Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

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


User avatar
Jun 10th, '16, 01:11
Vendor Member
Posts: 3124
Joined: Aug 28th, '12, 08:12
Location: Hong Kong
Been thanked: 1 time
Contact: jayinhk

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by jayinhk » Jun 10th, '16, 01:11

Cwyn wrote:
jayinhk wrote:Drinking Hong Kong luk on (liu an) that is sold as 'aged.' Tasted relatively young when I bought it (clean, with no fermentation flavors whatsoever), and it was very reasonably priced compared to shu pu erh.

I've had it sitting at my office downtown for four years. Decided to check it out yesterday and I could smell some wet aromas (it's so humid at times that ebony carvings and even fiberglass gets moldy)! The tea has softened significantly and lost the aroma it had when fresh, and it has started to smell and taste more aged pu erh-like. Really quite pleasant, but a little bitter when brewed strong. I would like to have a room just for aging tea in; if that becomes a reality, I'll buy several kilos of this stuff to age as I bet it'll be lovely down the line! IMO this tea has changed dramatically in four years, but considering it's been sitting in a room by the harbour, close to where many of HK's tea warehouses are, I shouldn't be surprised.

Sounds very tasty! :P
It is! I'm surprised at the transformation. It seems to have come along very well since last year or even earlier this year. It tastes very slightly wet, but perhaps someone who wasn't looking for the storage aromas wouldn't taste it it all. Perfect! I am in the process of starting a tea business. If it works out, I will indeed rent premises exclusively for storing pu erh and hei cha, but at the level I find ideal (HK dry storage, which is still 60-100% humidity for most of the year)!

User avatar
Jul 19th, '16, 16:10
Vendor Member
Posts: 3124
Joined: Aug 28th, '12, 08:12
Location: Hong Kong
Been thanked: 1 time
Contact: jayinhk

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by jayinhk » Jul 19th, '16, 16:10

So I found out the liu'an I wrote about in my second last post on this thread is only 4-5 years old when sold (so pretty new). The extra four years really made a huge difference to the tea.

I tried a '94 HK traditional storage liu an yesterday and it had mellowed out into incredibly smooth tea over the years. Great value compared to pu erh, too, and 1/3 the price of pu that is two years younger. Distinctly different taste, too. Nice to have options. :)

Jul 19th, '16, 23:26
Posts: 118
Joined: Jul 6th, '14, 03:26
Contact: Cwyn

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by Cwyn » Jul 19th, '16, 23:26

Seems like various heicha are the last groups of aged teas still available for fairly reasonable prices.

I ended up getting the CNNP brick we discussed on the other thread. Am working on getting the flowers re-populated. Most heicha I order online arrives pretty dry. This brick takes up the entire box, no excess packaging. It was shipped in a sealed bag.

User avatar
Jul 20th, '16, 00:31
Vendor Member
Posts: 3124
Joined: Aug 28th, '12, 08:12
Location: Hong Kong
Been thanked: 1 time
Contact: jayinhk

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by jayinhk » Jul 20th, '16, 00:31

Cwyn wrote:Seems like various heicha are the last groups of aged teas still available for fairly reasonable prices.

I ended up getting the CNNP brick we discussed on the other thread. Am working on getting the flowers re-populated. Most heicha I order online arrives pretty dry. This brick takes up the entire box, no excess packaging. It was shipped in a sealed bag.
Heicha prices are already climbing--we might see prices get up as high as pu erh. Old liu bao can command very high prices in Malaysia, since the tea has a long history of consumption there. Which specific CNNP brick did you get?

User avatar
Jul 23rd, '16, 10:01
Posts: 156
Joined: Mar 10th, '14, 09:12
Location: Norway

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by Balthazar » Jul 23rd, '16, 10:01

Speaking of hei cha and Malaysia, has anyone tried the 1990s CNNP Guangxi Large Leaves Liubao (Malaysia storage) for sale over at Chawangshop?

I haven't had any Liubao for almost two years, would really like to get some for those chilly winter evenings, but I have no idea what to pick up right now. White2Tea had some really, really smooth (and equally affordable) liu bao for sale in 2014, haven't seen Paul carry any since then.

Could have sworn there was another (more pricey) Malaysia stored liubao up for sale on Chawangshop just a few days ago, must have been sold out. Guess this one will be too, not too long from now.

User avatar
Jul 23rd, '16, 15:03
Posts: 291
Joined: Feb 9th, '16, 21:23
Location: California

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by stevorama » Jul 23rd, '16, 15:03

Balthazar wrote:Speaking of hei cha and Malaysia, has anyone tried the 1990s CNNP Guangxi Large Leaves Liubao (Malaysia storage) for sale over at Chawangshop?
I've brewed this a couple of times. I enjoyed it. It reminded me of the 1992 Da Ye Loose Leaf Puer from EOT, similar in profile and price.

Jul 23rd, '16, 19:13
Posts: 118
Joined: Jul 6th, '14, 03:26
Contact: Cwyn

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by Cwyn » Jul 23rd, '16, 19:13

I have a quantity of this tea, I think I reviewed it on my blog. Has perfect storage flavor.

Jayinhk, I got the 2012 Fu brick.

User avatar
Jul 24th, '16, 06:54
Posts: 156
Joined: Mar 10th, '14, 09:12
Location: Norway

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by Balthazar » Jul 24th, '16, 06:54

Thanks for the feedback.

Checked your blog post, cwyn. Good read as always, might just have to pick up 100 grams of the tea. By the way, if you (or anyone else) could recommend just one liu bao of the "creamy brown thickness" type for sale at chawangshop, which would it be?

