*bitter with a definite smokey taste (to me)--well, does earthy mean bitter?
*dark brew (used boiling water and infused til the tuocha melted apart; took
about a minute or two)

I recommend that you rinse the toucha first for about ten seconds, then
brew. Try different techniques-- short steeps in a small cup (30
seconds or so) or the entire toucha in a large pot (12 oz) for a few
minutes. It's not going to be the best example of this kind of tea
because in my experience mini touchas lack the dimension and variety of
flavor that cakes or fine loose pu-erh often have, but if you like this
tea in general, and find it agrees with you, then you can start by
trying some of the 'real' stuff. YSLLC on ebay is a good source of
well-priced cooked puerh for a start. Mike Petro recommends Rishi
Tea's touchas on his website www.pu-erh.net; it also has a good
detailed intro on how cooked puerh is made. There's oh so much more
but it's a start...

Good luck!