Birthday Pu

[depravitea]

My son is turning 1 year old this month, (my mind is officially blown) and I thought it would be nice to get him a few sheng beengs from the year he was born (2008) to save until he was older, like 25 - 30, and could appreciate them (or sell them, if, over the years, I inadvertently force him to hate tea due to my own obsession with it. lol)
Anyway, I don't really have the room/money for coolerdores, pumidores, or any other type of climate control, and so I was wondering what might be a good place to put them (and forget about them?) over the years. I know I should just leave them in their wrappers, but should I maybe put them in freezer bags, or stick them in a cabinet/cupboard/dresser drawer?
I understand airing out is important in certain situations, and I know all aspects concerning the “storage of pu” question have been beaten to death, but I just can't seem to find what I'm looking for. I have some shu pu in my tea cabinet. The cabinet is not air tight, it is dark when the door is closed (or so I suspect, I’ve never shut myself in), there are no smells to overpower the tea, and it doesn’t get overly hot or cold. I wasn’t sure (since I’m shooting for longevity here) if I should store them in the same way/place as my shu, which I’m currently using, or perhaps make other arrangements. I’ve heard that if you’re comfortable, so are the beengs…
As for the orientation of the beengs while being stored, should I stack them, lay them out individually, stuff them in a cardboard box in the garage? -kidding on that last one - Is it alright to stack the beengs, and if so, is it alright to stack beengs of different types on top of each other? Like I said, I’m unable to build a pumidor or anything, but I can definitely purchase a container or something if that would help.

I know this question comes up often, and I apologize for not finding what I need from past posts, but I would really appreciate any advice. I think it would be pretty cool, one day, to be able to give my son a 30-year-old beeng (or 5, or 10) from the year he was born.
Thanks very much.

[oldmanteapot]

Hi depravitea,

I'm by no means an expert in this.... but let me try to answer you with my limited knowledge.

My son is turning 1 year old this month, (my mind is officially blown) and I thought it would be nice to get him a few sheng beengs from the year he was born (2008) to save until he was older, like 25 - 30, and could appreciate them.

That's such a cool idea. Have you short listed the type of Sheng you're thinking of buying?

For the purpose of aging, many Pu collectors are in fact avoiding hoarding or storing Pu from 2007 onwards due to several factors. Like wine, good harvest are seasonal. 2007 seems to be a bad year for tea. Newer Sheng Pu are made drinkable from the very beginning, where as traditional methods of Pu production dictates that Sheng has to be aged before it can be consumed. There's a cloud of uncertainty hovering over the 'ageability' of Pu that is made this way. No one knows how well Sheng of his nature would age. There are no back referencing on this, unless it's made the traditional way... and this is rarely found since 2005 onwards.

Anyway, I don't really have the room/money for coolerdores, pumidores, or any other type of climate control, and so I was wondering what might be a good place to put them (and forget about them?) over the years.

Put them high up where there's a lot of air movement with minimal intrusion of foreign smell... away from the kitchen and dressing table.

I wasn’t sure (since I’m shooting for longevity here) if I should store them in the same way/place as my shu, which I’m currently using, or perhaps make other arrangements.

I would keep them apart. If possible, in separate boxes. But if it's only a few Beengs, then just put them individually into brown paper envelopes and sort them with a file organizer. Make one or two holes either at the bottom corners or sides to allow proper air circulation. These holes will act as ventilation vents.

As for the orientation of the beengs while being stored, should I stack them, lay them out individually, stuff them in a cardboard box in the garage? -kidding on that last one - Is it alright to stack the beengs, and if so, is it alright to stack beengs of different types on top of each other? Like I said, I’m unable to build a pumidor or anything, but I can definitely purchase a container or something if that would help.

Don't stack Beengs on top of each other unless they are the same Beeng or are completely sealed off individually or by groups of the same Beeng. But since your objective here is to age the Pu, then sealing it completely is out of the question.

Stacking them on top of each other will encourage a transfer of aroma. I'm refering to Sheng here. Staking Sheng and Shu together is... in my opinion... disastrous.

Hope my reply didn't put you off....

Cheers!

[chicagopotter]

depravitea -- that's a really good idea! My daughter just turned 1 this month too. Maybe I'll get one for her and one to drink only on her b-day every year.

Any good suggestions on a sheng good for storing (having just read oldmanteapots) post?

[beecrofter]

Why not look into one of the larger melons 3-5kg? They will require longer ageing due to their form .

