Dayi 7572 Ripened Pu-erh Mini Cake (Shou 熟) 150g — Menghai Tea Factory

Other names: Da Yi, 大益, 7572, Menghai Pu-erh, Shou Pu-erh, Ripe Pu-erh, 熟普

If pu-erh has a household name, it's Dayi (大益) — one of the best-known pu-erh houses in China and around the world, from the legendary Menghai Tea Factory.

The 7572 is its most famous ripe recipe — a classic in continuous production since the 1970s, and the cake many drinkers treat as the benchmark for ripened pu-erh.

This is that same classic in a 150g mini cake — the easiest way to taste a real Dayi 7572 without committing to a full cake.

About This Cake

The classic Dayi 7572 ripened (Shou) recipe, pressed as a 150g mini cake — made for anyone who wants to taste this prestige cake in its real, pressed form without committing to a conventional 357g.

Expect Dayi's signature 7572 character: a clear, bright-red brew, elegant and mellow, with a silky texture and a gentle sweet finish. A young ripe cake — lovely now, and ready to store and age.

• Type: Ripened (Shou 熟) pu-erh mini cake · 7572 recipe
• Brand: Dayi (大益) / Menghai Tea Factory
• Region: Menghai (勐海), Yunnan
• Taste: clear bright-red brew, elegant, mellow and silky, gently sweet
• Weight: 150g mini cake (2018)
• Ready to: drink now or age further

Want the full-size cake? Here's the Dayi 7572 357g standard cake.

Essential Pu-erh Tea Accessories

A few pieces make pu-erh much easier to enjoy:

• Cake pin (breaker): a pu-erh cake is pressed rock-hard, so you'll want a proper pu-erh cake pin to prise it into pieces without shredding the leaf.
• Teapot: for pu-erh we reach first for a Yixing zisha pot — the unglazed clay softens pu-erh's earthy edges for a rounder, smoother cup — or a gaiwan for an easier, more affordable start.
• Storage: keep your cakes breathing and organised in a pu-erh bamboo storage unit.

See the full range in our Pu-erh accessories.

Want to understand pu-erh a little better? Here's some honest, no-fluff knowledge to help you find your cake.

How to Choose Your First Pu-erh

The quick version:

Raw (Sheng) is like sashimi — fresh, bright and a little wild;

Ripe (Shou) is like a rich, slow-cooked stew — dark, mellow and smooth, transformed by time.

Love green or white tea? Start raw.

Love black tea, dark tea (hei cha) or roasted oolong? Start ripe — like this cake.

Your next pu-erh: explore by region.

Scroll down — there's plenty here to help you decide. Finding a cake you love is a genuinely fun journey, and the pricey one isn't always the one that suits you.

Every one of our cakes comes in a 50g sample, so you can try before you commit. There's no better way to know a tea than to taste it.

And once you find your favourite — buy a little more to keep. Most pu-erh cakes are aged for years, and when a batch sells out, it's gone for good. Storing the one you love is the smart move.

Pu-erh Regions: Why Origin Shapes Taste & Price

Region is one of the biggest reasons two pu-erhs can differ so much in taste, quality and price.

Across Yunnan, tea grows on hundreds of mountains, each giving its own character — shaped by the land and the tree type (ancient-tree, arbor or plantation).

Here's how Yunnan's three core regions break down — and what to expect from each:

A handy shorthand pu-erh drinkers use:

Ban Zhang is the king (bold and powerful),

Bing Dao is the queen (sweet and smooth),

Yiwu is grace itself (soft, supple and silky).

What Decides a Pu-erh's Price?

Pu-erh prices run from everyday to eye-watering, and it helps to know what you're paying for. A few things set the price:

• Where it's grown (region): a famous mountain like Lao Ban Zhang or Bing Dao is scarce and commands top prices.
• The tree (variety & age): ancient-tree (gu shu) leaf sits above arbor (qiao mu), which sits above plantation (tai di).
• The pick: even from the same tree, tender bud-and-tip fetches more than coarser leaf — and spring tea is prized over autumn.
• Age, storage, grade & brand: older well-stored cakes, higher grades, and established houses like Dayi and Xiaguan all add to the price.

That's why two cakes with the same famous name — say, "Bing Dao" — can sit at very different prices. The exact village, tree type, grade and season all change what ends up in the cup, so the same name never means the same tea.

Pu-erh, Caffeine & Antioxidants

Like all true tea from the Camellia sinensis plant, pu-erh is post-fermented and naturally contains antioxidants and caffeine — that's simply part of the leaf.

A gently brewed, well-aged ripe pu-erh tends to drink smooth and rounded rather than sharp. It's the classic cup to enjoy after a rich meal — warming, comforting and easy — which is exactly how it's been loved in China for generations. If you're sensitive to caffeine, keep your leaf light and your steeps short.

Brew this ripened pu-erh the right way

— check out our professional Brewing Guide, Storage Care, and The Origins below 👇