Best shu for aging?

[Shogun89]

Hey everyone,
Lately I have had some really nice aged shu puerh, and it makes me want to stock up on some to put away for 7 years or so. I currently have a 2003 CNNP 7581 and love it, and I want more like it. I plan on making my order through Steve's store. Below are a few teas I am considering, any thoughts on what would be the best to age would be greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone!

2008 Menghai '0532'
2008 Menghai "Da Yi Hong Premium Ripe"
2008 Menghai Tea Factory '8592'
2008 Menghai V93

Of course I need dome stock to drink now as well, so if any are superior for drinking now, advice would be much appreciated.

 

[arghblech]

2008 Menghai "Da Yi Hong Premium Ripe"
2008 Menghai V93

I found both of these to be fairly easy to drink now. I can't speak for the others in your list but consider trying this one before you commit.

 

[SilverToy]

Good question. I just ordered a few bing's and some other goodies from Steve, mostly to put away for a while. They should be here in a day or so. My thinking (which has got me in trouble before) was to get 08's that were first batch; Menghai Classic Premium Ripe (801 batch), Menghai 7632 Ripe (801 batch) and a 08 Menghai 0532 Premium Ripe. Along with arghblech I also ordered a 2007 Yong De "Certified Organic Ripe after sampling it: very good stuff IMHO.
For Sheng's, I picked up a 2002 Hai Lang Hao "Mengku Wild Arbor" cake (Yum!!), 2004 Hai Lang Hao "Big Snow Mountain" Raw, and a 2007 Mengku "Mu Ye Chun 002" Raw. I am going to try to keep these put away and see how they do. My thinking is that you can't go to wrong starting with good leaves.
I'm sure some others will chime in who have been at this way longer than me. I will be watching there answers also.

 

[Shogun89]

Sounds like you got some good stock coming. If you cant keep out of it be sure to tell us how they are. I think staying in the 2008 area is good, seems to have been a good year in tea production especially for Menghai, and the prices are pretty good.

 

[thanks]

Hey everyone,
Lately I have had some really nice aged shu puerh, and it makes me want to stock up on some to put away for 7 years or so. I currently have a 2003 CNNP 7581 and love it, and I want more like it. I plan on making my order through Steve's store. Below are a few teas I am considering, any thoughts on what would be the best to age would be greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone!

2008 Menghai '0532'
2008 Menghai "Da Yi Hong Premium Ripe"
2008 Menghai Tea Factory '8592'
2008 Menghai V93

Of course I need dome stock to drink now as well, so if any are superior for drinking now, advice would be much appreciated.

Out of the ones you've listed, I only have experience with the 0532, the 8592, and the V93 from that year. Out of those, I would say the 0532 and the 8592 are the lightest fermented, and would have the most room for improvement considering there are some light leaves in those mixes. As for what to drink now, that 07 Yong De linked earlier is fantastic, as is any 7262 with at least a year or two on it.

 

[netsurfr]

I found both of these to be fairly easy to drink now. I can't speak for the others in your list but consider trying this one before you commit.

The 2007 Yong De tea is a very nice tea but unfortunately, I have been cleaned out and there does not seem to be any more to be had. I tried and have not located any yet.

 

[arghblech]

The 2007 Yong De tea is a very nice tea but unfortunately, I have been cleaned out and there does not seem to be any more to be had. I tried and have not located any yet.

There is a 2008 version available. Has anyone tried it?

 

[Shogun89]

So it seems that for a good aging shu, one would want a low fermentation, so there is more room for post fermentation?

 

[netsurfr]

I can also highly recommend the 2009 Menghai Dayi Gong ripe. It has no fishey smell or pond taste so it is good for drinking now or for saving for a few years.

 

[ouch]

I'm not a big fan of shu, but I think my basic strategy for sheng will work for shu as well. Simply buy way more than you can possibly drink and try your best to forget about them. By the time you get around to sampling them, any fishy smells or remnants of wo dui should be long gone.

 

[TacoBell]

I am the absolutely worse person to ask about shu as I detest the stuff, but I thought the point of shu was that it was pre-aged. How much does it really improve with time?

 

[thanks]

So it seems that for a good aging shu, one would want a low fermentation, so there is more room for post fermentation?

Yes, to a point. Logically lower fermentation shu will have more room for drastic change compared to heavily fermented shu, although heavily fermented shu ages well too. Basically from my limited experience, there's no such thing as bad aged shu, just badly aged shu.