Beware of Fakes! Mr Chen Examines the 2005 Laobanzhang - Chahuang
Mr. Chen wrote a few words on fakes circulating on the internet, especially of the 2005 Laobanzhang - Chahuang, and how to tell if the tea is likely to be counterfeit. Mr Chen explains looking for the following points when trying to authenticate the 2005 Laobanzhang - Chahuang.
- 2005 Xizihao only released the Laobanzhang Chahuang.
Other than this release, there was no other Chahuang cakes produced that year.
Beware of counterfeits. - 2005 Laobanzhang Chahuang was made entirely out of materials picked with the one-bud-per-three leaves standard with the straightening (li-tiao) process before drying. The leaves are fat, strong, and plump. Fakes do not have these characteristics and the surface of the cake appears without much visible structure.
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At the time, all the inner tickets were hand-stamped,
so if the inner ticket is printed, it is most likely a fake. - 2005 Laobanzhang Chahuang used entirely handmade cotton paper. You can only faintly see the inner ticket through the paper (unlike the fakes that use thin paper).
- 2005 Laobanzhang Chahuang cakes were all traditionally stone-pressed. Not the automatic hydraulic pressing. The surface of the real product looks looser and not tightly compressed like the fakes.
Written by Tony Chen, founder of Xizihao Daughter Tea. It is my only hope that fans of the Xizihao brand will not fall into their tricks again!
- Tony Chen, 2015.12.26 Evening at Sanhetang.
Images of fakes to be aware of
