2011 Yunnan Sourcing "Man Tang Hong Number 2" Ripe Pu-erh tea cake

I got this a few months ago with the 2011 sampler and forgot about it but the video on it reminded me. This is a really nice tea. Scott’s description is pretty spot on – camphor, wood, and sweetness followed by spice and dried fruit aftertaste. I’m not getting any bitterness at all unlike him but this tea definitely holds my interest. I can definitely taste a lot of similarities with the Gong Ting version but I want to say that that one was sharper in flavor. I’ll have to order samples of the two newer pressings of the Man Tang Hongs as I really like whatever that fermentation master is doing.

I have had a sample of this one laying around since perhaps my first YS order. I just got around to trying it somehow. After rinsing, the leaves had quite a sweet aroma, like woody marshmallows. The flavor was also rather sweet, but I didn’t find it to be particularly strong. Good body and thickness to the liquor. Woody earthiness and a bit of chocolate on the finish.

As this is my first time actually writing about tasting tea, I can’t say a whole lot. I am far too much of a tea novice to describe this as some of you could. I can say that this Pu-erh is very delicious. This tea came as a sample in my first YS order. I initially had way too much tea in the travel Gaiwan. I did a flash wash and flash steeped the first 7 or 8 brews. It has a wonderful earthiness to it, which I guess one could say about many Pu-erh’s.
My other experiences with Pu-erh have been with older ones, and as such I believe this tee needs a few more years before it will be ready to (at least for me) to drink. Of course it could have to do with the first steep being really strong, and I may have kind of ruined my ability to thoroughly enjoy the tea. All-in-All it was a good tea, and it was a nice surprise to my order.