Question on Building a Collection of Pu-erh

[bigmonstertruck]

How does one know what to add? Do some people add certain stock types of cakes each year as they come out? What do the numbers mean? Any suggestions of standards to add each year as they come out? Any suggestions are appreciated.

[hop_goblin]

http://ancientteahorseroad.blogspot.com ... cting.html

[bigmonstertruck]

Great site! Thanks-
Ed

[DJ3riple]

How does one know what to add? Do some people add certain stock types of cakes each year as they come out? What do the numbers mean? Any suggestions of standards to add each year as they come out? Any suggestions are appreciated.

I'd say that people are just stocking up on the teas that they like rather than whether they are new teas or have a certain designation. So I'd say that getting to taste as many different types of puerh before buying any tea in bulk is the best practice.

[tony shlongini]

It's really simple- just keep buying.

Your needs will change as your collection grows, and your requirements will become self evident. At some point you may need to broaden your selections, and at another time you may feel the need to "stock up" on favorites. Both points of view are correct. If all you have are five tongs of 8582 from the same year, you have a ton of good tea, but not much of a collection. Conversely, having a wide choice is small consolation if you're down to a few grams of you favorites.

[shogun89]

Like others said, keep buying a few at a time, say you put in an order, 5 different cakes. Get 2 of each cake, that way you have one to drink and one to put away and save. If you find one that you really like, invest in more, say a tong. Almost all the menghai recipes are a safe bet.

[odarwin]

id say you stock up on pre-2000's tea!
im doing that now...
they are mostly expensive but some are still reasonable

-darwin

[shogun89]

id say you stock up on pre-2000's tea!

That'll drain the bank really quick

[Maitre_Tea]

id say you stock up on pre-2000's tea!

That'll drain the bank really quick

not if you're internet savvy and use Tao Bao. 90s cakes for around $50-$100 (depending on storage and cake in question)...but caveat emptor for people who don't know what to look for in aged tea (including me!)

[gingkoseto]

id say you stock up on pre-2000's tea!

That'll drain the bank really quick

not if you're internet savvy and use Tao Bao. 90s cakes for around $50-$100 (depending on storage and cake in question)...but caveat emptor for people who don't know what to look for in aged tea (including me!)

Buying old tea on taobao is a lot more dangerous than buying from reputable American vendors. A friend of mine says his advice for every newbie is, don't buy old tea... and if you buy, don't assume every old tea you buy is real...

A budget plan is, buying samples and current year tea only, milking free samples from vendors (especially taobao vendors) as much as possible

[Maitre_Tea]

id say you stock up on pre-2000's tea!

That'll drain the bank really quick

not if you're internet savvy and use Tao Bao. 90s cakes for around $50-$100 (depending on storage and cake in question)...but caveat emptor for people who don't know what to look for in aged tea (including me!)

Buying old tea on taobao is a lot more dangerous than buying from reputable American vendors. A friend of mine says his advice for every newbie is, don't buy old tea... and if you buy, don't assume every old tea you buy is real...

A budget plan is, buying samples and current year tea only, milking free samples from vendors (especially taobao vendors) as much as possible

Very true, although buying current year doesn't guarantee the tea is authentic either!

I think buying older stuff off Tao Bao is something that might work better with a group effort: a few friends find cakes that seem promising, split the cost of the cakes/fees/shipping, taste/sample/debate, and than they can buy what is worth buying in bulk.

[gingkoseto]

Very true, although buying current year doesn't guarantee the tea is authentic either!

I think buying older stuff off Tao Bao is something that might work better with a group effort: a few friends find cakes that seem promising, split the cost of the cakes/fees/shipping, taste/sample/debate, and than they can buy what is worth buying in bulk.

The current year stuff below 50rmb should be quite safe. The xiaguan and dayi regular level tuo's and cake's fall in this range. People who make fake stuff have operational costs too and they can't afford forge inexpensive products

Yeah it's actually quite a dilemma: buying expensive stuff, then the risk increases; but buying inexpensive stuff, maybe it's not worth the shipping costs.

I think buying 2004-2006 stuff from reputable taobao sellers is relatively safe. But then it's another question how to recognize reputable ones and make sure they stay good, because buying and selling ID happen on taobao too.

[odarwin]

old tea and taobao.... a very big no no for me

there are tons of reputable dealers out there...
i recently bought 600g worth of 70's raw pu from wistaria tea shop in taiwan, i was told they were hk stored. its a nice daily cup to be honest and i like it very much! it only cost me around 100 usd for the 600g's worth.
its not bad in my opinion. its not the best of quality, its got nice long lasting huigan but cant last a lot of rounds, and doesnt have much fragrance but no off odors too. best part is the feeling the body gets after a few rounds. very relaxed.

-darwin

[betta]

Very true, although buying current year doesn't guarantee the tea is authentic either!

I think buying older stuff off Tao Bao is something that might work better with a group effort: a few friends find cakes that seem promising, split the cost of the cakes/fees/shipping, taste/sample/debate, and than they can buy what is worth buying in bulk.

+1
For old tea, never buy even a cake without trying the samplers first. Good material but improper storage yield bad result.

[jktea]

Even in China, tea loves are afraid to buy teas from Taobao, especially old teas. So you need to choose the very good-reputation vendors in Taobao.