Aging shu?

[slurp]

I would like to add a point about wet storage and taste, or rather some questions to be answered.

If high(er) temperature / humidity promote Pu-Erh aging process, how long should Pu-Erh be stored in the "wet storage" like environment to improve its taste? Definitely not forever, otherwise no one can enjoy the tea you store. Eventually all wet-stored teas have to be moved to a dryer storage to air out storage odor (revivify). Different duration in wet storage of the same batch of tea would lead to a (slightly) different taste. Is longer in wet storage the better? Not necessarily. Storing longer in wet storage will leave stronger wet stored flavor and take longer time to revivify. Taste of tea also varies depending on how long has been "dryer" storage and its storage environment.

So, what about dry(er) storage? I think the aging process will be a bit slower. But how much slower, I don't know, as my storage environment is more humid than yours. What about taste? Will it get similar taste as same batch of tea in a more humid environment? I don't know either. Some articles (found in Chinese tea forums) indicate dry stored tea will have a (slightly) different flavor.

This is very interesting, isn't it? So many variables, so much change of taste over time. Taste change in Shu might not be as dramatic (or unpredictable) as Sheng, but I have seen/tasted some of my Shu going through taste changing process. For example, my 20 yo Chung-Cha Shu changes from a hint of red bean taste (some call it steam rice taste) to a slightly sweet taste (like my 20 yo TuoCha).

Anyway, hope you find something useful.

Come on cha-fu, don't you think you should give credit where it's due for these words and attribute them to Chan Kam Pong (Cloud) instead of passing them off as your own. You didn't even bother to correct his lousy English writing style.

[shogun89]

I would like to add a point about wet storage and taste, or rather some questions to be answered.

If high(er) temperature / humidity promote Pu-Erh aging process, how long should Pu-Erh be stored in the "wet storage" like environment to improve its taste? Definitely not forever, otherwise no one can enjoy the tea you store. Eventually all wet-stored teas have to be moved to a dryer storage to air out storage odor (revivify). Different duration in wet storage of the same batch of tea would lead to a (slightly) different taste. Is longer in wet storage the better? Not necessarily. Storing longer in wet storage will leave stronger wet stored flavor and take longer time to revivify. Taste of tea also varies depending on how long has been "dryer" storage and its storage environment.

So, what about dry(er) storage? I think the aging process will be a bit slower. But how much slower, I don't know, as my storage environment is more humid than yours. What about taste? Will it get similar taste as same batch of tea in a more humid environment? I don't know either. Some articles (found in Chinese tea forums) indicate dry stored tea will have a (slightly) different flavor.

This is very interesting, isn't it? So many variables, so much change of taste over time. Taste change in Shu might not be as dramatic (or unpredictable) as Sheng, but I have seen/tasted some of my Shu going through taste changing process. For example, my 20 yo Chung-Cha Shu changes from a hint of red bean taste (some call it steam rice taste) to a slightly sweet taste (like my 20 yo TuoCha).

Anyway, hope you find something useful.

Come on cha-fu, don't you think you should give credit where it's due for these words and attribute them to Chan Kam Pong (Cloud) instead of passing them off as your own. You didn't even bother to correct his lousy English writing style.