Recent Synergy Among Tea Bloggers

As of late I have noticed a real synergy amoung tea bloggers.  I could feel as if something was happening, a certain energy in the air.  For me this feeling started with a small resurgence of old tea bloggers that have long been absent.  For me, Bev of Listening to Leaves really seemed to be syncing ideas, feelings, and content themes.  Even posting and commenting on each others blogs at the exact same moment in real time.

When the old bloggers were blogging about tea years back there was never the energy feeding off of each other like there seems to be right now over the last month or so.  At the early years of tea blogging it felt like everyone was presenting a very different character in their tea blog- some small bit of specialized tea knowledge or slice of experience that strongly represented the teas they were drinking and learning about.  Back then there was much less selection of puerh and way fewer vendors available but most importantly there was so little knowledge and experience out there. The internet itself was a dessert of tea information back then.  Looking back the knowledge gap was specifically pronounced.  Because tea bloggers had so little knowledge and experience about puerh, how much could they really say with any certainty.

Now, I feel things have really changed in this regard.  There is tons of info out there and lots more experience to draw on.  The bloggers that are blogging now are doing so in a position of easy to access knowledge and even if some don't have too much experience, at least they can excess resources where people have shared their long experience.

The energy among tea bloggers is really coming from a lot of newer bloggers who are really putting out great content.  Blogs like James' TeaDB and Cwyn's Death By Tea are particularity well written and extraordinarily intelligent.  When I first encountered these two blogs a few months back I considered TeaDB to be the 'new' Half-Dipper and Cwyn's Death By Tea to be the 'new' (but much more hilarious and slightly deranged) A Tea Addicts Journal.  James has a very structured, analytical, and organized way of writing about tea that Hobbes also has.  Cwyn is more of a big idea person, less bogged down in reviewing which is similar to Marshal'N.  There are also two great tea review blogs Oolong Owl and Late Steeps which I am enjoying as well- they are also both quite different.  I wonder if I'm missing some others because blogs don't use the "Blog Roll" with links to other blogs as much anymore?

It is only natural that many of the old blogs have gone into hibernation where others have started up new or have restarted started again- these are the cycles and rhythms of life.  There is also many "new school" or "evolved" multiple social media blogs out there which use a multiple social media platforms such as You Tube, Twitter, Snapchatt, Instagram, ect. - a very cleaver way to get the word out.  Some blogs have even changed to focus much more on puerh tea (like MattCha's).  I started reading the puerh posts of Tea for Me Please, a blog that is increasingly focusing more on puerh.

What is most interesting is how these bloggers are really pushing the narrative of puerh tea blogging.  I feel like a minor thyme, idea, or subtopic that is touched on in one post will be expanded on in an upcoming post of another blog who is best position to write on that new topic.  Or how things mentioned in one post will get support or expanded upon in another bloggers post.  Or maybe how another blogger will present a similar topic but with their own perspective or experience.  This was not being done to the same extent back in the day like it is now.  So I really think this is a magical time for blogging about puerh.

Thanks for all the tea bloggers out there for spending the time to advance this beautiful art of tea.

Peace

The Xiao Binging of the Puerh Industry

One of the things that has really changed since 2011 is the overabundance of xiao bings (“small cakes”).  I am really unsure which vendors or factories started pressing all their cakes into xiao bings but it seems like all of them pretty much followed suite shortly thereafter.  When did this happen?  Why?

I was first exposed to xiao bings last year when I picked up 2 different xiao bings from O5Tea (this and this).  I have drank a lot of puerh in my life but never did I ever drink from a xiao bing- that is how rare they were about 10 years ago.  In fact, they were almost completely non-existent, novelty items.  The fact they are everywhere right now is actually quite shocking.

