I get asked now and then what I’ve bought and where to buy from. Despite some past efforts of transparency and publicly shaming, I haven’t talked as directly about teas I’ve bought. If you read between the lines you can probably get some idea of what I go for. Over the last few years, I’ve slowed down an awful lot, first in terms of sampling and now in terms of buying. A few cakes I’ve bought in the last 8 or 9 months.
(more…)Author: James
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1988 Hongtaichang Raw “Pu’erh” via Tea-Side [Episode 324]
This episode, Denny and I drink a purportedly very old tea processed like sheng pu’erh. The tea was kindly provided by Valerii over at Tea-Side and is not pu’erh because it comes from Thai material. While we can’t vouch for this exact age the tea is legitimately old.
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Pu’erh Collection Trajectories & Regrets [Inbetweenisode 205]
This episode Garrett talk and reflect on pu’erh collecting, including different trajectories towards your pu’erh stash. We finish by talking a bit about regrets and things we would’ve liked to know earlier on in our tea journeys. We don’t drink tea in this episode but if you are into spreadsheets and the nerdier aspects of just thinking about collecting pu’erh this is a good episode for you.
Mentioned:
https://www.mrlovenstein.com/images/comics/1092_objectified.png
http://www.marshaln.com/2013/06/hitting-hard-with-a-hammer/ -
WuyiOrigin Baijiguan Wuyi Oolong [Episode 323]
This episode, Denny and I drink one of the four famous bushes of Yancha from Wuyi Origin and is usually processed and made on the greener end. This tea is aromatic, well-balanced and very enjoyable.
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When do Pu’erh Vendor’s Raise their Prices?
The common wisdom around pu’erh prices is that they rise over time. This is of course true if we zoom out far enough. If you were to take snapchats of most pu’erh production every few years, the trend would be quite obvious even with a downturn or two (i.e. 2007/2008). Not everything rises equally though. One interesting point of a consideration as a consumer is when and why vendors tend to adjust price. Thanks to Matt for the idea.
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2001 Xiaguan Iron 8653 Raw Pu’erh [Episode 322]
This episode, Denny and I drink a sample kindly provided by Pat, a 2001 Xiaguan Iron 8653. This is a famous recipe and the tea itself is fairly aged, but still potent raw pu’erh. The character is partly woody, earthy and aged but there’s also a brightness and liveliness to the tea that keeps the session dynamic. Thanks Pat!
https://www.instagram.com/pat_love_tea/
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2007 Dayi Star of Menghai Ripe [Episode 321]
This episode, Denny and I drink a special production ripe from last decade, the Star of Menghai. This is a production that is not made every year and is composed of a lot of tippy, gong ting leaves. Thank you to shah for sending this tea in.
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The 70/70 Line & Projecting Pu’erh Storage
A few years ago I thought it’d be interesting to try mapping certain temperature and humidity conditions to approximate a certain area’s storage. For instance, if you could maintain conditions of 55-65F/65RH in a storage setup that might approximate somewhat close to average Kunming storage. 80-85F/65-70RH might be Kuala Lumpur. After banging my head and never really getting anywhere I decided that this was a doomed exercise (or at least beyond what I’m capable of). One reason why is that while location clearly matters in storage conditions, trying to translate outside weather conditions to actual storage conditions is not easy or straightforward. In the west people will sometimes get quite excited about storage and look at their climate data and try to extrapolate. I don’t think this is a totally useless exercise but it’s pretty difficult to know what to do with these numbers. This article explores some limitations but also what I think is a shortcut to approximating your natural conditions and how they stack up with places with an actual record of pu’erh storage.
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2016 WuyiOrigin Laocong Shuixian [Inbetweenisode 204]
This episode, James is joined by old friend “five kilo” Meet. We drink some of Meet’s favorite type of tea, Yancha, and talk about both the tea and where his five kilos have gone.
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2016 Zhengyan 105 Wuyi via Yunnan Sourcing [Episode 320]
This episode, Denny and I drink a mildly unusual Wuyi. A fun change of pace vs. more typical mineraly Yancha.
Thanks to John for sending in this sample!
