floral taste.  The bitter splashes up into the mouth and a soapy floral taste expands.  The taste is really pretty strong.  The slippery mouthfeeling and mid-deep light throatfeeling push out a long floral aftertaste of perfume and even peachy tastes.  The throat depth is deep enough to push out a gob of saliva where an almost salty very floral and subtle peach fruit taste is long in the throat.  The qi is starting to race the Heart a bit.  My body feels energized and my mind clear.  The long floral taste here is distinct and strong throughout. The bitter is moderate-strong and quick to move.  Compared to the 2019 the bitter was much stronger and stayed throughout the profile.  The floral taste was much shorter with a very inactive throatfeeling and short aftertaste with the 2019 compared to this 2020.

The seventh infusion has a moderate bitter buttery creamier sweet onset.  There is a long floral taste that expands in the throat and is long on the breath.  There is a bit of woody tastes here now.  The Qi is invigorating now with slight stronger Heart beats.  The mouthfeeling is slippery and reasonably full.  The throat is mid-level depth.  The saliva pools in the throat mintues later holding a kind of forest floral taste in there.

The eighth infusion has a lively moderate bitter taste that splashes floral buttery sweet tastes into the mouth.  A lower level bitter goes the distance the deeper throatfeeling pushes out strong florals and forest woods now in the aftertaste.  The qi pushes me into a mild sweat on this very humid summer day.  The mouthfeeling is slippery with a bit drying lip edges.  The Qi is relaxing as well as alerting.  Definitely not as powerful as the 2019.

The ninth infusion has a moderate quick moving bitter which quickly returns a buttery creamy but mainly woody distinct floral taste then drops to a mild bitter which trails out in the mouth.  The mouthfeeling of this 2020 is really nice with a mid-depth faint almost pungent cooling with saliva gob action.  The aftertaste is mainly floral woods now with faint peachy suggestions underneath.  The Qi is moderate and has a nice euphoria and heating going on now in the body.  The aftertaste of wood florals is on the breath 5 minutes later.

The 10^th has a fresh green moderate bitter splash with a longer buttery floral initial taste.  The aftertaste is woods and distinct florals.  There is some suggestions of peachy fruit in the aftertaste as well.  The mouthfeeling is slippery cotton lip-edge dryness a moderately full feeling with mid-depth in throat and saliva pooling.  There are more tropical fruit nuances that try hard to punch through in the throat.  The mind is alert and a bit euphoric.  The aftertaste of peach florals is long.  I feel re-energized.

11^th has a sweet peachy woody and now only low bitter onset.  There are some buttery florals that emerge mid profile.  The mouthfeel is less intense with a slippery almost dry thin moderate coating.  The aftertaste in the throat is more melon now with some florals as well and less woody.  The body pushes out another mild sweat.  This infusion is sweeter but less bitter or full.

12^th has a buttery creamy floral onset with mild bitter underneath now.  There is a mild pungent in the throat mid ways which pushes out melon, peach, creamy sweet, and floral tastes.  The breath aftertaste is long and tasty.  The mouthfeeling is sticky and throat feeling still holding strong despite the bitterness really falling off.  This is probably the tastiest infusion 12 flash steepings in.  The qi is mildly hypnotic.

13^th has a moderate-low bitterness with woody floral and creamy butter tastes.  The floral taste is long in the throat and sticks to the slippery almost sticky tongue coating.  The aftertaste kicks up melon, peach, but mainly a buttery almost sweetness and distinct floral character.  This infusion is really tasty as well.  The throat feeling is holding strong and is a nice point of this 2020.  The Qi has a warming feeling in the body and moderate euphoria with mild Heart beats.  The face has a subtle numbness.

14^th has a low moderate bitterness with a creamy woody less floral sweet onset.  The mouthfeeling can get a touch almost dry pucker when infusions are sampled back to back.  The throat feels slight cooling pungency with a floral and woody finish with a lot less sweetness in this infusion.  Head euphoria and warming body, mild face and chest sensations. 

15^th infusion has become a bit watery, butter cup, some creamy sweetness and faint floral.  It’s starting to loose strength here.  There is still a nice long aftertaste of tropical creamy banana candy which is really tasty.  The aftertaste is losing strength as well.  The throat feel continues to hold and the mouthfeel has a nice slippery stickiness to it still.

