Pu-Erh Poe Customer Reviews

I bought this with the hope and expectations that it would smell like dirt and taste like dirt. This is what I crave in a pu erh tea. The reviews I read described its earthiness and the taste and odor of soil. I have had pu erh teas that fit this description and the poe tea is an impostor. In the pu erh world you get what you pay for and have learned the lesson again. It is a drinkable tea but as in the difference between wines, the subtleties of the tastes and aromas are enormous between different price points. If you want a decent drinkable but not complex tea go for this or the dante(the dante is a better choice). If you want a complex, great tea, go somewhere else.

This is a nice tea for sipping during work. I am new to tea and have been enjoying!

The tea is reasonably good and tastes exactly as described but we found it unremarkable given the price. May be we are not sophisticated enough to notice the subtle nuances... Well, given that none of us was excited about it, I'm not sure that I would buy this one again.

3 min steep · 212°F

I'm starting to expand my tea horizons. I like earl grey, not a big fan of rooibos, I didn't like pu erh poe the first time, but after a few more cups it started to grow on me. Definitely won't be my first choice, but good for something different.

Huh. Not loving this. I think in the future I'll stick to pu'erhs that have years and locations provided. A bit of a sweet potato taste to it. Not good, but not bad.

1 min steep · 200°F

Couldn't do this one. In a Vs. match between pu erh poe and pu erh dante the latter dominated in all categories. The back-end flavor on the poe was not something I could get around.

The dry leaves had no distinct fragrances. Some friends thought the first few steeps smelled fishy, but I thought of seaweed. I later followed other advice I had read, and swirled the leaves in boiling water for 45 seconds before draining, and steeping again for ~7 minutes. I steeped a second time as well. In between the steeps the leaves smelled like cooked spinach. Overall a very good tea.

7 min steep · 212°F · 1 helpful votes

When I opened the bag it smelled like a combination of fish and stables, but not in a bad way. It was earthy and musty. I rinsed it as many suggested and it took away some of the fishy smell. I really encourage those of you who shy away because of the fishy smell to give it a chance. It was rich, earthy, creamy, and absolutely delicious. Definitely one of my favorite teas now!

4 min steep · 212°F · 1 helpful votes

This tea was a real surprise, it has a beautiful color, and a really unique taste, after one cup, I was hooked. Do not hesitate to try this one!!! This will definately be my go to morning tea!

You either love it or hate it. I love it. It’s as close as I’ll ever get to tasting fresh, wet dirt. A little less strong and more smooth than the pu ehr dante.

Earthy pleasant blend. Has an outdoorsy smell I find to be on the mild side. I will definitely add this one to my list of favorites.

When I was in China I purchased a cake of Yunnan Tuocha (Pu Erh). It quickly became one of my favorites. When I got back to the states I looked for a comparable tea and this one is great! I prefer Pu Erh Dante to Pu Erh Poe as it has more 'dirt' and less 'floral' notes.
Pu Erh tea can amazingly be steeped over and over again with minimal loss of flavor and without bitterness. Sometimes I will keep the tea bag all day and just keep adding water.
Please note this tea is different and not for everyone. It is best plain as sugar will change the flavor. It is much stronger than other teas, but unlike normal teas water can be added to it to lessen the flavor. It is almost comparable to coffee. Almost tastes like dirt and that is why I love it. I highly suggest you try a sample of both the pu erh dante and pu erh poe.

Did not like the fishy aroma/taste. The only reason I rated 'bad' instead of 'awful' is because I mixed some of this tea with dewy cherry and that sort of neutralized the fishiness. Perhaps that is the key to this one.

Really like this one. I haven't decided between this and the Dante, so I will probably just stick to both! I dont find the objectionable undertones to be objectionable. Wonderful morning tea.

4 min steep · 212°F

This is an interesting tea. I can use it for multiple infusions at my cubicle at work and still get that dark, coffee-looking liquid each time. It's got a slightly fishy aroma but the flavor is not offensive. I'm new to pu erhs

Very nice, earthy blend that does not end up tasting like grass. Very full and hard to describe flavor, worth a try!

5 min steep · 212°F

What intrigues me about this tea is the story behind it - aged tea stored for long journeys across China. The other reviews are definitely right about one thing: it smells fishy and the scent seems strong when you bring the cup to your face. Luckily, the taste is far from fishy. The dark, almost coffee like color is a precursor to the strong taste. I ended up taking this tea like coffee, made it primarily for times when I really needed energy. I am a green tea drinker, so the buzz from this tea was very reliable.

1 helpful votes

It can most definitely be said I'm not a Pu-erh drinker. However I find this tea surprisingly drinkable(Like drinking the forest floor) and if you are looking to try a good Pu-erh to see if you like the type, then this would be the one.

5 min steep · 212°F

I am more impressed with this tea than I expected. As others have mentioned, both the leaf and the liquor furnish some frightening odors. Hay, dirt, fish, and horse stable are all present. However, if you can steel yourself against the harsher edges of the odor it's a surprisingly clean tasting tea with a round, mellow aftertaste. Kind of a bright iron note with a hint of mushroom. I usually lean towards citrus notes in my black teas, but this is a whole new way of achieving the same brightness: not citrusy by any means but far from a dreary breakfast tea. I'm not experienced with pu-er's so I can't speak to Adagio's offering specifically, but the black liquor, trenchant kick, and complex flavor profile mean I'll be exploring the genre much more. This is an amazing morning tea.

