Hello,
Been lurking for a while - like the group so far - a lot of good active
debate and useful info.
Only recently became obsessed with tea...

....need some advice...

Been checking out the online tea shops and came across this
http://www.grandtea.com/scripts/prod...?idproduct=206

Menghai 90's Beeng Cha 7572 for US$73.00.

Happy to pay this amount at the moment to try out some different pu-erh's
(from what I have had to date).

Assuming the tea is as claimed on the website, would this be a fair price to
pay for this tea ? Anybody had any experience with this vendor ?

Cheers
Mal
Oz

On Mon, 05 Dec 2005 11:10:36 GMT, "Draconus" >
wrote:

>Been checking out the online tea shops and came across this
>http://www.grandtea.com/scripts/prod...?idproduct=206
>
>Menghai 90's Beeng Cha 7572 for US$73.00.
>Assuming the tea is as claimed on the website, would this be a fair price to
>pay for this tea ? Anybody had any experience with this vendor ?

Hi Mal,

I do have experience with this vendor. The proprietors name is Yat and
I have obtained some very good authentic aged puerhs from him. I trust
that the teas are what he says they are.

That being said I have 2 reservations with this particular offering.

1) The stated vintage of 90s is too vague, it could mean 1991 or even
1999. With a puerh this young that 10 year span makes a huge
difference in terms of value. That vague decade granularity might be
ok when talk about a tea from the 60s or 70s but it should be much
precise when talking about a tea so recent.

2) This is a black puerh so it is not as valuable as an aged green
puerh. Understand that a black puerh will mature/improve very little
after about 7 years.

All of that being said I would say that if it is an early 90s cake
then the price is not bad, if it is a late 90s cake then the price is
high. For example there are others who sell similar black puerhs from
2000-2001 for $20. The challenge in finding a competing offer is
finding another whose authenticity can be trusted.

Mike Petro
http://www.pu-erh.net

"Mike Petro" > wrote in message
...
> On Mon, 05 Dec 2005 11:10:36 GMT, "Draconus" >
> wrote:
>
> >Been checking out the online tea shops and came across this
> >http://www.grandtea.com/scripts/prod...?idproduct=206
> >
> >Menghai 90's Beeng Cha 7572 for US$73.00.
> >Assuming the tea is as claimed on the website, would this be a fair price
to
> >pay for this tea ? Anybody had any experience with this vendor ?
>
> Hi Mal,
>
> I do have experience with this vendor. The proprietors name is Yat and
> I have obtained some very good authentic aged puerhs from him. I trust
> that the teas are what he says they are.
>
> That being said I have 2 reservations with this particular offering.
>
> 1) The stated vintage of 90s is too vague, it could mean 1991 or even
> 1999. With a puerh this young that 10 year span makes a huge
> difference in terms of value. That vague decade granularity might be
> ok when talk about a tea from the 60s or 70s but it should be much
> precise when talking about a tea so recent.
>
> 2) This is a black puerh so it is not as valuable as an aged green
> puerh. Understand that a black puerh will mature/improve very little
> after about 7 years.
>
> All of that being said I would say that if it is an early 90s cake
> then the price is not bad, if it is a late 90s cake then the price is
> high. For example there are others who sell similar black puerhs from
> 2000-2001 for $20. The challenge in finding a competing offer is
> finding another whose authenticity can be trusted.
>
> Mike Petro
> http://www.pu-erh.net
>
Thanks Mike.... I'll make some queries of the vendor - if the tea is an
early 90's harvest I'm prepared to give the tea a go.
I've not had a black pu-erh yet, so what can I expect from this cake ? I
have only had experience with one to date (I said I was new !), a Royal
Grade B Loose Leaf which I got from pu-erhtea.com. Nice red liquour and a
woodsy/mushroom type taste - find it quite pleasant and very moorish !

Cheers
Mal
Oz

> Thanks Mike.... I'll make some queries of the vendor - if the tea is an
> early 90's harvest I'm prepared to give the tea a go.
> I've not had a black pu-erh yet, so what can I expect from this cake ? I
> have only had experience with one to date (I said I was new !), a Royal
> Grade B Loose Leaf which I got from pu-erhtea.com. Nice red liquour and a
> woodsy/mushroom type taste - find it quite pleasant and very moorish !

That particular cake is of decent heritage. It will be somewhat more
robust than the tea you got from James Bana and the leaf will be much
larger but you can expect the same woodsy/mushroom flavor and due to
its age it should be smooth with very litttle of the fermentation
(yeasty) odor/flavor. That sour-dough smell in new black cakes goes
away as it ages, after about 7 years it should be completely gone.

Suggestion: why dont you order the sample size instead of the whole
cake. That is an expensive cake for someone who is unsure of what they
are buying.


Mike Petro
http://www.pu-erh.net

"Mike Petro" > wrote in message >
> That particular cake is of decent heritage. It will be somewhat more
> robust than the tea you got from James Bana and the leaf will be much
> larger but you can expect the same woodsy/mushroom flavor and due to
> its age it should be smooth with very litttle of the fermentation
> (yeasty) odor/flavor. That sour-dough smell in new black cakes goes
> away as it ages, after about 7 years it should be completely gone.
>
> Suggestion: why dont you order the sample size instead of the whole
> cake. That is an expensive cake for someone who is unsure of what they
> are buying.
>
>
> Mike Petro
> http://www.pu-erh.net
>
>
My wife and your good self are like thinkers ! She also suggested trying
the sample pack - 300g is a lot of tea if it doesn't suit my palate.

Appreciate the advice, Mike. Thanks and good night for now.

Cheers
Mal
Oz