[Dizzwave]

Hey Oldmanteapot,

That was a very informative reply. Thanks for the good info.
I can only hope, though, that you're wrong about the 2007+ cakes! I only recently started collecting, and most of my sheng is 2007+.
Does this apply to the classic recipe cakes as well, such as 7542, etc.?
thanks,
dave

[depravitea]

Old Man Teapot, thank you very much for the time you took to write all that information out. I hope that the 2007+ sheng isn't all unworthy of aging, I really wanted to age some 2008 beengs for my son. I've already bought some, and I plan on getting more, but I'll also keep an eye open for some older ones.
Of the beengs I've gotten so far I was able to get doubles as well, one to save and one to drink to make sure it's aging alright (and because I want to drink it.)

As far as storing, I have no idea where there is a lot of air circulation, especially during the winter months. Guess I'll have to work on that...
Just hypothetically, were a person to put a beeng into a freezer bag and remove as much of the air as possible, what would happen?
Would that halt the aging process?

The envelopes are an excellent idea! I might do that. Do you mean like manila envelopes? I'l definitely keep the sheng and shu separate (and unstacked.)

Really, thanks again for all that info, it was EXACTLY what I needed.


Chicago, I can tell you the one's I've gotten, but I'm not sure you should take what I've gotten as a recommendation. I'm so new at Pu Erh that I'm probably getting a beeng that's not worth aging here and there.

So far I've gotten:

Shu –
2008 Menghai Tea Factory * 7592 Recipe Ripe Pu-erh 357g (x1)

Sheng –

Mengku Holy Charm Pu-erh Tea 2008 400g Raw (x2)

Yun Zhi Beeng * Zhai Zi Po Pu-erh Cake 2007 357g Raw (x2)

2008 Guoyan "Queen of Yi Wu" Premium Raw Pu-erh tea (x1)


Beecrofter, I like the idea of larger cakes, I'll have to look into that. I just really like the shape of the beengs, but I have been wondering about the melons and touchas as well. Any suggestions?

[shogun89]

I am only 18 now so I cant use this awesome idea yet but, using your children as an excuse to buy more tea is a AWESOME idea! Someday. . .

[TomVerlain]

shu might not be the best for long term.

If it were me doing the buying - I'd go for more of a stone pressed hand made type of beeng.......

[depravitea]

I am only 18 now so I cant use this awesome idea yet but, using your children as an excuse to buy more tea is a AWESOME idea! Someday. . .

I need no excuse, everyone knows I'm an addict.

I guess my resolve in this hoarding of 08 beengs can be directly measured by the amount of tea I hand over to my son in about 20 years.

Shogun, I wish I got interested in tea when I was 18, I've been playing catch-up for a while, and I bet I would have some b1tchin' beengs by now lol.

[depravitea]

shu might not be the best for long term.

If it were me doing the buying - I'd go for more of a stone pressed hand made type of beeng.......

The shu was my first beeng, not one that I'm saving, though I appreciate the heads up. Guess I wasn't very specific, I just listed all my pu.
I am only going to save the sheng. From what I've read/heard shu is only good for about 10 years. I was hoping to get a little more life out of a sheng.

Any suggestions on the stone pressed beengs?

[odarwin]

birthday pu is definitely interesting!
how about a nv er beeng! hou de has them... and its from xi zi hao!
it has the nice double happiness character plus a few extra interesting drawings in it! definitely nice to give to your daughter or son on his/her wedding, no pun intended. by that time it will be ready to drink and its a nice novelty idea (as far as the print goes)... just like how nv er cha is meant to be somehow? hehe

though my suggestion is purely on the novelty side, i cant say much about the quality of the tea cake itself cause i haven't tasted it nor have heard any comments about it. i do have some xi zi hao cakes but haven't tried them yet too. also, given the age of not more than 2 years, i doubt anyone could really tell for sure how it will age. its interesting to see how these "branded cakes" stand the test of the bubble and hype in terms of quality and reputation.

in my opinion, i think the best way to go is a tong plus 1 cake. cause in my opinion, you wont get much aging with just cake... i believe in a "group" effort of cakes to age together so the more the merrier. usually i always get a tong plus 1 cake when i order tea's. tong to keep, 1 to taste.

[oldmanteapot]

I can only hope, though, that you're wrong about the 2007+ cakes! I only recently started collecting, and most of my sheng is 2007+. Does this apply to the classic recipe cakes as well, such as 7542, etc.?

I hope that the 2007+ sheng isn't all unworthy of aging, I really wanted to age some 2008 beengs for my son.

