Wednesday, February 29, 2012

90's plum taste brick outdoors in February

Cold winter weather
                                                  I live in a fairly rugged location. My house is located at the end of an almost three quarter mile long driveway on top of a mountain.  Normally for about a month a year we are forced to navigate it via snowmobile. This winter thanks  to global warming  we have not even had to plow it. Today I decided to take advantage of the spring like weather and have a session under the sun.

Bodhi
It is generally thought that brick tea is one of the lowliest forms of compressed tea not being thought of on the same level as cakes. Only being superior to the pitiful mini tuocha.I have generally found this rule to be true. The exception being bricks destine for Taiwan. They seem to hold the brick in a much higher regard in there. I have had quite a few good bricks come from Taiwanese manufacturers or procured from a Taiwanese source.
The shinkage mark is apparent around the spout . Does this mean it is Zhuni? It has a nice ring to it.
             My tea pairing for this  sunny day is the crisp and refreshing 90's Taiwanese export "plum Taste" Brick available at thechineseteashop.com  Brewed in my thrift store shui pin that my sister in-law  bought me for two dollars. This pot while originally neglected has become my favorite pot. 
The tea matches the weather quite well. It is light and brisk. The more obvious name for this tea I believe would be the camphor taste brick as it is the dominate flavor. The initial infusions also have some creamsicle undertones. There is also a definite leatheryness to this tea that I usually associate with heavier teas but this tea remains some what lighter in flavor profile.

                    The brick has been fairly dry stored.  But has seen enough age to have rounded out most of the roughness that I imagine being present in this tea's youth. It is not until later infusions that the plum taste really starts to come to the forefront.There is a slight dryness to the mouth feel but it does not make the tea unpleasant. While the qi is of this tea is mild it is present and slightly energetic . The leaf does have good durability easily staying interesting and evolving for fifteen infusion
The taste is more mature than it looks.
                     I keep meaning to pick up another one or two of these bricks as they are still fairly reasonably priced even after the recent price increases.  They are quite ready to be drank right now but I imagine that they will evolve into something even better a few years down the road. For more inspired thoughts on this tea Listen to the Leaves.

2 comments:

  1. This has to be the lightest coloured 90s tea I have ever seen

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  2. I posted a picture of the first infusion. I had planned on getting a couple more pics of the tea after it opened up. Unfortunatly ambition was lost enjoying the tea and the beautiful day. Around the fifth infusion it became extremely windy knocking over the table and forcing us inside and the photo op was lost and forgotten in the chaos. I should have noted this. A more accurate representation of this tea's color can be found at http://listeningtoleaves.blogspot.com/2011/02/1990s-puerh-tea-brick-menghai-tea.html

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