"My first experience with pu'er tea... I could just barely get past its "unique" aroma. I'm sure this is a high quality blend, but pu'er perhaps just isn't for me." Vanessa’s Teaview: 3/10 Other Teaviews: Stephen gave it 7/10 Your Reviews: 10/10 2 reader reviews | Add your review »

I was really excited to try Mighty Leaf’s Mocha Pu-erh truffle tea for two reasons: 1) I had never tried Pu-erh tea before, and 2) Food and Wine magazine featured Mighty Leaf’s chocolate truffle tea collection as one of the “100 tastes you must try in 2007″. Mighty Leaf describes their product as an exceptionally hard-to-produce Pu-erh from the Yunnan province, with cocoa, cacoa nibs, and citrus. The aroma of the loose tea was very inviting, and made me even more excited to brew myself a cup. The chocolate was the strongest component to the scent, but there was also a spicy-citrusy undertone. Unfortunately, once I brewed myself a cup, I found myself very disappointed. After brewing, the Pu-erh took center stage and left very little room for the cocoa and citrus notes to be experienced. The aroma of the tea was strong, to say the least, and was, as has been described by many a Pu-erh drinker, very “earthy”. I have described some green teas as having an “earthy” aroma and/or taste, but this was a whole new level for me. For me, the smell was so overwhelming, that I actually put the cup down and found myself doubting whether I would actually be able to swallow it. When I finally worked up the courage to drink the tea, I was pleased to learn that the earthiness seemed to stay mostly in the aroma and was, thankfully, less conspicuous in the taste. There were chocolatey and citrus notes to the tea, however, I found it difficult to separate taste from smell, particularly when every sip forces your nose into the teacup. Not wanting to be hasty in my judgment, I let two days pass and decided to try it again. My reaction was the same - I just couldn’t get beyond the smell to enjoy what was probably an otherwise tasty tea.

This review is not intended to imply that Might Leaf Mocha Pu-Erh Truffle is a low-quality tea. Actually, I believe the exact opposite is true: the pu-erh tea itself is apparently high quality, and the mocha truffle flavors are natural and well-balanced. In fact, had the mocha truffle flavor been added to a standard black tea base rather than a Pu-erh, chances are that I would be writing a rave review for this product. I do intend to sample other truffle teas from the Mighty Leaf collection, because the flavors definitely seem to have potential. It simply came down to a matter of the Pu-erh base, and I learned that Pu-erh tea is just not for me. Even though I did not enjoy this tea, I would recommend that everyone give it a try because it seems to me that Pu-erh is like Lapsong Souchong in that you will either love it or hate it, and of course there’s only one way to find out for sure.

— To purchase Mighty Leaf Mocha Pu-er Truffle, or for more specific information on ingredients or the story behind this particular blend, click here to go directly to the manufacturer's web site.

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