Note: I do recommend discarding the first (very short) infusion. The best results are when the tea is taken semi-gongfu over about three or four infusions from a single teaspoon

1 helpful votes

An interesting tea indeed! I find the smell to be very pleasant. The liquor is a deep black. The taste is like autumn leaves. This is a great morning tea.

5 min steep · 212°F

A warm tea with a strong earthy flavor

Yummy tea! This is an affordable and delicious pu erh tea.

It was interesting to say the least. Most of my family liked it after they tasted it, beforehand they thought it sounded gross. I also liked how you can steep it a lot! And you must let the water sit the drain the water after 45seconds to clean the leaves.

1 helpful votes

not terrible but really not something that made me excited to repurchase.

1 helpful votes

Not as funky as soem pu erh's I've had..thats a good thing! Definite notes of dark bitter chocolate, great coffee replacement. Will last many infusions.

1 min steep · 212°F · 1 helpful votes

Pu Erh Poe is very dark and rich. I started off this morning with this and it was very nice. I prefer Dante a bit more personally though.

very subdued in both flavor and texture, i found it to be almost like a creamy, dark squash. i was really surprised at how dark it was in the cup - it looks nearly like coffee! I'm not bothered by the smell, though, as some others seem to be

1 helpful votes

This one isnt too bad either, like the Dante is unlike other true pu erhs that I am use to but its not bad at all. I would NOT recommend brewing for 3 to 5 minutes as the instructions state (I dont understand the reason for that at all)all this one needs is a rinse for about 15 seconds then a brew for about 20 to 25 seconds, it is good for multiple infusions.

Wonderful color to this tea, and a strong flavor to go with it. Not overly bitter, which makes for a really fine cup of tea.

3 min steep · 212°F

The woodsy taste is pleasant, if odd. The smell is a deterrent, though - somewhere between fish and hay.

12 helpful votes

For some reason, this tastes like fish. I was hesitant to taste it because the bag smells very fishy, but I've loved Pu Erh since having it in Taiwan. I was hoping for a similar flavor, something tasting almost with the same flavor as the scent of a wild forest floor. Instead, I got fish. I won't order this again.

Nice pu erh. It did smell a little like hay when I first got it but it tastes great and mixes well with other teas.

2 helpful votes

A wonderful morning tea. It has a nice muted flavor...not too strong but be sure not to oversteep! This is my favorite go-to cup.

2 helpful votes

This tea certainly tastes pleasant, however the fishy aroma is simply too strong that I could not enjoy the tea.

5 min steep · 212°F

The flavor is very complex. It takes time to get used to, but once you start to appreciate the taste it is a very enjoyable tea.

5 helpful votes

I actually sort of liked the smell of this... I just don't necessarily enjoy drinking a barn, you know?

-1 helpful votes

My second ever pu erh. After being brewed, it had an odd aroma, but tasted quite good.

2 helpful votes

This is the first pu erh I had and it's an interesting taste.

2 helpful votes

Do a mini-steep for half a minute and discard that water, or you'll be drinking hot fish tea. Even when rinsed, there's a mild seaside twang to the tea that some may find objectionable. Think of it as salty tears for lost Lenore. Beyond that, the overall flavor is forest floor, earthy and mushroomy with a hint of buried hearts and maybe bear, which is not unpleasant but, like Poe, not for everyone.

66 helpful votes

Kind of bitter, I think I steeped it too long :/

I felt that the poe was actually weaker than dante. That said, both make excellent accompaniments to my breakfast.

5 min steep · 212°F · 4 helpful votes

I really enjoyed this tea. There was no bitterness to it at all.

1 helpful votes

I have always been a fan of pu erh and finally decided to try adagio's pu erh poe. It's not the greatest that I've had. The flavor and scent is a bit more muted than I'm used to experiencing. However, it still has the great effect of leaving me in a very mild, calm state of mind.

2 helpful votes

want to offset some of the negatives

1 helpful votes

We bought samples of both the Pu-erh Dante and the Pu-erh Poe (as we are tea snobs who like Pu-erh.)

The Pu-erh Poe smells a little like fish food, but tastes better then it smells. It has a very light flavor for a Pu-erh, however, maintains flavor level for several re-brews.

We will definitely finish the sample we ordered, but we won't order more. For what it is worth, we did like the sample of the Pu-erh Dante, and will be ordering more of that tea once the 16oz option is available.

212°F

It smelled like horses, which was't too bad. The taste was interesting... I didn't really like it, too earthy.

I wouldn't say this tastes like fish or dirt. The aroma, I would say, somewhat reminds me of fish food, and the flavor is very earthy. I like it. Really went well with some Asian food the other day. Would NOT make very good iced tea. =)

5 min steep · 212°F

My first time having straight pu erh, and I have to say the earthy notes were not over powering and it was a delicious tea

3 min steep · 212°F

so far I had been drinking the pu erh dante but I tried this one on a whim and I LOVE it! The flavor is a million times better. There is just a warmer note to it that I like, and it's about a million times smoother in a blend.

Not a big fan. The tea smelled like fish food before brewing, and retained a bit of that flavor after brewing.

I recommend rinsing in boiling water for 20 seconds in your teapot first, dumping the water, and then brewing.

Although I didn't enjoy this tea by itself, when 1/4 tsp of lapsang souchong is added per tsp of this tea, the result is great