New Raw Pu’er Tea
The aroma is high – pitched, usually presenting floral, honey, milk, or mushroom scents. The taste of the tea soup is highly stimulating and aggressive. The style of the soup body varies, showing characteristics such as being delicate, sharp, thick and smooth, or having a distinct sense of structure. Besides the characteristics of the mountain origin, bitterness and astringency are quite prominent. The sweet aftertaste and salivation are obvious, rapid, and long – lasting.
Old Raw Pu’er Tea
The aroma is more composed. Aromas like honey, raw tea, medicinal, and fruity scents are more profound. After transformation, the taste is mild and full – bodied. The soup body is thick, and the soup aroma is more distinct and deep – seated. The sweet aftertaste and salivation are understated and restrained, with a long – lasting charm in the throat. The physical sensation is more pronounced compared to new raw tea. In short, it has shed its sharpness and become round, smooth, and composed.
New Ripe Pu’er Tea
Although new ripe Pu’er tea is mild in nature, it has a slightly dry feeling. One of the basic properties of ripe Pu’er tea is its ability to remove greasiness and relieve stuffiness. The tea soup of new ripe Pu’er tea is not as clear and bright as that of old ripe Pu’er tea. In terms of taste, it generally has a rich, thick, and smooth texture, with a broth – like feel. The soup aroma is like chocolate, and after drinking, one feels refreshed and pleasant. On the contrary, some new ripe Pu’er tea may be insipid, not resistant to multiple infusions, and may even have strange or off – flavors.
Old Ripe Pu’er Tea
The tea nature is even milder. The taste, which was originally rich, has become more layered, similar to how the intensity of new red wine transforms into the mild and elegant flavor of old red wine, exuding a simple and pure feeling. The aroma is more refined and concentrated, and the physical sensation is more obvious, with a stronger sense of Zen.
Raw Pu’er tea has a distinct personality. Connoisseurs can tell the approximate tree age of mountain – grown raw tea. The characteristics of different mountain – grown raw teas are not hidden or lost after fermentation as in the case of ripe Pu’er tea. Although the regional characteristics of ripe Pu’er tea are still quite obvious, for raw Pu’er tea, in addition to the general regional features, one can even distinguish the village or the specific tea plantation from the taste.