2014 Shu Pu'er Nuggets
Pu'er Tea
Dongsa Cooperative – Qianjiazhai
These nuggets form naturally in the heat and moisture of the pu’er aging process. The result is a dessert-like tea with notes of maple syrup, cherry, sandalwood, vanilla and tulsi.
These nuggets form naturally in the heat and moisture of the pu’er aging process. The result is a dessert-like tea with notes of maple syrup, cherry, sandalwood, vanilla and tulsi.
Crafted by the Dongsa Cooperative
- DATE OF PICKINGMarch 2014
- QianjiazhaiMt. Ailao, Yunnan
- ELEVATION1900
- V. AssamicaTea Varietal
This tea is a new experiment from one of Master Zhou's former students, another member of the cooperative. Qianjiazhai one hundred to three hundred year wild-picked leaves and buds are pile-fermented until they clump together in tight balls in the heat. The balls ferment and age differently than loose tea and yield a rich vanilla-heavy flavor that is impossible to steep out.
- DATE OF PICKINGMarch 2014
Tasting Profile
- savory - vanilla pudding, maple syrup
- fruit - dried apricot, cherry
- spice - camphor, sandalwood
- vegetal - fresh tulsi
the Dongsa Cooperative also recommends:
- 2014 Qianjiazhai Yi Ji Shu Pu'erMaster Zhou works with his students in the Qianjiazhai Dongsa Cooperative to start introducing shu pu’er fermentation and crafting techniques more widely across the mountain. This stunningly clean, rich and foresty example is crafted from pre-Qingming harvest maocha picked from one hundred to five hundred year trees. Even with only three years of aging, it displays the clean rich complexity normally only seen on shu pu’er a decade old or older.
- Gong Ting Shu Dragon Pearls
The Cooperative's first-ever shu pu’er dragon pearl pressing, this tea is made with beautiful little 2014 buds, allowed to ferment slowly under natural moisture conditions for a sweet and clean flavor profile that shows off the herbaceous side of Qianjaizhai. The loosely pressed. dragon pearls are compact enough for long-term aging and small enough to allow for single brew sessions without having to break apart a bigger cake of tea. The loose hand-twisted compression allows for better and more even aging than anything a machine could achieve.
- 2014 Loose Gong Ting Shu
Qianjiazhai Gong Ting Shu Pu'er is still a very new practice, made only by one of Master Zhou's students in the cooperative. Using the giant buds of Qianjiazhai's wild trees between 100 and three hundred years of age, this tea is carefully and slowly pile fermented to bring out a deep rich sweetness unlike any other shu pu'er out there. Master Zhou was so excited by this experiment he is sharing the technique across the cooperative and encourage more members to keep developing the craft.
'This Spring, we were lucky to return to Qianjiazhai to meet more of the talented people behind Qianjiazhai’s old tree pu’er and black tea. Through the cooperative, these families and individuals can work together the share resources and knowledge, teaching and learning from each other while protecting and acting as stewards over tea trees in the oldest tea forest in the world'
Steeping Instructions
Western
4 g.6-8
oz.use 205° watersteep 30 secondsresteep many times
add 15-30 sec. each infusionGongfu
4 g.6 ozuse 205° watersteep 10 seconds
add 10-30 sec. per steepingenjoy many steepingsIced/Cold
4 g.12
oz.use room temp. waterrefrigerate overnight
8 hoursadd ice & enjoy
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