Shu advice

[kuánglóng]

I'd only buy Menghai and Xiaguan, and maybe Fengqing shus, but I prefer YS shu to the rest because I trust Scott's testing and the fermentation is done very well.

Seconded. Even though 100% compliance with the European Commission's Safety Standards doesn't give you 100% guarantee (as it has been shown in the past here and there) it's one of the safer bets out there. I usually stay clear of shu pu but I've got a cake of Scott's 'Green Miracle' and this seems to be top notch stuff as far as young shu goes - even more so after some extended airing out in a caddy and most likely with some more years under the wrapper.

http://yunnansourcing.com/en/2015-yunna ... h-tea.html

[benm3]

I got some 2008 Haiwan shu bricks with pesticide levels I can taste! It's put me off Haiwan entirely. I'd only buy Menghai and Xiaguan, and maybe Fengqing shus, but I prefer YS shu to the rest because I trust Scott's testing and the fermentation is done very well.

I think that Haiwan makes some great Shu for a big factory. It is always cheaper than Menghai, and the leaf quality is almost always better too. Menghai puts the pretty leaves on the outside of their cakes, and keeps the ugly ones on the inside. Haiwan cakes tend to have the quality material mixed evenly through their cakes. Also, Haiwan shu used to be fermented by one of the best shu-makers going, the former fermenting star at Dayi.

As for tasting pesticides...I've certainly tasted pesticides in Menghai teas before, as well as in very expensive raw gu shu. Pesticides are a big problem for all teas. I don't think Dayi is claiming to sell any organic shus right now.

Seriously, give Haiwan a second chance. It's top-notch for factory shu- a lot better than Xiaguan.

[jayinhk]

Any suggestions as to recipes? I got their version of 7581. I think I have five bricks of it!

[Xeractha]

@kuánglóng I didn't even check if YS sell sample of their own tea but I see now they do. I'll definitely get some of that shu later. I bought their 2012 Yi Dian Hong, hope it arrives soon.

I looked around the forum and other sites that were suggested here. It seems Awazon's prices are normal and the teas are not fake. Only downside is Kunming dry storage. I don't know how many years it takes to get the same flavour with dry storage as with wet storage.

I don't know how bad this tea might be but I love that wrapper >> http://www.pu-erhtea.com/TeaDetails.aspx?TeaID=501 :O

[benm3]

Any suggestions as to recipes? I got their version of 7581. I think I have five bricks of it!

I think, like so many other factory teas, the older stuff was made better than the brand new stuff. The best Haiwan tea I have tasted is a late 1990's, humid-stored sheng. It is thick, oily, deep, and calming. It ain't cheap

http://pu-erh.sk/shop/index.php?route=p ... uct_id=263

I have always liked Haiwan shu, but I recommend the older stuff. I like this one

http://www.teaclassico.com/Yunnan-Puer- ... i-Shu-puer

[jayinhk]

Any suggestions as to recipes? I got their version of 7581. I think I have five bricks of it!

I think, like so many other factory teas, the older stuff was made better than the brand new stuff. The best Haiwan tea I have tasted is a late 1990's, humid-stored sheng. It is thick, oily, deep, and calming. It ain't cheap

http://pu-erh.sk/shop/index.php?route=p ... uct_id=263

I have always liked Haiwan shu, but I recommend the older stuff. I like this one

http://www.teaclassico.com/Yunnan-Puer- ... i-Shu-puer

That makes sense...quality may have gone downhill in the 2000s.

[Xeractha]

Hi!

I don't want to open a new topic just for this question.
Is buying a 2012 Tibetan Flame (shu) worth it? It's quite inexpensive, 250g brick around 7 USD. The purpose of my purchase would be consuming and not storing if it matters. It's not the price that leaves me thinking but the weight. I don't want to go over a certain weight limit and if I didn't buy this I could buy 2 or 3 samples instead. Unfortunately I haven't drank Xiaguan shu yet, only sheng and I was satisfied, I don't know if this brick would be a good start with Xia shu.

[kuánglóng]

Hi!

I don't want to open a new topic just for this question.
Is buying a 2012 Tibetan Flame (shu) worth it? It's quite inexpensive, 250g brick around 7 USD. The purpose of my purchase would be consuming and not storing if it matters. It's not the price that leaves me thinking but the weight. I don't want to go over a certain weight limit and if I didn't buy this I could buy 2 or 3 samples instead.

I guess it's worth it but even though a 2012 Bao Yan is OK to drink right now I'd prefer them with some more years under the wrapper and with that being said I'd rather order some nice samples

Unfortunately I haven't drank Xiaguan shu yet, only sheng and I was satisfied, I don't know if this brick would be a good start with Xia shu.

This is not your typical XG shu but some super cheap but decent enough tea that's basically made from older, broken leaves, twigs, leftovers and whatnot, has been produced for the demands of the tibetan market for ages and usually ends up in butter tea (more often than not made with moldy, rancid yak butter) or salted tea in Sikkim. (I used to live in the Himalayas for years and that salted stuff is even worse than the worst butter tea I've had and I've had more than a fair share of that crap, yuk.)

