2006 Xiaguan FT Te Ji sheng pu'er tuocha

 

On a recent visit to my favorite local Bangkok Chinatown shop, Jip Eu, the owner, Kittichai, gave me a Xiaguan tuocha.  They'll often pass on a sample of something interesting, but I don't remember them giving me that much tea like that (100 grams; not so much, but a significant amount).  It's very kind of him.  I suppose it's partly in thanks for me writing here about them, and steering some business there, which to me is about helping others find decent tea, not really about benefitting me.  I typically mention other shop options as well, as I did in the last post, discussing how Sen Xing Fa--another nearby shop--is set up better for doing extensive tasting.

I probably found what it was, more or less by chance.  A King Tea Mall listing looks exactly the same, down to all the numbers listed, and Chinese text (as far as I can tell).  Of course there is also Google Lens translation, but that helps less than one might imagine.  It's probably this:

2006 XiaGuan "FT-Te Ji" (Special Grade) Tuo 100g Puerh Sheng Cha Raw Tea

Listing for $26 for a 100 gram tuocha there.  That probably is market rate now.  You can buy the newer ones, that need another 15 or 20 years to age more, for more like $10, but someone holding onto it to cover that part costs you, with varying storage conditions inputs giving different results.  Then it's probably also an above average quality version, outlined in detail by that King Tea Mall listing:

Description:

The 2006 XiaGuan "FT-Te Ji" Tuo is part of the esteemed "Te Ji" series, denoting "Special Grade" in Chinese. This line of Puerh Sheng Cha, initiated in 2003 by XiaGuan, aimed to exceed the quality standards set by the JiaJi tuo cha. Renowned as "TeTuo" ("特沱"), an abbreviation of "TeJiTuoCha," this series underwent an official renaming in 2016, underscoring its prestige.

Distinctive Features:

The wrapper bears the trademark design of a "Pine tree and Crane," emblematic of the series' heritage and superior quality.

Variants of the "Te Ji" series include the general version and a higher-quality variant distinguished by a red-eyed crane.

The "FT" (Fly to Taiwan) version employs slightly superior tea materials, featuring more young buds and tiny leaves.

I had thought FT stood for "for Taiwan," but that doesn't change much either way.  This shop, Jip Eu, doesn't carry this tea anymore, per my understanding since they've sold out of a large batch they would've bought back in 2006 or so.  I do keep buying another 2012 Xiaguan tuo version there, which they still sell.

Review:

first infusion (after a rinse):  flavors are nice, subdued, clean (as this range of tea goes), interesting and pleasant.  The distinctive flavor that reminds me of aged horse saddle leather is there.  Harsh edges have largely aged off it, in those 19 years.  That would have to do with the hot and humid storage here; that wouldn't be true of the exact same tea stored in a cool and dry area.  

second infusion:  feel is thick, oily, and viscous.  I really do like that odd earthy range of flavors, especially in a version that's closer to ready to drink than I usually try.  I re-tried a 2012 Xiaguan tuo (from Jip Eu, the one that they still do sell) over the past week and it's close enough to enjoy, but not this far along for fermentation transition.  Beyond the leather--or at least what I interpret as leather--there is good depth of other range, mineral content, towards medicinal dried herb, and a little towards dried longan or tamarind fruit, it's just not overly fruity.  Feel is pleasant and the overall effect isn't harsh at all.

third infusion:  it reminds me a little of smoke, brewed a little stronger.  Often if a tea has contacted smoke that input will come out strongest right away, and keep fading.  This might well just be a natural related flavor, which does kind of match with the rest.  I'm not sure if this is a positive transition or not, related to my own experience just now.  I'm open to teas tasting like smoke, natural (inherent) or added, and it does match the other barnyard scope, but it's not necessarily better for including it.  Or worse either, as I see it, so just different.

fourth infusion:  quite balanced at this level; everything I've mentioned is still going on.  It's got decent intensity, of course.  I'm brewing this using a moderate infusion proportion too, for me, maybe only 7 grams in 100 ml gaiwan, versus the more typical 9 or so (typical for me).  Mind you not everyone would like this; to others it could be harsh, or off-putting.  The 2012 was more so, with so much of the earlier rough edges standing out.  I had my daughter Kalani taste it, and to her it was awful.  She asked why anyone would drink that.  I liked that version too (yesterday, I guess it was), but it wasn't quite ready, maybe by those extra 6 years.

her, posing

It's hot as Hades here, trying this tea in Bangkok at noon.  I should at least turn a fan on, but I've not even done that.  It was so nice living in Honolulu where the temperature is between 75 and 80 F all the time, maybe 25 to 28 C, and now it's back to 30s / around 90 F all the time.

fifth infusion:  the complex balance of flavors keeps shifting, the proportion, but the range isn't changing.  Smoke isn't gone but it was only a main flavor input for that one infusion.  Sweetness is nice for this; to me that one input helps tie all the rest together.  Feel is nice, and intensity, and aftertaste expression.  Layers of leather, barnyard flavor, medicinal herb, and some dried fruit really complement each other.  But only for people who like aged Xiaguan, of course, and it's hard to imagine someone preferring newish, untransitioned versions.

sixth infusion:  not different.  I might even drop taking notes here.  There probably will be some degree of interesting change as this wraps up, around infusions 10 to 12, or it could be pleasant and interesting up to 15 rounds or so.  Intensity is high enough for this that I'm using short infusion timing, 5 seconds or so, which will enable it lasting longer than if I was soaking it for longer.

Seeing a Tiger Balm pack of balm on the table reminds me how someone might interpret this as including quite a bit of camphor.  I suppose that it does, as people use that term.  I've never been completely comfortable isolating that as a description very often, but it's there.  Food range makes more sense to me; you get chances to eat those things, and it associates more naturally as a flavor.  Something like smoke is familiar enough from foods that this connection often makes sense too.  

Then I just can't remember specific floral ranges or incense spices.  Maybe this tastes a lot like one of them, and I wouldn't know.  Interpreting it as including incense spice would make sense too, but it would be helpful to be familiar with a half dozen of those, to break it down to that next level.

seventh infusion, comparison tasting with a Dayi (8582):  I was re-trying a standard Dayi cake with breakfast, not to see if it was ready, because it wouldn't be, from 2016 (9 years old).  It's pretty far along for spending that time here in Bangkok, but it needs at least another half dozen years, and it will level off closer to where it will be in another 10.  I keep trying the teas to see the transition patterns, because they're interesting.  It's not even about education or learning, it's just interesting.

The Dayi tea is harsher; it's not there yet for age transition.  It includes a green wood component, and a harsher form of astringency.  This is much better than it was two years ago when I first bought it (reviewed here then), becoming more pleasant.  Positive warm-toned flavors are developing.  

It's interesting how that "barnyard" range stands out in the Xiaguan.  It's not just that it's further along for transition, and it is that; the basic flavor range is also different.  There's a nice sappy effect that goes along with that, crossing over from flavor to feel.  I'm not sure what I expected this comparison to highlight.  The flavor and other character differences are interesting, but not informative.  It was sitting on the table beside me doing the tasting, so it seemed as well to try both and mention it.

This stopped short of guessing where the Xiaguan stands in terms of being relatively fully age transitioned, fermented, or how it might change over some of the following years.  19 years of transition in Bangkok storage is a lot, but it will keep changing over the next decade, probably mostly for the better.  It's definitely not going to run out of intensity.  Most of the green wood type flavor range and harsh-edged feel is gone, so it's fine to drink now, but it might still be a good bit better later.  I'd have to try it in another half dozen years to know.  I suppose that I probably will mostly set it aside to see.

