Puerh (Ripe / Shou)

Classic recipes

Factory-recipe ripe puerh identified by a four-digit code, parallel to the raw puerh recipe system. The 7572 is the standard benchmark shou cake; 7262 uses finer-grade material; the V93 tuo is a smaller compressed form. Each code exists in versions from multiple factories, and comparing the same recipe across producers reveals how much factory variation matters alongside blend grade. These recipes are the consistent reference point for understanding ripe puerh character, sitting alongside the material-and-grade family which addresses the raw variables.

teabert, the tealytics teapot, keeper of the kettle
These are the benchmark shou recipes, coded like their raw counterparts, with 7572 the reference everyone measures against and the right place to start with ripe puerh. Shou is often sold with stories about ancient trees and rare mountains, and these simply have a number, which in shou is about as honest as a name gets.

Styles in this family

How it's made

The steps overlap in practice; this is a reading order, not a set of separate stages.