Is it better to buy loose tea or cake tea for white tea?

Analysis of the core differences between loose tea and cake tea

1. Process and shape

Loose tea: traditional process, made only by withering and drying, retaining the natural stretched shape of tea leaves (complete buds and leaves, white hairs exposed), fluffy and space-consuming.

Cake tea: adding the "steaming-pressing" process on the basis of loose tea, pressing it into a cake shape (common 357g specification), which is convenient for transportation and storage.

2. Conversion of contained substances

Loose tea: due to its loose structure, large contact surface with air, fast conversion speed, easy to present a fresh flavor.

Cake tea: compact inside, micro-oxygen environment promotes slow fermentation, and it is easier to accumulate a mellow taste (such as the jujube fragrance of old Shoumei cake).

3. Aroma and taste

Loose tea: prominent aroma of hair and flower (such as the freshness of white hair silver needle and the sweetness of white peony), new tea is more fresh and lively.

Cake tea: Steaming and pressing ruptures the cell wall, causing pectin to ooze out, making the taste sweeter and smoother. After aging, it will have more medicinal and honey flavors.

4. Storage and transformation potential

Loose tea: It is sensitive to humidity and needs strict humidity control (it is easy to be damp and deteriorate in humid areas in the south), suitable for medium- and short-term drinking.

Cake tea: Due to its good moisture resistance due to tight compression, it is more stable for long-term storage, and the soup feels thick and smooth after aging (old tea cakes over ten years old are more valuable for collection).

Selection suggestions: Match according to needs

1. Choose loose tea for those who prefer natural flavor:

Suitable for tea lovers who pursue the original freshness of white tea (such as spring silver needles and peony king), especially for drinking in the new tea stage. However, new tea is cool in nature, and tea lovers with cold constitutions are advised to choose old white tea over three years old.

2. Choose cake tea for long-term collection or focusing on cost-effectiveness:

The storage cost per unit volume of cake tea is low, and the aging potential is large (such as the transformation of the jujube fragrance of old Shoumei cakes requires more than 5 years), which is suitable for hoarding tea.

3. Other considerations:

Loose tea is easy to use and does not require prying; cake tea needs tea needles to be decomposed, which has a strong sense of ritual.

If the cake tea is neatly shaped as a gift (commonly seen in cotton paper packaging + gift boxes), it will be more elegant; and old tea cakes have cultural value.

There is no absolute superiority or inferiority between loose tea and cake tea. The core lies in:

Choose loose tea for tasting (drinking within 3 years), and cake tea for storage (aging for more than 5 years);

If storage conditions are limited (such as storing tea at home), cake tea has a higher fault tolerance rate;

Advanced players can take both, compare the aging trajectories of different forms, and feel the charm of white tea as a "living fossil".

This article is for reference only. For daily drinking, choose new tea or old tea, loose tea or tea cake, according to your own wishes and preferences.