After preheating my teaware, I opened the package of loose tea, breathing in what seemed to be a fragrant and bold pu’erh. Beginning by rinsing the leaves in the gaiwan, I took in the aroma of the wet leaves and had much the same impression as when they were dry. Then came the first thirty-second infusion. I was just a bit disappointed. The flavours were bold, yet at the same time were flat. Initially, the tea had great mouthfeel and the taste concentrated at the front of the mouth, but that was about as far as things went. Continuing, I steeped the leaves again for another thirty seconds. This time, the brew came out darker looking, earthier in smell, and stronger in flavour. The third infusion was much like the second, but the flavour was a bit fuller. Finally, for the fourth steeping, I left the leaves sit in the water for several minutes. This time, the tea came out stronger, but no more flavourful. Overall, I would say that I was disappointed at the lack of any sort of full flavour. However, the flavours that did exist were bold. On my personal enjoyment scale, I would give this tea a 68/100.
205 °F / 96 °C
