Pu’er tea – Wikipedia

variety of ferment tea produced in the Yunnan province of China
Shú pu’er tea, shúchá, brewed from a brick pu’er tea, , brewed from a brick Pu’er or pu-erh [ 1 ] is a variety of sour tea traditionally produced in Yunnan Province, China. In the context of traditional chinese tea product terminology, zymosis refers to microbial agitation ( called ‘wet piling ‘ ), and is typically applied after the tea leaves have been sufficiently dried and rolled. [ 2 ] As the tea undergoes controlled microbial agitation, it besides continues to oxidize, which is besides controlled, until the desire flavors are reached. This procedure produces tea known as 黑茶 hēichá ( unhorse. ‘black tea ‘ ) ( which is unlike from the English-language black tea that is called 红茶 hóngchá ( ignite. ‘red tea ‘ ) in Chinese ). Pu’er falls under a larger category of ferment teas normally translated as dark teas. Two chief styles of pu’er production exist : a traditional, longer output process known as shēng ( raw ) pu’er ; and a modern, accelerated product process known as shóu ( ripe ) pu’er. Pu’er traditionally begins with a raw product called “ roughly ” ( máo ) chá ( 毛茶, lighted. fuzzy/furry tea ) and can be sold in this form or pressed into a number of shapes and sold as “ shēng chá ( 生茶, light. raw tea ). Both of these forms then undergo the complex process of gradual agitation and maturation with time. The wòduī ( 渥堆 ) agitation summons developed in 1973 by the Kunming Tea Factory [ 3 ] [ 4 ] created a modern character of pu’er tea. This process involves an accelerate zymosis into shóu ( or shú ) chá ( 熟茶, alight. good tea ) that is then stored loose or pressed into respective shapes. The agitation process was adopted at the Menghai Tea Factory shortly after and technically developed there. [ 5 ] The legitimacy of shóu chá is disputed by some traditionalists when compared to the traditionally, longer-aged teas, such as shēng chá. All types of pu’er can be stored to mature ( in non-airtight containers ) before consumption, which is why it is standard to label them, more so than most other types of tea, with the year and region of production.

list [edit ]

Pu’er is the pinyin romanization of the Mandarin pronunciation of chinese 普洱. Pu-erh is a random variable of the Wade-Giles romanization ( properly p‘u-êrh ) of the same name. In Hong Kong the lapp chinese characters are read as Bo-lei, and that is therefore a common option english term for this tea. The township of Pu’er and its surrounding county derive from the tea, quite than vice versa, [ 6 ] [ 7 ] but the area is now sometimes considered the appellation for pu’er proper. Pu’er, known in Chinese as a type of ‘dark tea ‘ ( heicha ) is known in spanish as té rojo ( crimson tea ), while what in chinese as ‘red tea ‘ ( hongcha ), is known in spanish as ‘té black ‘, i.e. black tea .

history [edit ]

Darkening tea leaves to trade with ethnic groups at the borders has a farseeing history in China. These crude teas were of assorted origins and were meant to be low cost. [ 8 ] Darkened tea, or hēichá, is hush the major beverage for the ethnic groups in the southwestern borders and, until the early 1990s, was the one-third major tea class produced by China chiefly for this market segment. [ 6 ] There had been no standardize work for the blackening of hēichá until the postwar years in the 1950s, when there was a sudden surge in demand in Hong Kong, possibly because of the concentration of refugees from the mainland. In the 1970s the improved work was taken back to Yunnan for far development, which has resulted in the versatile production styles variously referred to as wòduī today. [ 4 ] [ 9 ] This new process produced a finished intersection in a matter of months that many thought taste similar to teas aged naturally for 10–15 years and then this menstruation saw a demand-driven boom in the production of hēichá by the artificial ripen method acting. In late decades, demand has come wide circle and it has become more common again for hēichá, including pu’er, to be sold as the bare-assed product without the artificial accelerated agitation process. Pu’er tea process, although aboveboard, is complicated by the fact that the tea itself falls into two distinct categories : the “ sensitive ” Sheng Cha and the “ ripe ” Shu Chá. All types of pu’er tea are created from máochá ( 毛 茶 ), a largely unoxidized k tea processed from Camellia sinensis volt-ampere. assamica, which is the big leaf type of chinese tea found in the mountains of southern and western Yunnan ( in contrast to the small flick type of tea used for typical green, oolong, blacken, and yellow teas found in the other parts of China ). Maocha can be sold directly to market as loosen leaf tea, compressed to produce “ raw ” shēngchá, naturally aged and matured for several years before being compressed to besides produce “ raw ” shēngchá or undergo Wo Dui ripening for several months prior to being compressed to produce “ ripe ” shóuchá. While unaged and unprocessed, Máochá pǔ’ěr is like to green tea. Two elusive differences worth noting are that pǔ’ěr is not produced from the small-leaf chinese varietal but the broad-leaf varietal by and large found in the southerly chinese provinces and India. The moment is that pǔ’ěr leaves are picked as one bud and 3-4 leaves whilst green tea is picked as one bud and 1-2 leaves. This means that older leaves contribute to the qualities of pǔ’ěr tea. Ripened or aged raw pǔ’ěr has occasionally been mistakenly categorized as a subcategory of black tea due to the dark loss color of its leaves and liquor. however, pǔ’ěr in both its ripened and aged forms has undergo junior-grade oxidation and agitation caused both by organisms growing in the tea and free-radical oxidation, thus making it a alone type of tea. This deviation in production stylus not only makes the spirit and texture of pu’er tea different but besides results in a quite different chemical makeup of the resulting brewed liquor. The ferment blue tea, hēichá ( 黑茶 ), is one of the six classes of tea in China, and pǔ’ěr is classified as a dark tea ( defined as fermented ), something which is resented by some who argue for a separate class for pǔ’ěr tea. [ 10 ] As of 2008, entirely the large-leaf variety show from Yunnan can be called a pǔ’ěr .

