The Ancient Puer Sheng Tea is harvested from trees that is at least 30 or 40 years old. Its leaves are extremely valuable, as each year's harvest is limited so as not to weaken the plant too much. Many experts have praised its intense, enveloping aroma and golden liquor with a complex aromatic range, with notes of fruit and incense that linger on the palate for a long time. This tea originates from the mountainous area around the city of Menghai in southern Yunnan.
Tasting - Sight and Smell
The Puer Sheng Ancient Tea has non-intact leaves of various shades of green, dark brown and beige, in an elegant mix of colors. Once infused, the leaves give off an intense fruity pear aroma, hints of incense and hints of fragrant resin. In the cup, the liqueur is pale gold with orange hues: the body is silky and enveloping, and the slight note of astringency on the finish-typical of sheng-remains pleasant.
Tasting Notes
GONG FU CHA
The first infusion of Puer Sheng Ancient Tea gives a tea with a sweet flavor, reminiscent of wildflower honey, and fruity, with notes of ripe pear. A subtle incense finish is noticeable. This incense note becomes more intense with the second infusion, which reveals a slight astringency and delicate hints of leather. The third infusion brings out more woody scents, with hints of pine wood: the fruity taste of pear remains on the finish, albeit less sweet than at the beginning.
TO THE WEST
The first sip of Puer Sheng Ancient Tea is extremely fruity and reminiscent of pear nectar and raisins. The attack is soft and sweet, with hints of honey; the tea then evolves in the mouth, revealing notes of incense and hints of eucalyptus, thus leaving a remarkably fresh sensation on the palate. Astringency is almost nonexistent, while the long sweet persistence returns on notes of pear and honey.
Origin
Menghai, Yunnan - China
Preparation
We strongly recommend infusing Puer Sheng Ancient Tea in the traditional Chinese method (gong fu cha) to best enjoy these leaves. Following this preparation, 5 grams of leaves (about 3 teaspoons) can be used in a 150-mL gaiwan to obtain multiple infusions with different flavors.
After a quick rinse of the leaves in 95°C water, an initial infusion of 20 seconds can be made. Keeping the water at the same temperature, you can then continue to exploit the same leaves by adding more water and increasing the infusion time by 5 seconds each time (20-25-30...). This tea has a longevity of about 8 infusions.
For a classic preparation according to the Western style, we recommend using 3 grams of leaves (about 2 teaspoons) in a 200 ml cup with water at 95°C for an infusion time of 2 minutes.
The tea can be filtered for ease when tasting and also the infusion times given above here are meant to be purely indicative so you can also adjust according to your personal taste.
We recommend storing Puer Sheng Ancient Tea in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight.