Benchmark reference:  Liquid Proust now carries a similar Xiaguan tuo

I remembered seeing a mention of a Liquid Proust (vendor) Xiaguan tuo of about the same age, and that will help set what a market rate is for this.  Here is his listing:

2006 Xiaguan FT7653-6 100g, THB 1,016.95 (around $30)

Out of all the storage I've had there was always the Yang Qing Hao and Wistaria house notes that couldn't be rivaled. Then comes along this 2006 Xiaguan random tuo that has been pushed in warm and humid conditions in Taiwan. The depth of the tea with the smoke notes that are matured into something new with the puerh... it's a treat that I will miss dearly. This might be one of those extremely lucky finds.

Per the comments it's the aging conditions that give the tea great value, and the one Hong Kong shop that James of Tea DB keeps mentioning, Yee On tea, carries something similar for about double that cost, so $60.  

So market value is somewhere between $30 and 60?  That's a good bit for a Xiaguan tuo.  Next one would need to compare storage inputs to determine if the one I've just reviewed is really as good, or better, and personal preference would enter in so much in making that determination that it really wouldn't work, as an objective finding.

Thai minor deity tea cups, in the MBK mall; something different

Re-trying a 2011 FT Xiaguan mini cake

 

It's been awhile!  I don't know if I've ever taken a full month off posting here, or even off reviewing, but that just happened.  I moved back from Honolulu to Bangkok again, a cycle that will seemingly keep repeating for awhile, so things have been busy.  It's odd being slightly overwhelmed by the heat and humidity, again.  Running has been rough; a lot of outings cut back slightly for distance while I acclimate.

Nothing is really new related to tea, except that I recently met one of those next level tea experts, Olivier Schneider, which I don't plan on covering in detail here.  He's nice.

This post is about retrying a sheng version I've not checked on for a couple of years, a Xiaguan mini cake, not so different than their tuocha shaped versions, but for whatever reasons not as earthy.  This earlier vendor description (it's from the Chawang Shop) covers what it is:

FT(For Taiwan)" means this small iron cake was a special order of "Fei Tai" Company. Fei Tai Company is the biggest Xiaguan TF and Menghai TF pu-erh tea distributor in Taiwan. It is claimed that the customized products of Fei Tai company reaches a higher quality in Xiaguan TF. The high-level "FT" tea chose better raw materials. Iron cake is tightly compressed, so its qualitative transformation is slow. Definitely tea for longer-term store. High quality early spring large-leafs material from 2009 and 2010, and was used Cang Shan mountain spring water for the steaming process. This cake is not too smokey, typical for Xiaguan teas. The taste is strong and powerful, floral and sweet huigan.

Odd that FT stands for "for Taiwan" when it's that vendor name's initials, right, Fei Tai?  I've seen that for Taiwan reference before; maybe it just worked out that it could mean two things.  It's interesting that this is a blend of material that is now 13 to 14 years old, even though the cake is 12, the pressed version of that older material.

Review:

First infusion (after a rinse):  brewed a little strong, so the effect is a bit intense; I guess I was still trying to get it to open up.  Flavor range seems positive, not atypical for Xiaguan, but on the fruity side as those go.  I just re-tried another larger size tuocha version recently that includes more of the smoky and mushroom range, which isn't a favorite.  For that tea I was wondering if even another decade would shift flavor profile, feel and the rest, into a place I really like it.  I do like this.

Earthiness is present, for sure, which people could interpret in all sorts of ways, as aged wood, tree fungus, leather, or however else they might see it.  Feel is resinous, full, and a little dry, so better brewed a little lighter than this round.  Beyond that there's a fruitiness that I'll try to unpack better next round.

Second infusion:  by fruit of course I mean warm, towards-earthy fruit, maybe most like dried Chinese date (jujube).  This isn't so complex that there are lots of layers to it, or a very refined character; intensity and complexity is good, but it's straightforward.  Bitterness hasn't dropped completely out but this might be another half dozen years away from a more fully transitioned, aged character, or maybe a decade.  Then that's a funny thing, because teas age really fast here in Bangkok, so that fresh, floral sheng versions seem much different a single year later when stored here.  I don't remember this being any different several years ago.  The earliest impression I have is from an early round of a review 4 years ago:

There's a faint hint of smoke, a decent level of bitterness (especially for being a light infusion), and an unusual oily feel to the tea, along with dark mineral content that is somewhere between petroleum and well-corroded metal.  Oddly that's all pleasant. 

I mentioned that I liked this enough that I might buy more to age, and I finished that 125 gram mini cake later, and bought two more to store, one of which I'm first trying now.  I think I remember this tea differently because it aired out a good bit as I drank it over the course of the year or two after that.

Smoke is not noticeable now, and the oily feel I would now describe as sapiness.  What I interpret as fruit I remember from trying this before, not that early time, but over the course of drinking the rest of that.  It seems a little odd that I liked this that much for the description, and for not really loving edgy, dry, smoky sheng versions back then, nearly as much as I could relate to them a few years later, after a lot more exposure.  I've been considering buying another cake of a standard full size version in a Chinatown shop here, one I've barely touched for it being not quite ready as a 2006 version, but one I see a lot of potential in (this one, an 8653).  It's odd that spending 17 years in Bangkok isn't enough aging transition time, but in a few more it should come together.

Fourth infusion: there's something really catchy about the way those flavors balance.  I might be missing an input people describe as camphor; it's hard for me to isolate anything as being like that, in most instances, but this is in that range.  It's not that one part of the flavor is so pleasant, it's the overall effect.  The sweetness and range I interpret as fruit helps it achieve that balance.  Probably as with the 17 year old full cake needing more transition time this 12 year old version will be considerably better in another half dozen, and I shouldn't be drinking much of this.

Fifth infusion:  a little stronger, brewed a little longer; the earthy rock and rusted metal range really picks up if you don't brew this light, which is the only way to drink it at its best, it seems to me.  Not using a maxed out proportion would help with that, but it's longstanding habit, so I go with really short infusion times to compensate.  I could imagine this including a touch of mushroom more than smoke, but it's not as heavy on both as the other Xiaguan tuo I mentioned.  That's this one, a 2010 Xiaguan Teji Tuo, identified as special grade.

To be clear where I stand on all these I really like a completely opposite style of younger sheng as much or more than this range, even if these were optimized, aged for 20+ years instead of less than 15, or 17 for that larger cake.  Some versions I love as brand new tea, and some really shine after a couple years of transition, or in some cases can be great after 4 or 5.  I only took one sheng version in this age range to Honolulu for that 2 1/2 month stay, a purple leaf version, and I kind of missed aged teas, but it was nice going through that different cycle of experience.  Experiencing variety is nice, and sometimes I crave older sheng experience, or teas like this in the middle, with some rough edges but also interesting character.

Sixth infusion:  a bit lighter again, brewed faster, and better.  It's not transitioning enough that I'll keep up with notes; it is where it is.  The mouthfeel and aftertaste inputs are more positive than I've described so far, a nice resinous structure, and a sweet and mineral intensive aftertaste.  It's nice.  I've been able to appreciate a one year younger Xiaguan tuo version that I keep buying from a local shop, reviewed here along with two Dayi versions, for appreciating the pleasant range mixed in with some relative harshness.  I might be as interested in how slightly aged sheng varies along with having the experience itself, not just learning about and experiencing the end-point potential, but the stages the teas go through leading up to that.

