My First Big Pu Fix

I'd be more concerned about the obesity epidemic. Okay somebody
explain the camphor taste without making me smell ointment. I know
that sickening sweet smell to mask putrification. I have my share of
recent greens which are very aromatic and what I would describe in some
as minty or soothing to the throat in particular a wild tree puerh log.
I have some that don't taste this way at all. On TaoBao you get the
impression it is present from day one in some but here it magically
appears when you buy from some recommended website selling aged puerh.
I get the impression it might be a scent introduced in processing like
Jasmine.

Jim

Nico wrote:
> Hello all,
>
> First of all, I'd like to encourage everyone to do what they can to
> help the people of the gulf coast. As is so often the case with natural
> disasters, the people most effected are poor folks who couldn't get out
> in time. Many people are living in developing world/ refugee
> conditions. The Red Cross and Salvation Army are both taking donations.
....snip
> The flavour was definately and pleasently woody, with a typical camphor
> undertone. I savored the tingling feeling in the back of my throat. My
> girlfriend described it as "minty". Subsequent infusions revealed more
> sweetness.
> Next up was the 99 beeng. The aroma of this cake had a more pronounced
> camphor element. I was able to coax a bit off the end with my fingers.
> The first infusion yielded a darker amber liquor. The flavor reminded
> me of another 99 Menghai cake I'd sampled- more agressive in the
> camphor flavor, yet without any bitterness and without the astringency
> of that other cake.
>
> What delighted me most about this one was the complex, lingering
> sweetness that developed in the later infusions, together with a
> soothing presence in the mouth and throat.
....snip

Space Cowboy wrote:
> I'd be more concerned about the obesity epidemic. Okay somebody
> explain the camphor taste without making me smell ointment. I know
> that sickening sweet smell to mask putrification. I have my share of
> recent greens which are very aromatic and what I would describe in some
> as minty or soothing to the throat in particular a wild tree puerh log.
> I have some that don't taste this way at all. On TaoBao you get the
> impression it is present from day one in some but here it magically
> appears when you buy from some recommended website selling aged puerh.
> I get the impression it might be a scent introduced in processing like
> Jasmine.

Camphor in authentic aged puerh is not introduced, it develops
naturally over time on some but not all puerh. The aged puerhs
considered to be the best are often said to have this taste, many
people selling aged puerh claim this because it is a sign of good
puerh. The aroma is very similar to the smell of camphor trees and has
a somewhat minty taste. However, it is a common trick to store puerh
with or in camphor wood to induce this aroma. The way to tell the
difference is in the taste of the later steeps. If the camphor
developed naturally it will remain through a great many steeps, if it
was induced artificially through absorption the camphor flavor will
only last a few steeps and then be gone. Everybody and their brother
who sells aged tea likes to claim camphor, only a fraction truly
exhibit this quality.

Mike