Feb 17th, '09, 17:58
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by shogun89 » Feb 17th, '09, 17:58
Sorry to hear that you had trouble in China heatwaves. Thats a shame too, because that is the number one reason I would want to go to China, bangin deals on tea.
As said before, more people thinking like Heavy means cheaper prices and more availability for the year ahead.

Feb 17th, '09, 19:16
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by heavydoom » Feb 17th, '09, 19:16
go crazy, grasshopper!
Feb 17th, '09, 20:25
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by shogun89 » Feb 17th, '09, 20:25
heavydoom wrote:go crazy, grasshopper!
hehe. Once I get a steady income from a summer job, I will.
Feb 17th, '09, 20:31
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by Nexius8510 » Feb 17th, '09, 20:31
Id love to see the prices of cakes drop! I'm just starting to get into pu erh myself! I had a quick question about it though. Do you all buy the new vintages (09) to age yourself? Or is it a good idea to drink brand new cakes? Thanks for the info!

Feb 17th, '09, 20:34
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by hop_goblin » Feb 17th, '09, 20:34
heavydoom wrote:edkrueger wrote:heavydoom wrote:i guess that i have enough. no desire at all for newer vintages. pu overload.
Well, that is fine. I thought you were disappointed. So far 2009 has been a Oolong year for me.
pu is an overhyped tea imo. i agree. oolong is where it's at for me at the moment.
Well, atleast now you can be discrimnative.. that is where I am .. I have enough medicre pu to last me (I Hope) so now I will buy one or 2 beengs of good and probably expensive unfortunately pu.
Feb 17th, '09, 21:00
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by odarwin » Feb 17th, '09, 21:00
i dont know about buying tea direct from china,
im really skeptic about it and am afraid always of being sold fake cakes.
id stick with a tried and tested supplier....
if you do good on that "agent-client" relationship, im sure the agent will give you the good ones for sure. everybody has to be happy somehow
-darwin
Feb 18th, '09, 01:15
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by teakid » Feb 18th, '09, 01:15
No more new stuff for me also. After 2-3 years of trying out new shengs, they don't taste good to me anymore. I only like 5 years and older stuff. Correct me if I'm wrong but years ago tea vendors brought puerh cakes out to be sold after few years of storage at very inexpensive prices. It is because of the puerh hype in recent years that newly pressed cakes are sold fresh off the mold. Now that the puerh bubble has burst, new release cakes are at prices (even with price drops) as those new release cakes 5 years ago (assuming inflation is neglegible for tea). The puerh market has definitely shifted and will never be the same as before the hype.
Feb 18th, '09, 12:09
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by tony shlongini » Feb 18th, '09, 12:09
Nexius8510 wrote:Do you all buy the new vintages (09) to age yourself? Or is it a good idea to drink brand new cakes?
Both.

Feb 18th, '09, 18:17
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by Drax » Feb 18th, '09, 18:17
tony shlongini wrote:Nexius8510 wrote:Do you all buy the new vintages (09) to age yourself? Or is it a good idea to drink brand new cakes?
Both.

Sounds like a good plan. Buy a tong + 1, and drink the 1!
Feb 18th, '09, 19:03
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by shogun89 » Feb 18th, '09, 19:03
Drax wrote:tony shlongini wrote:Nexius8510 wrote:Do you all buy the new vintages (09) to age yourself? Or is it a good idea to drink brand new cakes?
Both.

Sounds like a good plan. Buy a tong + 1, and drink the 1!
If prices drop, that is my plan for the year. I would love to obtain another few tongs. If I can get a Dayi 8582 or something similar for $60/tong or cheaper, I'm getting one.
Feb 19th, '09, 08:54
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by tony shlongini » Feb 19th, '09, 08:54
shogun89 wrote:If prices drop, that is my plan for the year. I would love to obtain another few tongs. If I can get a Dayi 8582 or something similar for $60/tong or cheaper, I'm getting one.
If I learned anything from collecting wine, it's that you have to be very careful in selecting items for buying in bulk (cases of wine vs. tongs of pu'er) or long term storage. Not every wine or sheng is destined for a rosy future, nor would you want to be surrounded by a large stash of an item that doesn't please you.
I think some of the classic recipes from the major players are no brainers, but it may be a bit more difficult to plan an enviable portfolio comprised of items from some of the lesser known or newer factories. On the plus side, I find it hard to believe you'd ever get "stuck" with anything (especially if you liked it enough to buy in bulk), as you should have no problem trading it somewhere down the line. And you can always drink it.