Why did this happen?  I guess that as the price of raw maocha increased exponentially over the last little while it got to the point that the price point for a regular 357g was hundreds and hundreds of dollars for the same quality of leaf.  To prevent sticker shock the vendors pressed a xiao bing instead of a full.  That seems like a logical explanation.  Essentially, the vendors are either 1- doing this for the benefit of the customer to make it easier/ or possible to purchase within their budget or 2- they are doing it to hide the actual cost per gram.  Due to the current popularity of the xiao bing, the customer must be happy with the move towards the xiao bing?

The xiao bing also offers something between a sample size and a full 357g bing which makes it possible (but not really that feasible) to age long term.  There is really no point to age samples because they are so small, really.  So the xiao bing offers an aging option.  This can also be played both ways to benefit the customer and the vendor.  Vendors sometimes complain about the nuisance of preparing samples and sometimes offer a much higher price per gram for the time of preparing them.  So selling a xiao bing can really benefit both.

Also something else needs to be said about the xiao bing.  There seems to be 2 sizes of xiao bing out there.  If you asked me how many grams are in a xiao bing I would say 200g of course.  Today there seems to be many 100g xiao bings (xiao xiao bings) out there as well- this is also new.  I don’t think I even remember ever seeing a 100g xiao bing online until recently.  Maybe things will continue to shrink?

Personally, I am not a fan of the xiao bing.  The popularity somehow bugs me but I don’t really know why.  Maybe it’s just me struggling to come to terms with the fact that you can’t get as much as you used to get for the same amount of money… or maybe its symbolism for the puerh world being increasingly micro-managed… I don’t really know… or maybe it’s because it does kind of hide the price per gram a little… I don’t know (must meditate on this more).

To me the xiao bing is really just a sample.  I even prefer to get a full size cake as a sample.  In that way you can choose to age it, drink it now, or banish it forever.  If you get a full cake as a sample and its good but the cake has sold out then at least you still have lots to enjoy.  If it’s not your favorite cake then maybe at least you might drink it years later if your puerh stash is ever dwindling (never again I keep telling myself).   It’s very easy for me to go for a full cake as a sample now because I am trying to restock.  It might be a completely different story when I’m up to my neck in puerh a few years from now.

I even despise the xiao bing so much I considered an all-out boycott of any and all vendors which press them.  Then I realized that I would probably be left with no vendors to order from!  So maybe I’ll just boycott the actual buying of xiao bings.  Using the power of the wallet can impact change.

In fact, most of the cakes in my stash and that are currently on their way are 400g or larger.  I like the big, chunky, beefy, robust, old school feeling of these cakes and the industry that they represent.  The larger, the better!  1Kg, even 2Kg, cakes and bricks- "bring'em on" I say.  In fact, I challenge vendors to release one of these big guys in response to the xiao binging of the puerh industry.  People will buy- I’ll be the first one.

Peace

White2Tea & The Post Truth Era of Puerh

Before I dropped off the radar you could count the number of Western puerh vendors on two hands.  On my return to puerh buying, there are so many more out there.  To me this is a good thing but a little overwhelming at first.  To be perfectly honest, I have mainly purchased all of my puerh either in person in Korea or on Taobao.  Essence of Tea and Yunnan Sourcing might be the only exceptions.

Even old, reliable sites like the classic red and gold Yunnan Sourcing website have recently made major changes (saw that one turn over recently).   Other sites like Puerhshop have really slowed down as well.  Change happens and more selection and competition is always welcome.

I’ve been trying to check out all the new vendors out there.  This article by James of TeaDB has really helped me out.  The new puerh vendors out there that I am finding the most interesting are two American puerh vendors Crimson Lotus Tea and White2Tea.  They are really taking the puerh market in different directions, no doubt, in response to past issues with buying puerh in the West.

I think Crimson Lotus is brilliant for marketing to and branding their puerh to the science fiction niche.  I have also noticed that many many people who drink puerh also enjoy science fiction- most of my puerh drinking buddies in Victoria and Korea fall into this category, I think.  Overall, it’s an interesting concept but, as always, it comes down to how good their tea is… puerh can’t lie no matter what planet it’s from!

