08 July, 2010

2003 6FTM "Fengqing Lushi"

I don't drink a lot of 6FTM, it mostly being bargain-basement filler.  Some of their older cakes, though, can be really very proper.  This is one of them - thanks to Keng for generously sending us an entire cake.


2003 6FTM Fengqing
The Fengqing Lushi


I love wrappers from the charmingly naive era before it they became designed in Photoshop - they're so lo-fi and "real".

Unusually for such a brand, this cake has its provenance clearly stated: Majie village, near Lushi town, in Fengqing county, which makes this a Lincang [lin-tsang] cake.  The wrapper also indicates that its production was limited (!) to 2000 kg; i.e., exactly 800 tong.


2003 6FTM Fengqing


I drink this at 5 a.m.  The sun is up already, and the birds' dawn chorus is deafening.  The warm air and birdsong gives our chilly old country a distinctly tropical feeling, this morning.

Powerful, woody, and malty, this tea bites back and has some character.  The woodiness is particularly sharp, as if arrived at naturally from a state of original bitterness.  Tons of caffeine from this cake leave me wide-eyed and ready for the day.  Let it be remembered that 6FTM can (or at least could) make very decent cakes.

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