A tangent about goji berries

Kind of taking this tasting summary off the rails a bit I tried mixing the next round in with some goji berries I have soaking in hot water.  I drink that infusion and eat those berries about every other day, when I think to get to it, as a diet supplement of sorts.  They're a "super food," but who knows what that means.  I suspect that them being high in vitamin A content is a lot of it, but it could go beyond that.  The taste was interesting; that's one way to try sheng with a lot of fruit input, to mix it with a dried berry infusion.  I just looked for a good reference source on that "superfood" claim but mostly only turned up light references, like this one:

...this small red and shiny berry is a real source of essential nutrients for the well-being of your body. It is particularly rich in vitamin C and polysaccharides which are two powerful antioxidants. There are also vitamins A, B and E, but also 18 amino acids, 8 of which directly participate in the proper functioning of the body. Otherwise, organic goji berries also contain 21 minerals and trace elements, including iron, selenium or copper...  The composition of goji indeed includes zeaxanthin, an antioxidant that promotes better and lasting vision... 

That reference claims that it helps preserve organs, slow aging, and protect against cancer; who knows?  Looking further here's a peer-reviewed form of source; it does sound good, as they summarize it:

Goji Berries as a Potential Natural Antioxidant Medicine: An Insight into Their Molecular Mechanisms of Action

The health benefits of goji berries include enhancing hemopoiesis, antiradiation, antiaging, anticancer, improvement of immunity, and antioxidation. There is a better protection through synergistic and additive effects in fruits and herbal products from a complex mixture of phytochemicals when compared to one single phytochemical...

There are studies that reported the presence of riboflavin, thiamine, nicotinic acid, and minerals such as copper, manganese, magnesium, and selenium in goji berries [7]...  The high biological activity components in goji berries are polysaccharides, carotenoids, and phenolics [8]... 

One of the most common carotenoids found in goji berries is zeaxanthin in the form of dipalmitin zeaxanthin...  As for now, the best natural source of dipalmitin zeaxanthin is goji berries. The fractions of beta-carotene (35.9 μg/g), cryptoxanthin, and neoxanthin (72.1 μg/g) are also detected in goji berry extracts [8]...

Sounds good, I guess, but of course I can't connect their claims about health benefits with that information about compounds present.  It is odd that I'm not experiencing greying hair much, beyond my beard, even though I'm 54, and haven't needed to use reading glasses yet, but I have no well-grounded idea what main causes for that might be.  Exercise, eating a good diet, and sleeping enough are supposed to improve general health, and I attempt all that, and have other more exotic theories about inputs I'll skip passing on here.  

This aside is more about passing on a potentially helpful diet input suggestion than a claim or endorsement; it's easy to buy some goji berries and eat a little every other day, much easier than including foods like sweet potatoes and blueberries in a normal weekly diet.

I did recently write about Bryan Johnson's attempts to stop the aging process, here, and I don't think I mentioned goji berries in that.  Other than ginseng I can't think of another input described as offsetting aging, not that I follow such subjects.

I am losing my hair; it's not as if I'm not aging at all

Conclusion:

This version is pretty much how I remember it, since I probably drank the last of that small cake two years after first trying it, so two years ago now.  I don't necessarily think this needs more time to age, in the sense that it's not pleasant now, but I think it will be more pleasant in another 5 or 6 years, so I probably won't drink much of this over the next few years, just checking on it once in awhile.  For these kinds of teas it seems to make sense to buy even more than I did, if budget allows, since if I do drink this 125 gram cake over the next 5 years and it really is optimum then I'll be down to 125 grams left, when it's actually at its best.  I'm on a tight tea budget, so it is what it is.

I like this version a little more than maybe all the Xiaguan tuocha versions I've tried so far, which isn't so many, maybe only half a dozen, totaling to a dozen versions of related forms (Xiaguan full cakes, other similar style but different producer tuos).  It's not refined, or amazing in quality level, just pleasant and nicely balanced, with good intensity and transition potential, and essentially no aspect range I interpret as negative.

nice visiting the Bangkok Chinatown again

reunited with this family member!

an iconic part of my work commute

a baby monitor lizard in a tree joining my lunch in a park

2013 Xiaguan Fei Tai blend, Love Forever

"Love" version right; the FT iron cake is much more compressed

This post is a bit different, reviewing a tea version with an interesting back-story.  That relates to there being a slight complication over two different versions of the same tea turning up.  Since I'm breaking with standard form and not describing the vendor source here (I just came by a sample) it could be clearer what this even is. 

This description from the Teas We Like vendor page (not the source this is from) offers more background that explains a variation difference:

Pressed in 2013 with older material, this Xiaguan Feitai blend is believed to contain some 2003 material from the Banzhang area.  Of the two versions produced, this is the significantly better one, packaged in a paper tong.  The tea has a thick texture, full satisfying and sweet flavour, lots of resinous aroma, and gives a very intense but comfortable experience.  Taiwan natural dry storage.


So far so good.  It's my understanding that this is the paper tong version.  But then a running sub-theme here relates to citing different reviews, and those don't really match this account, which could seem to call that into question.  This "Love" version doesn't come across quite that positively, and the aspects don't match that or other descriptions.  I'm not sure if the character difference couldn't relate to storage conditions input, versus this being that other "not significantly better" version, but it's not the type of variation I would expect to relate to a storage issue.  We'll get to that part.

The background between this tea version and US tea enthusiast interest relates to James Schergen of TeaDB being given a tong of this type for a wedding gift.  Somewhat related, TeaDB reviewed that tea here in 2017, and again in 2019.  Typically I wouldn't know or really care how many times teas have been reviewed elsewhere, but after checking back in on a review that split in the two versions drew my attention, and differences in review accounts seemed puzzling. 

As a start on that the tea sounds a lot different in the 2019 TeaDB review video version (just cited), compared to the 2017 one, but then sheng can evolve quite a bit over even two years time. 


Per normal practice (here, at least) I'm comparing it to a 2011 Xiaguan FT "Yun Mei Chun" mini iron cake, one I've reviewed here, with the Chawang Shop vendor listing here.  It seems much younger, and it is, so it sort of works for comparing general character but not really so well for considering aging / storage conditions input.

Review:

"Yun Mei Chun" FT left; more bits from using a tightly compressed version

Xiaguan FT Iron Cake (2011):  warm, rich, sweet, and complex, relatively clean for the range of flavors present.  This could be aged further; it's not even close to finished yet.  Astringency and bitterness aren't issues but a touch of green wood in the background remains.  I do like this tea; it's been my favorite among trying a round of Xiaguan tuos and small cakes, along with Tulin and other comparable versions.  To be clear all that was limited sampling, not a broad scale exploration.  This recent post covers review of three relatively young versions (2012-2015, to identify starting points), with other posts covering older related versions scope.


Xiaguan Love Forever (2003 material, at least some of it, pressed in 2013):  mushroom stands out at first; that changes a lot.  I think that's just from the tea input, probably not related to a storage effect.  The other 2010 Xiaguan tuocha I bought from Chawang Shop is heavy on mushroom too.  We'll see if that fades or shifts in proportion a bit; these aren't even completely opened up yet.  The mushroom is interesting for being in the range of those tree fungus, the white half-moon versions, not so much shitake or the rest.  Beyond that the flavors are clean and positive, with reasonable sweetness, and no notable mustiness.

Second infusion:

This was brewed longer, probably a bit too long, but that will help identify character and flaws (that's one theory and approach used, anyway), and will push through the rest of the opening up phase.

Iron Cake:  too strong like this; not unexpected.  The astringency works well for being a bit much; it's a little dry, and warm mineral comes across as strong, seemingly tied to feel, but the feel isn't bad.  The sweetness seems to evolve towards a dried fruit, maybe along the lines of dried dark cherry.  Mineral is at the other end of that, for flavor, a bit towards a warm version of corroded metal.  Green wood isn't pronounced but is present in mild form, to me signifying that the level of fermentation isn't relatively complete.  The overall balance really works, but trying it light next time will determine more about a match to my own preference.

In comparing it with the other version a turpentine sort of effect comes across.  It's hard to place where that fits within other flavor or character range, if it relates to storage (probably not), how it will age, or how negative it is (closer to neutral but not positive).