It sounds like White2Tea is really shaking up the puerh tea world… Tea with no region, no explanation, no story, no background, no pictures of farmers, no context what so ever.  All these values line up squarely with my own tea philosophy- “A blog that is the tea’s”.  However philosophy and reality often don’t align and as I begin my search for puerh once again I find myself looking for regions, mountains, factories, producers, and vendors that I know and that have a certain characteristic, quality, profile, tack record and “house taste”.

With the White2Tea’s decision to go in this direction basically you have to either trust the brand, trust the curator TwoDog (Paul), trust others who have tried the tea and recommend it, or sample all the tea yourself and decide for yourself.  I find lots of problems with this system.

I find it eerily familiar that TwoDog has basically based his marketing of Puerh on a similar strategy as Donald Trump… has anyone else noticed this?

Firstly, he has picked up on the discontent/ dissatisfaction of many Western puerh drinkers.  Secondly, he has discredited the old system of selling puerh as basically dishonest.  Thirdly, he insists that everything that is claimed about the origin of puerh or even a singular quality of certain areas is a lie.  Forth, he is thriving off of the idea that “controversy is good for business”.  Fifth, and most importantly, he offers a solution to the problem- just simply trust his puerh.  I guess we really are living in the Post-Truth Era of puerh!

I think the only fair way to assess puerh in this Post-Truth Era would be to sample puerh from all vendors, factories, and areas blindly.  Then decide on purchase based on how much the tea was valued in the blind testing verses the actual price.  The problem is that that no one would have the time and energy and money for that type of extensive sampling.  So quite naturally we try to narrow it down to certain brands, areas, factories, and vendors from either past experiences, others recommendations, or from simply brand identification.

With all this being said, I am most compelled to try White2Tea’s young puerh over any other vendor … so I guess all this smart marketing works… I kind of feel like I want to support his vision for tea on its own merits.. I guess even if you identify the marketing strategy at hand that doesn’t always make you immune to its effects…

If we know only one thing to be true it is this- that old MattCha was probably GongFuing to Drake long before Paul (TwoDog) even knew who he was.

Peace

2008 Fangmingyuan Nannou

This is the last bing remaining of what used to be three cakes from my personal stash.  My tea drinking friend in Victoria convinced me to go in on a Taobao order on this one back in 2011 after reading a review on The Half-Dipper.  We also picked up a cake of the 2008Fangmingyuan Jingmai which I drank completely up last year.  I am slowing savoring about 1/3 of a cake of the 2008 Fangmingyuan Bama which is a very good chunky robust cake which we also picked up in the same order.  The Jingmai was my least favorite of the bunch but to be fair I don’t prefer the Jingmai profile too much.  Last time I heard from my old Victorian puerh drinking bud he was bugging me to post about this wonderful 2008 Fangmingyuan Nannou that we acquired with the others.

Taking a break from the business of life, I sneak up into the loft at work where I sit in meditation, drinking this tea… please join…

I peel back the dry leaves which give off odours of very sweet cloying sweetness of raisons and dried fruit.

First, steeping emits deliciously creamy florals in a deep fruity syrupy date-like odour.  Taste of soft fruits on a full tongue and opening throatfeel has a nice cool finish buried underneath.  Has a deeper taste of wood underneath but very light and creamy overall.  Very nice cooling aftertaste that coats and opens the throat.  The throat feel coupled with the profound cooling returning sweetness immediately tells me this tea is very good.

Strong creamy sweet cherry odour is emitted from the wet leaves.  The second is much richer and creamier.  This tea excels at leaving these flavours painted on the tongue and throat.  Breaths bring a cool menthol taste mixed with these flavours.  There is a soft creamy wood underneath.  The second infusion is quite dynamic and significantly relaxes the mind.  This tea is very sedating and is great for meditation.

The third is more rich, more woody, but overall quite fruity and creamy.  More mature tastes reveal themselves as the leaves open up.  Overall this is good Naunou representation in mouth and feel.  The qi is very relaxing stronger as the session progresses. The thickness of this tea is quite apparent.

