Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

One of the intentionally aged teas, Pu-Erh has a loyal following.


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Sep 11th, '12, 21:48
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Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

by jayinhk » Sep 11th, '12, 21:48

Here in HK, it's very, very easy to get loose, well-aged shu, but I haven't come across any sheng sold in the same manner. I'd like to pick up a reasonably priced cake which is pleasantly drinkable today. Any suggestions on a Taobao cake (or something I can find locally here in HK) I can break up for immediate consumption?

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Sep 11th, '12, 21:50
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Re: Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

by MarshalN » Sep 11th, '12, 21:50

That depends on how you define ready for immediate consumption

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Sep 11th, '12, 21:56
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Re: Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

by jayinhk » Sep 11th, '12, 21:56

I should have seen that coming. :) OK, for around 200 RMB max, what's the most drinkable cake I can pick up that won't be so fu (bitter) that I wince?

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Sep 11th, '12, 21:57
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Re: Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

by MarshalN » Sep 11th, '12, 21:57

But I don't know your tolerance for bitterness. Some people drink Laoman'e just fine even when they're brand new.

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Re: Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

by jayinhk » Sep 11th, '12, 22:00

Well, I do use a very bitter Malaysian medicinal herb, so I can deal with extreme bitterness if I have to. Hmmm, perhaps I could just pick up a new cake and add the herb to it (which otherwise has very little flavor). Ok, for 200 RMB max, if you had to pick one to drink today, which would it be?

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Sep 11th, '12, 23:10
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Re: Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

by jayinhk » Sep 11th, '12, 23:10

Just bought this cake (my first):

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=5080102323

I did a search on Taobao for 100-200 RMB, raw tea, and then sorted for popularity. I picked this one since it was a 2002 and I figured the 10 yrs should have helped improve it at least a little. Any thoughts?

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Sep 11th, '12, 23:18
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Re: Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

by TwoDog2 » Sep 11th, '12, 23:18

jayinhk wrote:Well, I do use a very bitter Malaysian medicinal herb, so I can deal with extreme bitterness if I have to. Hmmm, perhaps I could just pick up a new cake and add the herb to it (which otherwise has very little flavor). Ok, for 200 RMB max, if you had to pick one to drink today, which would it be?
200 RMB, newer raw cake with very little bitterness? I just had this cake last week, not sure if you want to risk tabao, but this vendor is selling it for 258 RMB (I have never bought this cake or purchased from this vendor, so you are taking a risk here -I just had a sample of what I think is the same cake and it seemed to roughly fit your criteria ) Also, the cake that my sample was from brewed a much more aged soup than what that taobao vendors pictures indicate, you can compare the color.

The kuwei was balanced and not overpowering. The tea was pretty decent and near 200 RMB. The tricky thing with recommending tea is that people have vastly different tastes. I liked the cake, but you might hate it. Just like if I recommend a restaurant I enjoy and you hate that type of cuisine - it is a gamble.

Rather than gamble with Taobao, I would recommend you go to some local shops and describe what you are searching for ( a price range, a flavor profile, a feeling) and see what they brew for you. If you like something, buy a cake and go from there.

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Sep 11th, '12, 23:22
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Re: Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

by TwoDog2 » Sep 11th, '12, 23:22

jayinhk wrote:Just bought this cake (my first):

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=5080102323

I did a search on Taobao for 100-200 RMB, raw tea, and then sorted for popularity. I picked this one since it was a 2002 and I figured the 10 yrs should have helped improve it at least a little. Any thoughts?

Crap! I was busy writing my post and didn't get to you in time... In general, if a cake is 10 years old and costs under 200 RMB, you are realllllly gambling. A texas hold'em analogy would be shoving all-in preflop with 72 off suit... Actually, your odds are probably worse than that!

Oh well, like I said in my last post, see if you can go and try samples. The best way for you to define what you will enjoy is by first hand experience.

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Sep 11th, '12, 23:40
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Re: Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

by jayinhk » Sep 11th, '12, 23:40

Thanks for the recommendation TwoDog! Hopefully the cake I bought it isn't too bad. ;) It does appear to be the seller's most popular cake, but maybe other people just thought they were getting a bargain! Some people did buy 10+ cakes, so maybe it is decent stuff. I'll have to try sampling more sheng at stores in the weeks to come to get a better picture of what it is.

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Re: Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

by Tofsla » Sep 12th, '12, 03:57

TwoDog2 wrote:
jayinhk wrote:Just bought this cake (my first):
http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=5080102323
...
... In general, if a cake is 10 years old and costs under 200 RMB, you are realllllly gambling. A texas hold'em analogy would be shoving all-in preflop with 72 off suit... Actually, your odds are probably worse than that!
This cake costs about the same in Chawangshop. I have had a sample recently and found it just ok. Nothing fancy, though. A typical Yiwu of this age: woody, velvety, slightly bitter, slightly astringent, slightly sweet. Has traces of wet storage, probably on early stage of its lifetime. It is not too thick, though. I guess, it is a fair price for this cake - so, chances are, you will get the original one from taobao, either. It is nothing special, but totally drinkable.

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Sep 12th, '12, 08:27
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Re: Recommendations for a raw cake for immediate consumption

by jayinhk » Sep 12th, '12, 08:27

Thanks Tofala, I feel a lot better knowing it's at least drinkable. I won't feel bad about offloading it on eBay if it's not my thing.

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