The greatest advantage of fresh Puer Tea is its higher degree of freshness and fragrance compared to aged teas. It boasts a fresher aroma and more invigorating taste. However, the drawbacks are also evident. Freshly made tea has an unstable character with a pronounced raw and bitter taste, making it rather bland and cool, which can upset the stomach if consumed in excess. It is best to seal and let it rest for two months or longer before enjoying. Over time, stored Puer raw tea transforms into a richer, more complex flavor profile with layers of aroma, a lingering aftertaste, and a gentler infusion, making it ideal for daily consumption. As a post-fermentation tea, time is what elevates its quality. Fresh tea can be enjoyed in moderation, but for regular drinking, stored tea is recommended.

Puer Raw Tea: Aged or Fresh?

Strictly speaking in terms of age, aged Puer tea is generally better. Puer tea changes in taste with each passing year and season, so the best choice is ultimately what suits you personally.

Differences Between Fresh and Aged Tea:

Appearance: Fresh tea has a dark green hue with visible downy hair and plump leaves; as old tea ages, its color shifts from dark green towards yellowish-brown and dark brown, with white down turning golden due to moisture loss, resulting in drier and flatter leaves.

Fragrance: Fresh tea has a fresh and brisk aroma with noticeable grassy notes; aged tea, after undergoing transformation, loses its grassy scent and develops a mature fragrance.

Infusion Color: Fresh tea produces a yellow-green infusion, clear yellow with a hint of green; as old tea ages, its infusion color gradually evolves towards orange-red. Due to differences in climate and storage conditions across regions, the infusion colors of Puer teas stored in different places vary slightly. Generally, within three to five years, the infusion color of Puer raw tea shifts from yellow-green to golden yellow, and then from golden yellow to orange-yellow over the next five to ten or even fifteen years. For Puer teas that have been aged for twenty to thirty years, the infusion color is a deep orange-red, verging on wine red in some cases.

Taste: Fresh tea offers a refreshing mouthfeel, rapid and strong aftertaste and saliva generation, with a noticeable raw and bitter taste and distinct flavor characteristics; aged tea, on the other hand, has a smoother and richer mouthfeel, with a gentle and full-bodied broth that reflects the passage of time.

Provided that Puer tea is dried, hygienic, and not contaminated, freshly produced raw Puer tea (without heap fermentation) tastes bitter with a good aftertaste! Fresh ripe Puer tea (heap fermented) does not hold up well to multiple infusions and is generally better after being stored for at least half a year. Personally, I prefer aged raw Puer. Aged ripe Puer has a heavier mature fragrance, which is favored by regular drinkers due to its rarity.