The 4^th is creamy & woody the throat and mouth feel are great and hold to these flavors with suggestions of fruit and cool menthol still ringing in the throat.  This tea really coats the teeth, mouth, pallet, and deep throat- its quite full.  The deeper notes up front add depth.

The 5^th & 6^th the higher notes drop off a bit but the thick feeling of the tea remains strong.  The cooling returning sweetness remains.  The mind starts to feel mild tunnel vision and the heart races with qi softly jaunting around the body.

The 7^th & 8^th show more cherry woody sweetness with thick mouth feeling.  A mild hyperactivity pings through my body and mind now.  The taste, fragrance, and feel of this tea lasts for many more steepings.  When it gets too weak I put it in an overnight steeping to draw out what’s left.  The long steeping rewards me with very fruity tastes with very little bitterness.

Unfortunately this cakes is no longer for sale.  It is my favorite cake from Nannou and I would reorder if I could.  I also couldn’t find any information on the current price of this cake.  It was stored in China (Beijing, I think) for the first 3 years, then two years in Victoria, then 4 years in a Ziplock in the dry prairies.  There is no signs of improper storage or off tastes.

Thanks for joining me in meditation…

Peace

Price of Puerh: Everything I Know About Puerh Has Changed!

This quote in a post from James at TeaDB almost completely sums up my life and return to puerh buying:

If you have been living in a cave with your pu’erh stash forthe past 15 years and are just reemerging to restock your stash, I have somenews for you. You should’ve bought apple stock. And google. And loads ofpu’erh. Young pu’erh is expensive now. There was a time not so long age whenthree figure young pu’erh was considered an outrage. Now it’s commonplace andvery easy to spend over $100 for a tiny little 200g beeng that may not even bethat good.

It seems like a LOT has changed in the puerh drinking world over the last 6 years (it hasn’t been 15 years at least).  Can’t believe how much has changed… The next series of posts will look at all of this crazy change from the point of view of someone who was drining puerh that long ago and from the point of view of someone who is actively trying to re-stock.

Price of Puerh

Apparently, new sheng puerh continued to rise in price sinice 2011.  Blog posts by good old Hobbes of the Half-Dipper and Marshal’N of A Tea Addicts Journal both published in 2014 point out that it is much cheaper to buy puerh with a bit of age on them then buy new stuff (oh I’ve been reading LOTS of tea blogs lately).  These posts are a few years old but from what I have seen so far, it still makes since to buy older stuff but the price gap is definitely closing.  This was almost immediately echoed by readers of this blog after last post.  If it keeps going at this pace maybe the price gap will completely close within the next couple of years?

The plus side to buying semi-aged stuff is that you can drink them right away and can understand better how they might age (because they are semi-aged now!).  This should benefit me because this is exactly the type of puerh that I’m looking for now.  I might have to rethink the buying of new sheng and spend more of my money on some older stuff.

Overall, I think there are many factors effecting the price increase of new puerh.  Back in the mid-2000s everyone was most concerned about the rise of the Chinese middle class and people hording puerh to create demand and control the price of certain factories and productions.  I think the mechanism by which drove up the price of young puerh is much more complicated than this but in the end comes down to availability, supply and demand, and how much people are willing to pay (I am aware of how obvious this sounds).

Price really is everything when buying puerh.  No matter who you are, unless you have unlimited money to spend, you will pay attention to prices.  However, I think there is more truth to this now than it was 10 years ago.  Back in the day people definitely paid attention but with prices still relatively accessible for new puerh people didn’t fuss too much.  Back then there were really 3 types of price categories of new puerh: 1- cheap factory stuff and CNNP 2- mid-range productions like Douji 3- boutique Taiwanese productions like those on sale at HouDe.  I placed myself very deliberately at the bottom two points (better factory stuff and midrange productions) and I’m happy with that decision now.

