Preferred Pu-erh and Superior Pu-erh Imperial Tea Court?

Indra, I think Scott from Yunnan Sourcing never claimed his Da Hong Pao is from Yunnan, instead, he just bought it from Yunnan and then resells it on the internet.

Whether it is a real DHP or not is another matter entirely, and even if you look at the leaves it's not easily distinguishable, but I don't think anybody is claiming that the DHP is from Yunnan.

And of course, this wasn't the original topic of the OP at all.

MarshalN

I'm sure they are cooked puerhs, possibly Roy's recipe, aged different years. I believe preferred is 5 and Superior is 12. You can call ITC and find out.

Shen wrote:

Thats the take I got too - bought/sold from a vendor in Yunnum, not 'grown' in Yunnan.

Then I'm only a 50yr old with bi-focals - so what would I know ! ;-))

Cheers Mal Oz

snipped-for-privacy@11g2000cwr.googlegroups.com1/21/07

I honestly think that it was not Shen's original intention to discuss fake vs. real, but only to learn more about the teas she acquired. On the fake note, Da Hong Pao from places outside WuYi is *not* fake, provided that we are told where it came from. Perhaps "Da Hong Pao-like" is more like it. So many of the teas we love are the result of moving one or another variety of tea to a new place, or treating it in a completely different matter in its manufacture. Fake is a rough word, and IMHO ought to be reserved for those teas that fly under false colors; that is, teas whose origins are purposely clouded by the manufacturer and/or the vendor. Just thoughts. Michael

Michael - it seems that you have "hit the nail on the head" - this is the description of my Da Hong Pao per Scott, Yunnan Sourcing. Obviously it was good enough for me. (From Ebay) "Big Red Robe, a myth, a legend!

Just to let everybody know, there is only 400 grams (not kilograms) produced each year from the last remaining Da Hong Pao tea bush in the world. Don't believe any claims that you hear. The scant harvest of the real thing is reserved for bigwigs here in China not foreigners! Even if you could get it the price would be $5000 or more per 10 grams.

So anyways, this Da Hong Pao falls into the category of an excellent fermented Red Oolong that was created by cloning Original Da Hong Pao. The flavor is strong but smooth. Full of body and flavor. 40% oxidization."

N> snipped-for-privacy@11g2000cwr.googlegroups.com1/21/07

As a good hunter-gatherer Roy does not want to disclose his hunting grounds. Also he carefully monitors his teas during aging and makes adjustments, so the final result is as much a function of the quality of the original tea as his efforts to age it properly. I believe that this is his strategy and I think its a good one. One can sell a brand name with reputation or one can create a trade house reputation. He is doing the latter - you buy teas from ITC and you never sorry (in my experience). Would I want to know more? Certainly. And very often Roy would tell you things when you meet him face-to-face. He is not that open over the net and I certainly understand why.

Sasha.