What to do with transition pu?

[Proinsias]

I've got a 2001 Xiaguan, I think, brick that I found far more enjoyable a year or two ago than more recently. It's definitely changed in quite a short period of time. It tasted older than 2001 when I first tried it and it seemed to have the best of both worlds, now it seems to be gravitating towards the worst of both worlds.

My plan is chip away at it very slowly, every six months or so, and see what happens.

What the longterm effect of pumidor storage will be on 2001 sheng is anyones guess. Personally I use random chunks of pu as the flooring for the shelf in my tea cupboard. I'm keen to see what the longterm effects of central heating and the Scottish climate have on my pu, at the very least it should be rarer than pumidor stored sheng.

[hop_goblin]

I have a 2001 longfeng brick that I remember not quite fully enjoying the first time I had it. And this second time I think I figured out why. I think it is in one of the awkward "transition" phases people talk about when they talk about pu.

I've had some younger pu's I've enjoyed, and I have some of the 90's tuo's from nada which I thoroughly enjoy.

but with this the best I can explain it is its starting to age to where its losing its kick and bite sometimes found pleasurable in younger stuff, but it still has some which strikes as a harsh unwanted contrast to some of the mellowing effects that are taking place in the aging process.


Any idea's for what I can do with it to help it along, or different brewing params to make it more drinkable?


I already put together a little pumidor which I'll try and take pic's of later.

Hey AMY, very interesting comment. Well, the fact of the matter is that as pu ages, it is supposed to lose its 'bite'. In fact, it may be evidence that you are doing somethign right! Although, it is important to take into account that not all pu is mean't for aging - meaning there may be a point where it starts to decline or may never 'develop'. Albeit, I do not know for sure if this is the case with the 2001 brick. I had a couple of the 2001 BY bricks and found them enjoyable to consume now. Remember, tea drinking is very much a relative experience so if you enjoy it at a certain age, there are no rules to suggests that you can't drink it now. Drink it !

[tony shlongini]

I suppose you could always just wait and see.

I have a whole cubic mess of tea that currently falls into that category.

[shogun89]

I am having a similar experience with a 2005 Jinggu cake. But then again it should be light. . . .

[sp1key]

Your 01 longfeng (raw I suppose) is entering it's 8 year. Therefore it could have gone back to 'sleep'
What I hear from the elders is that there is a 7 year timeframe for raw puerh whereby every 7 year you can taste and appreciate the significant change of the puerh (if stored properly)

So if you're not short of puerh to drink, store it away and try it every year till you think its ready to drink
or else break them up and store it in a zhisha urn for about 2 weeks opening it once a week for fresh air, that could 'wake' the tea a bit and may help

[hop_goblin]

I have a tea refresher that seems to do the trick. Heating the leaves activates the aroma IMHO. I typically do this for oolong that has past its prime or to take the edge of some of the wet store pu that I have.