Compare two teas
Side by side across seven dimensions. There is no verdict and no winner — the purpose is to understand the difference, not to be told which to buy.
TeaHQ has written about this pair
The step that decides whether a pu-erh cake can age at all, and the one a buyer cannot see. It is the most consequential invisible difference in the category.
- Drying
- Sheng dragon ball: Also sun-dried here — the contrast is with machine finishing, which is common in wet weather.Sheng maocha: Sun-dried at low temperature, leaving enzymes and microorganisms active.
- Why it matters
- Sheng dragon ball: Same material, so the same applies; format is the variable in this pair.Sheng maocha: Residual activity is what decades of storage act on. Without it the tea simply goes stale.
- What a buyer can check
- Sheng dragon ball: Equally little.Sheng maocha: Very little. It is not visible in the leaf and wrappers rarely state it.
- Effect on ageing
- Sheng dragon ball: Full potential from the material, reduced by the format: small balls expose far more surface than a cake.Sheng maocha: Full ageing potential.
- Practical advice
- Sheng dragon ball: Drink these rather than store them.Sheng maocha: Buy from sellers who state their drying method, and read silence as a question rather than an answer.
In summary: Sun-drying is functional, not romantic. A cake made from machine-finished maocha will not age the way a sun-dried one does, whatever the wrapper claims.
Point by point
| Dimension | Sheng dragon ball | Sheng maocha |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Dark tea and pu-erh · not applicable · post-fermented (natural ageing) | Dark tea and pu-erh · not applicable |
| Production | In order: Withering → Kill-green (fixation) → Rolling and shaping → Sun-drying (shai qing) → Compression → Ageing and storage. spring harvest. | In order: Withering → Kill-green (fixation) → Rolling and shaping → Sun-drying (shai qing). spring harvest. |
| Origin | China — Xishuangbanna | China — Xishuangbanna |
| Flavour | sweet, vegetal and woody. full bodied and complex in the mouth. Aroma: honey, green wood, smoke. Moderate in character. Bold in intensity. | vegetal, smoky and sweet. full bodied, bitter and complex in the mouth. Aroma: fresh grass, smoke, honey, green fruit. Layered in character. Bold in intensity. |
| Brewing | Gongfu brewing (gaiwan): 5–7 g/100 ml at 98–100 °C, first steep 8s of 6 authored. Western brewing (teapot or mug): 1.5–2.5 g/100 ml at 95–100 °C, first steep 180s. | Gongfu brewing (gaiwan): 5–7 g/100 ml at 98–100 °C, first steep 8s of 6 authored. Western brewing (teapot or mug): 1.5–2.5 g/100 ml at 95–100 °C, first steep 180s. |
| Cultural context | Not recorded for this tea. | Not recorded for this tea. |
| Who may prefer it | Someone who wants the cup to assert itself and wants to enjoy it on the first cup. It tolerates an imprecise brew. | Someone who wants the cup to assert itself and is willing to drink something several times before it makes sense. It rewards attention to leaf weight and timing. |
Nothing above is a recommendation. The last row describes the drinker each tea suits, using each tea’s own authored fields and the same sentence structure for both, so neither can be framed as the safe choice.