Xiaguan Love:  mushroom is easing up but that's still the main flavor aspect present.  Other warmer, sweeter, complex range fills in beyond that.  If that pattern holds and mushroom drops away further over the next two rounds this will be easier to appreciate.  Mustiness or geosmin (like beets, or dirt) can relate to storage conditions input and degree of fermentation (supposedly the main theme of this tasting set, kind of lost for trying these three weeks apart, or whatever it is), but dried mushroom flavor is something else.  Beyond that warm complex flavor range fills in, maybe dark wood, or maybe cured hay, with plenty of mineral range grounding that.

It's not really vegetal, beyond the mushroom and cured hay sort of being vegetal; I mean it's not in the sense of greener wood and the rest.  Both of these are pretty clean, both relatively positive.  Feel has decent fullness in this, and aftertaste adds complexity.

Third infusion:

Iron Cake:  a little smoke showed up; strange.  I guess that extends from the warm, corroded metal mineral and turpentine, as a variant of that range.  It works better for being located within a clean, sweet, well-balanced aspects context.  The feel is much improved, thicker and rich, even though this is brewed lighter.  That seems to relate to the prior astringency working well and coming across differently at a different level, in addition to infusion round transition, normal changes.  Fruit isn't heavy in this but that range works well to balance the earthier aspects.


Xiaguan Love:  continually improving; mushroom keeps falling into a lighter balance.  For someone who loves a mushroom consume (broth) maybe this would be a positive aspect, instead of a limitation or flaw, as I'm sort of assuming here.  The overall balance of the rest is good; the tea is nice.  It's clean in effect, with no problems or mustiness related to too-wet storage, and without a pronounced vegetal edge that mid-level aging can bring across.  It's probably not that far off the other Xiaguan tuocha I bought from Chawang Shop in character; heavy on mushroom, clean and reasonably well balanced beyond that, including a good bit of other range.  I just don't love mushroom.  Sauteed wild mushroom added to a grilled cheese sandwich I do; I mean how it tends to work out in tea.

The green wood / touch of turpentine effect in the other version is much more pronounced comparing these two directly.  To some extent knowing initial aspects would help out, but that green-wood tone seems to definitely be a vegetal range that fermentation would cause to drop out.  Feel should shift comparably, and the Love version is a touch softer.  But then it also gives up a little in richness, as I interpret these.

There's another significant input I've not mentioned yet:  the "Iron Cake" version is more broken.  This will change results in a way that's a bit complicated.  Astringency will pick up related to that; different compounds will extract, with flavors shifting some along with it.  In general more whole-leaf tea presentation is just better, it works out more positively, but to some extent it's also just different.  Aged versions of more broken teas can transition in ways that offsets that clear value judgment final assessment (being not as good); those same compounds can be more positive at higher proportions after significant age transition.  I'm not sure that it would ever be preferable to convert a whole-leaf tea source into a more broken or ground version, that results would ever improve in a way to support that being a positive factor.  There's also a related commercial concern, beyond that outcome difference:  more whole leaf tea is more desirable, and would sell for more.

Fourth infusion:

Iron Cake:  the balance of these aspects is the most positive thing, it's just the kind of effect that won't come across well in flavor-list description.  Sweetness, warm tones, rich feel, complex flavors; it all works.  On the downside the turpentine edge, tied to green wood effect, isn't necessarily positive.  It's my impression that this represents further aging potential, that it will actually be a positive factor in another 4 or 5 years once that transitions further.  If that was just missing instead the tea would probably have less aging potential; it would simply fade more, versus change in positive ways.  It's nice as it is now though; I do like it.

The way the warm mineral comes across reminds me a little of how Liu Bao tends to work out; that slate-mineral effect, that can trail a little into charcoal, corroded metal, or other range.


Love:  this is softer, and less complex and intense.  It definitely seems further age-transitioned, but then it should, being 8 years older (at least some of the material; that part could be clearer).  The leaf color also indicates the "iron cake" version isn't even close to as aged; it has retained a lot of greenness, with the "love" version moving on to a uniform brown color. 

There's a sweetness and richness in the other version this doesn't quite match.  I suppose if the mushroom aspect was present in a lower level (now much more balanced) then pushing it for infusion strength might allow the rest to come across stronger, without it turning into more of a blast of mushroom flavor.  I'll try letting this brew just a little longer than the other next round and compare results.

I had really expected this "Love" version to be a slightly higher quality version than the other, to be more positive.  That's not based on much; maybe just hearing something about the unusually branded version in passing and the "love" theme itself being catchy.  It's pleasant tea, just a little flatter than the other, seemingly more age-transitioned but not picking up deeper complexity to compensate for leveling out general intensity along with initial vegetal range.

Fifth infusion:

Iron Cake:  the way those warm flavors combine somehow shifted a little to come across more as spice in this round, a little towards clove, or in between that and an aromatic wood tone.  Fruit range always seemed a potential interpretation of a supporting aspect that never really developed enough to be clear.  It's still present, still open to being interpreted in different ways, and potentially tied to what I'm describing as spice now.  Or more likely the green wood / medicinal / turpentine range shifted a little to come across more as that.


Love:  Drawing out the infusion time just a little (to 15 seconds or just over) has improved results.  Astringency wasn't an issue, and that bumps up thickness of feel and intensity.  Mushroom (the story of this tea version) is still relatively moderately balanced, but still the main aspect present.  Sweetness ramps up along with the rest of the flavor intensity, giving it a nice balance.  Mineral undertone and an aged hay sort of effect fill in intensity.

Tied to a lack of astringency and overall intensity, this is seemingly far enough along in age transitioning that it would smooth out and deepen from here, lightening up a little in terms of flavor, but perhaps the main shifts in character have already occurred.  Of course that's just a guess; I'm in the process of sorting all that out.

Sixth infusion:

I'll probably let this go after this; writing or reading a page of text is enough.  This "iron cake" version seems to have the potential for late-stage twists in changing character but the "love" version seems inclined to just fade, since it hasn't really been changing as much between rounds.

Iron cake:  this seems to be fading just a little, losing some intensity already.  General character hasn't changed much, and being as intense as it had been it's not overly subtle brewed lightly for that, just not quite as intense, and a bit thinner.  It's a couple of infusions ahead of schedule for thinning like that but at least one was brewed stronger than optimum by a good bit.  It hasn't transitioned much from the prior description otherwise.  I like this tea like this but to me its real potential lies in aging more.


Love:  again not so different than last round.  It's really clean in effect, and flavor intensity dropping back can occur in a relatively long aging process, ideally with the tea picking up substantial depth to compensate, or subtle flavor range that is present being especially interesting.

I like this tea too but it really doesn't stand out related to others in a similar range, beyond offering a more fermented character example.  Thickness of feel could be stronger, aftertaste range could stand out more (both intensity and type), flavor complexity and balance could be improved.  One might naturally criticize that I'm mixing how lesser aged teas should be, in relation to fully transitioned versions; flavor intensity and complexity isn't necessarily a main part of that relatively fully fermented theme.

I'm not mentioning body-feel aspects, the effect of the tea, and that is something that is said to change over aging, in more optimum circumstances.  I tend to not "get" that, and combined tasting gives it up as something one could notice.  Doing a lot of combined tasting would explain why I'm never evolving that capacity, in part.  I'm not aiming to develop it; not enabling noticing it more.  I drink teas alone every work-day morning, so five days a week, but tend to rush that.  And I'm a little hazy around 7 AM too, not as open to minor shifts in internal state.

Further conclusions:

I really thought this tea would stand out as a higher quality version than the 2011 Xiaguan FT sheng cake.  Comparing 2003 and 2011 versions would tend to make aging concerns stand out a lot more than quality or other character differences, which is probably what happened.  Both are so clean in effect that the mustiness, geosmin, or heavy mineral range marking potentially problematic or undesirable input in the other two examples just didn't come up.

