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What do you think of cakes that are a blend of ripe and raw pu'erh?

Are these blended cakes just a mix of raw and ripe pu'erh..or are they a different process entirely?

I am curious becuase I never see any articles or discussions about these types of cakes. Please share your experiences -good and bad.

I have not yet got into the dark side..so I probably should try some shou before exploring ripe-raw blended cakes. ..but in the meantime, I would like to learn more about them.

I had it once in my frind's tea shop in Kunming tea shop when it was brought by Guangzhou dealer. It was 5 y old sheng mixed and pressed with mild fermented sheng . The cake was wet stored so the differences between those two was , in my opinion , not that radical. Yet , could taste it like sweet shu with bitter and astringent end of sheng. Kind of weird though. Not sure if I could have it as daily drinker. I was told that time , that's the Cantonese thing.
I haven't seen it normally sold on "shelf" anywhere in Kunming. U might need to have look at Guanzhou or HK vendors.

aet - Thanks for sharing youre experience...sorry it took me so long to get back to you.

I had no idea that raw-rip blends were a Cantonese thing...learn something new every day here. I have never delved into the dark side of shou....so I probably should try some first.

Peurh Junky has a semi aged CNNP raw-ripe blend..so that is what piqued my interest. Later saw two offerings from Yunnan Sourcing..but otherwise I have never seen this blend.

YS sells two, both of which are quite good and interesting for sure, albeit a little young.

2016 Yunnan Sourcing "Green Mark" Ripe Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake
2016 Yunnan Sourcing "Wild Purple Green Mark" Ripe Raw Pu-erh Tea Cake

They also sell two half-ripe cakes, which are not sheng/shu blends but rather lightly wet piled.
1999 Hua Yuan "Jing Brand" Half Ripe Pu-erh Tea Cake
2013 Hai Lang Hao "Half Ripe Yi Wu Mountain" Pu-erh Tea Cake

@dloo99 - Thanks for the recommendations. Do you have a preference between raw-ripe blend versus half ripe?

@oolongfan

The half ripe only tastes good with age. The ripe+raw is really just ripe with a boost from the raw.

@dloo99- Thanks for explaining the difference between the two types...gives me a much clearer understanding

I have a sample of the 2016 "Wild Purple Green Mark" from YS. It's definitely shu first, sheng a distant second.

I really like it and will be getting a full cake with my next order.

Nis - Thanks for the feedback...sounds like I will have to try the 2016 "Wild Purple Green Mark" ASAP as yours is the second good review of this tea

I think they're an abomination because a lot of these cakes are sold as pure aged sheng.

That sounds aweful Shine Magical. I have been very lucky. All the raw-ripe blends I have seen have been honestly represented as such.

Can't imagine how it would feel to think you are getting an aged sheng...only to discover it is a newer raw-ripe. Any vsuggestions on how to avoid that scenario?

oolongfan wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 02, 2019 1:06 pm

Shine Magical wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 02, 2019 9:55 am

I think they're an abomination because a lot of these cakes are sold as pure aged sheng.

That sounds awful Shine Magical. I have been very lucky. All the raw-ripe blends I have seen have been honestly represented as such.
Can't imagine how it would feel to think you are getting an aged sheng...only to discover it is a newer raw-ripe. Any suggestions on how to avoid that scenario?

Buy from a trusted vendor. Don't believe claims that some unknowns make. If it sounds to cheap then it probably is.

mrmopu - Thanks for the suggestion. I tend to stick with 'tried and true' vendors (EOT, Yunnan Sourcing, Norbu) for tea in general. Being new to pu erh, I have only one 'tution' cake (from a questionable vendor). and the too-low-price was the first red flag.

oolongfan wrote: ↑

Sat Jul 06, 2019 4:15 pm

mrmopu - Thanks for the suggestion. I tend to stick with 'tried and true' vendors (EOT, Yunnan Sourcing, Norbu) for tea in general. Being new to pu erh, I have only one 'tution' cake (from a questionable vendor). and the too-low-price was the first red flag.

Let me know if you are searching for anything in particular , or need help with any vendor.