#apoostrotea4

[apoostrotea]

Gold Duck Shit | White2Tea | Oolong

This oolong boasts a rich charcoal and mineral aroma. Its flavor is dominantly roasted, accented with hints of stone and fruit like a freshly rained on mountainside. Nicely sweet with a smooth, oily texture, it’s delightfully free of bitterness. It strongly emanates that rock oolong flavor amidst the charcoal. An enjoyable tea. Slightly more roasted than most duck shit oolongs, but just as good.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

[apoostrotea]

2022 Inverse | White2Tea | Fu Heicha

Not to be silly, but I cannot recall if I’ve reviewed this one yet!

This delightful blend of Heicha and Sheng Puerh, adorned with the infamous Fu Zhuan aka Golden Flowers, exudes strong, invigorating energy. The aroma is youthful, with hints of green wood, fresh fruit, and sugar. Each sip reveals a sweet, juicy flavor that intensifies with each steep, as the liquor deepens in color. It's like tasting the essence of a sunlit orchard, where the sweetness and vibrancy grow with each passing moment, leaving you both energized and enchanted. This tea is distinctly APPLE to me… and doesn’t bother my stomach as much as some fu zhuan does. Still, don’t drink on an empty stomach or with a gluten intolerance.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

[apoostrotea]

They Mad!!! | White2Tea | Raw Puerh

I am very silly, and bought this mini because the reference on the wrapper made me laugh. I love Documentary Now. Maybe I’ll ramble about it over on instagram later, but for now I will talk about the tea itself. The description of this tea that W2T gives is interesting; they note the tea is made of some older material they were waiting to press. Once again, we are all left to ponder what this material exactly “is”, which W2T always leaves a mystery. Aroma hit me as punchy, at first. I was worried about the bitterness as the aroma seemed young and green. But, it also smells sweet, sugary, and fruity. It smells a lot like Yiwu, but I’m uncertain as W2T is a strange mysterious wizard with its sources. Liquor is gold, crisp, soft. Cloudier and thicker than some young sheng I’ve had recently. This tea is a treat for sweeter young puerh drinkers. It’s quite a special tea. Notes of jasmine, wood, and fresh fruit. Leaning a tad on the floral side rather than the fruity. Give this mini a try if it sounds good for you. Maybe snag a cake if you’re feeling ballsy. It’s a good one.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

[apoostrotea]

Wild Tree Purple Sweet Ya Bao | White Tea | Yunnan Sourcing

Haven’t had ya bao tea in a long time! Ya bao is the sprouts / buds picked from the tree before the tea leaf fully forms. The result is a beautifully sweet white-like tea. That alone makes this tea a treat, but they are additionally mutated purple leaves! Personally, I don’t taste a difference between purple variants and regular leaves. Maybe I need to try more purples, but this one tastes like most ya bao would. The great thing about ya bao is how you can steep the sh*t out of it. It benefits from higher temperatures and experimentation more than regular white tea does. This one is more floral than others I’ve had prior, but there isn’t any astringency at all. There is a hint of a sweet pine menthol flavor amongst the fruity floral. Aroma smells buttery and fruity. If you want to try a naturally sweet tea, try a ya bao. You won’t regret it.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

[apoostrotea]

2021 Long Tang Old Tree | Raw Puerh | Yunnan Sourcing

This sheng greets you with a surprising smoky camphor note for its young age. The aroma is sweet, with a touch of beets and plums. The flavor profile is herbaceous, sweet, and fruity, with a hint of hay. There’s almost a sugary quality to it. These unexpected flavors continue to unfold each sip with little bitterness despite its youth.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

[apoostrotea]

2021 Chapo | White2Tea | Heicha

This tea is a bit different from my current drinking habits. The hay aroma and flavor is at the forefront of this one with a hint of smoke. Like you’re visiting an old barn full of golden bales of hay. A distant campfire elsewhere at the farm adds a touch of smoke. A very familiar and intriguing tea. Cozy and comforting with good caffeine and qi. I was expecting this one to be darker! But it’s light like a sheng. I’m almost left wishing it was a bit smokier. The price on this one is great for those looking for this flavor profile.

★ ★ ★ .5 ☆ ☆

[apoostrotea]

1994 Xiaguan Tuo | Yeeontea | Ripe Puerh

Let me say, I love aged ripe puerh. Especially stuff like this from Yeeon. I don’t know if it’s the way they used to prepare and store shou back in the day, or if it’s simply the age. This tea is incredibly smooth and clean. Nice oily mouth feel, it’s a very easy tea. A lot of Yeeon’s aged ripes have this same quality — the leaves can take a good beating. Liquor color is nice, dark, and red with a very wet, woody, herbal aroma. The tea smells like the wet pile taste would be too much, but that flavor is nonexistent especially at this age. This leaf soup is an incredibly easy drink, bound to be enjoyed by most shou lovers. I do almost wish the flavor had been stronger, but you are always free to overleaf.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

[apoostrotea]

2011 70th Anniversary Xiaguan | Liquid Proust | Raw Puerh

This tea is coming off of an iron pressed cake with Taiwanese storage. I haven’t had much experience with Taiwanese storage except for some of the teas I’ve tried from LP. So, which one of these flavors is reminiscent of Taiwanese storage? I’m unsure! Immediately, the ripe fruit aroma coming off the wet leaves is very apparent. It smells like over ripened bananas. To me, this scent-note is important for the sweetest sheng. The tea brews clean, a nice clear gold soup. Later brews steep deeper into that gold. Flavor-wise is very smooth and sweet. The fruit flavors are all there, with some hints of honey. Fresh sweet leaves. Some good energy too with longevity. This tea lasted me many more steeps than just the first session. If you enjoy your sweet and fruity sheng puerh, you might enjoy this one. Steep it harder if you crave a bit more bitterness, but it’s a perfect sheng otherwise.

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