Naka Exploration via Andrew, Chen Sheng Hao
Recently I’ve gotten more into raw pu’erh because I have had a pumidor since December 26th 2016. With that being said, I still have yet to find what I want to invest in for aging. As I thought about it, I realized I wanted something that could be easily referenced to in the future as well as being of decent quality. One of my favorite areas has been Naka so I looked around and realized that one thing that is rarely discussed, from what I’ve seen, is the ‘Naka’ from Chen Shen Hao.
What I have put together is a personal project; meaning that it is not connected to Liquid Proust Teas as I don’t plan to go into the pu’erh world. This will be done at my leisure which means I have no date for completion, but here is what I am working to provide for those interested:
Through purchasing four different years of the CSH Naka, I will be able to sample each one and figure out which one or two, hopefully not three, and please not four, I will purchase for aging purposes.
Price is only $30 for a full set:
20g 2013 Naka
20g 2014 Naka
20g 2015 Naka
20g 2016 Naka
It’s that simple.
Here’s what I’d like to see here: Please only post positive remarks, ask questions with sincerity, and comment if you’d like to participate.
My personal goal is to provide a service for all of those who want to undergo the same journey that I’ve thought about for awhile; but the $100+ cakes put me off from doing so, however with friends, we can do it at a great price $30/80g
1/14/17
The $30 buy in already includes shipping for those in US/Canada
With more people signed up, the quantity is probably going to be around 22 to 26 grams per year instead of 20. Still working that out because more are anticipated to respond.
participates
1 Liquid Proust
2 nishnek
3 Keeta
4 igo_cha
5 curlygc
6 Babble
7 Dr Jim
8 Brian
9 obritten
10 eng_causa_sui (ig)
11 cooldude666_69 (ig)
12 kikoteaco (ig)
13 leavesofmylife (ig)
14 mmayoiiboshi
15 Ag
16 AllanK
17 Mackie
18 Ravingrabbit
19 Mitten5
20 ricegeek
21 pmunney
22 Tofu
23 Inkay
24 Kirrae
25 jwicked207
26 zach goh
27 Pat teaJi
28 aardvarkcheeselog
Questions asked:
Are these teas good?
Part of the reason that I am doing this is because I’m not sure. The history of Chen Sheng Hao is quite interesting and has me interested in trying these for myself with others for the first time.
Is this actually Naka?
I cannot be certain, but they are purchased as such. I will be evaluating them based on taste, feeling, and value; regardless of what it really is because I cannot truly figure that out myself. I will go into each session as if it is indeed Naka though just as I would with a tea called LaoBanZhang. My assessment comes through the drinking : )
Who is Chen Sheng Hao?
Essentially, brand named pu’erh. Their website is http://www.cspuer.com/
Google translate can help you read it : )
Where can I buy Chen Sheng Hao by myself?
Great questions! Their official store is http://chenshenghao.tmall.com/ but like taobao, tmall is not for a beginner.
Do you have a time frame for this?
I want to be done by April, but I’m not sure if that means February, March, or April 1st… we shall see; but historically, I end up doing things much quicker than I say I will.
Yunnan Sourcing sells the 2013 Naka, 25g sample for $10.25
Also a few other cakes.
Talk to us about money
Yunnan Sourcing has the 2013 sample for $10.25/25g, however you won’t have the following years to compare to and there is shipping cost.
$30.00 shipped puts the tea around 37cents a gram versus 41cents a gram through YS.
This is not for everyone as it’s a controlled selection, but for those interested: This is a solid deal to purchase an experience such as this one.
I just wanted to add transparency that us Steepster peeps prefer. You make it sound above the only way to get CSH is through You via Tmall when it is selling at Yunnan Sourcing.
They also just got a the CSH badass king (literally) bulang.
You should also comment on storage from your source. Yunnan Sourcing has their in hot humid storage, which is a different flavor profile that’ll be less bitter on a tea that’s gonna be pretty bitter in its youth.
@oolongowl I though Scott was big on dry Kunming storage (however this is hot/humid compared to US).
Also, Tmall only has the 2014 Naka I believe, so we have 2013 from Scott and 2014 from Tmall.
@Babble The only way to find out would be to taste, but I would believe that the changes would be very subtle.
YS states “The tea has been stored in Guangdong since 2013 and the hot and humid storage has helped it along by transforming it’s bitter and astringent Northern Bu Lang character into something rich and complex. It’s fruity, nutty and has a chicken soup thickness to it. There is definitely still a fair amount of astringency and bitterness with this tea, but that’s expected, and needed for this tea to continue to age and grow in stature.”
Yeah, I’d be interested to know the source of these and where they’ve been stored. Not for nothing, but from what I’ve been told by people who know a lot more than I do about puerh, CSH is a widely faked brand. I would imagine anyone going to trouble to fake a CSH is probably going to focus on the pricier cakes, like the LBZs, but who knows.
Where are these from?
Last year I learned a valuable lesson through ordering on taobao and then going the route of King Tea as suggested by many. John has been my go to guy for these large production teas and is my contact for these:
Where and how were these stored
I am unsure. I will ask John to inform me, but based on my information he will be getting them from CSH so wherever they store their tea.
How different can I expect each one to be?
That is a great question! Most of the reason for this is to see if any are worthy to put away and store versus other options out there. This particular brand is rather large now so put that into consideration with the aspect of puerh harvest, let alone the nature of the Naka region, there is going to be some difference from that alone plus the aspect of age.
Babble, none of us know how much of a taste difference there will be between the different years—this is what everyone is looking to find out through trying the samples! :)
The 2013 John has was stored perfectly for me. It has been a bit humid and there is a good amount of change to be 4 years old now.
Where were these stored?
John has responded and let me know they are all Guangdong stored!
@Oolongowl, my mistake. I was solely goin off my assumption of Scott’s regular storage in Kunming.
I’d be interested for sure in something like this as I’ve yet to try any Naka but have heard quite the hype, :P.
I am definitely interested. I have the 2013 and the tea is stupendous. I’d love to compare the other years to it, particularly as I’ve considered purchasing a large amount because I love it so much.
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