Fresh pu'er, anyone?

My pu'er roadmap

Teaparker posted a question on his blog yesterday:  how tasty is young and fresh pu'er? A question that challenges the norm where trendsetters would go for aged pu'ers, the older, the better.

What about young pu'ers? In fact, a good quality pu'er tea can already be consumed at a young age. Delicate and fragrant, these young leaves mature into aged pu'er that exudes a mellow charm with the passing of time.

The grading of pu'er teas is a very demanding task as this brings into question the age of the tea tree's age, it's cultivar and region of growth. These factors all play decisive roles in the quality of the final product. It was a widespread belief that newly made pu'er teas cannot be used immediately and require some years of storage before they become palatable. Truth is, good pu'er teas should taste good from the outset. Hence, a good piece of cake with proper storage conditions work most favourably towards improving quality and increasing value.

So far, I have found the humidity levels in a tropical climate to be ideal for my pu'er cakes. Of equal importance are the conditions of  your storage location, which should be shaded, clean and well-ventilated.