Type of wood for Pu-erh cabinet?

[bigmonstertruck]

Any thoughts on the type of wood that I should use for making my own pu-erh cabinet? I know some are called pumidors, but I don't think that implies to use Spanish cedar as is used for a cigar humidor due to the strong aroma of the wood. Would an oak plywood (or oak boards) work? Or is there something better?

Thanks for any input.

Ed

[tenuki]

Interested in this as well.

I just finished a bit of research on that very topic and initially settled on Aspen (basswood and soft maple were also options). The next step would be to compare the hygroscopic properties with spanish cedar, haven't got that far yet.

[tenuki]

Would an oak plywood (or oak boards) work? Or is there something better?

I don't think oak is a good choice, it has a strong aromatic component that might effect the puer in much the same way it is chosen to effect wine and whiskey.

[tingjunkie]

I'm about to commandeer an unused liquor cabinet from my mom's place to convert into a pumidor, so I'm curious too. I'm thinking about lining the inside with a neutral wood. We'll see how it already smells first.

[Drax]

Neutral woods are hard to find. Those of us who have gotten custom-made humidors for tea got them with a mahogany (most of which comes from honduras). It still has a woody odor to it, but it's going to be hard to find anything with no smell.

Although come to think of it, aged pu'erh was a woodiness aroma and flavor to it. It always reminded me of sandalwood. I wonder how pu'erh aged in a sandalwood box would do, then......?

[beecrofter]

Other than excluding overly aromatic wood species I would look for lumber that was quarter sawn . A low ratio of tangential/radial shrinkage will provide more stability such as basswood as will construction using floating joinery such as panels set to move freely in grooves or dadoes.

Were I seriously considering such a cabinet I might avoid wood entirely and consider using panels of hardiboard which are masonry and commonly used as tile substrate.

[Intuit]

zip

[bigmonstertruck]

When aging cigars, it is desirable that it pick up the aroma of Spanish cedar. The flavor of the cedar compliments a finely aged cigar much as the flavor of oak (or various other woods) enhances the flavor of scotch.

I have not heard that any flavor is considered complimentary to Pu-erh other than the tea itself.

Ed

[Intuit]

no comment

[beecrofter]

Table of wood type natural decay resistance. The wood need not be highly aromatic.

http://web.utk.edu/~tfpc/publicat/decay.htm

For humidity I am more concerned with shrinkage and expansion causing checking, cracking , cupping, and warping.

[Drax]

For humidity I am more concerned with shrinkage and expansion causing checking, cracking , cupping, and warping.

This is why I went with an established humidor maker. They are very familiar with these issues and know how to construct a container to avoid them.

I'd still be curious how pu'erh stored in a sandalwood (or cedarwood) would turn out. It can't be much different than the stories we hear (or pictures we see) of makers storing the tea with camphor...

[Intuit]

...

[nonc_ron]

You can use an air pump on a timer with a diffuser hose to aerate without stripping out too much humidity.

Huh?

[tenuki]

Interesting side note from the hobbyist cigar world - temp is also something important there, many use a stainless steel wine humidor (like the vinotemp line) with humidity beads to control both temp and humidity, and rely on either the boxes the cigars come in and/or spanish cedar trays to impart the traditional extra flavor. Many of the coolers on the market have a limited temp range however, so you have to be careful to get one that can go up to the optimal 65 degrees for cigars.

Peltier effect units have the potential to both heat and cool as needed, providing a constant temp with one simple unit. I could imagine having a puerdor with different 'temp/humidity profiles' you could set that mimic different places, ie Hong Kong storage, etc.

[nonc_ron]

I don't think oak is a good choice, it has a strong aromatic component that might effect the puer in much the same way it is chosen to effect wine and whiskey.

Oh Man, Thats what I wanted to use. (probably still am)
Oak is not a aromatic wood, Ceder is a aromatic wood. (you can smell it)
Oak is what they make quality cabinets and furniture out of. (No smell)

Whiskey does leach out some of the resins from charred oak barrels and that adds flavor (vanillin) to the whiskey. But the main reason is for the affects of the charcoal when aging whiskey. But Puerh wouldn't do that, Maybe after 20 years the wood would smell like Puerh. But not the other way around.