I’ve learned a lesson on storage today. Especially in regards to puerh storage. Now, I usually have zero issues, but I had this cake broken down (likely to use as a daily drinker, but it lay forgotten), placed in a Ziplock baggie, and mixed in with a lot of unopened stuff (the container was 90% empty since the majority of the teas are vacuumed sealed oolongs awaiting their turn in my rotation). This is a result in being scatter minded during the midst of packing/moving, and sitting in a container for a few months…Anyway, I tried the broken cake and it was muted. The notes really hit in the aftertaste and very little in the initial tasting. I remembered that I did have a second, untouched cake, found during the recent puerh rotation….so, an experiment was necessary…
The second time was a success. There were brighter notes of pear and apricot, as I usually affiliate with huangpian material. This tea was something ‘affordable’ and it wasn’t really ever expected to be something amazing…Huangpian typically ages kind of strangely, so I find that it’s something to be had immediately, or stashed away for many years to come. After 4 years, this still has time to grow…the storage is fine, but I’ve learned my lesson with the previously opened/broken cake (I’ve stashed it deep in bottom of the other cakes to grow once more).
