Sunday with 2005 Fengqing Zhuan Cha Raw Pu'erh from Teavivre

“I say let the world go to hell, but I should always have my tea.” 

- Fvodor Dostoyevsky, Notes from Underground

Today I've decided to try the sample that I've had in my collection for a while.  I only have one packet and have been waiting for a special occasion that never came.  Today, while the winter storm circles my neck of the woods and snow slowly descends, is the perfect time to curl up on the couch with a good book and a cup of delicious tea.

I've had raw pu'erh before but I've never tasted aged raw pu'erh.  I like both young sheng and a good shu, but what will aged sheng taste like?

I opened the package and took a whiff of aroma.  It was great.  Very aromatic, a little vegetal and woodsy at the same time.  The leaf was part loose, part in moderate chunks and of dark green/brown colour.

I steeped the entire sample package (10g) at 95°C in 8 ounces of water for 30 seconds.  The result was amazing.  The tea turned out golden brown in colour with aroma that made me think of wet forest after a good summer soaking.  

The taste knocked my socks off.  It was delicious.  I would say this tea was right smack in the middle between a good shu and a young sheng.  Sweet, woodsy notes were intertwined with a hint of flowers and mushrooms to give this tea an incredible depth and made me want more. There was a slight astringency at the back of my tongue, just enough to add to the complexity of the tea but not too much to make it bitter.

I'm currently on my second steep (50 sec) and it's just as good as the first if not better.  I could probably get away with shorter steep of 40 sec or so and there is still a lot of life left in the leaves for more steeps in the near future.  

I just checked on Teavivre website and this tea is still available.  I'm seriously considering purchasing a brick.  It's good, really good and I want more of this golden goodness.