To some extent I like the FT version better, but that doesn't completely take into account that it's sort of not ready to drink yet, probably needing another 4 or 5 years of somewhat humid storage to show it's true potential (per my preference; some people might like it just like this).  This "Love" cake seems to more or less be where it's going to be now, close to an end point.  There is a huge convenience advantage to not waiting 5 years after you buy a tea to drink it, especially if someone lives in a place where dry climate would involve a lot of messing around just to get a tea to age transition at all, or waiting another decade instead if it's stored in a cool, dry environment.

Some of this "FT version" interpretation probably involved hopefulness; I'm expecting only the most negative aspects (the green wood bordering on turpentine) to switch to something I like even better, eg. fruit and spice to develop, and not expecting any positive aspect to fade at all.  Of course both are probably going to happen, and some degree of change I don't see coming.


To me if this "Forever Love" version swapped out some of the dried mushroom range for just about anything else that would shift this overall impression a lot, but then that's how personal preference goes.  I have a relatively high tolerance for some degree of storage mustiness, geosmin, or heavy mineral range that some might see as off-putting, but don't really love mushroom or smoke aspects as primary flavors.


It's not just that, related to not matching those other review takes.  Flavor intensity and aspect range, thick feel, and no mention of mushroom doesn't match.  I'll cite another review example from a source that seems pretty solid, M Gault's Late Steeps blog (the 2017 review summary):


What’s not to love? Thick texture, strong aroma with high perfume resin and low notes of tobacco and woody incense, flavour in spades, productive bitterness and extra juiciness on the cheeks, and intense but extremely comfortable energetic effects.  No off notes, no geosmin, no funkiness, and no smokiness.  It does have some astringency, which does not bother me.  It isn’t an extra-late steeper, perhaps this is due to the slightly chopped nature of the material (which is actually quite nice looking overall).


2 1/2 years later the tea would be different but that doesn't sound like what I just reviewed.

It seems odd that mushroom could be an effect from storage, as mustiness and some types of mineral scope definitely can.  I guess it's conceivable that it ties to a varying form of the tobacco M Gault mentioned in Late Steeps.  I'm just accustomed to teas stored here in Bangkok coming across as musty for the first couple of months, not to other types of flavor aspect changes, adding or taking away a main flavor component.  Bitterness dropping out is normal, and warm fruit tones (or menthol, or whatever else) picking up over a longer period of time would also seem normal, but not dominant mushroom being added.

There's no conclusion here; the idea was to pass on those findings.  If I were reading this I would either assume that one or more of the tea interpretations was way off, or that the tea isn't the same version, but I'm not sure of that myself.

Xiaguan 2010 Teji Tuo special grade sheng tuocha

Given this is a standard tea type (producer and products) the vendor source matters less, but this was from an order from Chawang Shop, from which I still have a few more teas to try.  It's nice trying a range of less expensive but still interesting versions, teas I've been meaning to get to, like Xiaguan tuochas, along with some pretty good sheng versions.

These teas really need age, and trying limited counts of versions of any type, source, or quality level tea is relatively meaningless in comparison with a reasonable size sample set.  This is the kind of tea someone would stash a bunch of instead, once they sort out preference a bit, versus tuochas just serving as samples.  Buying 2007 Tulin versions at a local shop turned me back onto this page, but I've written about at least one Dayi version before, which at five years old now is just starting into a long middle age, which these two versions are still in, but at the other side.

I'd meant to try this as a simple, stand-alone tasting, to not clutter the experience and write-up with any form of comparison.  Then I remembered that I wanted to try that 2011 Xiaguan mini iron cake along with this at some point, to see how they differ, given the origin year isn't too far off.  A review of that was already covered in the Tulin tuocha review I just mentioned, so the point here is only comparison.  I expect that both will be much better after another 5 or so years of age, but this should work as an interesting earlier-form snapshot, especially in comparison.

label of that other 2011 Xiaguan mini iron cake

it's even more tightly compressed than it looks

It seems crazy to compare pricing prior to a tasting, but the point of referencing the whole list of what I bought wasn't that, it was to check on tea volume for both.  It is odd that the Xiaguan mini iron cake amounted to 125 grams of tea and this tuocha 250.  I was just looking through those and wondering what that "2008 Yong Pin Hao Yiwu" sheng brick is; I'll keep going on trying these.  Three more sheng I bought look interesting too, and they've definitely rested a bit from the trip a couple of months ago.  It's odd I didn't try that 2006 Myanmar Kokang version yet; there's really no pattern to the order I get to them.

Related to value, since the pricing is right there for both, the tuocha is selling for around double the mini-cake (around $20 versus around $10).  Both seem a steal to me for nearly completely aged sheng versions, at a lower per-weight cost than most vendors sell mid-range brand new teas.  In a sense I shouldn't even be talking about this, since eventually I would want to order more of some of these, the ones I like the best, and drawing attention to them won't help with that.  It's not as if that many people read this blog anyway, and some would be into better or at least different teas.

One last point; it seems like there should be a number code that goes along with this product, that they would separate products that way.  Yunnan Sourcing sells a slightly younger version also only identified by this name, so I guess just using a branding name works instead, which just seems odd to me since that's only referring to it as a "special grade."

Review

2010 Xiaguan Teji Tuo:  the first infusion went really long, mostly due to messing around with writing this, rather than that being planned.  Sometimes I do use a longer first infusion to clear past the initial transition anyway, to get the tea saturated, in tea versions for which I think that won't be skipping over something interesting.  This tastes a bit like coffee; cool.  I mean to the extent that if you gave someone this they would probably think it is that.

The tea is reasonable.  It's definitely intense, but bitterness and astringency work at these levels.  I'm picking up some wood tone and a trace of mushroom beyond that coffee range, and it will probably shift some over the next two rounds, so it's as well to do more with flavor-by-flavor description on the next one.


2011 Xiaguan FT Yun Mei Chun iron cake:  interesting!  This tastes a bit like coffee too, but there is a warmer, aromatic sweetness to it, in a completely different range.  It tastes a little like that sweet scent of pipe tobacco, which is not all that closely related to the experience of smoking a cigarette or tasting forms of chewing tobacco.  The other tea seemed moderately clean in effect, especially for being an early round (the first), and for brewing a bit longer than optimum, but this is even sweeter and cleaner in effect, and slightly more complex.

I'm already getting the sense that these probably would improve in a few years but they'd still be ok to drink right now.  Conventional wisdom would say don't even think about it, that the true depth, complexity, and transitioned character isn't there yet.  It's not as if I'll struggle to not drink these up but it will be interesting to check back in after another year, and I really should put more of what I like best away at this point, given where it already seems they're headed for character.

Second infusion

tuo version left, FT cake right

2010 tuocha:  that mushroom really picked up; now this is equal parts coffee and mushroom (earthy, like a dried shitake).  I used a more typical faster infusion time but for as intense as these are closer to 5 seconds might work better than 10.  It's hard to say this tastes "clean" given the flavor range covers that much mushroom, with a bit of barn door as well, but in a limited sense it still is that.  Those are odd types of earthy flavors but it's still not really musty, earthy, or expressing mineral range in any unusual or off forms.  Per preference for flavors it would be as well if it moved off the mushroom but it's fine.

Feel is also fine, quite full with a decent amount of structure but still smooth in a limited sense, "mouth watering" versus dry (ok, maybe a little dry).  Intensity and aftertaste are fine; that feel and these flavors could transition to a softer and deeper form and the overall experience would be great.


