Made from leaf grown in Bu Lang in Meng Hai, an area known for a bold, bitter-forward character, fast and powerful in its hui gan, with plenty of tea energy. Aged Bu Lang sheng can turn smoother and woodier over time, but storage makes a big difference. The "Bu Lang Qing Bing" uses old-tree (gu shu) leaf, which usually gives more body and a longer finish than plantation leaf.
Tea Profile
At a glance: 2010 · Sheng (raw) puerh · 357g cake · Bu Lang leaf · Menghai Tea Factory
- Compression & dry leaf: The leaf is compressed into a 357g cake. Look for well-formed threads and visible buds in the dry leaf.
- Liquor: In the cup it shows a golden color, bright throughout.
- Taste: From the first steep the taste is full-flavored. As it opens up, the taste turns sweet and rich. It rewards paying attention across a longer session.
- Mouthfeel & body: With age, the texture of a sheng like this can become softer, depending on storage. It also has cha qi, the body sensation many drinkers look for.
- Aftertaste: After each sip there is a strong hui gan and a long finish.
- Best for: improving your tea experience — worth reaching for once you have moved past being a newcomer.
Brewing Guide
- Water: bring it to a full boil — 100°C (212°F).
- Steps:
- Use about 5g of tea per 100ml of water.
- Rinse the leaves once with boiling water, about 5 seconds, then pour it away. Cover and let the leaves rest for around 10 minutes.
- Steep 10–15 seconds for the first infusions, adding roughly 5 seconds each round.
- Decant into a sharing pitcher.
- Serve. Sheng puerh stands up well to many resteeps.
- These are starting points, not fixed rules. Play with high or low pours, fast or slow streams, and adjust across seasons until you find your method. Getting the best out of the same tea in any year, season, weather or place takes practice — and that skill is the real goal.
Storage
Store the cake somewhere ventilated, cool and dry, out of direct sunlight and away from strong smells such as kitchen spices or smoke. For aging over years, paper or clay containers allow better airflow than sealed plastic.
A Note on Appearance
You won't find these on every cake — they tend to turn up more often in teas that have been stored longer.
- Small dark specks: on naturally stored puerh, tiny dark specks can show up on the wrapper or around the cake edges. Harmless — just brush them off before brewing.
- Tea oil spots: yellowish spots sometimes appear; they come from the tea's natural oils and are not a defect.
- Torn wrapper: the cotton paper may pick up small tears or holes during storage and handling. The tea inside is fine.