Processing [edit ]

Pu’er is typically made through two steps. First, all leaves must be approximately processed into maocha to stop oxidation. From there it may be far processed by agitation, or directly packaged. Summarising the steps : [ 3 ] : 207

• Maocha: Killing Green (杀青) — Rolling (揉捻) — Sun Drying (晒干)
  1. green/raw (生普, sheng cha)
  2. dark/ripe (熟普, shu cha): — Piling(渥堆))– Drying(干燥))

Both sheng and ripe pu’er can be shaped into cakes or bricks and aged with time .

Maocha or harsh tea [edit ]

The intent of the maocha stagecoach ( 青 毛 茶 or 毛 茶 ; literally, “ ignite green rough tea ” or “ rough tea ” respectively ) is to dry the leaves and keep them from spoiling. It involves minimal process and there is no zymosis involved. The first gear step in making raw or ripened pu’er is picking appropriate tender leaves. Plucked leaves are handled gingerly to prevent bruising and unwanted oxidation. It is optional to wilt/wither the leaves after picking and it depends on the tea processor, as dry occurs at respective stages of process. [ 3 ] If so, the leaves would be spread out in the sunday, upwind permit, or a ventilate quad to wilt and remove some of the water content. [ 11 ] On cloudiness or showery days, the leaves will be wilted by light inflame, a flimsy difference in processing that will affect the quality of the resulting maocha and pu’er .
relatively young raw pu’er ; note the grey and dark greens tones The leaves are then dry-roasted using a big wok in a process called “ killing the green ” ( 殺 青 ; pinyin : shā qīng ), which arrests most enzyme action in the leaf and prevents full oxidation. [ 3 ] : 207 After pan-roasting, the leaves are rolled, rubbed, and shaped into strands through respective steps to lightly bruise the tea and then left to dry in the sun. Unlike green tea produced in China which is dried with hot air after the pan-fry stagecoach to completely kill enzyme activity, leaves used in the production of pu’er are not air-dried after pan-roasting, which leaves a small amount of enzymes which contribute a minor amount of oxidation to the leaves during sun-drying. The bruising of the tea is besides important in helping this minimal oxidation to occur, and both of these steps are significant in contributing to the unique characteristics of pu’er tea. once dry, maocha can be sent directly to the factory to be pressed into raw pu’er, or to undergo further process to make ferment or ripened pu’er. [ 3 ] : 208 Sometimes Mao Cha is sold directly as loose-leaf “ raw ” Sheng Cha or it can be matured in loose-leaf form, requiring only two to three years due to the fast rate of natural agitation in an decompress state of matter. This tea is then pressed into numerous shapes and sold as a more mature “ raw ” Sheng Cha .

Pressing [edit ]

A pu’er tea factory, which steams, bags, and presses the loose leaf pu’er into tea bricks To produce pu’er, many extra steps are needed prior to the actual press of the tea. First, a specific quantity of dry máochá or ripened tea leaves pertaining to the concluding weight of the bingcha is weighed out. The dry tea is then thinly steamed in punch cans to soften and make it more tacky. This will allow it to hold together and not decay during compression. A ticket, called a “ nèi fēi “ ( 内 飞 ) or extra adornments, such as color ribbons, are placed on or in the midst of the leaves and inverted into a fabric bag or wrapped in fabric. The bulge of tea is gathered inside the fabric bag and wring into a ball, with the supernumerary fabric tied or coiled around itself. This coil or ravel is what produces the dimple indentation at the reverse side of a tea coat when pressed. Depending on the determine of the pu’er being produced, a cotton bag may or may not be used. For exemplify, brick or feather teas much are not compressed using bags. [ 12 ] [ better source needed ] Pressing can be done by :

