From KingTeaMall — a 2001 ripe (shou/shu) loose-leaf puerh in the San Ji - Meng Hai line.
Tea Profile
At a glance: 2001 · Ripe (shou/shu) puerh · loose · KingTeaMall
- Compression & dry leaf: As loose leaf, it needs no prying apart before brewing. Look for visible buds and large, robust leaves in the dry leaf.
- Liquor: In the cup it shows a deep red color, bright throughout.
- Taste: From the first steep the taste is mellow. Once the leaf opens up, expect a woody, earthy, herbal, medicinal and aged character in a sweet and balanced cup. There is more to notice as you keep brewing.
- Mouthfeel & body: Expect a thick, smooth, oily mouthfeel.
- Aftertaste: After each sip there is a lingering sweetness.
- Best for: improving your tea experience, especially if you already know a few ripe puerh teas and want to taste more closely.
Brewing Guide
Water: 100°C (212°F), fully boiling.
- Preheat the vessel; add around 5g per 100ml.
- Two quick rinses to wake the leaf, then a covered rest of about 10 minutes.
- Steep 10–15 seconds at first, adding ~5 seconds per round.
- Always pour out completely into a fairness cup before drinking.
- Keep steeping — ripe puerh rewards patience with many rounds.
These are guidelines to start from, not rules to obey. Experiment with your pour, your pace, and the season; the same leaf tastes different on a rainy day. The goal is the skill to brew it well whenever, wherever.
Storage
Give it air, coolness and dryness; keep it out of the sun and clear of potent odors (spices, smoke). For multi-year aging, paper or unglazed clay lets the tea breathe in a way sealed plastic never will. This tea was kept in traditional wet storage, which gives it a darker, mellower character than dry-stored tea of the same age.
A Note on Appearance
Not every tea shows these, but they can occur, especially in teas with more years of storage.
- Bamboo powder (zhu fen): a natural sign of traditional bamboo-husk packing. In Guangdong's warm, humid climate, tiny bamboo insects can make their home in the husk, nibbling the husk and cotton paper wrapper while leaving the tea itself untouched. What they leave behind is a fine powder, seen only on certain teas and more often on aged ones. It is harmless to hygiene; a few strokes with a clean toothbrush or soft brush before brewing is all it takes.
- Tea oil spots: yellowish spots may appear and can come from natural tea oils. They are not a flaw.
- Torn wrapper: small tears or holes in the cotton paper may happen during storage and handling. The tea inside is unaffected.
