Time, years pass by, becoming the sediment of your dreams, or the burial of them.
All loneliness and deep affection, countless expectations and waits, become the rich sediment that fulfills your life.
The world is rich, life is pure. This week, in cup after cup of Tea, savor Liubao tea, savor yourself.
Today, I'll share some storage insights on Liubao tea. In storing Liubao tea, I've paid a lot of tuition fees, taken many detours, and am constantly summarizing and improving. Currently, I prefer the following methods:
1. Liubao tea does not suit being too dry or too moist. Personally, I pursue natural storage, with humidity between 60 to 75 degrees. When it exceeds 75 degrees, I control the humidity appropriately. If stored in a highly sealed environment, open windows regularly for ventilation. Some dryness may be due to the need for periodic turnover; I suggest turning over once a year.
2. The warehouse should be cool, quiet, and not transparent. It's recommended to use blackout cloth to cover glass windows to prevent direct sunlight. Since tea prefers to sleep and remain quiet, some warehouses even suggest not allowing outsiders to visit. During regular tea retrieval and warehouse inspection, only a fixed few internal staff should enter. If someone is unwell, they are not advised to enter. This may seem superstitious, but we do have such experiences.
3. For large-bundle teas and compressed brick, cake, and tuocha types, I personally feel they shouldn't be placed too high or in excessively dry floors, as this can cause them to turn green, sour, and make it hard for their aroma to develop. If space limitations require placing them on the third or fourth floor, place a bucket of water at intervals along the corridor. If it's stuffy, regularly open windows for ventilation and air circulation. It's suggested to prepare vents, or else the tea will be suffocated over time. By opening windows, note that it should be occasional and regular, not daily.
4. For storing tea, if possible, use old houses, such as old granaries or old tiled-roof houses. Ideally, they should be backed by a mountain, cool, and with good air quality. Before storing tea, ensure all warehouses are well-prepared against dampness, fire, theft, termites, and rodents.
5. The best storage method for Liubao tea is the turnover storage method. Combine a first-floor warehouse, second-floor warehouse, cool old tiled-roof house, old granary, and dry old wooden board warehouse. Place new tea in the first-floor warehouse or cool old granary or old tiled-roof house. After one year, its transformation is equivalent to three years, and then move it to the second floor or old wooden board warehouse (not overly dry or stuffy). Such a combination is perfect!
The key elements for storage are ventilation, cleanliness, light avoidance, moisture control, absence of peculiar smells, and no pollution, under normal temperature conditions (do not store in the Refrigerator).
(1) Moisture and Humidity
Moisture content of tea: Higher moisture content is not conducive to quality changes; conversely, too little moisture is also unsuitable. Moisture content should be maintained around 10%.
Humidity: High-quality Liubao tea forms when relative humidity is controlled between 60% and 75%.
(2) Temperature
Aging is a gradual process, and temperatures between 23°C and 28°C are more suitable. Higher temperatures accelerate oxidation, reducing transformed substances, which affects quality.
(3) Light
Avoid exposure to light. Infrared and ultraviolet rays in light significantly affect the color and taste of tea, causing it to lose its original flavor and freshness.
(4) Air
Clean air is beneficial for the formation of Liubao tea's quality. Circulating air facilitates the proliferation of active enzymes and microorganisms in the tea, accelerating its transformation and forming superior quality.
Shelf Life: Liubao tea can be stored long-term under normal temperature, cleanliness, ventilation, moderate humidity, light avoidance, and absence of strange odors.
Different-aged Liubao teas undergo different stages of change and require different storage methods. Do you know what these are? Continue reading below.
1. New Tea (within 5 Years)
Newly produced Liubao tea often carries some heap smell, moisture, or other impurities, and its properties are still unstable. It is not suitable for sealed storage and should be moderately ventilated. For new tea, it's best to store it in large bundles using bamboo baskets, as this leads to better aroma development later. Small-package and small-quantity storage limits transformation. Among Liubao tea products, those packaged in large bundles perform excellently in later transformations. After being steamed and pressed in large bundles, the tea undergoes significant changes in temperature and humidity, promoting internal substance transformation. During subsequent aging, large-bundle Liubao tea, with its large volume and quantity of leaves, has an advantage of “grouping together,” creating a favorable microbial environment. Bamboo baskets provide good ventilation, allowing the tea to come into moderate contact with air and moisture, promoting internal substance transformation, which benefits its future transformation. In itself, Liubao tea packaged in large bundles already possesses relatively good quality.
If limited by consumption and demand, you must store new tea in small quantities, it is recommended to transfer newly purchased Liubao tea from packaging with relatively poor breathability, such as aluminum foil bags, composite material bags, or plastic bags, to containers with better breathability and no peculiar smells, such as kraft paper bags, rattan baskets, paper boxes, or bamboo and wood containers. Store them in a clean environment with moderate ventilation and good breathability. This allows the impurities to dissipate and promotes better transformation of the tea.
2. Mid-Aged Tea (5-10 Years) and Aged Tea (10-20 Years)
Storage Key — Steady Transformation
Mid-aged and aged teas, after initial storage, gradually stabilize in character but still have room for transformation. Through tasting, judge the effect of previous transformations and make appropriate adjustments. Store the tea in containers with better breathability, such as purple Clay, Nixing Pottery, or Jian Shui purple clay vessels, lining