• A press. In the past, hand lever presses were used, but were largely superseded by hydraulic presses. The press forces the tea into a metal form that is occasionally decorated with a motif in sunken-relief. Due to its efficiency, this method is used to make almost all forms of pressed pu’er. Tea can be pressed either with or without it being bagged, with the latter done by using a metal mould. Tightly compressed bǐng, formed directly into a mold without bags using this method are known as tié bǐng (鐵 餅, literally “iron cake/puck”) due to its density and hardness. The taste of densely compressed raw pu’er is believed to benefit from careful aging for up to several decades.
• A large heavy stone, carved into the shape of a short cylinder with a handle, simply weighs down a bag of tea on a wooden board. The tension from the bag and the weight of the stone together give the tea its rounded and sometimes non-uniform edge. This method of pressing is often referred to as: “hand” or “stone-pressing”, and is how many artisanal pu’er bǐng are still manufactured.

Pressed pu’er is removed from the fabric bag and placed on fretted shelves, where they are allowed to air dry, which may take respective weeks or months, depending on the wetness of the pressed cakes. [ 11 ] The pu’er cakes are then individually wrapped by hand, and packed .

zymosis [edit ]

Pu’er is a microbially fermented tea obtained through the action of molds, bacteria and yeasts on the reap leaves of the tea implant. It is thus truly a ferment tea, whereas teas known in the west as black teas ( known in China as Red tea ) have merely undergo large-scale oxidation through naturally occurring tea implant enzymes. Mislabelling the oxidation process as zymosis and thus appellative black teas, such as Assam, Darjeeling or Keemun, as fermented tea has long been a source of confusion. only tea such as pu’er, that has undergo microbial processing, can correctly be called a ferment tea. [ 13 ] Pu’er undergoes what is known as a solid-state zymosis where water activity is gloomy to negligible. Both endo-oxidation ( enzymes derived from the tea-leaves themselves ) and exo-oxidation ( microbial catalysed ) of tea polyphenols occurs. The microbes are besides creditworthy for metabolising the carbohydrates and amino acids present in the tea leaves. [ 13 ] [ 14 ] [ 15 ] Although the microbes responsible have proved highly variable from area to region and even factory to factory, the identify organism found and creditworthy for about all pu’er zymosis has been identified in numerous studies as Aspergillus niger, with some highlighting the hypothesis of ochratoxins produced by the metamorphosis of some strains of A.niger having a potentially harmful effect through consumption of pu’er tea. [ 16 ] [ 17 ] [ 18 ] [ 19 ] This notion has recently been refuted through a systematic chromosome analysis of the species attributed to many East asian fermentations, including those that involve pu’er, where the authors have reclassified the organisms involved as Aspergillus luchuensis. [ 20 ] It is apparent that this species does not have the gene sequence for coding ochratoxin and frankincense pu’er tea should be considered safe for human consumption. [ 21 ]

Ripe pu’er [edit ]

“ Ripened ” Shu Cha ( 熟茶 ) tea is pressed maocha that has been specially processed to imitate aged “ bare-assed ” Sheng Cha tea. Although it is besides known in English as cook pu’er, the process does not actually employ cooking to imitate the aging process. The terminus may be due to inaccurate translation, as shóu ( 熟 ) means both “ fully cooked ” and “ fully ripened ”. The process used to convert máochá into ripened pu’er manipulates conditions to approximate the result of the aging process by elongated bacterial and fungal agitation in a warm humid environment under controlled conditions, a proficiency called Wò Duī ( 渥 堆, “ wet piling ” in English ), which involves piling, dampening, and turning the tea leaves in a manner a lot akin to composting. [ 4 ] The pile, wetting, and blend of the throng máochá ensures even fermentation. The bacterial and fungal cultures found in the sour piles were found to vary widely from factory to factory throughout Yunnan, consisting of multiple strains of Aspergillus spp., Penicillium spp., yeasts, and a wide rate of other microflora. control over the multiple variables in the ripen action, peculiarly humidity and the growth of Aspergillus spp., is key in producing ripen pu’er of high quality. [ 19 ] [ 22 ] Poor control condition in fermentation/oxidation march can result in badly ripen pu’er, characterized by ill decomposed leaves and an aroma and texture evocative of compost. The ripening march typically takes between 45 and 60 days on average. The Wò Duī serve was beginning developed in 1973 by Menghai Tea Factory [ failed verification ] and Kunming Tea Factory [ 4 ] to imitate the spirit and coloring material of aged bare-assed pu’er, and was an adaptation of wet memory techniques used by merchants to artificially simulate senesce of their teas. Mass production of ripened pu’er began in 1975. It can be consumed without far senesce, or it can be stored far to “ air out ” some of the less savory flavors and aromas acquired during agitation. The tea is sold both in flattened and free shape. Some tea collectors believe “ ripened ” Shu Cha should not be aged for more than a decade. Wet down fermented pu’er has higher levels of caffeine and much higher levels of gallic acid compared with traditionally aged crude pu’er. additionally, traditionally aged pu’er has higher levels of the antioxidant and carcinogen-trapping epigallocatechin gallate a well as ( + ) – catechin, ( – ) -epicatechin, ( – ) – epigallocatechin, gallocatechin gallate, and epicatechin gallate than wet stack fermented pu’er. last, wet pile fermented puer has much lower full levels for all catechins than traditional pu’er and other teas except for black tea which besides has moo total catechins. [ 23 ]

classification [edit ]

aside from vintage year, pu’er tea can be classified in a variety show of ways : by condition, processing method, area, cultivation, grade, and season .

