I only bought one pu erh tea cake this year (no typo error). A local purchase, this is the 2006 Xinghai Green Peacock ripe cake. For my readers who had been following my blog, I would at this time of the year be overseas and would have returned with a luggage of tea. The recent bird flu in China, had me 'chickened out' from traveling to China. I am glad that my China friends are ok and are taking the necessary precautions to be safe. I look forward to a tea trip this year, hopefully soon.
I am not being pompous by saying that I prefer to buy my tea overseas than in Singapore. Let me explain - Chinese tea drinking culture in Singapore is small. A couple of Chinese tea shops do ply their trade locally but the selection of pu erh tea and higher end oolongs are extremely limited in choice, and the prices of tea are much higher (standard of living in Singapore is among the highest in the world). Travelling overseas to Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Taiwan and mainland China gives me a wider selection and lower prices due to competition. I can also enjoy the passion of the Chinese tea drinkers and get to share their experiences and stories about Chinese tea.
Xinghai tea factory's pu erh are regarded as 'traditionally' made as I was told...... the owners of Xinghai tea factory believed in the old school of producing pu erh tea. I had consumed a Xinghai cake in 2011 (see blog) and had remembered good things about the tea.
This 2006 ripe cake brews a pretty strong tea. I would suggest using 7-8g on a 180-200ml teapot. The tea is aromatic and has a nice hint of a sweet finish. I had a satisfying tea session as I realized I finished my tea session (about 6 infusions) quite quickly whenever I brew this tea. If you are a ripe pu erh tea drinker, buying a cake from Xinghai tea factory may be a very good idea.
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