Choosing Storage Containers: Cardboard Boxes, Ceramic Jars, Yixing Jars, Zip Bags, and Foil Bags

Before choosing a container, ask yourself one question: do you want this tea to change slowly, or do you want to keep its current flavor? Pu'er isn't like green tea or oolong; raw tea keeps transforming in the right environment, and how breathable its container is determines how fast it exchanges air and moisture with the outside. To let tea change slowly, choose a container that breathes; to hold on to its present aroma, choose one that seals it off well.

Two Goals, Two Kinds of Containers

Indoor humidity in Taiwan is often around 70%, so many tea drinkers combine the two: a cardboard box or wooden cabinet on the outside, with a bag that isn't fully sealed inside as a buffer.

Cardboard Boxes: The Most Common and Practical

A clean, odor-free corrugated cardboard box is the most common choice for storing whole cakes and whole tong. Cardboard breathes and blocks light, and the paper itself absorbs a little moisture, softening humidity swings inside the box.

Keep three things in mind when using one:

• Smell new boxes first: don't use boxes that smell of printing ink, glue, or mildew.
• Don't put them directly on the floor: raise them a few centimeters and leave a little space from the wall, so dampness doesn't come up from the floor or walls.
• One kind per box: keep raw and ripe tea in separate boxes, and separate different mountains and years as far as possible.

The drawback of cardboard is that it softens and absorbs smells in prolonged damp, so open boxes and check more often during the plum rain season.

Ceramic and Yixing Jars: For Small Amounts and Opened Tea

The bodies of ceramic and Yixing clay jars have tiny pores. They breathe but aren't drafty, so the environment inside is stable, which makes them ideal for pried pieces, small amounts of loose tea, or a cake or two you want to keep an eye on.

• Which is better, ceramic jars or cardboard boxes? Both breathe. Cardboard boxes hold more and are cheap, suiting whole cakes and tong; ceramic jars hold less, are stable, and block light, suiting tea you've pried and plan to drink over time.
• The earthy smell of new jars: newly bought ceramic and Yixing jars may smell of the kiln or clay. Wash them, dry them thoroughly, and leave them a few days until you can't smell anything before putting tea in.
• Covering the mouth: for tea kept long term, cover the mouth of the jar with cotton paper or cloth before putting on the lid; for tea you'll drink soon, just close the lid.
• One tea per jar: jars absorb smells, so a jar that has held ripe tea is best kept for ripe tea.

How to store tea once it's pried is covered in more detail in Storing Opened Cakes and Pried Tea; the differences between canister materials are in Tea Canisters.

Zip Bags: A Buffer Layer Against Odors

Zip bags can be used and are very practical in Taiwan. They block most odors and some moisture. A common approach is to keep the cake in its original cotton paper, slip it into a thicker zip bag without sealing it completely, and then put it in a cardboard box. This keeps out the smells of other teas in the box while still allowing some air exchange.

Note that a bag can't replace a dry environment. If the tea is already damp when it goes in, the bag will trap the moisture inside. Make sure the tea is dry before bagging it, and open the bag to smell it regularly afterward.

Foil Bags: The Best Seal, the Slowest Change

Foil bags block light, moisture, and smells much better than zip bags. Do foil bags stop tea from transforming? They make transformation very slow. With limited air and moisture in the bag, the tea's change almost stops at the state it was in when sealed.

That's not necessarily bad:

• Good for: small portions for daily drinking, such as dragon pearls, tea bags, and loose tea; samples where you want to keep the floral notes of new tea; tea to be shipped or taken with you.
• Not good for: whole raw cakes you want to keep for ten years and watch change slowly.

When sealing, make sure the tea is dry and the bag is closed tight; after opening, if you plan to store the tea long term, move it back to a breathable container.

Vacuum Packs: A Tool for Keeping Things as They Are

Vacuum packing removes the air from the bag and seals the tea off more completely than an ordinary foil bag. It's often used for long-distance shipping and storing samples. Is vacuum packing good? It depends on your goal: it works well for keeping tea as it is, but not for aging. Also, the pressure of vacuum sealing can crush loose leaves and dragon pearls, while tightly pressed cakes are less affected. After opening vacuum-packed tea, leave it somewhere dry and ventilated for a few days so it can reconnect with the air, and its aroma will open up better.

Can Wooden or Plastic Boxes Be Used?

• Wooden boxes and cabinets: yes. They breathe and block light, and they're many people's first choice for a tea cabinet. Avoid strongly scented woods such as camphor or cypress, and furniture that's freshly lacquered or smells of paint; an old cabinet used for years that no longer smells of wood is actually best.
• Plastic boxes: they seal tightly, which keeps out dust, insects, and smells, but they don't breathe, so moisture easily gets trapped inside. If you use one, choose a storage box with no plastic smell, put a thermo-hygrometer and replaceable moisture absorbers inside, and open it to air out once a month.

A Practical Setup

1. Keep the cake in its cotton paper.
2. Slip it into a zip bag, leaving the opening slightly open.
3. Put it in a clean cardboard box or wooden cabinet, one kind of tea per box.
4. Put a thermo-hygrometer in the box, aiming for a relative humidity of about 55%–70% and a stable temperature between 20 and 28°C.
5. Open it once a month to look and smell.

This matches the advice in Temperature and Humidity for Storing Pu'er and How to Store Pu'er at Home; for details on keeping away from odors, see Odor Transfer and Contamination.

FAQ

Which is better, a ceramic jar or a cardboard box? Both breathe. Cardboard boxes suit storing whole cakes and tong in quantity; ceramic jars suit pried pieces and small amounts, with a more stable environment.

Can zip bags be used to store pu'er? Yes. Keeping the cake in its cotton paper, putting it in a zip bag without sealing it completely, and then putting it in a cardboard box is a common and practical approach in Taiwan.

Do foil bags stop pu'er from transforming? Transformation becomes very slow, which suits tea whose current flavor you want to keep; whole cakes meant for long-term aging belong in breathable cardboard boxes or wooden cabinets.

How long can vacuum-packed pu'er be kept? Vacuum packing keeps tea in the state it was sealed in, which suits shipping and storing samples. After opening, leave it somewhere dry and ventilated for a few days before drinking for a more open aroma. Follow the shelf life stated on the package.

Can plastic storage boxes hold tea? Yes, but choose one with no plastic smell, put a thermo-hygrometer and moisture absorbers inside, and open it to air out every month.