Definition of Stored Tea (入仓)
Storing tea products in a specific warehouse environment and attempting to alter the natural environment through artificial means, such as increasing humidity, raising temperature, limiting ventilation, adding agents, etc., to accelerate the aging process of the tea. This is referred to as "stored tea" (入仓茶), also commonly known as "wet storage tea" (湿仓茶).
Definition of Non-Stored Tea (未入仓)
Tea stored in an environment where people can live long-term, without artificial control of the environment, aging naturally with the seasonal changes in temperature and humidity. This belongs to "non-stored tea" (未入仓茶), also commonly known as "dry storage tea" (干仓茶).
How to identify "Dry Storage" and "Wet Storage" Pu-erh tea from the outer packaging paper?
Generally speaking, non-stored tea products are stored in relatively simple environments and in smaller quantities. The tea tong (筒身) experiences less collision, is cleaner, without water stains, and the iron wires securing the Yunnan Seven Sons Cake tea tong are less prone to rust. Conversely, the tong body of stored tea is often less able to maintain integrity and cleanliness.
Outer Wrapping Paper
If the outer wrapping paper has water stains, it usually indicates the tea has been stored (entered a warehouse), especially noticeable on the first and last cake in a tong. Non-stored tea products, after a certain number of years (minimum four years, depending on tea quality and environment), may develop oil stains, and the better the tea quality, the more obvious this is; however, sometimes if the storage environment temperature is too high, oil stains can appear quickly.
The age of the tea is not directly related to the integrity of the paper. Well-preserved old tea may have completely intact, undamaged paper. On the contrary, stored tea can suffer damage in a short time due to humidity and tea pests. Booklice (silverfish) can exist in any environment, so paper damage from insect feeding cannot reliably indicate the storage environment.
How to identify "Dry Storage" and "Wet Storage" Pu-erh tea from the tea cake itself?
Comparing similar tea products of a certain age, roughly seven years or more: For stored tea, the edges of the cake tend to be looser due to moisture, but also become harder towards the center due to moisture and pressure. Non-stored tea, usually stored in smaller quantities, experiences less overlapping pressure within a tong. Combined with normal fermentation and oxidation, the entire cake loosens uniformly.
Tea Leaf Color
For raw tea cakes (生茶饼) over four years old, non-stored tea leaves have a glossy, clean, and bright color. The color inside and outside the cake is similar or shows little difference. Stored tea leaves appear grayish-white, grayish-black, or reddish (if heavily stored), and usually have a significant color difference between the inside and outside. If the leaves are black but not glossy, or grayish-black, it is often caused by high-temperature de-storage methods. However, some merchants may spray tea oil, which can also create a significant color difference.
For identifying ripe tea (熟茶品): Good quality non-stored ripe tea has a reddish-brown color with a slight sheen. If it is deep black or bluish-black, it may be due to improper pile-fermentation (渥堆), affecting the tea quality. Stored ripe tea often has a slight white frost or appears reddish-black without luster. How to identify "Dry Storage" and "Wet Storage" Pu-erh tea from the aroma of the tea leaves?
Identifying raw tea: Non-stored raw tea has an aroma similar to aged Dong Ding Oolong or Tie Guan Yin tea—a light aged fragrance, slightly sour, with a hint of honey. Stored tea has a so-called "storage odor" (仓味); Guangdong warehouses tend to have a stuffier smell, while old Hong Kong warehouses typically have a strong aged flavor, with noticeable differences. Hong Kong-stored tea cakes with some age may have a so-called camphor aroma or ginseng-camphor aroma. Before the storage odor completely dissipates, it can often be smelled from the outer wrapping paper.
Judging ripe tea: Lightly stored, lightly fermented ripe tea made from buds and young leaves has a unique aroma, like dried lotus leaf, e.g., Bai Zhen Jin Lian. Lightly fermented ripe tea made from old leaves, aged non-stored tea, or lightly stored tea products have a red date aroma, which can be differentiated into fresh jujube and ripe jujube scents, e.g., 7581, Jujube Brick. Heavily wet-stored ripe tea made from mature leaves, or lightly wet-stored old ripe tea—though their aromas differ greatly—primarily exhibit a woody aroma from the tea leaves, e.g., 8592, 7562. How to identify "Dry Storage" and "Wet Storage" Pu-erh tea from the soup color?
Non-stored raw tea: Soup color ranges from golden yellow, yellowish-red, light amber, to transparent amber-red... varying with age, processing, and variety. The common feature and key point is that the soup is clear and bright, and appears oily. Stored tea soup color is darker, deeper, and less clear. Only tea with very light storage, very old tea, or tea that has been de-stored for many years might be clear, bright, and oily. From another perspective, an amber, clear, bright, and oily soup color is also a characteristic of high-quality tea.
New ripe tea: Stored tea typically has a darker and less clear soup color compared to non-stored tea. For old tea, if de-storage is complete, the soup color difference between the two is not significant, but non-stored tea is still clearer and brighter. How to identify "Dry Storage" and "Wet Storage" Pu-erh tea from the taste?
Non-stored raw tea: "Fruit acidity" is a main characteristic of slightly aged tea products. The taste is refreshing, not cloying, with strong sweetness returning after bitterness (回甘), sufficient tea essence (茶韵), and lingering fragrance in the emptied cup (杯底留香). For 40-50 year old "Yin Ji" grade tea, if not stored, even when brewed strongly, it can still retain a slight bitterness and astringency. Stored tea from the same period has a smooth, sweet soup and a full-bodied taste. Properly stored tea often surpasses non-stored tea in performance. But the biggest drawback is that no matter how well it is de-stored, the storage odor always remains.
Article Source: Tea Art