form [edit ]

Pu’er is compressed into a assortment of shapes. other lesser seen forms include : stacked “ melon pagoda “, pillars, calabashes, yuanbao, and minor tea bricks ( 2–5 centimeter in width ). Pu’er is besides compressed into the empty centers of bamboo stems or packed and bound into a ball inside the peel of versatile citrus fruits ( Xiaoqinggan ) or sold as loose kernels ( Fossilized tea 茶化石 ) .

Image	Common name	Chinese characters		Pinyin	Description
		S	T
	Bing, Beeng, Cake, or Disc	饼 茶	餅 茶	Bǐngchá	A round, flat, disc or puck-shaped tea, the size ranges from as small as 100 g to as large as 5 kg or more, with 357 g, 400 g, and 500 g being the most common. Depending on the pressing method, the edge of the disk can be rounded or perpendicular. It is also commonly known as Qīzí bǐngchá (七子餅茶, Chi Tsu Ping Cha, Chi Tse Beeng Cha, literally “seven units cake tea”) because seven of the bing are packaged together at a time for sale or transport.
	Tuocha, Bowl, or Nest	沱 茶	沱 茶	Tuóchá	A convex knob-shaped tea, its size ranges from 3 g to 3 kg or more, with 100 g, 250 g and 500 g being the most common. The name for tuocha is believed to have originated from the round, top-like shape of the pressed tea or from the old tea shipping and trading route of the Tuo River.[24] In ancient times, tuocha cakes may have had holes punched through the center so they could be tied together on a rope for easy transport.
	Brick	砖 茶	磚 茶	Zhuānchá	A thick rectangular block of tea, usually in 100 g, 250 g, 500 g and 1000 g sizes; Zhuancha bricks are the traditional shape used for ease of transport along the ancient tea route by horse caravans.
	Square	方 茶	方 茶	Fāngchá	A flat square of tea, usually in 100 g or 200 g sizes. Characters are often pressed into the square, as in the example illustrated.
	Mushroom	紧 茶	緊 茶	Jǐnchá	Literally meaning “tight tea,” the tea is shaped much like a 250 g to 300 g túocha, but with a stem rather than a convex hollow. This makes them quite similar in form to a mushroom. Pu’er tea of this shape is generally produced for Tibetan consumption.
	Dragon Pearl	龙 珠	龍 珠	Lóngzhū	A small ball-shaped or rolled tea, convenient for a single serving. Generally balls contain between 5 and 10 grams of compressed material. The practice is also common among Yunnan black tea and scented green teas.
	Gold Melon	金 瓜	金 瓜	Jīnguā	Its shape is similar to tuóchá, but larger in size, with a much thicker body decorated with pumpkin-like ribbing. This shape was created for the “Tribute tea”(貢 茶) made expressly for the Qing dynasty emperors from the best tea leaves of Yiwu Mountain. Larger specimens of this shape are sometimes called “human-head tea” (人 頭 茶), due in part to its size and shape, and because in the past it was often presented in court in a similar manner to severed heads of enemies or criminals.

work and oxidation [edit ]

Pu’er teas are often jointly classified in western tea markets as post-fermentation, and in Eastern markets as black tea, but there is general confusion due to improper use of the terms “ oxidation ” and “ agitation ”. Typically black tea is termed “ amply fermented ”, which is incorrect as the process used to create black tea is oxidation and does not involve microbial action. Black teas are in full oxidized, park teas are unoxidized, and Oolong teas are partially oxidized to varying degrees. All pu’er teas undergo some oxidation during sun dry and then become either :

1. Fully fermented with microbes during a processing phase which is largely anaerobic, i.e. without the presence of oxygen. This phase is similar to composting and results in Shu (ripened) pu’er
2. Partly fermented by microbial action, and partly oxidized during the natural aging process resulting in Sheng (raw) pu’er. The aging process depends on how the sheng pu’er is stored, which determines the degree of fermentation and oxidization achieved.

