Sunday, April 27, 2008

Yiwu Zheng Shan Mountain Company "DouJi" EcoVeteran Sheng Beeng 357g




Sherab, is not only a generous friend of mine who gave me this tea, he also is the author of the tea blog Mt.Awakening Aroma. Although it is written in Chinese, it can be easily translated using the numerous online translators.

My first exposure to Douji pu-erh was due to Gordon of Dragon Tea House. He generously sent me a small box with 6 sachets containing unblended mao cha from the 6 famous tea mountains. It was indeed a rare and wonderful opportunity. I knew then that Douji was something special!

Excited about this tea, I sent a sample to Marshaln of the very well known blog A Tea Addicts Journal for his thoughts on the subject. He has provided an excellent review of this tea and his thoughts about Douji pu-erh itself.

Product Information

The Yiwu Zheng Shan Mountain Company is located in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan. Although relatively new to the pu-erh world, they are becoming quite famous due to their high grade "Douji" pu-erh. Their products have even caught the eye of the world renowned pu-erh guru Mr. Shi Kun Mu.

Ms. He Bei Xia, the chairperson of the Yiwu Zheng Shan Mountain Company is adamant in producing only the best pu-erh possible. She places great emphasis on quality control and insures that only the best mao cha from Yunnan will be compressed into pu-erh. This is no easy endevour and in order to keep such stringent standards she guarantees that the company will produce no more than a 100 tons of tea a year. To put this in perspective, the XiaGuan Factory will produce roughly 7000 tons of puerh each year every year.

Initial Impressions

The beeng was nicely compacted. Stone mold no doubt. No smoke or off scents with just the lovely scent of young sheng. Somewhat floral, hints of rubber and delightfully sweet. Very nice looking leaves. Interestingly, the beeng did not contain a nei piao.

Brewing Parameters

Water-Bottle spring water, generic brand. Source of water Lafayette Springs, WS

Amount – 5.g

Water Temp - Boil then cooled for 2 breaths

Brewing Vessel - Yixing Teapot 150ml

Method – Gongfu

Infusion times
1-15s
2-12s
3-16s
4-25s
5-35s
6-50s
7-66s

Tasting Notes





The aroma was honey and sweet which did not dissipate very easily in the later infusions. The liquor had a very nice acidity with hints of dry grass with a very delicate flutter of rubber. A very nice huigan. The liquor was also very thick with a descent viscosity that definitely coated the mouth and throat. It was certainly a powerful brew as my tongue and the sides of my cheeks were numb after the 3rd infusion. However, the numbness can not be compared to that caused by rough and harsh mao cha. It was a different kind. It was a numbness that was associated with the chayun somehow. It was indeed a highly active tea. Definitely a tea to age.

Spent Leaves



Very nice and robust leaves. Nice thick veins which reminded me of old growth.











Final Impressions


I really enjoyed this pu-erh. You can definitely taste a quality that the larger factories can not easily emulate. As MarshalN has mentioned in his review, Douji is unquestionably difficult to find in the states, and the price is a considerably much more than most beengs. However, if you can get a hold of a beeng or two, I would recommend buying as it certainly was a pleasure to drink. Thank you Sherab!

10 comments:

Brent said...

It's great to see another post from you, Hop! I hope your foot is doing well. One thing-- I can't see the pictures!

-Brent

Hobbes said...

Dear Bill,

A fine review as ever, thanks. I have a single cake of 2006 Douji, and guard it preciously, wishing I'd bought more. Tasty.


Toodlepip,

Hobbes

Bill said...

Hey Brent, yeah, I set up the word verification and approval due to a spammer. I hope you can see the pictures now.

Hobbes, Thank you for your kind words. Yes, I am starting to understand that Douji pu-erh is indeed a precious thing! :) And yes, very tasty!!

Bill

Anonymous said...

Good to see you posting again. I tried my first Puerh over the weekend. I think I went about the brewing all wrong. Off to check your blog posts for instructions! :-0

Bill said...

Hello Tea Escapade,

Thank you for reading. So, you brewed your first pu? How did you brew it? I also added you to my blog roll

Life.learning.sherab said...

Bill, This is both a great reading (of your distinctive tea reviewing style) and a warm feeling as the partaker! Can't wait to tell you that I've translated your article (not using "online translators" though!) and posted it on our Golden Tea Group blog, as well as on my own -- will let you know the responses:
http://blog.sina.com.cn/goldtea
http://blog.sina.com.cn/mtawakeningaroma

(and of course, you're allowed to use online translators to read it again there, in Chinese this time! hahah... nay, you know the language are u?)

Bill said...

Greetings Sherab,

Again, I thank you kindly for your words. I am happy you appreciate my review style. I just try to keep it simple. I already have too much research to make something that I enjoy be more work. :D lol.

I would appreciate it if you keep me post. I am always curious to read what my friends across the world are thinking.

As for knowing the language, I do not know either of the two main Chinese languages. However, I am picking up a few words here and there from my tea research! :D

All the best,

Bill

Anonymous said...

Bill,

Do you really want a list of all the things I did wrong? :-)

First, I do not own the "appropriate" teaware. But with that aside... I did not do even one wash the first time. I brewed for 5 long minutes. I only drank one infusion.

After consulting your blog and a few other sites (I posted about it and left a link to your blog) I tasted again.

This time, I still don't have the right teaware, but at least I conducted one wash, steeped for 1 minute, and drank 2 infusions. This time, I really enjoyed the Pu-erh.

Thanks for including a link to Tea Escapade.

Bill said...

Well Tea Escape, atleast you got more infusions this time. I would really recommend buying some gongfu ware. You will not believe how much alive your tea will taste brewing in this method.

Anonymous said...

What is the difference between Gongfu teaware and Yixing? I am in the process of purchasing my first Yixing set. I have yet to research Gongfu.

Home Set Up

Tea should be simple. I typically brew gongfu except when I make a good English Breakfast. Zhuni pot is one that I dedicate to Chinese b...