As westerners we are in a land far from the production of our beloved Yunnanese pu’erh and from the huge tea markets of China. This seemingly locks us into a constant struggle to eliminate as many middlemen and meddling hands as possible between us and our teas. The western market for pu’erh is far smaller and physically further from the source, giving east Asian vendors little incentive to accommodate us. It’s no surprise that there is a western premium that most of us pay to get our teas. However, unlike oolong or green teas, pu’erh is also sold with very commonly label. For mass-marketed teas like Dayi or Xiaguan it is very easy to find the Chinese prices for the tea using Donghe or Taobao. It is also possible for the willing and resourceful to buy directly from the Chinese market (via Taobao). This article examines this and several of the different tea types and approximates the markups. (more…)
Tag: Yunnan Sourcing
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Peripheral Teaware — TeaDB James InBetweenIsode Episode #21
Musings on some teaware that James uses that you may or may not find useful!
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![Wuliang/Ailao Raw Pu’erh [February 2015 Tea Drinking Report]](https://teadb.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/ripe-puerh3-940x198.jpg)
Wuliang/Ailao Raw Pu’erh [February 2015 Tea Drinking Report]
Big shoutouts to Carolyn & Brian (a different Brian from last month) for providing several of the teas for this month and allowing the content to be what it is! I hope you like long-form content, because this tea of the month report is truly massive.
In the month of February 2015, the tea of the month was Wuliang/Ailao Pu’erh. During this month, I had Wuliang/Ailao Pu’erh at least once a day (unless totally unfeasible). I’ll still consume other teas, but the primary focus is understanding and building a palate for a specific type/genre/region of tea through repetition. This is the most personal blogging type style of post for TeaDB, and the goal is to stretch my palate as well as give recommendations to interested parties. (more…)
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2012 Yunnan Sourcing Wuliang — TeaDB James InBetweenIsode Episode #19
A great tea for its value. A nice, well-priced young pu’erh. Plenty strong and good for drinking now.
Acquired from Yunnan Sourcing.
Hobbes Review:
http://half-dipper.blogspot.com/2014/01/all-over-your-wuliangshan.html -
Nanjian’s 2011 Organic Mushroom Ripe Pu’erh via Yunnan Sourcing [Episode 94]
This is a great clean, daily drinking ripe pu’erh for those on a budget. Ceritified organic, with just a little bit of the pile taste, it’s sold for an exceedingly reasonable price by Yunnan Sourcing. Recommended by Denny as a great intro ripe pu’erh.
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Lincang Raw Pu’erh [January 2015 Tea Drinking Report]
Big shoutouts to Dignitea, Brian, Jake, Carolyn and Cwyn for providing several of the teas for this month and allowing the content to be what it is! I hope you like long-form content, because this tea of the month report is truly massive.
In the month of January 2015, the tea of the month was Lincang Pu’erh. During this month, I had Lincang Pu’erh at least once a day (unless totally unfeasible). I’ll still consume other teas, but the primary focus is understanding and building a palate for a specific type/genre/region of tea through repetition. This is the most personal blogging type style of post for TeaDB, and the goal is to stretch my palate as well as give recommendations to interested parties.
Producers sampled from:
- S. Mengku
- Yunnan Sourcing
- Fengqing Sanning
- Mandala Tea
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Yunnan Sourcing’s 2012 Yong de Blue — TeaDB James InBetweenIsode Episode #14
Inbetweenisode #14 covers a great daily-drinking ripe pu’erh that is very much to James’ taste, 2012 Yong de Blue. If you liked the Yong de Organic Ripe pu’erh covered in inbetweenisode #1 this is an excellent alternate.
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Essential Gong-Fu Teaware — TeaDB James InBetweenIsode Episode #12
Inbetweenisode Episode #12 from James. A short episode that covers the basics of what you need to get started brewing gong-fu style!
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Yunnan Sourcing’s More Humidly Stored Pu’erhs. 2007 Bo Nan, 2004 Nanjian Phoenix, 2002 Yiwu Ancient Spirit — TeaDB James InBetweenIsode Episode #11
Inbetweenisode Episode #11 from James. Discussion is on wetter-stored pu’erh and some recommendations of the recent additions to Yunnan Sourcing’s tea lineup. Teas talked about include the daily drinker 2007 Bo Nan Mountain Yun Wu and the better 2004 Nanjian Phoenix Aroma + 2002 Yiwu Ancient Spirit.