2006 Menghai Dayi 0562 ripe cake

This is a 2006 Menghai 0562 ripe cake.  The number '0562' merely refers to a recipe number.  So for example, if you like the tea of a particular recipe number you can go your tea shop or internet to look for that particular tea.  There might be different production years for the recipe cake you are looking for and the older cakes usually costs more than the newer ones.

I had bought this cake in early 2008 from a tea dealer operating from Yunnan.  He also sells on ebay under 'Yun_cha' (formally known as awazon).  This cake, to me, was considered an expensive new cake costing me about US$25 a cake (inclusive air freight).  Well nowadays, I had noticed new 2011 pu erh cakes going for more than US$200 per piece (not counting the freight yet).  

Back to this cake.  You will noticed that the wrapper of the pu erh states that this was an award winning cake, gaining gold in a tea expo in China.  This tea cake is tightly compressed and you would require your tools to break up the cake.

I actually did a second look when I brewed this tea for the first few times.  I had opened a 05' Haiwan pink wrapper ripe cake a few weeks ago (see 1 April blog entry) and I thought I had brewed the Haiwan tea instead.  The taste, aroma and aftertaste were similar among these 2 cakes.  Not that I mind, but anyway the 0562 had an additional very subtle herbal taste to the tea.  Both cakes possess a nice sweet finish in the aftertaste (Haiwan, to me, was slightly sweeter).  I found brewing this tea makes a very enjoyable tea session.  

A look at Chinese Porcelain Teaware

I would tend to buy a couple pieces of teaware everytime I am in China. I am fascinated by the porcelain teaware in the tea markets as the variety never fails to astound me.

Yes, there are very high quality collectors' porcelain teaware. You can find very intricate artwork on the porcelain or the finishing artwork will make your jaw drop to the ground. I saw a set of tea cups, handpainted with Chinese landscapes complete with beautiful Chinese calligraphy, whose thinness of the porcelain was like egg shells and it has a bewitching translucent quality when you hold the cup against a light. I did not buy this set as I tend to be accident prone when it comes to delicate porcelain. There are collectors who are fans of certain porcelain artistes and would buy every new series when its available. These range of porcelain are usually quite expensive.

The less expensive option for many tea drinkers would be to buy their teaware from the 'mass production range'. They are inexpensive and you can find a wide range of teaware that will appeal to you. The above pix are examples of teaware which are inexpensive and to me, very well made. I found the quality and finishing excellent and they make a tea drinking session more enjoyable (to me).

I must emphasize that in the wholesale tea markets of China, you will get a good price if you buy in bulk. The tea shops may sell you individual pieces but you may be paying a much higher price. One more thing, I tend to hand-carry these porcelain (which can be a pain) as these pieces, if packed in check-in luggage, may end up in several more pieces when you have reached your destination.

Easter week in Guangzhou

I was in Guangzhou and Hong Kong during the Easter week. The weather was nice and warm that I could go round the city in just jeans and a t-shirt. Getting really warm though.

During this trip, I met up with my regular tea dealer friends and...... made a good friend with a French tea dealer and had the privilege of learning and gleaning more information about tea as well as about the tea business. I was also humbled to meet a few teamasters while in Guangzhou and Hong Kong and had the chance to experience their generosity in their sharing of tea knowledge, as well as they sharing some of their rare teas with me. More on this later.

Most of the green teas from spring 2011 were already available in the tea markets. Some 2011 Pu erh from the established brands were also available in the tea markets. The 1st pix shows Long jing tea leaves otherwise known as dragon well tea. The 2nd pix shows Mao jian tea from Henan province.

The 3rd and 4th pix are of a new product found in the tea markets. This is 'snow mountain chrysanthemum'. Yes, chrysanthemum is a common drink but these really tiny flowers from this area were impressive in that just 5 buds used in a 100ml gaiwan would yield about 6-8 infusions easily. Subtly sweet. Nice and refreshing.

The last pix shows Da Hong Pao packed in small box (cigarette size), two 10g pack in a box and then 10 of these boxes in a carton. This tea, during my tea sampling session, was robust in taste, well roasted and produced a nice full flavor in the mouth that lasted a good few minutes after drinking down the tea.

Contribute Your Thoughts on Tea

To all readers of this tea blog (if there is anyone out there), you may have some thoughts on the topic of tea and you may have the urge or itch to have your say.

You can contribute a tea article here. I am looking for diverse views on tea and would appreciate your input. You may send your article (some pictures also appreciated) and your contribution will be reproduced in full. Unedited.

This tea blog does not earn any money.....although....I may sell my articles unwillingly for a million dollars. Just imagine me in tears when I unwillingly stuff the money in my jeans pocket.

But on a serious side, do give me your musings on tea. You will be given full credit to your contribution (or stay anonymous if you wish). Thank you. Have a good Easter weekend.

Pix above is a '02 Soong Pin Hao Ripe pu erh.

A Tea Gift

My neighbour got back from Malaysia and got me a gift. Knowing that I was a little nutty over tea, the gift was tea-related themed.

This 1st pix was a bottle of gum that is 'green tea flavored'. My kids tried it and the feedback was that it tasted like a sweet toothpaste. I suppose this gum is appropriate if you have consumed a garlic dish or some seafood and you need a quick breath freshener.

The 2nd pix was slightly more interesting - green tea shampoo. The label (click for enlarged view) on the shampoo caught my eye - "used by strongest hair woman". Now what am I going to do....now....that I may now have the strongest hair too (after using the shampoo). Let me count the ways. Making whipped tea or tying up my tea boxes. What a yucky thought.

I am sure there will be many more interesting and innovative uses for tea other than drinking it. Stay tuned.

Chinese Tea Playing Cards

When you visit the major tourist attractions in China, there will usually be stalls near entrances of these attractions selling souvenirs for the tourist to purchase as a momento.  In China, these stalls sell playing cards with different Chinese themes.  You can purchase a set of cards with themes like Chinese emperors, old paintings, calligraphy, Chinese cuisine and even Chinese tea. 

I had purchased 2 decks of playing cards with Chinese tea themes during my last visit to China.  An inexpensive purchase, I recall, just under US$2 per deck.  Click on the above pix for an enlarged view.  You can see these playing cards shown have pictures of old paintings related to tea.  I also noticed in the deck,  that there were other pictures of teapots and as well as places of tea cultivation.

If you happen to be in China, do consider buying a deck of playing cards.  Make a cool gift for a tea drinker.

2005 Haiwan Ripe Cake - pink label

I broke up this 2005 Haiwan ripe tea cake (357g) with my tea knife (swiss army) as the compression of this tea cake was quite tight. You will noticed that the wrapper of the cake has a pink background. I had checked and had concluded that this pink label first appeared in 2004; a 400g ripe pu erh cake. This pink label was only used again in this 2005 pressing and I have not seen this pink label wrapper used in recent years.

My initial impression while opening up the cake was good as I could smell a nice strong ripe pu erh aroma. I took quite a number of brews; experimenting with varied amounts of tea leaves as well as infusion times before I came up with a brew I liked. It was, to my personal preference, using less leaves (6-7g to a 160ml teapot) and extending the infusion times by a couple of seconds.

The taste was something like dried berries or dates with a hint of cooked asian rice. I particularly enjoyed the aftertaste of this tea very much. Drinking the tea was very smooth and I get a mild sweetish sensation in the back of my throat a few seconds after consuming the tea.

I had bought this tea in Singapore a couple of years ago. I recently went back to the shop to buy another cake but it was all sold out....#%&@ (censored tea language).