1st attempt at puerh cake

by **teanovice78** » Oct 14th, '12, 13:06

1st attempt at puerh cake

by teanovice78 » Oct 14th, '12, 13:06

Well, my first attempt at buying a puerh cake didn't go so well. The cake is so dried out that I can't even pry a piece off without it just breaking up really small. Can anyone suggest a good vendor in the usa that is affordable but good quality? Thanks!

by **shah82** » Oct 14th, '12, 13:16

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by shah82 » Oct 14th, '12, 13:16

Use an ice pick. The cake is supposed to be dry and hard, if preserving aroma is a goal of the maker. Take out chunks, and wash that rock in your gaiwan/yixing a couple of times to soften things up.

Most US vendors are reliable. There is hell to pay if they're not.

by **Emmett** » Oct 14th, '12, 14:35

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by Emmett » Oct 14th, '12, 14:35

May I ask what cake did you buy?

by **135F2** » Oct 14th, '12, 14:36

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by 135F2 » Oct 14th, '12, 14:36

teanovice78 wrote:Well, my first attempt at buying a puerh cake didn't go so well. The cake is so dried out that I can't even pry a piece off without it just breaking up really small. Can anyone suggest a good vendor in the usa that is affordable but good quality? Thanks!

http://houdeasianart.com/

by **teanovice78** » Oct 14th, '12, 14:59

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by teanovice78 » Oct 14th, '12, 14:59

Emmett, I'm not really sure what it is..there are some pictures in another post here is the link:http://www.teachat.com/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=17847

by **tst** » Oct 14th, '12, 15:39

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by tst » Oct 14th, '12, 15:39

Have you tasted this tea yet?

I'll give the same advice others gave me ... buy samples before you buy whole cakes.

by **teanovice78** » Oct 14th, '12, 17:51

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by teanovice78 » Oct 14th, '12, 17:51

It's not too bad, flavor isn't very strong though. It is drinkable so that is a plus.

by **TwoDog2** » Oct 14th, '12, 21:12

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by TwoDog2 » Oct 14th, '12, 21:12

teanovice78 wrote:It's not too bad, flavor isn't very strong though. It is drinkable so that is a plus.

Somebody already mentioned this, but double emphasis on sampling. Sample as much as you can, or contact a vendor and give them a rough idea of the flavors/strength you want, otherwise you will end up paying an unnecessarily high tuition for getting started. You are bound to make some purchases you regret anyway, everyone has a few cakes in their closet that they could take or leave. But, If you sample a few sessions before buying a cake, you will minimize your losses.

by **teanovice78** » Oct 14th, '12, 22:23

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by teanovice78 » Oct 14th, '12, 22:23

I agree that I will order some samples in the future and see what I like. I am definately looking for a strong flavored tea; more on the earthy side than the sweet. Someone suggested one place, any other usa vendors that have good puerh and fair prices?

by **TwoDog2** » Oct 14th, '12, 23:46

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by TwoDog2 » Oct 14th, '12, 23:46

Yunnan Sourcing's US store

They have a good selection of ripe tea

by **JakubT** » Oct 15th, '12, 01:59

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by JakubT » Oct 15th, '12, 01:59

Why to limit yourself to US vendors? If you had not, then finepuer and sampletea might be a good place to look for samples, because they have them really cheap (not cheap tea, though hardly too expensive, but the samples are cheap). And from all the vendors I have tried so far, the hit/miss ratio is probably the best for them. They're based in Malaysia, but the shipping is quite allright and fast.

In US, thechineseteashop might be worth a look - I think there are some very good teas and a lot of rather ordinary stuff, generally for good prices. The only thing I really disliked was that cheap 2003 Tong Qing Hao, that's a really disgusting thing.

by **MarshalN** » Oct 15th, '12, 02:33

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by MarshalN » Oct 15th, '12, 02:33

I think thechineseteashop has enough duds to make it not a good idea for newcomers - if they ordered the wrong things they will hate puerh forever. Better to go with some safer vendors.

by **135F2** » Oct 15th, '12, 02:41

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by 135F2 » Oct 15th, '12, 02:41

teanovice78 wrote:Someone suggested one place, any other usa vendors that have good puerh and fair prices?

Maybe you didn't see this sampler section at Houde's site:

http://www.houdeasianart.com/index.php? ... 1c7bf8a8eb

by **tinols** » Oct 15th, '12, 02:54

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by tinols » Oct 15th, '12, 02:54

TwoDog2 wrote:Yunnan Sourcing's US store

They have a good selection of ripe tea

Right here

by **TwoDog2** » Oct 15th, '12, 03:34

Re: 1st attempt at puerh cake

by TwoDog2 » Oct 15th, '12, 03:34

135F2 wrote:Maybe you didn't see this sampler section at Houde's site:

http://www.houdeasianart.com/index.php? ... 1c7bf8a8eb

I like Houde's raw selections a lot, but they don't have a big variety for a newcomer to ripe.