History lesson on Pu-Erh or Harley and Emily drink some tea

So I am drinking Pu Erh Chorange

As the name would probably lead you to guess, this is a Pu Erh with Chocolate and Orange.  Didn’t guess that right off?  That’s ok, neither did I.  This is part of the Terra Sampler I received, which is a mix of various Pu Erh blends from Adagio Teas.  The ingredients of this blend are Pu Erh tea, orange peels, cocoa nibs, natural chocolate flavor, blue cornflowers, natural orange flavor.

So, small history/tea lesson since I have been drinking a lot of Pu Erh tea recently, thank you Terra Sampler:

Pu-erh originated thousands of years ago in the Yunnan Province of China, where large-leaf tea trees (Dayeh) grow. Its history relates closely to the tea trade between China and other nations (notably Tibet), and it is named for the town from which it was originally sold en route to other countries (Pu'er City). It was originally compressed into shapes for more efficient transit, and it acquired its dark color and flavor due to natural fermentation in transit to its final destinations.  Fermentation is a tea production style in which the tea leaves undergo microbial fermentation and oxidation after they are dried and rolled.  Pu Erh is named after the trading post for dark tea during imperial China.

In traditional Chinese herbalism, pu-erh tea is considered to open the meridians, 'warm the middle burner' (the spleen and stomach) and be beneficial to 'blood cleansing' and digestion. For these reasons, it is often consumed after heavy meals or drunk as a hangover cure / preventative.

Well this tea certainly brews up easily, 5 minutes steeping and the water is now a dark color and a nice chocolatey aroma rises from the pot, citrus tones from the orange add a nice accent to the smell.  I liked the first and second cups, though orange and chocolate is not my usual “cup of tea”.  I worked in Hershey and specifically for the Hershey Company, I know the smell of chocolate versus cocoa nibs.  This smell is a mix of both, though definitely on the side of the cocoa nib taste which is unsweetened and a bit more earth to it.