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2008 Hai Lang Hao "Star of Bu Lang" Raw Pu-Erh Tea Cake | Yunnan Sourcing Tea Shop

2008 Hai Lang Hao "Star of Bu Lang" Raw Pu-Erh Tea Cake

by Hai Lang Hao
Sold out
$11.00 - $102.75
$11.00
$11.00 - $102.75
$11.00
3 years aged Mao Cha stored in Banna, golden tea soup!

Previously I thought Hai Lang's Lao Ban-E would be the final production from Hai Lang for 2008. This third and final production is a cooperation between Hai Lang and another tea seller. 3000 kilos of Mao Cha all from just 2 villages in Bu Lang mountain area of Banna was pressed into these cakes. The Mao Cha is Spring 2005 tea and has been fermenting for 3 years in it loose "mao cha" form. The result is a tea cake that feels, looks and tastes much more like a 5 year aged cake. This cake was pressed in the Shuang Yi tea factory and this bears the mark of that tea factory. However, you will notice that the outer ring pattern on the wrapper is the same as the 2008 HLH Lao Ban-E wrapper, as well as the “普洱生茶” sqaure mark is present on both wrappers.

Hai Lang's commentary on this tea: Tea leaves are burly and stout in structure. White hairs are abundant on many of the leaves, while other leaves are greenish-bronze (when dry). The brewed tea liquor is honey-gold colored with amber tones. The tea itself mouth-feel is evident and pungent with bitter taste that gradually changes into a thick plump feeling in the mouth and throat. It brings a mouth-watering feeling to the tongue and mouth and strong thick after-taste. This tea does not have any smoky flavors or aromas. The aroma at the bottom of the tea cup is pleasant and strong with a sweet nectar-like feeling. The "mao cha" was stored for 3 years in Bu Lang mountain area of Banna. This uncompressed storage condition in warmer more humid conditions has brought about a more aged taste and feeling. Coming from the heart of Bu Lang country this tea is a perfect representative of this area with its strong and intense character.


Net Weight: 357 grams tea cake
Ingredients: Yunnan Large leaf varietal sun-dried tea
Produced by Hai Lang Hao (pressing at the Shuang Yi tea factory)

Overall rating: 4.714286 / 5 from 7 reviews.

AI Generated Review Summary

Summary topics

Review topics: ["taste","quality","price","sheng","aftertaste","sweetness","notes","tea","smokiness","broth","session"].

Review highlights

Reviews

Soft mid-aged sheng with pleasing layers

"Pleasing layers of woodland, hay and a whisper of apricot, with a little sweetness. Does well for steepings the following day, which are delicate and refreshing. Will probably buy a full cake."

— D.Erpy (5/5)

Warm, Sweet, Spicy

"Warm, sweet, spicy, slightly herbal; hay, honey, apricot. Lovely aged taste. Golden liquor. A kind of sweet smokiness on the nose, like incense. Camphor? Mellow energy. Wonderfully satisfying. This is my favourite type of sheng, as opposed to the brighter, fruitier, citrusy or floral types. I like those to, and enjoy drinking them, but this is the type of pu'er I would prefer to invest in. Warm, sweet, spicy, as I said. Hay, camphor, herbal. That general flavour profile just appeals to me so much. And I just know it will age beautifully."

— Patrick H. (5/5)

Update: 6-Month Review

"This is an update to my previous review on 8/3/2019. Today, I finished off the 6.5 grams that remained from my sample of this cake. Wow! I received this sample in June of 2019. I don't know if this tea needed this much rest after shipping, or if hydrating it in my pumidor (68% RH) led to the difference in my experience today, but it is significantly more pleasurable. The smokiness I experienced before is very light and is now just a nice addition to the complexity of the tea. The sweetness has also increased greatly, and is like rock candy. There is an oily mouthfeel in the finish that does dry out but is not overly astringent, and brings in a nice mouth cooling sensation. The flavor is mostly sweet, a bit hay-like, and the smoke is more of a woody note than campfire. Cha qi seems to be quite variable, but it was a nice relaxing session today. I previously would not have considered buying a cake of this tea, but this session has definitely made me reconsider, especially at the current price. There is a strong brightness and light bitterness that some may be sensitive to, but I do think it would age off and be a very smooth tea with strong sweetness."

— Ben N. (5/5)

Pleasant, early aged smoky sheng

"I ordered a sample and enjoyed it. My rating is based on the current taste of it as of late July 2019. For me, it is still a bit too smoky. Some may enjoy it just fine as is, but I would very much like to revisit it after maybe 3+ more years of age. It is definitely in the early stages of aging and brews up a nice orange color. It's very clean and has nice throat cooling and some flavor buried just underneath the pine smoke I get from it. Very good value, especially if you're looking for a maybe traditionally processed Bulang to age. I'll have to disagree with Hai Lang's commentary about it not having smoke, but I look forward to trying it again in the future."

— Ben N. (3/5)

Great quality for a very reasonable price

"This tea comes with decent hints of some semi aged taste setting in. There's a pleasant taste of tobacco leaves with an underlying sourness turning into a more woody taste before showing notes of some old books and cellar taste in a positive way of showing some age - nothing even remotely moldy at all. There's also some autumn leaves, something slightly medicinal, before it turns into a rather long lasting sweetness. The tea's body is medium and balance-wise it's rather leaning towards pronounced deeper notes. Very nice tea."

— Jan B. (5/5)

Great all-round

"I used a lot of leaf this time, as it was the last bits of my sample and I didn’t want to break it in two light sessions. However, since I didn’t break it up much, it took a while until the leaves properly opened up. When it did though, I got treated with powerful and delicious infusions. Let’s start with the smell though. Before the rinse, the aroma is quite woody I would say. As the leaves open up during the session, there are more complex and strong aromas unraveling. I still get the woody tones, like pine and sauna. But there is also some smoke and orchid. In the empty cup, I can smell something between a meadow and a field, there are hay and honeycomb aromas too. The taste is brothy (mushroom), sweet, buttery, medicinal and bitter (mostly due to the amount of leaves I used). There is definitely a strong tobacco note to it that stays in the mouth. Astringency and sourness arrives in the finish, while the long aftertaste is somewhat spicy and has a decent huigan. The mouthfeel is a mixture of milky and brothy, and with decent thickness. The body is not the fullest, but given the price of the tea, I cannot really complain. Don’t get fooled by the price! This is a really good tea, not lacking in any way, apart from maybe the body. That’s really a minor point though. The tea has a pungent and pleasant smell; strong, evolving and memorable taste; long aftertaste; ok mouthfeel; and a powerful cha qi. It’s most definitely the best sheng in the ~10 years old category that I have tried thus far."

— Tomáš G. (5/5)

Excellent quality and affordable price

"Great balance of sweet and savory. Rich savory mushroom broth and dark tobacco notes that are offset by a chocolate and spice cake sweetness. Clove and sassafras spice notes and light green herb bitterness help flavors pop. Recommended for those looking for a semi-aged pu'erh to add to their lineup."

— Jeff (5/5)

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