NOTE/Disclaimer: Since filming this, exchanging samples with someone else who bought this tea and simply doing more research, it’s become pretty clear to me that this tea (as most acquired in this fashion) is probably not what is actually advertised. That being said, the tea review still stands on its own.
In episode 73, Denny & James review a pu’erh of questionable origins (supposedly 2001 Dingxing Hao) acquired via Taobao. To buy from Taobao you need a Taobao agent (we used Cheap Agency).
I have this cake, and it has been completely broken up and stored in a vintage American stoneware crock for awhile now. The tea improved greatly this summer with this airing, turning sweeter crammed into the crock and losing the storage smell. It is my daily drinker tea. The price is amazing for aged tea, and I agree with James that the traditional storage is the reason. What I like the best about this cake is I can glug away at will, it is not a super pricey cake that I get into a cycle thinking “I should save this,” or “it’s one of my expensive teas, wait for a better occasion” etc., nope I can brew it up without any tea OCD.
Will mention that the seller has two versions, one is a Storm Deal which is referred to as a second batch. The photo has a buggier looking wrapper. I bought the regular cake. The tea doesn’t give any stoner effects, but it is indeed smooth and tasty. But pencil shavings?? Gotta love the adjectives Denny comes up with which A) I would never come up with, and B) nobody else would come up with either.
Very enjoyable episode! Great fun for me, this is the first time I’ve tried something before the actual episode! Usually I’m playing catch up!
Haha!! Thank you for the compliment (I think)! Who knows what’s going on in this nose but pencil shavings it was!
So glad that you’ve also had this tea and enjoyed the episode. Thanks for following along Cwyn!
Wishing you well and full of smiles, present and future,
-Denny
Hi Cwyn,
Thanks for the comment and kind words! Totally agree with your comments on “saving expensive tea”. In terms of cost, this is certainly a guilt-free drinker.
As you can see my cake is a bit dankier/mature than yours. I have many mixed feelings about this cake and buying from this specific seller. That being said, this cake turned out alright (I think?).
Cheers!
-James
PS. Cwyn was kind enough to send me a sample of her cake. It is definitely a different tea which lead me to the disclaimer above.
Well I really can’t tell much of a difference from a video view. Perhaps you needn’t send me a sample of yours. Instead, Denny can grind up a Seattle pencil closest in flavor and send the shavings instead? ;P
Hahaha. Perhaps on 4/1/2015. :).
Cheers!
-James
We are gongfu geeks maybe???
Hi Uncle Larry,
Gongfu geeks indeed!
Cheers!
-James
A great community to be a part of.
Fun to see how it will grow.
A tea that tastes like pencil shavings, a dank basement, and funky, yet is quite pleasant? It’s no wonder I find puer so hard to understand.
All of the Above!
Cheers!
-James
ps. The intrigue is certainly a part of the pu’erh fun :)!
I don’t know what to think of this tasting. You both kept saying how “pleasant” the tea tasted, but your body language was not quite as convincing.The one impression I have from this podcast is I should be pretty cautious about buying from Taobao.
That being said, it is good to know there is a way to purchase from that website if I ever feel brave, (or want to try some online gambling). Thanks for the info on Cheap Agency and for another great video!
Carolyn
Aha. I’m as conflicted on you on this tea. In the end this tea has some off-taste but really is somewhat of a bargain at the price. I am pretty optimistic that the cake will turn out to be OK. I’m hopefully the drier climate out west will help to get rid of some of the excessive moisture. The base material is obviously not the best, but these sorts of aged cakes are hard to get here in the west.
That being said. If you bought this cake today on Taobao there is definitely no guarantee you will get this same cake or even remotely similar.
Despite my reservations I am eager to gamble again :).
Cheers!
-James
i recommend Taobao chinese tea stores.if you have Interest,pls read here.
http://cheapagency.tumblr.com/post/95353697059/taobao-chinese-tea-stores
Leave a Reply