16^th has a peachy woody almost but not really floral initially which expands to more of a buttery floral in the mid profile and slight tropical fruity in the aftertaste with a slight soft bitterness throughout.  Still a nice floral tropical sweet aftertaste which is quite long even though it is weakening now.

17^th is a watery floral cup with a bit of butter and woods mainly watery now.

18^th I push into a few minutes long infusion… and it pushes out some buttercup florals over a mild bitter woody taste.  The Qi has dropped off as well over the last few infusions.  Still some fruity aftertaste.

I put the rest of the wet leaves in a mug and really long steep it…. Deep bitter and salty green florals remain…

Looking at the wet leaves of this 2020- the processing is not the ultra green, crazy perfect unbroken bud and leaf sets of the 2019 Is A Gift.  Also there are some leaves which have a bit of browning or scorched marks which were not in the perfect looking 2019 leaves.  The small leaf varietal is still apparent and the quality is there but not the crazy meticulousness of the 2019.  It could have been deliberately processed a bit longer in the wok as this 2020 is not as mean green processed as the 2019.  Its possible that Paul gave the farmers the directive to leave it in the wok a bit longer to bring out more taste and a deeper throat feeling which the 2019 lacked.

Overall, this is an above average Yibang.  It has some strength behind it and has a nice aftertaste.  The taste peaks slowly and has above average stamina for a Yibang.  The Qi is also nice and more warming and euphoric than the flat out more powerful 2020….

Vs 2019 white2tea Is A Gift.  The 2019 white2tea Is a Gift is a significantly better tea in almost all respects.  The 2019 has much stronger Qi, better stamina, better leaf processing, and is more extreme yibang in general.  This makes the 2019 better to age long term I believe.  But the flavors and aftertaste of the 2019 was weak.  Where the 2020 is better in its more balanced flavor while still being more powerful than average.  The 2020 has a nice throatfeeling and aftertaste as well.  It’s much better suited for drinking now but will aged decently enough.  It’s a more balanced Yibang than the extreme and power of the 2019.  The 2020 does imnprove significantly in the aftertaste and throatfeeling but its gains here don’t outweigh the power which is the 2020.

In the end I'm left wondering if some extra processing was done to this 2020 to make it less nuclear green as the 2019?  To perhaps give it a deeper taste and throat feeling?  I am also left wondering if it was all done deliberately or is it by accident or just the way nature and climate left its mark on harvests of different years?  Maybe if the 2020 was green processed it would still be the powerhouse green machine of 2019? And by processing it differently in 2020 it has added flavor and throat feeling but has weakened its stamina and Qi? 

I guess I'll never know but I will find these two cakes interesting to compare has they age.  It also makes me think that if I thought that the lack of complex aftertaste, and deep throat feeling was the flaw of the 2019 and it was corrected in 2020 by processing but yet I am even more dissatisfied with the 2020 then I must be really picky or impossible to satisfy with my Yibang puerh.... hahahhaha... the phrase "Can't Have it All" is an apt phrase when it comes to trying to find a flawless puerh.  However, with puerh and with life, you make the best what comes your way and find the positives to enjoy...

Somehow I ended up giving the 2019 white2tea Is A Gift anumerical grade of 7.1.  I will give this 2020 white2tea Is A Gift a 5.9 just for comparison.

Thanks again Paul for pressing another enjoyable gift!

Peace

Comparing 3 Free Puerh COVID Promotions & The Return of the Charity Cake

I found it interesting that my three most frequented Western puerh vendors started offering free puerh promotions during the current COVID 19 crisis.  What is even more interesting to me is how they are each very different from each other.  Also I wondered why one of the three promotions seemed to work on me.

Yunnan Sourcing’s Free Gift Offers and BOGO Offers

This was the first and earliest of the free puerh promotions.  Basically there are tiers of free gifts and puerh cakes depending how much you spend.  I first got a promotional email at the end of Feb about these offers and I believe that Scott and Xiao Yao just decided to extend it until things normalize (whenever that will be).  This free promotion is within Yunnan Sourcing’s current marketing scheme and it is really the continuous part that is the branch offered to us at this trying time.  I don’t think this is as good as the rotating 13% or 15% off sales but for someone who is looking to not wait it is nice to receive some free! Thanks Scott and Xiao Yao!

