Xiaguan Tuocha - potential mold

[Zacherywolf7]

This tuocha has been in Beijing and has recently been in dry storage in the west with me. Occasionally i cover my crocks with a wet towel. No other tea is close to displaying mold. I am concerned about the vertical line of yellow in the middle top of the picture. It does not look like a tea leaf but I have never had a Xiaguan. Thanks for your help.

[miig]

hehe, this is familar. Talked about the exact same thing with other guys a couple of months ago at another place.
I bet that this is not mold, but I bet that you used a pick to seperate the tuo. I also bet that this is where you ran the pick through the tea and crushed the leaves in the process.

Please have a look at the picture I uploaded - that is the one I took myself where I ran a pick trough a piece of tea to demonstrate the effect

[Zacherywolf7]

oh haha

any pick tips then?

[miig]

uh, well, I don't know... stick in with the pointy end?

[BioHorn]

They *can* get pretty rock hard. Cover with cloth and wack with a hammer, steam gently, put in humid storage for 20+ years!
This has been covered a number of times on the forum.
These should come with one of these:
http://www.superiorglove.com/system/ima ... es-IMG.jpg

but it might still not help protect you from pointy puerh pick tips!

[mr mopu]

I agree with the pick marks. Even cakes that are Iron Cakes are susceptible to the marks as well.

[William]

Mistery resolved!

[Zacherywolf7]

I can definitely confirm its a pick mark. I rammed a pick into the tuocha twice and it happened both times exactly were I rammed it.

[chrl42]

Many Beijing Puerh are previously stored in humid cities..Beijing is super dry that many Puerh sellers don't like.

But with a mere picture, I'd agree it doesn't really look a mold

[Cwyn]

Does look like pick mark. In any case, mold would be white-ish. I have a really bitter Xiaguan tuo that I've pushed to mold on purpose. This is one tea that a small brush can be used to brush off the mold. I've pushed mine very hard, and mold won't penetrate the interior, and that is partly the point of these compressed tuos, to survive humid conditions. After the pushing for several months, I rested the tuo and aired it a bit and it returned to normal. I'll probably push it again this winter when it is easier to control in the very dry air, to back off quickly.

[BioHorn]

I guess I totally missed the question. Definitely looks like a pick mark!

[Teaist99]

Hey there,

It is the mark from a tea pick. 100% for sure