What Pu'er Are You Drinking

[Zac]

Thanks for the tip. Which vendor are you using? Sold out at KTM

I sourced mine from Taiwan a few years ago. The market price for these cakes is still very good there even now.

Try asking John at KTM if he can source them for you and at what price.
Otherwise I did source some 601 cakes (at a slightly higher price) for a friend in the US recently. I could ask if he has any to spare if you're interested.

Thank you so much. I'm asking John now. Unfortunately your friend might be a difficult source as I'm in the UK and shipping from the US will cost an arm plus the customs charge and handling fee...

But you've interested me in sourcing in Taiwan. I am planning to go back there very soon. Is there a specific place you can recommend for purchasing in Taiwan? Is the market there generally good on price/mostly authentic, or do you still need your wits about you? I'm fairly new to pu and I don't think I have the ability to go around distinguishing fake Vs real, whether the price is good and going around with a black light

[sqt]

But you've interested me in sourcing in Taiwan. I am planning to go back there very soon. Is there a specific place you can recommend for purchasing in Taiwan? Is the market there generally good on price/mostly authentic, or do you still need your wits about you? I'm fairly new to pu and I don't think I have the ability to go around distinguishing fake Vs real, whether the price is good and going around with a black light

You always have to be wary of fakes. There are some reputable stores where that is far less of a concern but they tend to charge a bit higher too. In general, tasting and trying tea on a trip with the aim of purchase is not something I recommend as it is very time consuming. If you do focus on tea on your visit, make it about the experience and drinking tea and if buy something it is a bonus.

However if you know exactly what you want in advance then it can be done without too much effort. That approach however limits you to the better known factory cakes.

[Bok]

Lots of fake Puerh in Taiwan... furthermore the quantity is little compared to China itself so you’re also up against local consumers who are after the good stuff.

[thommes]

Having Temple Stairs for the first time. Going to need to learn to brew this one. It's sort of mild... second mild shou this week. The taste I can pick up on tells me I'd really like it. Tried 6g in 100ml gaiwan. Will try steeping longer next.

[DailyTX]

Lots of fake Puerh in Taiwan... furthermore the quantity is little compared to China itself so you’re also up against local consumers who are after the good stuff.

@Bok
Any resources to learn about fake Puerh? I have been interested in learning more for the last year or two. So far the online contents are more about fake aged tea that can sell for $$$$, but not much about counterfeit teas within the last 10-20 years. Thanks

[Bok]

Any resources to learn about fake Puerh? I have been interested in learning more for the last year or two. So far the online contents are more about fake aged tea that can sell for $$$$, but not much about counterfeit teas within the last 10-20 years. Thanks

not that I am aware of... not many will share that as it makes it easier for them to get the good stuff, while leaving the fakes to others. At least here in Taiwan, that knowledge is not openly shared, only discussed among friends.

It's big business.

One reason I am not buying any. At least fake teapots I can hold in my hands and examine, no one will let you test-drink expensive old Puerh...

[vuanguyen]

Any resources to learn about fake Puerh? I have been interested in learning more for the last year or two. So far the online contents are more about fake aged tea that can sell for $$$$, but not much about counterfeit teas within the last 10-20 years. Thanks

not that I am aware of... not many will share that as it makes it easier for them to get the good stuff, while leaving the fakes to others. At least here in Taiwan, that knowledge is not openly shared, only discussed among friends.

It's big business.

One reason I am not buying any. At least fake teapots I can hold in my hands and examine, no one will let you test-drink expensive old Puerh...

That's it. I'm not buying semi aged puerh teas from Taiwan anymore. Just spent a lot of money over the past 2 months on many semi aged cakes from Taiwan vendors...Wistaria, Teas We Like and Yang Qing Hao. I am least concern about Wistaria since many people vouched for them and like Bok said "they had too much to lose" to do unethical stuff. I don't know much about Teas We Like. However, I am a little suspicious of Yang Qing Hao. You have to personally email Emmett for a price list...too secretive for me.

The thought of spending money on fake stuff really annoy me. I'm not smart enough to play this Puerh game. Just want to deal with honest people.

[Bok]

@vuanguyen Yangqinghao is probably the one who has the most to loose, they’re by far the most well known of the three and even in Taiwan a well respected brand.