According to the production process, four main types of pu’er are normally available on the marketplace :

• Maocha, green pu’er leaves sold in loose form as the raw material for making pressed pu’er. Badly processed maocha will produce an inferior pu’er.
• Green/raw pu’er, pressed maocha that has not undergone additional processing; high quality green pu’er is highly sought by collectors.
• Ripened/cooked pu’er, maocha that has undergone an accelerated fermentation process lasting 45 to 60 days on average. Badly fermented maocha will create a muddy tea with fishy and sour flavors indicative of inferior aged pu’er.
• Aged raw pu’er, a tea that has undergone a slow secondary oxidation and microbial fermentation. Although all types of pu’er can be aged, the pressed raw pu’er is typically the most highly regarded, since aged maocha and ripened pu’er both lack a clean and assertive taste.

Flavoured [edit ]

Some pu’er are flavoured, for example Sticky rice pu’er ( Nuomixiang, 糯米香 ) are infused with leaves of Semnostachya menglaensis native to Mengla, which gives it a young rice season. Bamboo roasted pu’er is encased in bamboo tubes and underwent a roasting action. Tangerine pu’er ( Xiaoqinggan, 小青柑 ) were made from little green tangerine stuff with tea. Flower-infused pu’er are made in the form of tea balls ( 龙珠 ) or tea cakes .

Regions [edit ]

yunnan [edit ]

Pu’er is produced in about every county and prefecture in the state. Proper pu’er is sometimes considered to be limited to that produced in Pu’er City .

Six Great Tea Mountains [edit ]

The best know pu’er areas are the Six Great Tea Mountains ( chinese : 六 大 茶 山 ; pinyin : liù dà chá shān [ 25 ] ), a group of mountains in Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, renowned for their climates and environments, which not alone provide excellent growing conditions for pu’er, but besides produce alone taste profiles ( akin to terroir in wine ) in the produce pu’er tea. Over the course of history, the indicate mountains for the tea mountains have either been changed [ 26 ] or listed differently. [ 27 ] [ 28 ] [ 29 ] In the Qing dynasty politics records for Pu’er ( 普洱府志 ), the oldest historically designated mountains were said to be named after six commemorative items left in the mountains by Zhuge Liang, [ 28 ] and using the chinese characters of the native languages ( Hani and Tai ) of the region. [ 30 ] These mountains are all settle northeast of the Lancang River ( Mekong ) in relatively cheeseparing proximity to one another. The mountains ‘ names, in the Standard Chinese character pronunciation are :
Southwest of the river there are besides nine lesser known tea mountains, which are isolated by the river. [ 29 ] They are :

1. Mengsong (勐宋):
2. Pasha (帕沙):
3. Jingmai (景迈):
4. Nánnuò (南 糯): a varietal of tea grows here called zĭjuān (紫 娟, literally “purple lady”) whose buds and bud leaves have a purple hue.
5. Bada (巴达):
6. Hekai (贺开):
7. Bulangshan (布朗山):
8. Mannuo (曼糯):
9. Xiao mengsong (小勐宋):

For respective reasons, around the end of the Qing dynasty and at the begin of the ROC period ( the early twentieth century ), tea production in these mountains dropped drastically, either due to large forest fires, overharvesting, prohibitive imperial taxes, or general negligence. [ 26 ] [ 30 ] To revitalize tea production in the area, the taiwanese government in 1962 selected a raw group of six great tea mountains that were named based on the more significant tea-producing mountains at the time, including Youle batch from the original six. [ 26 ] [ better source needed ]

other areas of yunnan [edit ]

many other areas of Yunnan besides produce pu’er tea. Yunnan prefectures that are major producers of pu’er include Lincang, Dehong, Simao, Xishuangbanna, and Wenshan. early celebrated tea mountains celebrated in Yunnan include among others :

• Bāngwǎi (邦 崴 山)
• Bānzhāng (班 章): this is not a mountain but a Hani village in the Bulang Mountains, noted for producing powerful and complex teas that are bitter with a sweet aftertaste
• Yìwǔ (易 武 山)
• Bada (巴達山)
• Wuliang
• Ailuo
• Jinggu
• Baoshan
• Yushou

region is entirely one factor in assessing a pu’er tea, and pu’er from any region of Yunnan can be a prized as any from the Six Great Tea Mountains if it meets other criteria, such as being wild growth, hand-processed tea .

early provinces [edit ]

While Yunnan produces the majority of pu’er, other regions of China, including Hunan and Guangdong, have besides produced the tea. The Guangyun Gong coat, for case, although the early on productions were composed of pure Yunnan máochá, [ 31 ] after the 60 ‘s the cakes featured a blend of Yunnan and Guangdong máochá, and the most recent production of these cakes contains by and large from the latter. [ 32 ] [ better source needed ] In late 2008, the chinese government approved a standard declare pu’er tea as a “ merchandise with geographic indications ”, which would restrict the name of tea as pu’er to tea produced within specific regions of the Yunnan province. The standard has been disputed, particularly by producers from Guangdong. [ 33 ] Fermented tea in the pu’er stylus made outside of Yunnan is much branded as “ dark tea ” in light of this standard .