2011 iron cake:  there's a sweetness, richness, and complexity to this version the other just doesn't have.  I'd described it as similar to the aromatic range of pipe tobacco, which is close enough, but it could be interpreted in lots of different ways, and it's complex enough that a broad set would probably fit better than any one association.  It's also like the rich, sweet, earthy scent of old tree bark, extending into how aged leather would taste (if anyone ever actually tasted that), like brewing up an old bomber jacket or leather bound book cover.  A simpler but also intense and complex coffee-like range fills that in, like the effect of a light roast, not at all towards a higher roasted char.

Breakfast was a little light (I just ate a mango) and I'm really feeling these teas already.  I'll eat a bit of chocolate and a few longkong (fruit that's hard to describe) to pad my stomach and limit this head-buzz effect.  I don't mean it's stoney like a really old sheng or gushu version but I'd as soon that whatever the effect is like it's moderate.

I had already mentioned that it's lychee season, didn't I?

Third infusion

2010 tuocha:  better!   The mushroom is easing up, falling into a better balance with a lot of other range.  Barn-door aged wood tone has given way to more aromatic wood flavor, not quite the cedar I keep bringing up in different reviews, maybe a milder version of well-cured redwood.  I wouldn't consider this experience to necessarily be narrow in flavor range or lacking in rich, smooth feel but in comparison with the other version it gives up a little.


2011 FT iron cake:  that one additional dimension makes a lot of difference, not just in terms of flavor (sweeter, richer, as described), but mapped onto feel richness and depth too, and trailing aftertaste range.  This could almost seem older, as if a couple of extra years added more sweetness and depth, but it's a year younger, and a much more compressed version.  I doubt that storage made the difference, given I'd expect it had all stayed local, being sold out of a Kunming shop.  That FT or "for Taiwan" indicator seems unlikely to mean that it had made a round trip.  It could just be from completely different material.

Oddly this version is much finer chopped, and more compressed, exactly how one would expect a tuocha to more typically be comprised, while the other looks a lot more like cakes tend to.  So strange!  I wouldn't expect it to be able to age faster due to finer chopped material contacting the air differently, given that it was so tightly compressed, but then really what do I know of such things.

Bitterness and astringency are playing reduced roles in these profiles related to how they must have been for the first half of their existence, but there is enough of both present that it seems the aging process definitely hasn't played out.  I wonder if that mushroom flavor in the other would tend to transition and diminish?  In a few years I'll have some idea, but I expect these will be better after 5 more.

Fourth infusion

2010 tuocha:  it has transitioned the least between these two rounds but the character evolving over every infusion does add a nice depth to the experience.  More of an old furniture flavor is picking up, aromatic components that relate to old wood or aromatic oils used in preserving old wooden objects.  Mushroom is finally giving way, hardly noticeable in that balance in comparison to the prior level.  It's not all that heavy on any aspect similar to coffee, as it had been, with the aromatic wood in the last round filling in that space instead.  It's nice.


2011 FT iron cake:  not so dis-similar to last infusion either, but the one sweet, rich tone somehow seems stronger and cleaner every round.  It's not that far off a warm, aromatic spice.  Maybe the idea of all this being tied to aroma has stuck in my head, as much a shift towards any different range than I normally experience has occurred.

Beyond the aspects break-down this version is a bit more pleasant; it has that extra bit of depth, along with more sweetness and a different flavor range, and it all balances that much better.  It has retained a little more flavor tied back to coffee range, but again a light roast, no trace of char in this.  They have a wood-tone range in common but it's not an identical version of it; this one's is darker and warmer, more towards a dark tropical wood, with the other lighter, less sweet, and dryer, which I'm interpreting as related to redwood, not so far from cedar, but in between that and balsa wood.

Fifth infusion

tuo version left, FT cake right (not aging fast, from the looks of these)

This will probably do it for notes; the late-round transitions aren't of as much interest to me, and the reviews seem best limited in length.  Both these would really be six infusions along now if not for giving that first round a long soak, so well along the middle of the cycle already.


2010 tuocha:  it's as good as it's been, just losing some points in comparison with the other, for covering a less complex range and not having quite as positive a character.  It would make for a fairer assessment to wait a few more years and see how it ends up though.


2011 FT iron cake:  they have transitioned to be the most similar they've been yet.  Some of that aromatic sweetness is wearing a little thinner and the wood-tone is picking up.  Again I think both will add more positive aspect range with just a bit more aging (3-4 years, with 5 or more better), and the traces of bitterness and very mild rough-edge astringency, which wasn't pronounced enough to say much about, will soften and shift.


I should probably sit both away for another two years before checking them again, but will probably do so whenever something reminds me of it.  I should probably also try that 2008 Yiwu version brick before too long, while the impression of these is still clearer in mind.  11 years still isn't fully aged by most people's assessment, not even in the earlier edge of the fully aged range, but it's enough time to transition a little more.  I would imagine that tea has started out in such a different place originally that comparing character with these wouldn't amount to much, but the contrast might be interesting.

I'm mixing a lot of themes but between making these notes and final editing I retried that 2006 random-brick version I bought in Shenzhen.  It was better than I remember.  I looked back through the notes and I'd liked it during that review, with an initial slightly harsher earthiness dropping out after early rounds, but I wasn't noticing all that much of that this time, trying it just a month or so later.  I was wondering if the teas couldn't have been either speed-aged or just wet-stored but it seems the character shouldn't be cleaning up this fast even if so.  Maybe I'd been on younger sheng around the time of that tasting and trying these not-quite-there-yet 2010-11 Xiaguan versions reset expectations related to rough edges.

almost the end of "reception" year, a couple days left

her last day of the school year

2011 Xiaguan FT sheng cake and 2007 Tulin T868 tuocha

One of the first concerns in a combined tasting is whether or not it makes any sense to try the two teas together.  Ideally they'll be very similar, or else it won't shed light on both, and just adds to the tasting workload, trying to do two unrelated things at once.  The dates on these initially seem to indicate that will be at least partly not the case; one is older, beyond them being from two different producers, and pressed into two different shapes.  Beyond comparison it's also partly about me trying more tea and getting writing done in a longer combined form, but I expect these will be similar in some ways.

I'll back up.  I've been purchasing a bit more tea lately (a bit more than not much at all, typically), because I wrote some tea website content for Moychay for limited compensation.  It wasn't enough income to change my lifestyle but enough to cover a few decent tea orders (so in a limited sense that did change my favorite hobby interest experience, and lifestyle).  Two articles on pu'er storage were a lot more interesting than the other standard reviews, it seemed to me, because review posts tend to just repeat, and subjective interpretations of teas vary too much to be a clear guide anyway.  If a reviewer's opinions are similar to your own that can help, but otherwise it's best to hear impressions from a half dozen different people instead and try to average that out. 

I've just submitted a post to TChing summarizing four articles I've written on pu'er storage, which will go up soon, but in the meantime I can mention one was a "basics" general summary drawn from different sources, and a citation summary reference from some good online sources, including one about making home-made moisture control packs and another on storage conditions side-by-side experiments.  Had I mentioned all that before here?

Usually I don't show the typical "haul" photos of what I've bought, beyond for not buying much to have anything to talk about, because that theme gets repetitive in tea groups.  It has a strange feel to it, as if it could be more about bragging than discussion.  Still, it works for both, and someone could intend that one-upmanship version of tone as context or they could not.  For people with more substantial expendable income for tea buys it could seem silly for other people to announce $150 orders of lower medium level quality teas, per their own set of preferences.  Some people are drinking from single tea cakes that cost more all the time.

that Chawang Shop order; modest range versions across types and ages, with this tea third from the bottom

I don't think I ever will experience my own expectations changing to the extent that I usually drink $1 / gram and up teas.  Related to sheng pu'er an interesting twist comes up right away in making and working around such sweeping generalizations:  hold onto a lot of versions for a decade and you then have a completely different market-value product on your hands.

