Last March through May I bought 2 ripe pu-erh cakes and 2 raw pu-erh cakes and put them in individual zip lock bags then put all the bags in an airtight container.
Well, I just read in a book not to do that with raw puer, because the Chinese germs in the cakes are needed for further aging.
It is now August and as soon as I get home, I'm going to expose these cakes to the air. So I guess my main question is, are my Chinese puer germs dead? And will new American germs pick up where they left off for continued healthy aging, or are my cakes doomed?
Re: Did I just kill my Pu-erh germs?
Just grab the nearest Chinese person and have them sneeze and cough all over your cakes and it'll all be fine.
Re: Did I just kill my Pu-erh germs?
Oh gawd, cue flame war. Not your fault, though.
In retrospect to the original question, no you haven't had even a little enough time for antiseptic action. It's fine. Just put it in a place away from sun, as far away from humidfiers and heating vents in the house you can get, and try to keep up a decent ambient humidity. If your house is too dry, or you want some browning in taste, consider using a pumidor, but the ultimate price of that is that you have to pay more attention to what's going on, over many years, and a weekend's worth of accident can ruin things permanently.
In retrospect to the original question, no you haven't had even a little enough time for antiseptic action. It's fine. Just put it in a place away from sun, as far away from humidfiers and heating vents in the house you can get, and try to keep up a decent ambient humidity. If your house is too dry, or you want some browning in taste, consider using a pumidor, but the ultimate price of that is that you have to pay more attention to what's going on, over many years, and a weekend's worth of accident can ruin things permanently.
Aug 9th, '14, 17:11
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Re: Did I just kill my Pu-erh germs?
daidokorocha wrote:Just grab the nearest Chinese person and have them sneeze and cough all over your cakes and it'll all be fine.
before worrying, you should at least try the teas you are talking about.
Regards.
Re: Did I just kill my Pu-erh germs?
Most of the bacteria in pu-erh are facilitative anaerobes which can live without oxygen. So don't worry about it.djtanng wrote:Last March through May I bought 2 ripe pu-erh cakes and 2 raw pu-erh cakes and put them in individual zip lock bags then put all the bags in an airtight container.
Well, I just read in a book not to do that with raw puer, because the Chinese germs in the cakes are needed for further aging.
It is now August and as soon as I get home, I'm going to expose these cakes to the air. So I guess my main question is, are my Chinese puer germs dead? And will new American germs pick up where they left off for continued healthy aging, or are my cakes doomed?
Re: Did I just kill my Pu-erh germs?
Honestly, even if you did ruin it, it doesn't necessarily mean it would be poor to drink as it is! You can chip some off and give it a shot so you can see how it evolves over time. I mean no offense by my earlier comment, I just thought the phrasing in your post was funny.
Re: Did I just kill my Pu-erh germs?
Airtight storage can really ruin moist pu erh because of opportunistic anaerobic microbes. My dad bought some loose cooked pu erh in Hong Kong and stored it in an airtight container in Austria. It was...interesting...but I don't drink the stuff now (I brought it back to Hong Kong) because it tastes pretty funky in comparison to the same exact tea that has been stored in HK and allowed to breathe.