It's a general consensus among Pu collectors that collecting or hoarding Pu pressed from 2007 onwards does have a higher risk of their Pu not aging well at all. I have come across a few of such Pu myself, which IMO is not suitable for aging, but can be consumed immediately. Having said that, there are some Pu from 2007 that are age-worthy. The rule of thumb is to be more cautious when purchasing Pu of that period.

As for classic recipe cakes, a famous recipe like the 7542 is in great demand, and when demands overwhelm supplies, the risk of running into a 'fake' / imitation is very high, especially so with the 7542. I've personally bought 2 imitation 2003 Red Dayi 7542 myself.

As far as storing, I have no idea where there is a lot of air circulation, especially during the winter months. Guess I'll have to work on that... Just hypothetically, were a person to put a beeng into a freezer bag and remove as much of the air as possible, what would happen? Would that halt the aging process?

Yeah.. guess you'll have to work on that. I experience summer all year round here... hahahaha... I do keep some of my Beeng in odourless transparent zipper bags or ziplock bags. Instead of removing as much air as possible, I puncture holes to allow the exchange of air and moisture. It's crucial that you don't use bags made of recycled plastic. They usually come with a nasty odour which will "contaminate" your Beeng.

Securing your Pu in an airtight enclosure will bring the aging process down so slow, it might appear to have halted. An airtight enclosure will also prevent your Beeng from absorbing moisture that is required in the proper aging process. In addition to humidity and temperature, you'll also need fresh air aka oxygen for your Pu to age well. So, don't 'suffocate' your Pu..

The envelopes are an excellent idea! I might do that. Do you mean like manila envelopes? I'l definitely keep the sheng and shu separate (and unstacked.)

I just use brown paper envelopes. Just make sure the surface isn't glossy, waxed or laminated. That will prevent air and moisture from moving freely in and out of the envelope.

I hope that answers your questions.

Cheers!!

[oldmanteapot]

shu might not be the best for long term.

.... From what I've read/heard shu is only good for about 10 years.

I'll have to disagree on that. Almost all the Shu we drink are above 10 years. Proper aging and storage of Shu will yeild very good results. It will usually take 6 - 8 years before the Beeng can be freed of Wodui smell and another few more years to "smoothen" the Pu.

There are different types of Aroma / Fragrance for Shu. Two common aroma are the Shen Hsiang found in the famous 7581 and the Mu Hsiang which is found among prized high grade Shu. Both ages differently. Shen Hsiang will exhibit a calming aftertaste, comparable to of red dates and yun which relaxes and calms the body. A strong herbal taste developes as it ages, covering up the taste of the tea. Hence giving an illusion that the tea is thinning out. As a matter of fact, it has not. While Mu Hsiang is strong, earthy and woody. It gets stronger as it ages and as the Wodui smell reduces. The aged / vintage aroma from a Shu is highly sought after. This aroma would usually only surface after proper storage and aging of above 18 years and above!

Having said that, it also comes down to what you're expecting from your Shu. If it's the Wodui smell you're after.... go for young ones. If you want to age them, go for high grade leaves and proper pressing by known tea factories. At least, their hygiene factor is more self-assuring. But nothing beats tasting your Pu before buying what you like.

Cheers!!
Cheers!

[odarwin]

id have to agree with oldmanteapot that shou can give you a very good performance even if its 10 years and older. in my opinion, i think 10 years is the youngest age where you should drink shou because any younger than that still has some wo dui which is unbearable flavor and aroma for me.

ive got the chance to buy some 80s loose ripe at a very good price, and i do enjoy it a lot. it taste somewhat like the 70s raw tong qing hao. similar taste, flavor and aroma in my opinion, both has their pros and cons. id say the ripe wins it in being "upfront" with the aroma's and taste, but it doesnt last in your mouth that long. the ripe doesnt also reach the throat, and its flat but upfront... boring to some. but for the raw tong qing hao, it has more subtle flavors and aromas, but it reaches the throat and coats it and stays there for very long. in my opinion they have their own character. and shou can be very good in the long term. i barely touch my ripes lately cause as the more i taste aged tea, the more i cant bare young shou... but if any of you have 15 year old shou that you want to toss out... please send them to me instead hahaha id gladly pay for shipping

-darwin

[tony shlongini]

For the type of long term storage you're looking at, I'd stick with famous recipes from established brands. You don't want to find yourself saying "Who the hell is Mengyang Guoyan?" twenty five years from now- they may be long out of business and a faded memory by then.

It's a pretty sure bet that items such as Menghai's 8582 and 7542 will still be recognized in years to come.