James talks about the missed opportunity in 2008 (the date of most of my cakes) in this nostalgic post.  Considering all the uncertainties about aging puerh in very unnatural conditions in North America, I feel I did really good with the puerh I purchased and the money I spent considering so many uncertainties.  So I am at peace with this.

How will the price of puerh will impact re-stocking?  The spending plan going forward (revised) is first to stock up with the cheaper but good semi-aged stuff.  This will focus on quantity but with quality in mind.  Then I hope to acquire some mid-range and even boutique semi-aged puerh as well to add some variety and depth to my drinking.  I’m still undecided on how much new puerh I will acquire but I feel like I have to slowly start doing this sooner or later.

I love tea samples but am not a big fan of buying samples which can eat up a lot of money.  I would rather use my experience with drinking and aging puerh and take a very small monetary risk at buying full cakes that will pretty much serve as large samples.  If they check out then ordering more is an option or even a tong.

I am also debating about including a discussion on price a bit more with upcoming puerh posts.  Years ago price was not as important of a consideration as it is to me now as I re-stock.  Nowadays, I appreciate when people discuss the price and relative value of the tea they are writing about as it does better inform my buying.

Out of everything that has changed, the price is one of the most dramatic of all changes… but even 10 years ago we knew it would continue to increase in price.

Peace

The Minimalist Puerh Drinker's Dilemma

If there is one descriptor that people often pin on me, it is the term "minimalist".  I whole heartedly agree with them.  Even looking at this blog, it is very minimal in design and feel.  I keep a tight ship and I think I benefit greatly from the airy Zen of minimalism in my daily life.

The moto of the minimalist is "less is more".

However, is it truly possible to be an aged puerh drinker and be a minimalist?

Maybe not.

Do you know what the opposite of a minimalist is?  A maximalist. Their moto is "more is more".

According to Wikipedia, "it can refer to anything seen as excessive, overtly complex and "showy", providing redundant overkill in features and attachments, grossness in quantity and quality, or the tendency to add and accumulate to excess".

Does it sounds a lot like the stereotypical puerh collector?

I think a distinction has to be made between the terms "aged puerh collector" and "aged puerh drinker".

The former is a collector who sees his puerh world as a hobby and investment where the maximalist approach is probably ideal.  They may drink their aged puerh but chances are their collection will continue to grow.  Perhaps the puerh collector enjoys the acquisition of puerh more than the actual experience of drinking it.  At the extreme the puerh collector only collects it or uses it as an investment without even drinking their best stuff at all (see these post by Marshal'N and James).

The puerh maximalist and the puerh collector both see their puerh stash continue to grow and rarely drink up their good puerh.

On the other hand the aged puerh drinker is someone who enjoys the experience of drinking puerh but may dislike every other aspect that comes before and after that experience such as acquisition or storage. 

You could be both a collector and a drinker of aged puerh, of course.  But could you be just PUERLY an aged puerh drinker? 

What about an aged puerh drinking minimalist?

Peace

Invitation to You: Let's Restock a Puerh Stash Together!

So if you have been following the story so far...

I recently was surprised to know that my puerh stash was almost gone.
I have reflected on the reasons this has happened so it will never happen again.

So now I have to actually replenish my puerh stash and bring it up to the glory it once was... that's it.  Sounds like fun eh?

Almost immediately and most urgently I need to acquire some approximately 10 years aged sheng puerh so that I can drink it now.

Then I should also be thinking about acquiring some much cheaper new cakes of sheng puerh to age.

So that's the plan.

I have pretty much been in a puerh time capsule since 2013.  I have basically had no knowledge about what is going on with puerh tea since 2013 and have not really even paid to close attention between 2011-2013 when I spent most of my attention on Korean teas.  It will be so much fun to explore it again.  I wonder what I missed during my absence from the world of puerh?

So please reader, join me in this rediscovery of puerh and everything that goes with it.

Invitation to You: Let's Restock a Puerh Stash Together!

Peace