The 2014 MENGHAI SHENG PU’ER TUOCHA is a classic piece by tea master Zhuang Jin Li, produced in Menghai, Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, China. The tea master Zhuang Jin Li has over-50-year experience in making Pu’er tea, and has created many renowned classic pieces even after her retirement from the famous Meng Hai Tea Factory as Chief Quality Officer. She is one of the few in the industry who have mastered the traditional blending technology and unique fermentation process of Meng Hai Tea Factory.
Harvested in 2014, MENGHAI SHENG PU’ER TUOCHA has already a unique “aged” fragrance, which is mellow in a way similar to Shu Pu’er, but preserving also its complexity and depth in varied stages. The dry leaves have a faded brown color, waft a subtle woody fragrance with a hint of orchid in at the finish. When brewed, the wet leaves of the tea exude a delicate fragrance of berries.
The liquor is a rich amber brown, tastes immediately rich, only with a little fresh bitterness on the very surface of the tongue. Only after a while does the tea taste gently sweet, and a warming fruitiness of berries gradually arises at the end, the after taste is unusually long and winding. After the fifth infusion the tea may deliver faintly bitter notes, but still not too intense, as such bitterness soon transforms into fruitiness – but less about berries and more about plums.
The tea leaves are pressed in the form of Tuo Cha (沱茶), or dome-shaped bowl tea. The tea leaves compressed in this way are even tighter than those in the normal disc-shaped cake, and exhibit a unique delicacy in their appearance. Historically, the form was used for ease of transportation to be shipped to different parts of the country. The cake is not extremely tight as some other Tuo Cha's case, relatively easy to break off a intact piece.
Vintage: 2014
Style: Shai Qin Sheng Pu'er
Cultivar: Daye
Elevation: 1400m
Tea farm: Menghai County, Xishuangbanna, Yunnan
Tea Master: Zhuang Jin Li