other regions

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[edit ]

In addition to China, margin regions touching Yunnan in Vietnam, Laos, and Burma are besides known to produce pu’er tea, though small of this makes its way to the Chinese or external markets .

cultivation [edit ]

The method acting of polish can have ampere much of an effect on the final product as area or grade. There are three widely used methods of cultivation for pu’er :

• Plantation bushes (guànmù, 灌 木; taídì, 台 地): Cultivated tea bushes, from the seeds or cuttings of wild tea trees and planted in relatively low altitudes and flatter terrain. The tea produced from these plants are often considered inferior due to the use of pesticides and chemical fertilizer in cultivation, the lack of pleasant flavors, and the presence of bitterness or astringency.
• “Wild arbor” trees (yěfàng, 野 放): Though often conflated with wild tree especially by producers, this method involves trees from older plantations that were cultivated in previous generations that have gone feral due to the lack of care. These trees are said to produce teas of better flavor due to the higher levels of secondary metabolites produced in the tea tree. Additionally, the trees are typically cared for using organic practices, which includes the scheduled pruning of the trees in a manner similar to pollarding. Despite the good quality of their produced teas, “wild arbor” trees are often not as prized as truly wild trees.
• Wild trees (gŭshù, 古 树; literally “old tree”): Teas from old wild trees, grown without human intervention, are typically the highest valued pu’er teas. Such teas are valued for having deeper and more complex flavors, often with camphor or “mint” notes, said to be imparted by the many camphor trees that grow in the same environment as the wild tea trees. Young raw pu’er teas produced from the leaf tips of these trees also lack overwhelming astringency and bitterness often attributed to young pu’er. Pu’er made from the distinct but closely related so-called wild species Camellia taliensis can command a much higher price than pu’er made from the more common Camellia sinensis.[34]

Determining whether or not a tea is wild is a challenging tax, made more unmanageable through the inconsistent and indecipherable terminology and label in Chinese. Terms like yěshēng ( 野 生 ; literally “ wilderness ” or “ uncultivated ” ), qiáomù ( 乔 木 ; literally “ tall tree ” ), yěshēng qiáomù ( 野 生 乔 木 ; literally “ artless trees ” ), and gǔshù are found on the labels of cakes of both rampantly and “ baseless arbor ” variety, and on blend cakes, which contain leaves from tea plants of respective cultivations. These discrepant and much misinform labels can well confuse uninitiate tea buyers regardless of their clasp of the chinese speech. ampere well, the lack of particular information about tea leaf sources in the print wrappers and identifiers that come with the pu’er cake makes designation of the tea a unmanageable undertaking. Pu’er journals and similar annual guides such as The Profound World of Chi Tse, Pu-erh Yearbook, and Pu-erh Teapot Magazine contain credible sources for leaf information. Tea factories are generally honest about their leaf sources, but person without access to tea factory or other information is often at the clemency of the middlemen or seller. many pu’er aficionados seek out and maintain relationships with vendors who they feel they can trust to help mitigate the issue of finding the “ truth ” of the leaves. even in the best of circumstances, when a diary, factory data, and trustworthy seller all align to assure a tea ‘s authentically wild leaf, fakes teas are common and make the write out even more complicate. Because collectors often doubt the dependability of written information, some believe certain physical aspects of the leaf can point to its cultivation. For model, drinkers cite the attest of a sincerely fantastic old tree in a menthol consequence ( “ camphor “ in tea specialist terminology ) purportedly caused by the Camphor laurel trees that grow amongst wild tea trees in Yunnan ‘s tea forests. As well, the presence of midst veins and sawtooth-edged on the leaves along with camphor flavor elements are taken as signifiers of wilderness tea. [ citation needed ]

grade [edit ]

Pu’er can be sorted into ten-spot or more grades. broadly, grades are determined by flick size and quality, with higher count grades meaning older/larger, broken, or less tender leaves. Grading is rarely coherent between factories, and first grade tea leaves may not inevitably produce first class cakes. Different grades have different flavors ; many bricks blend respective grades chosen to balance flavors and strength .

season [edit ]

Harvest season besides plays an important function in the flavor of pu’er. give tea is the most highly valued, followed by descent tea, and ultimately summer tea. entirely rarely is pu’er produced in winter months, and much this is what is called “ early on spring ” tea, as harvest and production follows the weather radiation pattern preferably than strict monthly guidelines .

