2021 Lesser Evils Minis

Seems fairly weak in flavor to me overall. Tried 8 infusions with the last one for 90 sec. That gave a bit more umph, but still not much. Predominant flavor throughout is earthy woodiness. Aroma of the liquor is mildly fishy.

The main highlight is the mouthfeel. It feels very thick and watery, almost what I would imagine one of those edible plastic water balls to feel like.

Okay Brain. We are going to start liking pu er. I know we didn’t before but it was mainly tummy’s fault. Tummy. You. Are. Fine. I filled you up. Just focus on the amazing flavors about to hit you. Oh, wait you’re full of acid. Nevermind. The aroma coming off of the rinses seems to be pretty typical for pu ers. Slightly fishy, mainly woody. The texture of my first sip is smooth with a soft malt-o-meal undertone and a lingering woodsy tone. Varnish as well. I grabbed a white gaiwan cup to experience the colors but I forgot to use it. It’s sitting right next to me. <.< Ooo wow. This sip was intensely wooded. Like you were suddenly thrown out of your carriage and rolled down a hill and ended up in a dank, overgrown deciduous forest. The tongue is becoming thick as is the liquid. Holy crap! BAM. It’s like a yaupon. Oh my word my palate is feeling overwhelmed. The aroma is like a historical house.

Gongfu!

Enjoyed this session paired with some sweet, over-sized raspberries for my morning tea session!! These raspberries practically melted in my mouth, and I loved the fresh, gentle sweetness and light pop of tartness that they brought to this otherwise very thick, brothy, and earthy ripe pu’erh! I also find that this tea sometimes has sweet brown notes that are reminiscent of fig jams, and the raspberries complimented those elements excellently!

Tea Photo: https://www.instagram.com/p/C2x-3fMOq9m/

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjHG25QwYeg

Medium intensity aroma. Smells earthy with a boiled milk note. Some dark fruits in the background. An element of wet clothes forgotten in the washing machine for many hours. Some dampness and spice-tingling.

1
Dark, earthy and thick (but at the same time watery?) with a pleasant bitter-sweetness, nice feedback when swallowing and very light cacao aftertaste.
Sweet molasses from the empty cup.

2
The aroma gets brighter with something in between fruity and floral. The liquor is surprisingly light and smooth even with a very high leaf/water ratio. There’s a light lingering cacao aftertaste in the throat. Qi feels relaxing.

3
Getting more of that bright fruity element in the liquor. Boiled milk aroma. The leaves are big and beautiful with less broken bits than more mass produced Shu.

4
I had to push it with a minute steeping to get the right intensity. I think within a year it’ll tighten up.
The liquor now is more pleasantly textured with some spice-tingling aftertaste.
Qi still feels quite focusing and grounding.

5
Weaker but still enjoyable. Slightly cooling mouthfeel.

6
15 minutes Steeping.
Still some flavour and body left. Cacao, milk, herbal.