Maybe the seller is kind enough to include a sample of the Bao Yan if you ask him. Back in China ot the Himalayas those bricks or shrooms cost next to nothing.

[Xeractha]

Thanks for the answer.

I think I'll go with more samples then. Better to have few but tastier teas than a lot but less good. Sometime in the future I'll get a Flame when I have something to store tea for longer. I was thinking about building a pumidor but laziness is stronger than willpower. Probably a broken refrigerator would do the trick. I already bought an arduino to monitor temperature and humidity, also salvaged a printer for motors and thought about making a water tank with a lid that automatically opens or closes depending on the humidity. hmm maybe warmer water could be used as a passive heating or I'm just overcomplicating things. Well, it's another topic.

Anyway, some teas I picked: 2005 Haiwan Lao Tong Zhi Yellow Label (ripe);
2006 Awazon Bulang Mountain Arbor (raw);
2006 Long Yuan Hao 'Silver Medal' Product 'Banna Old Tree (raw);
2006 or 2009 Fuhai 7576 (ripe);
2010 Xiaguan 8663 (ripe);
2008 Haiwan 968 tuo (ripe);
and maybe a Yongming tuo (ripe) or a 2006 Xiaguan tuo (ripe) I think it's called Xiao Fa.

For later orders I picked: 2008 Menghai Dayi Song of Chi Tse;
2010 Dayi 7562 and 8592;

[bankung]

Hi,

I would advise trying gushu shu puerh, semi ripped.

Haiwan has a couple of these which I think not bad. Its around $70-$90/cake. Teadezhang also has his own production of gushu ripe puerh this year for ~$50/cake. The wrapper is really a piece of art! You should also try some 90s-00s liubao from essenceoftea thats not too expensive.

[toby]

I am not suggesting where to buy but I tired a few early 2000s Star Of Manghai and love it (always get batch 1, i.e., 501 601 701...etc)

7561 bricks are great too, but a bit hit and mess.

early 2000 8592 is a treat and 7592 is similar to 8592 but come with some stems so you would get sweeter brew.

I offered (1/4 cake of) a 2014 bulang ripe cake (using material fermented in 2012) in my pilot (#0000) curated puerh box but it is a few months ago now.

[Alucard]

I also second Yunnan Sourcing brand ripe puer. I have 5 cakes and really cant go wrong with any choice. Take a look at the 2016 Immortal Monkey and the 2011 Hui Run Bulang (also available in 2013 and 2015). White2Tea ripe puers are worth a look too.

[Xeractha]

Thanks for the suggestions. I bought a 100g mini cake from YS and it was interesting. I don't know how to describe it but it felt like liquid gummy bear in my mouth. Not the sweetness part, it was just a feeling. I'll definetely try other YS cake later and probably won't be a mini cake, it doesn't last too long. :O
For now I ordered a lot of tea from Awazon. Hopefully I'll get them on Wednesday. No one really said anything about them and it made me curious. Soon I'll know if it was a mistake or not.

@bankung: thanks for mentioning Liu Bao. I always wanted to try but didn't know where to start. Essenceoftea mentions Liu Bao after 2011 is not the same as before. I'm glad I read their blog, it kept me from buying a 2013 Liu Bao mini cake. Fortunately I found 25 years old Liu in Hungary and it's not even that expensive. When I have the time I'll pick up some.

@toby: Some of those recipes are on my list to buy (though not the same year).

The more I search for teas the more I want. Gosh, even if I won the lottery that wouldn't be enough to taste everything.

[Xeractha]

Yay! I found my first "gift" in a 2006 Awazon Bulang Mountain Arbor Raw . It was a piece of concrete around 1.5 x 2 cm.
So far my feelings are quite mixed about Awazon. I moved on to their 2012 royal ripe expecting something bad but fortunately I liked it.
For some reason none of the shengs want to feel right for me. And my Xiaguan is still not here that I ordered from Berylleb around 1,5 months ago.

If anyone is interested I can tell more about the teas I got from Awazon. But now I have a train to catch, I'll update it at night or should I just make another thread? Cause it wouldn't be an advice topic anymore.

[kuánglóng]

And my Xiaguan is still not here that I ordered from Berylleb around 1,5 months ago.

Sorry to hear about that but it happens here too once in a while. As long as you get your stuffed shipped by airmail it usually doesn't take that long to Europe though.
Regarding Berylleb/King Tea I've bought some tea from them in the past but only if I couldn't get the same tea anywhere else easily since more often than not their prices for standard factory stuff are comparatively high. If I were in the market for authentic Dayi/taetea products I'd probably pay them their markups to be on the safe side but in case of past-2007 Xiaguans I usually shop elsewhere.

If anyone is interested I can tell more about the teas I got from Awazon. But now I have a train to catch, I'll update it at night or should I just make another thread? Cause it wouldn't be an advice topic anymore.

Up to you. There's always the old 'Official pu of the day' thread - just in case. Looking forward to your impressions.