How many years of tea can be considered "aged tea"? How do you understand the term "aged tea"? When you see these two words, do you think of tea that has been stored for a long time?

Without further ado, what should aged tea of various types look like? Read on:

Traditional Tieguanyin

Some experts believe that, under normal circumstances, tea aged over 10 years can be called aged tea, while tea aged less than 10 years, due to insufficient aging, can only be referred to as matured tea. Additionally, the year is an important standard for measuring the quality of aged tea, but not the only one. For Anxi Tieguanyin, when stored properly, the tea reaches its peak in aging, flavor, and taste between 15-30 years.

White Tea

Most in the industry agree that white tea should be stored for at least 10 years to be considered strictly aged white tea. Lin Zhangwen, deputy general manager of Pinong Tea in Fuding City, explained that for Baihao Yinzhen, tea stored for two years has no particularly noticeable flavor. After three years, it develops a creamy taste, after four to five years a lotus leaf aroma, after five to ten years a jujube aroma, and after ten years or more, a medicinal aroma. Each stage has distinct characteristics, but the same standard when purchasing is to check whether the tea's aroma and taste are pure.

Wuyi Rock Tea

Currently, most aged Wuyi rock teas on the market are 3-6 years old. Ten years ago, very few people consciously stored rock tea, and with the recent boom in rock tea sales, truly good aged Wuyi rock teas are scarce, with Shui Xian being the main variety. After aging, the aroma of Wuyi rock tea gradually transforms into the tea soup, becoming more subtle, while the tea soup itself becomes mellower.

Pu-erh Tea

Pu-erh tea is divided into raw and ripe. Ripe Pu-erh needs to be aged for at least five years for the pile-fermentation flavor to transform or diminish, allowing the taste to mellow and the flavor profile to harmonize. Raw Pu-erh, from the day it is pressed, begins to mature like a growing child, requiring over 20 years of aging to fully develop. Additionally, the storage environment significantly impacts Pu-erh's quality, often referred to as "warehouse flavor," emphasizing the purity of the tea's aroma and the aged richness of the tea soup.

Tea insiders say:

There is no scientific method to accurately determine the actual age of tea, let alone identify it through taste. To simply enjoy a cup of aged tea, one must patiently store it for over a decade.