Tea factories [edit ]

A Menghai microprinted ticket, first appearing in 2006 Factories are broadly responsible for the production of pu’er teas. While some individuals oversee minor production of high-quality tea, such as the Xizihao and Yanqinghao brands, [ citation needed ] the majority of tea on the market is compressed by factories or tea groups. Until recently factories were all state-owned and under the supervision of the China National Native Produce & Animal Byproducts Import & Export Corporation ( CNNP ), Yunnan Tea Branch. Kunming Tea Factory, Menghai Tea Factory, Pu’er Tea Factory and Xiaguan Tea Factory are the most celebrated of these state-owned factories. While CNNP calm operates today, few factories are state-owned, and CNNP contracts out much production to privately owned factories. different tea factories have earned full reputations. Menghai Tea Factory and Xiaguan Tea Factory, which date from the 1940s, have enjoyed good reputations, but in the twenty-first hundred confront competition from many of the newly emerging individual factories. For model, Haiwan Tea Factory, founded by former Menghai Factory owner Zhou Bing Liang in 1999, [ 35 ] has a good repute, as do Changtai Tea Group, Mengku Tea Company, and other fresh tea makers formed in the 1990s. however, due to production inconsistencies and variations in manufacturing techniques, the repute of a tea company or factory can vary depending on the year or the specific cakes produced during a class. The producing factory is much the first or second item listed when referencing a pu’er cake, the other being the year of production .

Recipes [edit ]

Tea factories, particularly once government-owned factories, produce many cakes using recipes for tea blends, indicated by a four-digit recipe number. The first gear two digits of recipe numbers represent the year the recipe was beginning produced, the third digit represents the rate of leaves used in the recipe, and the last finger represents the factory. The act 7542, for example, would denote a recipe from 19 75 using fourth -grade tea leaf made by Menghai Tea Factory ( represented by 2 ) .

• Factory numbers (fourth digit in recipe):
  1. Kunming Tea Factory
  2. Menghai Tea Factory aka Dayi
  3. Xiaguan
  4. Lan Cang Tea Factory or Feng Qing Tea Factory
  5. Pu-erh Tea Factory (now Pu-erh Tea group Co. Ltd )
  6. Six Famous Tea Mountain Factory
  7. unknown / not specified
  8. Haiwan Tea Factory and Long Sheng Tea Factory

tea of all shapes can be made by number recipe. not all recipes are numbered, and not all cakes are made by recipe. The terminus “ recipe, ” it should be added, does not always indicate consistency, as the timbre of some recipes change from year-to-year, as do the contents of the coat. possibly alone the factories producing the recipes very know what makes them coherent enough to label by these numbers. occasionally, a three digit code is attached to the recipe number by word division. The first digit of this code represents the year the cake was produced, and the other two numbers indicate the production count within that year. For example, the seven digit sequence 8653-602, would indicate the second production in 200 6 of factory recipe 8653. Some productions of cakes are valued over others because production numbers can indicate if a tea was produced earlier or later in a season/year. This information allows one to be able to individual out tea cakes produced using a better batch of máochá .

Tea promotion [edit ]

Pu’er tea is specially packaged for trade, recognition, and storehouse. These attributes are used by tea drinkers and collectors to determine the authenticity of the pu’er tea .

individual cakes [edit ]

Bĭngchá typical contents of a wrap Pu’er tea cakes, or bĭngchá, are about always sold with a : [ 36 ]

• Wrapper: Made usually from thin cotton cloth or cotton paper and shows the tea company/factory, the year of production, the region/mountain of harvest, the plant type, and the recipe number. The wrapper can also contain decals, logos and artwork. Occasionally, more than one wrapper will be used to wrap a pu’er cake.
• Nèi fēi (内 飞 or 內 飛): A small ticket originally stuck on the tea cake but now usually embedded into the cake during pressing. It is usually used as proof, or a possible sign, to the authenticity of the tea. Some higher end pu’er cakes have more than one nèi fēi embedded in the cake. The ticket usually indicates the tea factory and brand.
• Nèi piào (内 票): A larger description ticket or flyer packaged loose under the wrapper. Both aid in assuring the identity of the cake. It usually indicates factory and brand. As well, many nèi piào contain a summary of the tea factories’ history and any additional laudatory statements concerning the tea, from its taste and rarity, to its ability to cure diseases and effect weight loss.
• Bĭng: The tea cake itself. Tea cakes or other compressed pu’er can be made up of two or more grades of tea, typically with higher grade leaves on the outside of the cake and lower grades or broken leaves in the center. This is done to improve the appearance of the tea cake and improve its sale. Predicting the grade of tea used on the inside takes some effort and experience in selection. However, the area in and around the dimple of the tea cake can sometimes reveal the quality of the inner leaves.

tǒng of recipe 7742 tea cakes wrapped in bamboo shoot husks of recipe 7742 tea cakes wrapped in bamboo shoot husks recently, nèi fēi have become more crucial in identifying and preventing counterfeits. Menghai Tea Factory in particular has begun microprinting and embossing their tickets in an effort to curb the growth of counterfeit teas found in the marketplace in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Some nèi fēi besides include vintage year and are production-specific to help identify the cake and prevent forge through a repletion of different brand labels. Counterfeit pu’er is common. The practices include claiming the tea is older than it actually is, misidentifying the origin of the leaf as Yunnan rather of a non-Yunnan region, labeling terrace tea as forest tea, and selling green tea rather of raw pu’er. The interpretation of the compact of pu’er is normally dependant on the consumer ‘s cognition and negotiation between the consumer and trader .

