This tea is an example of an experiment gone very right. Made from a blend of shou and sheng with the intention of reaping the benefits of both categories, this tea establishes a very pleasant balance of both. The shou brings an unsurprising smoothness and richness to the table, while the tightly compressed sheng, even though 15+ years aged, provides a sharper and more dynamic flavour. For a majority of its years, this tea has been stored in Guangxi, with minimal noticeable storage scent. The tea brews our a nice amber colour and is very clean. Once the leaves open up, the two types of puer become easy to differentiate. As for the material itself, the sheng is supposedly from high mountain (they’re all pretty high in Yunnan though), big trees. We really have absolutely no way of verifying that, so take it with a grain of salt. Originally pressed into very tight bricks, this tea has since been broken up into smaller chunks to allow for slightly easier brewing and higher surface area for ageing. Still, we recommend using caution if choose to break it up further, as these pieces are tightly compressed and fairly irregular in shape. Otherwise, a longer first steep or two will allow the tea to open up quicker. $0.30/g
