2007 Menghai "7672 Ripe" Pu-erh

From JAS eTea $4.39 for 25g (this was included as a bonus sample)

This was an acceptable tea, there was nothing offensive about it. The one problem on my end was I went a bit heavy on the leaf and that made for some unwelcome strong brews that made any flaws blatantly obvious. The body had a slight hint of the "twiggy" taste that I am not a huge fan of, but it was negligible. The aromas waere nominal and nothing that I would say was great or bad. This would be an alright introduction to puerh but lacking a little complexity. The tea was right in the middle of average for me although I probably would not get more.

2007 Haiwan Tea Factory "7578" Blended Premium Ripe Pu-erh

From JAS eTea $3.69 for 25g

This was a mediocre tea. The body had the taste of a tea that should have that swampy aroma that went with it, but luckily the aroma was mild and not swampy. This is probably due to it having a few years to air out most of it. Overall this was slightly on the bad side of average and I can drink it, but would not get more.

2010 Menghai Tea Factory 8592 Recipe Ripe Pu-erh

From JAS eTea $3.19 for 25g


This is a rather bland tea theres nothing notable about it.  With that being said I do like it for that as a tea to start my day, something that is simple without complexities in the taste or aroma.  I like to wake up and have a simple tea that is not much of a challenge and this suits that purpose nicely.  At only $12.95 for a 357g cake this is a nice deal I will likely get a cake or two to have on hand for an everyday morning tea.

2007 Chang Shou

From J-Tea $220.00 for 357g cake

This is definitely one of the best puerhs I have had, if not the best.  It leaves me eager to try more from the world of raw puerhs, which I have only tried roughly 20 up to this point.  The majority of tea that I have explored at this point has been ripe puerh but this is a beautiful raw cake.  The liquor is a very nice green with a touch of brown with many great subtle flavors that come from the lovely unbroken leaves.  The aromas are complex and yet still retain mild qualities that are not overpowering.  The only drawback is that it is a bit expensive making it not the easiest thing to buy a few cakes to drink now and store for the future, which this puerh is sure to only become better with time.

2007 Menghai Tea Factory "Adorned in Red Ripe" Pu-erh

From JAS eTea $4.10 for 25g

This was one of the better samples from my recent order of samples.  The aromas were about as good as they can be for a ripe puerh.  The liquor was lacking a little from what I had expected and hoped for from the smells.  This was overall a nice ripe puerh and I could see myself getting a get a cake or two, except the vendor is sold out, which is mildly disappointing but I can live without it.

2010 Menghai Tea Factory 8592 Recipe Ripe Pu-erh

From JAS eTea $3.19 for 25g


This is a promising ripe cake.  It was pleasant enough, but there was not anything exceptional about it.  However, it could be a daily drink that is fairly innocuous for me.  I might get a cake of this to dig into in a year or so after airing it out a bit more. 

2008 Menghai Tea Factory "8592 Recipe Ripe" Pu-erh

From JAS eTea $3.19 for 25g

This was a fairly average or slightly below average ripe puerh.  Nothing notable about the aromas or liquor.

2007 Menghai Tea Factory "7262 Ripe" Pu-erh Tea

From JAS eTea $5.69 for 25g
 
This was not a very good ripe puerh tea.  The liquor and aromas weren't terrible, but they were definitely on the bad side of mediocre.  This was lacking complexity and I am glad that I only had a sample size of this one to drink.

2008 Mengku Mu Ye Chun "99801" Premium Ripe Pu-erh tea

From JAS eTea $2.49 for 25g

This was a middle of the road ripe puerh.  There is a hint of the swampy aroma that is reminds me of when I was first trying cooked puerhs and seemed to get those that had it as well.  It is not overwhelming and slightly comforting in its mold swampy aroma.  The liquor was nothing out of the ordinary for ripe puerh, not exceptionally bad or good.  I don't think I would get this again, but could drink i if I had more.

2008 Menghai "Da Yi Hong Premium Ripe" - 801 batch

From From JAS eTea $3.79 for 25g

Overall this was a mediocre tea. There were no bad cooked puerh aromas (i.e. the 2007 Menghai 8592 Ripe Puerh) However there were some stale like tastes in the first 6 or so infusions, but after that it mellowed out and had a relatively nice body to it.

2007 Menghai 8592 Ripe Puerh

From JAS eTea $3.19 for 25g

This tea seemed like it could use more time to air out. It had some typical young cooked puerh aromas that are not too pleasant. The tea body seemed a bit below average to me, but might improve in a few years. If I had more than a sample of this I would probably put it in storage for a few more years without much temptation to revisit it in the interim.

2010 Menghai 7562 Classic Ripe Pu-erh Brick

From JAS eTea $11.95 for 250g

This is a solid ripe puerh. There's not much complexity to it, but a good introduction to puerh without the fish like bad smells that plague too many young ripe puerhs. I would consider it a tea to be consumed and not stored because I don't think there's much that will develop in this tea with time. This reminds me very much of Charles Shaw wine, it is a very solid representation of what it is :ripe puerh, without exciting subtleties. With that said this could easily slip into the category of a daily drink