Nan Jian Tu Lin 2009 Menghai Chen Yun (Shu Pu'er)

General

Nan Jian Tu Lin is a large industrial producer of pu'er tea. The factory is particularly known for its Feng Huang or Phoenix product line. The company's headquarter is located in Nan Jian County, Dali Prefecture, Yunnan Province. Nan Jian Tu Lin's products are somewhat similar to those of Xiaguan, an older tea producer in the same prefecture.

Shu pu'er is the second main type of pu'er tea, alongside naturally aged sheng pu'er. The Shu pu'er production process was invented in the 1970s when there was a desire to create a tea that would imitate the taste of naturally aged sheng pu'er in a shorter fermentation time. Before the leaves are pressed into cakes, they are spread out on the factory floor in large piles, which are watered and covered with cloth. This piling stage accelerates biochemical and microbiological changes in the leaves and the leaves are practically composted. The piling stage can last from several weeks to months. Shu pu'er is available in many different forms, such as pressed cakes and loose leaf.

This tea

The name of this 2009 shu pu'er is Menghai Chen Yun, which could be loosely translated as Aged Charm of Menghai or Aged Enchantment of Menghai. According to the labels on the cakes, the leaf material is from the Bulang area, one of the most traditional pu'er tea production areas in Menghai County. More specifically, the material is said to be Zhao Chu, or early spring material. The leaf material here is quite small and contains a lot of buds. The tea is already a bit old and it can be noted in the slightly perforated cake wrappers. The whole cake weighs about 357g and in addition to this we offer a smaller 50g bag, with detached leaves from the cake.

Taste

The smell of the dry tea is oily, sweet, peaty and reminiscent of lake water. In the cup the aroma is with tones of cocoa, dark chocolate, pine bark and slightly tarry. The taste has the oily sweetness of the dry tea but the body is still a bit more bony. There is a chocolate-like taste with slight umami. The tea is very balanced in the shu pu'er spectrum, offering nicely different characteristics without being particularly inclined in any one direction.

Infusion

Detach the leaves from the pressed tea with a sharp tool for brewing. You can use a kitchen knife, for example. The spike-like shape works best, as it breaks the leaves less. Pu'er tea is infused with boiled water. You need about 4-6 grams of leaves, which is a generous tablespoon of loose tea. The tea leaves are rinsed first. Hot water is poured over the tea leaves and allowed to brew for about 10 seconds. This rinsing water is poured off. This rinsing helps to make the tea clear and reduces the stronger fermentation taste and smell on the surface of the leaves. The tea can be infused using the so-called gongfu technique, using a teapot of less than 300ml and brewing the leaves several times. In this case, the length of the brews should be about 30-60 seconds. The number of leaves can also be increased, which reduces the brewing time to 10-20 seconds. If you have a larger teapot or only want to brew one time, the brewing time should be 3-5 minutes. Adjust the amount of leaves to achieve the desired strength.