I suspect the reason they sell via Emmet is that they can’t be bothered to deal with what for them are peanut orders from foreigners for their affordable stuff... or
that they established a good relationship a long time ago and are loyal enough to let him earn his part from it. Both valid and good explanations in my book.

I’ve wrote my part on Wisteria a few times, while I don’t like their teas, they should at least be honest.

TWL consists of a few respected people, I also don’t think they do dodgy business.

And in summary you’re not less or more likely to be cheated by Taiwan sold Puerh than from any other place.

[pantry]

Wait...are we still talking about big factory stuff???

@vuanguyen
While I’m not particularly taken by YQH’s stuff, their puerh is legit and Emmett is trustworthy. Of course, it’s very understandable why one might feel uncomfortable about the whole puerh scene...

[Balthazar]

There's fakes and there's fakes.

The most common type is just lower quality material dressed up in the wrapper of some factory production. The tons of fake Taetea/Dayi for instance. The professionalism in copying the wrapper design and "pressing look", and finding tea material that looks like the real product, will vary a lot, but some of it is done really well (and would certainly fool someone like myself, especially young cakes where it can be hard to have a good idea of how the tea should taste). Then there's fakes where the material might actually be pretty good, but not quite to the same standard as the stuff its passed off as. And several other categories.

Fakes are always a risk. Every vendor that gets his goods from someone else is at the risk of being duped himself, e.g. back when Dragon Tea House went from selling authentic 2011 Jin Dayi to selling fake ones (I was one of the people who bought a fake), allegedly (and plausibly imo) due to their source (which had previously passed on the real deal) passing on a fake batch. The source him/herself may also have been duped, who knows.

I wouldn't be worried at all if I was buying from Wistaria (at least not their own production!) or Emmett (gets his stuff directly from YQH).

[DailyTX]

There's fakes and there's fakes.

The most common type is just lower quality material dressed up in the wrapper of some factory production. The tons of fake Taetea/Dayi for instance. The professionalism in copying the wrapper design and "pressing look", and finding tea material that looks like the real product, will vary a lot, but some of it is done really well (and would certainly fool someone like myself, especially young cakes where it can be hard to have a good idea of how the tea should taste). Then there's fakes where the material might actually be pretty good, but not quite to the same standard as the stuff its passed off as. And several other categories.

Fakes are always a risk. Every vendor that gets his goods from someone else is at the risk of being duped himself, e.g. back when Dragon Tea House went from selling authentic 2011 Jin Dayi to selling fake ones (I was one of the people who bought a fake), allegedly (and plausibly imo) due to their source (which had previously passed on the real deal) passing on a fake batch. The source him/herself may also have been duped, who knows.

I wouldn't be worried at all if I was buying from Wistaria (at least not their own production!) or Emmett (gets his stuff directly from YQH).

+1 @Balthazar
Dayi and zhongcha are two big names that I read who have most fakes. In China, vendors would buy tea among each other like stock trading, sometimes the whole batch is fake, sometimes it is mixed with fake and real. So even vendors would make mistakes.

@Bok
I guess it’s the same with pots, one needs to learn the process of materials, unique characteristics of each source, the making method of certain teas, and dating age of the leaves.

[thommes]

having the 2003 Changtai "Ji Nian / Memorial" sheng this morning. Good stuff.

[klepto]

2019 ZSL Autumn Yibang Mi Bu
Its 2am here in Florida and I am cursing the person who dropped a chunk of the most compressed part of the puerh cake in my sample bag.

Wew, I might need a cake of this. Tastes like wild berries, the kind you had to fight a snake to get(Trust me, I know). Very friendly astringency so
the delicious flavors float to the front and sometimes an after taste. Cha qi? I got a strange pins and needles feeling over my body for a few seconds until I shook.

[Balthazar]

2007 Yun Zhi Fang Zhuan, from the rather unknown Yunzhou factory. This small (100g) square brick is a Taobao purchase from 2014, it was recommended as a good bargain on a Chinese language tea forum. I forget the price but it must have been really cheap, as it was RMB 40 a brick in 2015..

With strong pine and tobacco notes It reminds me quite a bit of the "classical" Xiaguan taste, although it has less bitterness. The huigan is sweet and quite long lasting.

[thommes]

grandpaing some 2019 waffles. this stuff is lasting quite a while.