Saint Petersburg — 2026-05-30
MafiaTea today released the findings of its Q2 2026 investigation into counterfeit Lǎo Bān Zhāng (老班章) shēng pǔ’ěr (生普洱). Three vendors were publicly named; one remains unnamed pending further legal review. The probe uncovered eight fraudulent samples out of twelve purchased, all marketed as authentic Lao Banzhang but failing independent DNA barcoding and physical wrapper analysis.
The named vendors are Kunming-based wholesale outlet Yun Xiang Ge, European direct-to-consumer store Tea Noble, and Telegram-based group-buy operator PuerhDeals. Each sold material advertised as spring 2025 Lao Banzhang at prices between €37 and €129 per 100 grams. Buyers were presented with packaging that mimicked genuine factory wrappers, complete with forged anti-counterfeit holograms and batch codes referencing GB/T 22111-2008.
MafiaTea commissioned authentication from an independent food-safety lab in Yunnan. Eight samples were shown to contain generic Bulang-region material mixed with aged kǔn mìng (昆明) storage aromas. None matched the metabolomic fingerprint of certified Lǎo Bān Zhāng old-tree raw material. Side-by-side photographs — fake wrappers next to archive examples from the 2017 Menghai Tea Factory — are available at mafiatea.com/press.
“Counterfeit Lao Banzhang isn’t a victimless grift,” said Evgeniy Smoley, CEO of MafiaTea. “When a vendor sells a €50 cake that claims to be from the same grove as a €2,000 cake, they are stealing trust, heritage, and the livelihood of the farmers who actually produce the real thing. If someone offers you Lao Banzhang under €200 per 100 grams, they’re either a fool or a thief — and we refuse to sell fairy tales.”
The fourth vendor — a shop with ties to organised distribution networks in Southeast Asia — is not being identified at this stage. MafiaTea has shared evidence with regulatory authorities in Yunnan and is cooperating with an active trade-fraud investigation.
MafiaTea does not stock any tea that makes unverifiable origin claims. All shēng pǔ’ěr inventory sold via shop.thetea.app is lab-verified, provenance-documented, and priced transparently — a point of difference the constellation reinforces through education at tea.school and community discussion on tea.community. “Our audience doesn’t need fake prestige. They need the real leaf, backed by science and supply-chain transparency,” Smoley added.
The full dossier, including lab reports and wrapper photography, is available to press upon request.
Media contact
Evgeniy Smoley