pu-erh of the day. Sheng or Shou
2012 Menghai Dayi “Golden Needle and White Lotus” by Menghai Tea Factory
So today I tried this famous tea from Menghai Dayi, one I’ve wanted to sample for quite a while. I think it has the reputation of being the best quality ripe pu erh by this factory. It certainly commands what seems to be an unreasonably high price. This 2012 version sells for about $90 right now, and the 2008 version is a whopping $130! That seems outlandish. But hey, maybe it’s that good?!
Well, it’s good, but not $90 good. It is quite smooth and rich, tasty, and is a high quality tea to be sure. No off flavors. But I’ve had others this good for quite a bit less. I’d pay maybe $40. These inflated prices are crazy.
i tried 2007 version. Mandala used to sell sample sizes. It is very very good. i would get some at reasonable price.
When I bought the 2010 from Yunnan Sourcing they were still selling it for $65. I had the foresight to buy three cakes.
I agree. Cakes like this seem to be big targets for inflation. If/when the bubble bursts, I’d guess Dayi productions will be some of the first to fall.
I bought one a little over a year ago from YS for $46. Don’t think I’d pay anymore then that.
That is true. Prices seem to have fallen quite a bit in the last half a year. It seems like it is taking a while to be reflected amongst western-facing vendors though.
let’s all go a step further and DEMAND free tea. Where the vendors at? I have to have a word with you, in private.
Judging from that report, I’d say that the listing is for big time buyers. The prices have not reached the wholesale or retail mkts yet.
I just chunked down on a purchase of many different companies. In the case of many, the sale price had INCREASED and none had decreased. This is because prices are being sold at inventory costs, so it may be a while before these decreases are reflected in the prices paid at the proverbial counter.
Your thoughts?
Madly interesting thread. I’ve been v. interested in Yu-lin tea but the prices are just not in my range.
yeah, they sell at inventory prices when the price decreases, but they sure don’t mind adjusting to market prices when the price increases.
I think if they keep producing and wanting high prices then inventory will become stagnant. Tea production will still go on and supply will stack. When this happens maybe people and/or suppliers will quit purchasing from the factory and supply will exceed demand. If this happens I think prices drop and good tea will become more reasonable in cost. Another scenario is maybe those holding the older unsold tea will bring prices down to have room in the shops. I am pretty sure factory shops have sales quotas to maintain and if stales become stagnant then good times for us if any of this happens.
The old supply and demand. Like new model cars coming out, get rid of the prior years first at discounts.
I’ve mentioned this before. In ‘08 many common Chinese herbs could be purchased at well below $10/lb. Products like ass-hide gelatin, prince seng, and notoginseng were quite available and at decent prices. Ass-hide gelatin sold for about $5/llb. Last time I checked, I stopped checking, it was $110. Prince seng was about $19 for high grade is is over $130 and as for notoginseng (a yunnan product)… all of the shops in Chinatown have stopped selling products made with it. It’s simply not available. My provider no longer sells American ginseng and have opted for the Korean stuff. Some products are no longer being exported because demand on mainland is just that high. I see the tea prices largely in this context, so I’m quite curious about what might be going on among the Chinese speculators and the economy in general that would account for this blow-off? Is it just that Dayi itself is just a tad over speculated upon? Methinks so. The stream notes how the herd is not heading for Xiaguan.
Well I’m actually an economist. It’s true, prices are all about supply and demand. Speculation may be driving demand to some extent. But China is getting richer with a larger middle class. That very likely is contributing to rising demand. If anyone says they know why prices are going up, they are just guessing. Nobody really knows until they look back. And nobody knows how much higher or lower prices will go under any circumstance. So purchase or wait at your own risk. Or just buy what you think is a reasonable price and don’t look back or chastise yourself if prices rise or if prices fall.
There was an article published in Mayway, an eponymously magazine for the Chinese medicine herbalists. They noted that because speculating on housing is restricted that one area that speculators look at is herbs. The link that apt posted mentions that Chinese in Malaysia are actively engaged in speculation over Dayi in particular.
