Pu-erh tea is known among tea lovers as "drinkable antiques"—unlike the fleeting freshness of new tea, it matures into a mellow charm over time, growing rarer with each passing year. Connoisseurs often say, "Every cake drunk is one less in the world," a sentiment that reflects not just affection for the tea, but a fondness for the taste of time itself. In the "time-bound collection" of pu-erh, the name "China Tea" (Zhongcha) remains an inescapable legend.
Today, the "Yinji Tea" and "Qizi Cakes" that fetch sky-high prices at auctions mostly originated from the Yunnan Tea Branch of China National Native Produce & Animal By-Products Import & Export Corporation—the entity known to tea circles as "Zhongcha Yunnan Branch." At the 2019 Hong Kong Si Hong Spring Auction, a cake of 1950s Zhongcha Large-Character Red Seal Raw Pu-erh sold for HK$6,405,000, showcasing the weight of Zhongcha’s vintage teas. Yet these million-dollar Yinji teas feel more like "teas of legend" to most enthusiasts: prohibitively expensive, scarce in existence, and unobtainable even for those who can afford them. Thus, "mid-term teas"—aged 10 to 20 years—have become the best way for tea lovers to experience vintage flavors: they have mellowed with time, yet remain accessible, striking the perfect balance between savoring and collecting.
In the tea cabinet of Tongxinshe Teahouse, this 1998 Zhongcha "Wild Pre-Ming Spring Tip" is a treasure among mid-term teas. Produced during Zhongcha Yunnan Branch’s iconic "Eight-Character Tea Logo" era, its raw material is pre-Ming spring tea from Yunnan’s Menghai ancient tea mountains—"Spring Tip" refers to the first tender buds of early spring, paired with the wild charm of Menghai ancient trees, making it a "collectible grade" Zhongcha product even then. Now, 27 years later, the cake has shed the astringency of new tea: its surface glows with a dark, oily luster, the tea leaves stand full and layered, and the once-tender buds have been tinted golden by time, each thread bearing the marks of years. Menghai’s raw material is a "natural fit" for raw pu-erh—later, the 2000 "Chinese Cabbage" and "Little Cabbage" cakes, which now sell for nearly 50,000 yuan per cake, used Menghai material; the fame of Laobanzhang and Laoman’e also attests to the region’s tea quality. This 1998 Spring Tip is a distillation of Menghai’s character.
Taking a 10g sample, the fragrance unfurls the moment hot water wakes it—no fresh brightness of new tea, but aged aroma wrapped in honeyed notes, mixed with the gentle warmth unique to old tea, like opening a door to bygone days. The liquor glows with a translucent reddish-yellow hue; the first sip feels "steady": mellow, silky, free of new tea’s sharpness or over-aged flatness, only the refinement polished by 27 years. The tea’s "energy" carries Menghai’s signature intensity—by the third infusion, a faint warmth spreads across the back, and a cool afterglow lingers in the throat; the final infusions turn sweet, retaining flavor even after 20 steeps, each sip a testament to time’s patience.
For most tea lovers, collecting a full cake of old tea may require consideration, but tasting this 27-year-old Zhongcha Spring Tip is an accessible joy. Tongxinshe Teahouse has prepared 10g tasting portions, letting enthusiasts savor Zhongcha’s vintage character without a huge investment. This is no ordinary cup of tea: it is 27 years of aged fragrance, the lingering charm of Zhongcha’s traditional craftsmanship, and a vivid illustration of pu-erh’s "aging to perfection."
If you want to taste the flavor of time, visit Tongxinshe’s online shop at www.txs-tea.com for this 1998 Spring Tip—after all, each sip of old tea is a moment that can never be repeated.