About these, I've already tried this Tulin "Dali Nan Jian Xian" T868 version, having bought tuochas of it locally before, at my favorite Chinatown shop here, Jip Eu.  I can't make a comparison to a range of Xiaguan versions due to limited prior cake exposure but I am now exploring that range further.  I bought a Xiaguan tuoucha of closer to the same production time frame as the 2007 version which might've made more sense to try (looking at that list a 2010 Xiaguan Teji Tuo).  I'll get to that; I was just curious about this cake.

A lot of this trial process, for me, is seeing what aspects tend to change in what ways, and where the patterns lead.  I guess that was the thinking in adding a 2006 Fengquing tuocha version in that same set, checking out range and seeing what else to explore further.

Products background:

Here's a citation of that reference on the Nan Jian Tu Lin brand, along with details about an interesting Yunnan Sourcing related offering, just closer to this Xiaguan version in presentation, as an "iron cake" style bing instead:

Nan Jian Tu Lin tea factory has a long history of more than 30 years producing Pu-erh teas.  Their productions are often similiar to Xiaguan productions in their choice of raw materials, blending and processing techniques... 


It's hard to turn up a clear product description of exactly what this version is, although a "Puerh Junky" blog post tried to clarify that:

’07 “T868” Tulin. I got this back when I was in my Tulin tuo stage... I’ve not run across any Tulin that have the smokiness or minerality of XG. Dunno. To my mind there is more similarity with 6GTM productions, expressing bold floral notes with astringency and bitterness.

The T868 sits somewhere between the ’06 Yinhao and the T861, where the former expresses an unmistakable Fengqing/black tea character and the latter is a perfected creation with a more deciduous forest character, imho. The aftertaste in the T868 is long lasting with more incense and wood notes coming through with later infusions...


The idea of working through a preference curve definitely rings a bell.  That goes on to discuss aging inputs and speculate about how that version has retained liveliness due to being aged in dry conditions in Kunming, which definitely doesn't apply to what I have, which has been hanging out here in Bangkok for quite awhile:


As most of us know KM storage is slow, though there are differences from one facility to the next. The advantage to these conditions is that for spring material like the T868 nothing gets lost. The production is still lively, springy. Nothing is muffled or mottled. Age has tampened the more brash aspects of a young production while the moderately cool conditions have preserved all of the florality.


Onto considering the Xiaguan description, this time from the Chawang Shop description, from the source.  At 8 years along I'd initially expected this Xiaguan cake would be better yet in 4 more years or so, or at least 2 to complete just a bit more mellowing out, with some evolving into different range, but I'd lost track that it had some head start on that per the description.


2011 Xiaguan FT "Yun Mei Chun" Raw mini iron cake 125g


"FT(For Taiwan)" means this small iron cake was a special order of "Fei Tai" Company. Fei Tai Company is the biggest Xiaguan TF and Menghai TF pu-erh tea distributor in Taiwan. It is claimed that the customized products of Fei Tai company reaches a higher quality in Xiaguan TF. The high-level "FT" tea chose better raw materials. Iron cake is tightly compressed, so its qualitative transformation is slow. Definitely tea for longer-term store. High quality early spring large-leafs material from 2009 and 2010, and was used Cang Shan mountain spring water for the steaming process. This cake is not too smokey, typical for Xiaguan teas. The taste is strong and powerful, floral and sweet huigan.


It sounds good, like plenty of background to establish a context, and as if the tea should be pleasant. 

"Long term" can mean different things related to storage but as I take it in this case material being 9-10 years old is getting there, but probably not quite where it will be later. 

That ties back to the Puerh Junky's earlier input that "Kunming storage is slow," just cited.  I'm not necessarily in a hurry, and it would be a lot worse if this ended up tasting musty related to too-damp storage versus just not being as far along as it might be.  I've experienced some degree of mustiness fading again later, but given the context of trying to sort out aging transitions having a bit more change yet to go would be good.

Review

Xiaguan version in a gaiwan

Tulin sheng; odd seeing a tuocha version separating more easily

Xiaguan 2011 FT "Yun Mei Chun" iron cake:  this is brewing a little lighter, in part related to it separating more as chunks, compressed a little tighter than the other tuocha.  That's a switch, related to typical compression levels for both shapes.  The Tulin "Dali Nan Jian Xian" tuocha version is well-compressed tea, but it separated out to be finer loose leaves.  I'll probably have to go with a short round for the tuocha next time to even things out, and adjust more from there.  At any rate this never was intended as a direct similar-type identical-conditions brewing session; they're going to have similarities but already differ based on initial background.

Even partly saturated the Xiaguan is interesting.  There's a faint hint of smoke, a decent level of bitterness (especially for being a light infusion), and an unusual oily feel to the tea, along with dark mineral content that is somewhere between petroleum and well-corroded metal.  Oddly that's all pleasant. 

Xiaguan left; lighter leaves and liquid on the first round

Tulin T868 "Dali Nan Jian Xian" tuocha:  this is brewed too strong.  Right at the time I was going to pour it my son asked if he could try using the gaiwan, the first time he ever had asked, and going through that experience was worth a lot more to me than getting this infusion right.  Of course he poured half of it and the water touched his finger, and he put it down.  I showed him how to do it the right way (or a way that works, at least), by holding his fingers and hand at a different angle, but the tea was already quite strong. 

Brewed for identical times it would've been stronger since these smaller loose leaves were going to brew without the same form of "opening up" the other would go through.  We really might do more of a tutorial and brew something he would like, since tasting some sheng yesterday didn't exactly click for him.  His mother is paranoid about caffeine input (although he drank Coke twice yesterday; apparently the caffeine in that somehow poses less of a risk), but there are a few tisanes around to practice with.

cheeky little aspiring tea drinkers

I already knew that I like the tea but the aspects and balance I like isn't evident in this round; it's way too strong related to it's own version of earthy aspects and mineral a little towards corroded metal.  Brewed correctly all that balances out and the mineral and earthy range supports some sweet, mild character, more like leather or aromatic wood.  I'll describe that more next round, as a fast infusion.

Second infusion

Xiaguan:  loads of smoke picked up in this round; so that's how this is going to be.  There was a time that I really didn't care for smoke in sheng but it helps drinking tea in which that aspects makes more sense than in rough-edged low-quality really young versions.  I wouldn't say this works really well; this tea does seem to need a few more years, or 5.  It's interesting though, and it might be nice drinking a tea like this from time to time, just moderating infusion strength way back to tone down how all that comes across.  I mean the smoke, plus the intense mineral and earthiness, not different than I mentioned last round but a lot stronger, even though the infusion time was much faster. 

All this matches one theme I keep going on about, a concern that younger sheng versions may not have enough intensity to transition newer / younger version aspect range into pleasant and interesting forms after a decade or longer of fermentation.  After 9 to 10 years this is definitely not going through any muted "teen years" transition, or if it is it was way off the drinkable scale for those first years.  For those flavors being in that range the effect still comes across as pleasantly clean, to me.  It would seem normal enough for a bit of mushroom or more types of wood to have joined in, but as it stands smoke and those other narrow ranges seem more pleasant than any muddled mix of all that.


Tulin:  oddly there is a trace of mushroom in this tea, which comes across as a touch of mustiness, like aged barnwood; interesting it worked out that way.  For someone really opposed to an aged sheng version tasting like mushroom it might throw off all the rest, and might not seem so moderate.  I guess I'm ok with it.  I wouldn't call it "clean" in flavor profile but the supporting mineral and sweetness makes it work.  This does seem really aged-out compared to the other, a lot softer, with heavier mineral tones or bitterness shifted in form, assuming those had been present. 