The Essence of Tea’s Singularity Free Cake Give Away

This promotion was offered in both March and April so they ended up giving away two of their premium offerings from their very small 2019 line.  The 2019 Essence of Tea Singularity Gushu is a full 400g cake worth $178.00 people!  All you had to do was post a review of one of their teas on their website- sold out or in stock, it didn’t matter.  The March give away only allowed one entry but the April allowed as many as you could review.  I think this was a very successful promotion because it did a few things. Firstly, it got people excited about a pretty absent as of lately Essence of Tea at the right time- just before Spring release.  Secondly, it drew a lot of attention to the Singularity cake which had not sold out yet.  Thirdly, it filled a vacant website full of energetic and positive reviews.  People are a lot less likely to post a negative review when they are trying to be optimistic about landing a free cake- that’s not how human behaviour works.  It also is more of a reciprocal promotion with the customers giving something back to help David and Kathy out at a tough time in the form of some good reviews.  It’s a win-win really.  Thanks David and Kathy!

white2tea’s 2020 Umbrella Free Cake Give Away

This promotion was offered April 2, 2020 and offered a free cake of 2020 white2tea Umbrella, a 5 year aged mocha pressed into a new cake, .  It also offered free shipping on the free cake- no strings attached.  They hoped to give away 100 of these cakes and also offered the rest at $15 per cake.  They asked that only those most in need use the coupon code for the free cake and others go for the $15 reduced price cake.  I wrote a blog post on how this is the most epic of free promotions and Paul of white2tea pulled it off!  I suspect that Paul will release the remaining stock of this one in his first release of Spring 2020 puerh if he has any left to offer.  Thanks Paul!

So which one did I go for out of the three???

Readers of this blog will know that I felt like I already had enough tea and that there were others in more need for me.  So the white2tea promotion didn't directly effect me, but it did make me think more favorably of the brand that I am probably the most critical of.  So in some ways it worked.  I guess you could say the same for the Yunnan Sourcing promotion as well.

However, I thought the reciprocal nature of the Essence of Tea free promotion was really cool and I wanted to participate in it.  Plus I think I'm a sucker for sweepstakes promotions and the prize was big.  So I participated..  I already had the reviews on my blog so I just basically transferred a few of those to the site.  I didn't win but it made me feel good about doing something rather small without actually buying a cake to support a vendor that I buy from.

Did you participate in any of these free promotions?  Why do you think they worked for you?

I guess the other thing I kinda wanted to mention here was that this year I think we are also going to see lots of the vendors give back with charity puerh cakes.  Vendors were doing this off and on throughout the years with Tea Urchin doing it first I think then vendors like white2tea and Yunnan Sourcing.  I think we are going to see a lot of these this year some might even drop in the next few days/ weeks.

Peace

2020 white2tea Umbrella: Support Our Puerh Vendors

Oh Baby! …. Paul just pulled off the ultimate… I love this stuff…

Okay the night before Paul of white2tea dropped this gift on us (who ever said he doesn’t know how to give a gift?) I was listening to a CBC radio program.  On the show they had on a marketing and business consultant.  He was asked the question, How can businesses actually market during this time or should they just wait it out?  His answer: the business that actually take the most risk and do free no strings attached will stand to benefit the most at this turbulent time.  He said because people generally understand the risk and sincerity of the offer the businesses stand to be more loyal when times are good.

At a time when the government won’t allow me to work, I had also decided to do free starting as soon as I could no longer work.  I am doing this because it is the right thing to do, it will maintain my business, and feel that it will pay off big time down the road.  Great minds think alike… hahhah

Paul’s free was in an offer of a completely free cake with free shipping.  It was pressed from 2015 Manghai character, sweet and smooth maocha which he had personally stored and was saving for a rainy day.  Check out the email I received…

Wow! This is amazing stuff and I’m glad Paul went for the home run… very classy and top notch!  It really is the proverbial "win-win".

Although I saw the email early, I decided to not buy one of these.  It would have really brought me a lot of joy, for sure, to have received one.  But I decided to leave these for others who need it more because, like I have been saying, I have way too much tea anyways.  And I took advantage of the last two years Snoozefest cakes rather liberally anyways.  And I hope to support vendors, perhaps including white2tea, this spring if things get better on that front for me personally.  And I decided that I would simply write a good post about how, if we are able to, we should support our puerh vendors at this time, regardless which one it is- white2tea, Yunnan Sourcing, The Essence of Tea, ect… 

So yeah… you should do that if you can… and if not at least we had 2020 white2tea Umbrella.

Peace

(from someone who still has a hard time accepting gifts)