Pu question

Hey Dean,

Just go for it. Break off enough for one sitting and you can still age the rest if you so choose, it's not a problem.

Mike

Mike,

Thanks. I'll do just that.

Regards, Dean

You can widdle a cup from your Tuo by reaming the bird's nest with a spoon edge. I do this for every cup till I break through the top and peel the soft top edge for subsequent cups till you are left with a hard ring which will need to be broken.

Jim

DPM wrote:

Jim,

More good advice. I'll try it.

Thanks, Dean

Well, I tried my pu tonight. I tried to replicate your "wrongfu" method:

1. Heat water to 190. Measure 2 heaping tsp of dry tea.
2. Pour 1/2 cup over tea, immediately drain and discard.
3. Wait 1-2 minutes.
4. I then made 6 infusions of 4 oz each: 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 45 seconds.
5. Tasted. With all six the predominate flavor I get is wood smoke. Steeps

Is this to be expected? It certainly looks like green tea in the pot, but the smoke is not abating. Shall I keep going?

Thanks for your help.

Dean

DPMAWb4g.4238$Sh.3579@trnddc064/27/06 18: snipped-for-privacy@junk.com

Hi Dean,

With some Pu'erhs, the smoke *is* the tea. By all means, keep on going, but realize that for some Pu'erhs, the smoke quality is dominant. Personally, too much wood smoke kills the joy of the tea for me. However, they say a smoked up young Pu'erh will age well and turn into something spectacularly lovely in fifty years. I'll be 111 then. See ya!

While Mike is undoubtedly responsible for broadcasting "wrong-fu" into the world, he is not the father of "wrong-fu," an honor that goes to Joseph Kubera who named if not invented it. Credit where credit is due. (As Mike would be the first to admit)

Michael

Hi Dean,

This is certainly not unusual in a young green puerh. Smoky notes are fairly common, quite often the smokiness fades with age. Also Xia Guan has a stronger smokiness than many other mainstream factories. The flavor of a Xia Guan green is so unique that many experienced drinkers will recognize the factory's flavor sight unseen.

Maocha is the dried leaf that used to make puerh cakes, bricks, etc. After picking it is dried and then bagged up and traded as a commodity much like tobacco leaf used to be traded here after it was cured. The source of this smoke flavor comes largely from the processing methods used to make the maocha . The best maocha is sun dried but many processors will used ovens to speed up the process. Unfortunately baking the maocha is becoming more and more common with the increasingly heavy market demand for puerh leaf. Some processors will only use the ovens when it is overcast or raining because they simply cant stop production due to the weather, while other processors use the ovens for all of their leaf.

It is my understanding that Xia Guan intentionally uses a blend of sun dried and baked maocha in most of their product line. That is part of the reason that their product's flavor is so recognizable.

Do continue the steeps though. You may find that the strong notes fade in later steeps. Since it does sound like this is a tad strong for you I would also suggest that you try less leaf. Try half of what you are using and then work your way up.

-- Mike Petro

Agreed, However let it also be noted that *I* never claimed credit for it. I did not mention Joe's name specifically as I was unsure of his stand on being referred to publicly. Here is the first time I mentioned the practice in public.

-- Mike Petro

Michael,

Thanks - I'll be 104, so hang around.

At this point, too much smoke for me, too.

If I decide to age it, in what type of container should I store it? I have a cool, dry, dark odor-free location, but the tuocha is wrapped with beige paper in a cardboard box. Can I leave it like that, or should I re-wrap and package it?

Thanks for your help.

Speaking of whom, I don't recall seeing Joseph's comments here recently. Has he left rfdt for a more congenial neighborhood?

Dean

Mike I went to 9 infusions (60, 90, 120 seconds); pretty much the same result. The last two were a little smoother, but still smoke was the predominant flavor.

Please see my comments to Michael - I think I'll age it a few years and see what develops. Any other advice on aging?

Thanks for your insight.

Dean

I would leave it in it's current box, there are many tuocha stored exactly like that for decades.

For more info see

-- Mike Petro

DPMNE95g.2428$c%5.675@trnddc024/30/06 17: snipped-for-privacy@junk.com

Ok, I'll wait for you.

In paper and box (preferably non-reactive such as acid free) in a relatively dry environment free of extraneous odors. I'd think the cake's original paper would be fine.

He comes and goes. I suspect he'll be back when he catches a moment.

Michael