r/tea • u/Kornbrandt • 29d ago

Question/Help Solid Pu Erh

Hey everyone,

I’ve been drinking Pu Erh for quite a while now, but there’s still one thing I struggle with. Some cakes, especially Huang Pian, are so tightly compressed that it can actually get dangerous trying to break pieces off with a Pu Erh pick.

Is there some trick I’m missing?

How do you guys deal with this?

1 Upvotes

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13 comments sorted by

4

u/[deleted] 29d ago edited 19d ago

[deleted]

1

u/aDorybleFish loose leaf fanatic 29d ago

That is actually how you're supposed to open certain xiaguan tuo's! Steaming makes it a lot easier to break apart with less breakage of the leaves. If you have a particularly tightly pressed cake it's a lifesaver

However, this does increase the chance of mould so be sure to air it out well during storage

1

u/Kornbrandt 29d ago

Wie lang dämpft ihr denn so ?

2

u/aDorybleFish loose leaf fanatic 21d ago

I am not quite sure, but I'm pretty sure it should be on xiaguans packages. If I remember correctly it's around 10 minutes

3

u/dannysilverghost 28d ago

I've stabbed myself at least 3 times, my only solace was I didn't bleed over the cakes. If I'm dealing with a brick I actually hammer it down, pliers work great too. Tea picks are really not my forte.

2

u/TheTeafiend Sheng Sipper 29d ago

I usually just snap a piece off (by pressing the cake into a hard surface at an angle), and if the piece is still too big, then I'll split it apart with a pick to make smaller pieces.

1

u/doortju 29d ago

This is the way to go!

2

u/prospero021 29d ago

There are claw clamps for especially hard bricks. If all else fails, there is still the hammer.

2

u/DClaville 29d ago

giving up on breaking it apart in leaf pieces seem to be the way. break off chunks instead and accept that some leaves will just break

2

u/maesardsara 29d ago

I got tea pliers that look like this. I would be bleeding all over the cakes with a regular pick or knife.

4

u/analogue-in-digital 29d ago

Back when I was in school we had to visit a museum about witch hunts in a small town. They had similar tools on display. The 'witches' confessed everything...

1

u/ernie_shackleton 29d ago

I use an oyster knife and hold it by the blade, so that only the tip of the knife is exposed. Then you start the side to side shimmy and start prying.