I remember reading an article somewhere, to your point about rising middle class, that tea is second only to travel in terms of where money is being spent.
Here’s another good article on the bubble: http://www.white2tea.com/2014/03/27/predicting-a-puer-tea-bubble/
Noone knows exactly what happen but I’d predict that Dayi would be a likely candidate for a big price decrease as there is plenty of supply, much of it being sat on and not drank.
That’s a good article, jschergen. The rationale regarding workers is the same as for herbs.
Since the economies of the US and China are on opposite directions, there will come a time when the arbitrage mkt will vanish. Notice how Yulin teas are simply NOT available on Western sites, even now. Can you imagine in another 10 yrs what the situation might be?
I’m finishing up a blog post about Yiwu, so I figured I should drink some Yiwu tea. I broke into one of the cakes we had made from the Spring maocha we picked this year. It is very tasty with a quick energy. Very floral.
Drank the 2010 Yunnan Bamboo Basket Column Raw Puerh from Berylleb King Tea tonight. It was good. A small amount of sugar brought about notes of apricot and honey. Don’t know if they would have been there without the sugar. I steeped it six times, each getting better than the last. By the sixth sttep any bitterness was not even a memory. This was a smooth tea, pure and simple. The spent leaves had the distinct aroma of apricots to them. This tea was a good value too.
Today was a shou day, Temple Stairs mini tuocha.
I’ll admit, I’ve been a little afraid to try shou. Okay, a lot afraid. But I’m glad I did. It was a great tea day.
Happy Saturday Everybody! I’ve been rather busy these past few weeks so, as a result, haven’t been able to post. Today is the famous 1996 Menghai 7532 Orange in Orange. I use about 5.1 grams to 85 mL – equivalent to my usual 6 grams to 100 mL. This tea is quite different from most aged shengs I’ve had. It’s not as apparent but rather more subtle. The usual woody, earthy tones are there (much more subtle than “usual”) but there are also soft notes of vanilla, notes of what I detect to be milk chocolate, and a strong sweetness. What is unique about this tea is its complexity. It seems to be dynamic and change profile in the mouth. Very thick body, nice long hui gan and pleasant qi. IMO, this is an excellent example of aged sheng – 88/100
I’m drinking the tea sent for Sept with my Global Tea Hut mag. It’s a 2013 sheng that they call “King of the Forest”. It certainly sounds impressive and I’d say that I agree. It’s giving me a nice happy buzz without getting too crazy. Yum!
This afternoon I tried the 2010 Yunnan Sourcing “Bang Dong Village” Raw Wild Arbor Pu-erh tea cake of Mengku
What a fruity tea. Think apricots, the most apricoty pu that I’ve tasted. It’s a nice tea that has very little bitterness, fairly strong cha qi, and medium body. Seems like high quality leaves. I like this one quite a bit.
2002 CNNP Yellow Mark Private Order from W2T
Good, sweet, dry-stored, smooth. Fruity I guess? Not at the point where I can pick out nuances yet.
Yunnan Sourcing US sale, 12% off until 9/18! Code 12OFF. I’m in. Who’s with me! Thanks, Scott.
Sarsy, I had a sample of this yesterday . It’s so good
http://www.yunnansourcing.us/store/index.php?id_product=206&controller=product
Oh yes, I have that in my cart as well. Must be because someone here recommended it!
2010 Bang Dong Village and the 2011 Jingu mini cake and a couple of samples. Thanks for the code Rich! Thanks Scott!
Damn, I totally missed it! Busy life, I never seem to know about these things until they are over :p
Drank and compared 3 Naka teas, including white2tea’s 2005 Naka, Chawangshop’s 2007 Naka Qiao Mu Bamboo Raw, and another 2005 Naka cheapie from Ebay. The white2tea version is nothing less than a stoner tea, amazing tea buzz. Chawangshop’s has a lesser but similar effect for a smaller price, and the EBay cake seems to be a terrace tea. Don’t buy any of these teas, leave them for me!! No seriously, I recommend sampling the white2tea and the Chawangshop teas if you’re looking for a nice tea buzz.
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