It was my earlier impression that I really liked this tea for not having been through so many examples of sheng aged to this level.  I have cake of a Hong Tai Chang 2006 sheng version, and I've bought a couple others sold as around that time period, and have tried a reasonable number of samples (including another HTC version from 2006), but it doesn't add up to a lot.  I've tried a lot more of another dozen general types of teas, and nearly as much well-aged oolong and white teas as sheng, if combining those two types together.

keeping it simple

Third infusion

Xiaguan:  a nice fast infusion time helps moderate that intensity but five seconds comes quickly; this might work well brewed for on the shorter side of that, or at a lower infusion proportion.  I stopped myself short of filling the gaiwans enough to pack out with wetted leaves but might have anticipated that intensity would be an issue for both of these.  Smoke gives way to a bit more of the dark mineral / corroded metal in this round, but the bitterness falls into a decent moderate level brewed quickly, with pleasant sweetness.  I like it.  Again it probably will soften and transition positively over a few more years (or 5), but instead of that being a disappointment it's kind of what I expected in this case. 

Maybe I really should have picked up a second, since it's only a 125 gram cake, smaller than the larger size Xiaguan tuocha I bought by half.  Then again that's what re-ordering is all about, picking up what worked best, and trying something new.

It's hard to communicate how this is "clean" in effect, given that I've said it tastes a little like petroleum and rusted metal, but it is, in a limited sense.  The sweetness seems to tie to a nice flavor range too, in with molasses-like warm and rich tones.  The feel isn't bad, although smoothening out a little would help, and the aftertaste trails off pleasant warm mineral and that molasses sweetness.


Tulin:  I hadn't been put off by any aged-effect funk in trying this before but in comparison with the Xiaguan it has some, that old-barn range I'd mentioned.  The rest is really nice, sweet and smooth, rich in flavor range, with a sappy feel that coats your mouth, towards how other astringency comes across but quite different in form.  Again that warm mineral really hangs around as a flavor aspect after you swallow the tea, with the feel not completely dissipating, lending both teas a pleasant overall impression of complexity.  If bitterness or the moderate astringency edge in the other version was an issue for someone this tea would be much better; it's much smoother, of course likely related to the age and probably some to storage conditions. 

Value is a main selling point for this tea.  I don't think I'll even mention what I paid for it, but in the range of what the other cost.  I don't like the idea that someone might read this and consider it a good option for jumping into holding some aged sheng, and buy out whatever the shop has.  On the positive side it's interesting, pleasant, and a good-value, and it's rare to even have options of this type when walking into shops.  On the negative side if someone could find older Xiaguan versions around online, like this other one, they still don't cost all that much and could be slightly better.  They're not that uncommon, but demand is high enough that pricing wouldn't necessarily have to be low, and options would keep selling out.

All this reminds me of one of those folk-wisdom sayings:  the best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago; the second best time is right now.  I included some younger tuochas in this round of purchases, both to experience their transition over a longer cycle and to try whatever is left after it's ready.  That matches an earlier theme of trying a Dayi (Taetea) Jia Ji version from 2014, which had been improving quite a bit over the last couple of years, although maybe now it's a year or so since I've last tried it.  I do plan to get onto doing some middle-age tastings check-ins at some point.

Fourth infusion

Xiaguan left; still a bit lighter

Xiaguan:  this is falling into a much nicer balance.  That one heavy mineral towards earth range is still a little strong but I actually like that.  It almost comes across like the char effect in roasted Wuyi Yancha, or the one in scorched versions of Tie Guan Yin.  It's not exactly like those, but odd how close it falls in range.  When I keep saying this tea will be better later on I don't mean that it's not pleasant now.

Tulin:  the too-aged wood tone is lightening up, taking a step towards ordinary range cedar instead.  It's odd that I really don't remember that trace of musty aspect from earlier.  It stands out a lot more for the other common ground (warm earthy range, mild molasses-like sweetness, wood tones) serving as a common context, with the differences highlighted.  Tasting it alone the whole aspects and flavors set wouldn't be framed within that indexing effect.  It seems unlikely that the other tuocha was actually different (which I gave away to a local monk; those guys could be a bit challenged when it comes to access to tea shopping).  Surely two tuochas from the same set from the same shop are the same, including storage factors.

Fifth infusion

These will go through a later round transition cycle of some sort but the main story might be told by this round.  The Xiaguan sheng hasn't transitioned much, but the overall intensity has leveled off a little, so that it's easier to balance using normal infusion times.  The feel isn't really astringent but it has an unusual dry edge to it; that may have picked up a little, at least in relation to flavor intensity.  It still works.


The "Dali Nan Jian Xian" is the cleanest it has been; I can see why I might not have regarded that trace of mustiness as so problematic since it more or less drops out.  The main flavor is still wood along the line of aromatic cedar, like the strong smell you experience in a sauna, but brewed into a tea.  The sweetness makes it work, and it's nice how underlying warm mineral gives it a decent balance.  The feel doesn't have the same dryness and structure (fullness) the other tea has but to me that's as well; it's pretty far from feeling thin. 

Sixth infusion, a bit later

Sometimes it can help to take a break and come back to the teas, to get a fresh approach towards interpretation.  That touch of smoke in the Xiaguan, now transitioned more to a light char effect over a heavy mineral range, reminds me a lot of French roast coffee.  I'd like it better than French roast coffee, because I'm just not on that page now, and because it has lots of depth beyond what an over-roasted coffee version would.  Someone with a good imagination could really riff out a lot of descriptions for what's going on beyond that main range; it's a bit complex, and oddly clean in effect given that primary taste.  The aftertaste is so pronounced that it stands up to attempts to clear it by drinking sips of water, to taste the other version without that input.


The Tulin version is where I remember it now; much cleaner in flavor range, plenty intense for a tea that's halfway through an infusion cycle.  This is why I've been sneaking those tuochas into the house, and why it felt really unnatural sharing one with that monk.  One of the monks I was ordained with (a long story) mentioned liking sheng, which is why I made that exception, but I couldn't hand it over until I had a couple more.

Aspects descriptions don't really cover why I like this as much as I do.  It tastes more like cedar than anything else, and lots of so-so tea versions taste a good bit like cedar (not so often, but it comes up).  I don't like the mustiness or touch of mushroom that's still really faint in the background.  If I were to say it also tastes a little like spice or dried fruit, or the feel is catchy in a unique way, that would explain it (as an aftertaste description tends not to, for me; that just adds some depth). 

This Xiaguan version seems like better tea but I like the Tulin version more.  It's aged to a level of subtlety that works for me; I think that's it.  There's only so much shifting intensity or balance you can do by messing around with infusion strength.  It's not fair to leave it at that since the Xiaguan is a couple years younger, aged slower, and that smoke / char / French roast / heavy mineral range might well soften and turn into something pleasant and interesting, even in just two more years, stored here.

Conclusion

More or less what I expected, but the Xiaguan is better at this stage and age than I expected.

It was odd the Tulin version wasn't exactly as I remembered it but I think that trace of mustiness (starting out as mushroom, moving through old barn smell) over the first 3 or 4 rounds might've stood out a lot more in comparison.  Based on drinking this a few times before I think it has another 5 or 6 quite pleasant infusions to go, that it retains positive flavor and just thins in overall effect in the late cycle, so that there's almost no natural place to leave off, and it works to just keep brewing it longer.  It would seem really strange to simmer an inexpensive tea version to draw out a really late round but even that might work. 

I didn't really explicitly cover it in this review but both these teas seemed quite a good value.  Market forces set what teas are worth, where demand meets supply.  I've become accustomed to seeing nice descriptions and story lines pushing young sheng offering pricing to $70-90 per 357 gram cake level (20 cents a gram or so), and it's nice seeing pleasant aged versions in a different context selling for around half that.  Of course all of this is already just familiar ground to many, since these are standard sheng types.