Pu-Erh Tea & Pipes/Cigars?

[michaeljayjay]

Just wondering if anyone enjoys drinking Pu-erh tea while smoking a pipe and/or a cigar?
I have 4 Pu-erh's dating back to 2001.
For those that don't know about Pu-erh tea, it's a fermented Chinese tea that ages just like tobacco. The older the tea the better it tastes and the more expensive it is.

 

[randelli]

I like pu-erh with mature virginias.

 

[jvnshr]

This reminds me something

 

[michaeljayjay]

I've started drinking them with everything. I find they compliment the tobacco nicely. Certainly better than white tea/coffee. I think the earthy notes in the tea goes well together.

 

[jvnshr]

As the one who used to live in South Korea for few years, I drank all kinds of teas; black, white, red, green, fruit, etc. I've even attended a tea ceremony. Personally, I also prefer the dark/black teas. They have nice old traditional tea houses in Seoul that you can go and drink any type of tea you want, they are getting rarer now as the big coffee shop companies occupy the whole field.

 

[crashthegrey]

All the time. I just picked up a 13 year old raw bamboo puerh. The block is compressed in bamboo and the bamboo is burned. It imparts a really sweet and lightly smokey flavor. Paired great with some golden Virginia flake.

 

[davidintexas]

I am familiar with this type of tea. Have not drank very much of it, but this pairing is an interesting idea. Thanks for the info

 

[theloniousmonkfish]

I just picked up a 13 year old raw bamboo puerh. The block is compressed in bamboo and the bamboo is burned. It imparts a really sweet and lightly smokey flavor.

That sounds really good. I find they go well with a VA too. In a former life I had quite the collection, not just Puerh. No longer able to maintain that level but still keep plenty of tea at hand.
Out of curiosity, how many times do you brew the same leaf? I get 5-7 out of the same pot usually. Always a different profile, that's what I really like about Puerh, it's always shifting. My favorite is when I get a mushroomy/hay type flavor.

 

[crashthegrey]

I brew gong fu style in a small gaiwan, starting with only a 10 second brew for most puerh teas. So many I get 15 steeps out of, and some very strong ones 20, especially "ripe" puerh as opposed to a younger "raw" style. If you like the stronger mushroom, try some ripe puerhs. They have been fermented to speed the "aging" flavor so that you don't have to wait a decade for good tea.

 

[anthonyrosenthal74]

:mrgreen: None of that fancy shmancy stuff for me, thanks. Just good ol' fashioned American tea, hot or cold, preferably sweetened. :mrgreen:

 

[michaeljayjay]

I brew gong fu style as well. I do two quick washes (~2 seconds each) then start with 10 second brews. I have a 1.7L kettle so I stop when the kettle runs out. Probably 7-10 infusions.
I certainly wouldn't drink Pu-erh tea all day long and I do enjoy 'normal' tea but it does make for a nice paring with tobacco and is something different to add to your smoking experience. Plus it's supposed to have some medicinal benefits too.
If you're going to try it make sure you don't brew it like ordinary tea. It's best to keep each infusion to around 10 seconds otherwise it'll get too strong.

 

[crashthegrey]

If you're only doing 7 to 10, I recommend trying longer steeps on some subsequent brews, you'd be surprised some of the interesting flavors that you get past 10 on a 30 second steep when the leaves have mellowed and the strength is down. Gong fu is also really nice with some oolong.

 

[michaeljayjay]

Cheers! I was just about to fire up a pot so I'll give this a go!

 

[brightleaf]

Smoking a pipe with a cup of puerh seems like it would be a perfect match.

I used to drink many types of teas but got scared of the fluoride content. I remember liking puerh with some milk added every once in a while.

The bamboo puerh sounds like something worth breaking my tea fast for.

 

[menuhin]

Was thinking this is a thread of blending tea leaves or tea powder with tobaccos - which may not be a bad idea.
Tea with Va/VaPer, Latakia mixture with scotch / black coffee, aromatics with milk coffee, perhaps.

 

[michaeljayjay]

These are the teas that I currently have;
2001 Gu Pu'er 'Yin Hao Tuo' 50g

2007 Pin Xiang 'Bu Lang' Tuo Guangdong Stored 250g

2010 'Nan Nuo' Autumn 250g

2015 Hai Lang Hao 'Gao Shan Chen Yun' Yi Wu 400g

 

[derekflint]

The one in the middle looks like a crumble cake........

 

[michaeljayjay]

Well they are all pressed into shape and they are super dense and packed tight enough I need to use a ton of force to get them apart properly. I'm pretty sure throwing one at somebody would kill them ;-)