鄧時海 Dèng Shí Hǎi and 福祿圓茶Fú Lù Yuán Chá

[Puerlife]

When Khun Zhang was on an extended tour of Yunnan tea places a while ago I kept wondering as I looked at all the Facebook photos, "Who is this old guy?" Turns out it was Deng Shihai, a leading figure in the puer world. In fact, he is quoted or referenced 16 times in the book, Puer Tea: Ancient Caravans and Urban Chic".
In the meantime, there was this blog post by Teaism:http://teaism99.com/2015/02/11/mastercl ... b-standard

And then I found it for sale by my very own favorite vendor:
https://www.facebook.com/Teadezhang Scroll down to May 4th.

It's good tea, has good taste and qi, and should age nicely. I haven't tried the 2007 version but it has appreciated nicely, so if I need to sell some in the future (perish the thought) it should be easy. I'm very happy to have found such a good tea at such a friendly price and one that serious drinkers such as Teaism thought enough of to buy. I've joined the masterclass
One more thing--Khun Zhang's price of 2,300 baht is the price everyone agreed to sell it at, but I know of at least one Malaysian vendor who charges more than that. Khun Zhang ships worldwide and the USD is at a six-year high against the baht. Carpe diem

[Puerlife]

Why use material from Fengqing, in Lincang? Via google translate, Mr. Shihai says it's because (at least in 2012) they still use traditional methods and don't overpick like they do everywhere further south.

[Bef]

Hum... Here's the Facebook translation of that May 4th post:

fu lu yuan cha thank you ( the hell. why.
Control production by master deng shi hai but left to get in the beginning.
Details
ป 2012 ราคา 2300 ฿
' 2007 rakha 7000 ฿
A tea blaine from the chat. even woo from three mountains in the city the night Bolt, and it a mixture of tea every season for variety and clement of taste.

A tea you start tha since ' 2006 to current to tha system every year.
na khea and guarantee b by the tea. good.

How do you get to order from them? Do they also speak some English, or do they have their own website?

[Puerlife]

No website, but a blog. But FB messages are the best way. Khun Zhang needs google translate to deal with us in English (he speaks Chinese and Thai and is from Thailand) and his wife, Shan, is from Kunming and speaks Thai, Chinese and English. So when Khun Zhang can't understand he asks his wife to help.
Ordering: I live in Thailand so I just transfer the money from my Thai bank to his. I don't know what international customers do. Maybe someone can answer that for you.
One more thing--Thai international postal rates are stupidly expensive but Khun Zhang doesn't make money from postage. Not his style.

[kyarazen]

deng sihai is like a giant spoon in taiwan, singlehandedly stirring the pu-erh market. the book that he wrote in the early 90s was a major reference for many, and promoted that we should drink aged teas (30yrs+) and savour old teas (50yrs++), not sheng. fu lu was of particular significance to deng because of his dad.

before fu lu, Deng had a role to play in Jiang Chen tea bricks in the 90s, which can be a nice reference or gauge on how his idealogies would age and how they are valued

[Puerlife]

I see Deng Shihai is also a master of yang style tai chi and handles a sword very well (Youtube). I've also gleaned that he was born in Malaysia, went to university in Taiwan, became a professor, and went to China for the first time in 1987, as soon as people in Taiwan were allowed to. Anything else you add would be much appreciated. What's the story of his father?

BTW, Khun Zhang's wife's Facebook name is Shanshan Teadee if you want to contact her directly in English.

[Puerlife]

Well this is awkward. Khun Zhang has decided that he is not ready to take international orders but is considering doing so in the future when he gets set up on Paypal.

But since I've peaked your interest, if you still want some PM me because it is easy for me to get it, with free shipping.

[shah82]

Anyone interested in the 2007 can simply ask the proprietor of Skip4tea as well.

[Puerlife]

Anyone interested in the 2007 can simply ask the proprietor of Skip4tea as well.

Last June Patrick and his wife (of Skip4Tea) brewed tea for me a lot at the Tropicana Tea Expo in KL. Very good folks, great tea masters, and the word on the 'street' is that they never sell fakes, which distinguishes them from quite a few vendors that were at the expo.

[quikstep]

One should really drink his new tea 2013/14 to understand why he said puerh needs aging 20-30 years.

[Puerlife]

Tea Dee has just started a Facebook page called....Tea Dee. What's new is that it is in English.

[theredbaron]

I have 2 cakes of the 2007 version, bought them many years ago in Malaysia, while they were still affordable. It is an excellent tea indeed, and ages wonderfully.

[Puerlife]

I bought a tong plus one of the 2012 from Tea Dee and I like it very much. Shan Shan also hosted me a session of the 2007 but I found it very bitter and extremely astringent. I think 2,300 baht per cake in today's price environment is a solid value, especially considering that given Deng Shihai's guidance it is likely to age well.
Oh, one more thing--Tea Dee is now openly advertising that they ship worldwide. Hope this helps.

[theredbaron]

I bought a tong plus one of the 2012 from Tea Dee and I like it very much. Shan Shan also hosted me a session of the 2007 but I found it very bitter and extremely astringent. I think 2,300 baht per cake in today's price environment is a solid value, especially considering that given Deng Shihai's guidance it is likely to age well.
Oh, one more thing--Tea Dee is now openly advertising that they ship worldwide. Hope this helps.

Every Pu Erh has an awkward phase during the aging process, usually sometime during the 3 to 5 year point, depending on storage conditions, when the tea doesn't really know what it is. Maybe you have hit that point.

I have a few weeks ago tested the progress of mine, and it has great promise with only a few remnants of the green stage.

[Puerlife]

It was Tea Dee's '07 that I didn't like. That seems a bit old to still be in the awkward stage but then it didn't seem that old at all so I suppose storage can retard the awkward stage. At any rate, my 2012 is a pleasure. Well, a month ago it was. I think I need to drink it again tomorrow