Well, if I’m going to
start looking at some puer teas on this blog, I should start with one
that I really like – a lot.
I’ve mentioned in a
previous post about the different varieties of puer and I’ll say
again here that I really do like ripened puer, though I’m only
really starting to explore these teas properly. This one is a solid,
popular brand and one of the factories that created the ripening
process in the first place – it is also one of the more costly and
most subject to counterfeiting. Dragon Tea House has proven a
reliable seller for me so far and so I didn’t mind spending out on
a few of the big burnt biscuits from them to see what the fuss is all
about. Of the two ripened puers from Dayi that I purchased, this was
the most expensive at about £35 – however, it is a 357g cake which
means that it is within my £10 per 100g quality price point. So it is not as costly as it might first appear and certainly a lot
cheaper than some of their other teas.
Buying from Dragon Tea
House does have an advantage over some other stores in that they do
allow you to buy smaller quantities (either 10g, 100g, or the full
357g cake). So, if you aren’t sure that you want to spend that much
in one go, either because of concern over cost or because you are
unsure that you will like it, you can pick up 10g and try it out.
It is a rather handsome
looking wrapper of cotton paper and on the reverse is the first of
Dayi’s security seals with a hologram thread and separating
segments.
Inside is an equally
handsome looking cake of tea, a rich brown and sweet smelling.
And on the top side,
another of Dayi’s security labels, this time embedded in the
leaves.
The cake breaks apart
easily, which is nice after I’ve had to tackle one or two that seem
pressed to the point of fusion. The quality of the leaves is even
throughout and there’s not much in the way of twigs and nothing by
way of dust.
I have to say that from
the first steeping I knew that I would be buying this brand again.
This is a very tasty tea indeed and with the balance of flavour that
I particularly enjoy in a puer – that is is a pleasant earthy base
note with crisp bitter-sweet top notes. I also managed to get a lot
of good tea from this.
It is easily worth the money when compared to
other puers (and I’ll be posting reviews for quite a few here over
the coming weeks – but I shall spread them out a little as I don’t
want anyone to think that the blog has such a specific focus) and at
a price I consider very reasonable for good quality. I dare say that
I’ll be trying to buy another cake of this soon.
You can find this sold
at Dragon Tea House
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