Jul 24th, '16, 20:27
Posts: 118
Joined: Jul 6th, '14, 03:26
Contact: Cwyn

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by Cwyn » Jul 24th, '16, 20:27

Balthazar wrote:Thanks for the feedback.

Checked your blog post, cwyn. Good read as always, might just have to pick up 100 grams of the tea. By the way, if you (or anyone else) could recommend just one liu bao of the "creamy brown thickness" type for sale at chawangshop, which would it be?
Guanxi Liu Bao bricks are reliable, if not terribly exciting. You'll get a taste of hongcha and shou together.

User avatar
Jul 26th, '16, 00:10
Vendor Member
Posts: 3124
Joined: Aug 28th, '12, 08:12
Location: Hong Kong
Been thanked: 1 time
Contact: jayinhk

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by jayinhk » Jul 26th, '16, 00:10

500ml Yixing brewing up the office storage liu an. :) this pot seems to perform very well with the liu an and brings out the flavor wonderfully. I can taste the storage a little, but it is pleasant drinking. Big pot brewing pu erh and heicha is something everyone should do more often, IMO, as that is how these teas are traditionally consumed. Well, aside from boiling the leaves over an open fire...and adding rancid Yak butter, in the case of certain Tibetan teas!

User avatar
Jul 26th, '16, 00:21
Posts: 291
Joined: Feb 9th, '16, 21:23
Location: California

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by stevorama » Jul 26th, '16, 00:21

jayinhk wrote:500ml Yixing brewing up the office storage liu an. :) this pot seems to perform very well with the liu an and brings out the flavor wonderfully. I can taste the storage a little, but it is pleasant drinking. Big pot brewing pu erh and heicha is something everyone should do more often, IMO, as that is how these teas are traditionally consumed. Well, aside from boiling the leaves over an open fire...and adding rancid Yak butter, in the case of certain Tibetan teas!
What quantity of tea are you using with the 500ml pot? What do you like about that volume with pu er and hei cha?

User avatar
Jul 26th, '16, 00:45
Vendor Member
Posts: 3124
Joined: Aug 28th, '12, 08:12
Location: Hong Kong
Been thanked: 1 time
Contact: jayinhk

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by jayinhk » Jul 26th, '16, 00:45

stevorama wrote:
jayinhk wrote:500ml Yixing brewing up the office storage liu an. :) this pot seems to perform very well with the liu an and brings out the flavor wonderfully. I can taste the storage a little, but it is pleasant drinking. Big pot brewing pu erh and heicha is something everyone should do more often, IMO, as that is how these teas are traditionally consumed. Well, aside from boiling the leaves over an open fire...and adding rancid Yak butter, in the case of certain Tibetan teas!
What quantity of tea are you using with the 500ml pot? What do you like about that volume with pu er and hei cha?
Stevorama, you get a full flavor extraction and can taste the entire profile of the tea with every sip. I am only using 2-3 grams (I had SERIOUS food poisoning yesterday, and this is the first tea I've had since).

Also reclining with a larger cup and a big pot means you don't have to keep refilling it, but the tea does get cool if you aren't drinking very quickly. You can top the pot up with boiling water as you drink your way through it.

User avatar
Jul 26th, '16, 01:09
Posts: 291
Joined: Feb 9th, '16, 21:23
Location: California

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by stevorama » Jul 26th, '16, 01:09

jayinhk wrote:
stevorama wrote:Stevorama, you get a full flavor extraction and can taste the entire profile of the tea with every sip. I am only using 2-3 grams (I had SERIOUS food poisoning yesterday, and this is the first tea I've had since).

Also reclining with a larger cup and a big pot means you don't have to keep refilling it, but the tea does get cool if you aren't drinking very quickly. You can top the pot up with boiling water as you drink your way through it.
Ah, gotcha. Sounds like you're doing one steeping only then.

Food poisoning. Uh-oh! Po Chai pills (Bao Ji Wan) or Kang Ning Wan are great herbal remedies or that.

User avatar
Jul 26th, '16, 01:55
Vendor Member
Posts: 3124
Joined: Aug 28th, '12, 08:12
Location: Hong Kong
Been thanked: 1 time
Contact: jayinhk

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by jayinhk » Jul 26th, '16, 01:55

Well, you can drink from the same leaves for quite a while as long as you keep topping up. This is how most Chinese people around the world drink tea (not gongfu style, despite what the internet would have you think)!

Thanks, I'm doing better already. Friend of mine suggested Seirogan, and since it is suggested for food poisoning specifically, I'm going to give it a shot. She simply called it "Trumpet Brand."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seirogan

User avatar
Sep 6th, '16, 14:27
Posts: 156
Joined: Mar 10th, '14, 09:12
Location: Norway

Re: Which HEI CHA are you drinking?

by Balthazar » Sep 6th, '16, 14:27

1980's 'Chen Xiang' Aged Liu Bao from Essence of Tea.

Sample kindly provided by Ferg. This is a delicious liu bao, thick and creamy, wood and camphor, no traces of humidity/off-flavors. Apparently not for sale anymore, not that I could ever justify spending £0.6 per gram for a liu bao anyway. Happy to have been able to try this, though.

I have a bunch of other interesting EoT liu bao samples to get through (thanks again, Ferg!). Yesterday I tried the 2003 Wuzhou Tea Factory 0311 which was pretty decent (with a very attractive price tag!) but nothing too special.

My experience with liu bao is still very limited, but so far I seem to prefer larger leaf and lighter fermentation. The mentioned 90s Malaysian storage liu bao sold by Chawangshop is right up my alley.

+ Post Reply