wholesale [edit ]

When bought in large quantities, pu’er tea is by and large sold in stacks, referred to as a tǒng ( 筒 ), which are wrapped in bamboo dart husks, bamboo shank husks, or coarse paper. Some tongs of vintage pu’er will contain a tǒng piào ( 筒 票 ), or tong ticket, but it is less common to find them in productions past the year 2000. [ 11 ] The total of bǐngchá in a tǒng varies depending on the burden of individual bǐngchá. For exemplify one tǒng can contain :

• Seven 357–500 g ‘bǐngchá’,
• Five 250 g mini-‘bǐngchá’
• Ten 100 g mini-‘bǐngchá’

Twelve tǒng are referred to as being one jiàn ( 件 ), although some producers/factories vary how many tǒng equal one jiàn. A jiàn of tea, which is bound together in a loose bamboo basket, will normally have a large batch ticket ( 大 票 ; pinyin : dàpiào ) affixed to its side that will indicate information such as the batch number of the tea in a season, the production quantities, tea character, and the factory where it was produced. [ 11 ]

Aging and storage [edit ]

Pu’er teas of all varieties, shapes, and cultivation can be aged to improve their flavor, but the tea ‘s physical properties will affect the speed of aging vitamin a well as its quality. These properties include :

• Leaf quality: Maocha that has been improperly processed will not age to the level of finesse as properly processed maocha. The grade and cultivation of the leaf also greatly affect its quality, and thus its aging.
• Compression: The tighter a tea is compressed, the slower it will age. In this respect, looser hand- and stone-pressed pu’er teas will age more quickly than denser hydraulic-pressed pu’er.
• Shape and size : The more surface area, the faster the tea will age. Bǐngchá and zhuancha thus age more quickly than golden melon, tuocha, or jincha. Larger bingcha age slower than smaller ‘bǐngchá’, and so forth.

just ampere important as the tea ‘s properties, environmental factors for the tea ‘s storage besides affect how promptly and successfully a tea ages. They include :

• Air flow: Regulates the oxygen content surrounding the tea and removes odors from the aging tea. Dank, stagnant air will lead to dank, stale smelling aged tea. Wrapping a tea in plastic will eventually arrest the aging process.
• Odors: Tea stored in the presence of strong odors will acquire them, sometimes for the duration of their “lifetime.” Airing out pu’er teas can reduce these odors, though often not completely.
• Humidity : The higher the humidity, the faster the tea will age. Liquid water accumulating on tea may accelerate the aging process but can also cause the growth of mold or make the flavor of the tea less desirable. 60–85% humidity is recommended.[37] There is an ongoing argument as to whether high fluctuations in humidity negatively impact tea quality.
• Sunlight: Tea that is exposed to sunlight dries out prematurely, and often becomes bitter.
• Temperature: Teas should not be subjected to high heat since undesirable flavors will develop. However at low temperatures, the aging of pu’er tea will slow down drastically. It is argued whether tea quality is adversely affected if it is subjected to highly fluctuating temperature.

When preserved as function of a tong, the material of the tong wrapping, whether it is made of bamboo blast husks, bamboo leaves, or thick newspaper, can besides affect the choice of the aging work. The promotion methods change the environmental factors and may even contribute to the taste of the tea itself. Age is not the sole component in determining pu’er quality. alike to aging wine, the tea reaches a acme with age and can degrade in quality afterwards. Due to the many recipes and unlike work methods used in the product of different batches of pu’er, the optimum age for each tea will vary. Some may take 10 years while others 20 or 30+ years. It is important to check the status of ageing for your teacakes to know when they have peaked so that proper care can be given to halt the age process .

Raw pu’er [edit ]

Over time, crude pu’er acquires an down-to-earth spirit due to slow oxidation and other, possibly microbial processes. however, this oxidation is not analogous to the oxidation that results in green, oolong, or black tea, because the process is not catalyzed by the plant ‘s own enzymes but rather by fungal, bacterial, or autooxidation influences. Pu’er flavors can change dramatically over the class of the aging process, resulting in a brew tasting powerfully down-to-earth but clean and fluent, evocative of the smell of rich garden territory or an fall leaf pile, sometimes with roast or fresh undertones. Because of its ability to age without losing “ quality ”, well aged full pu’er gains value over time in the lapp way that aged roasted oolong does. [ 38 ] naked pu’er can undergo “ wet storehouse ” ( shīcāng, 湿 仓 ) and “ dry storage ” ( gāncāng 干 仓 ), with teas that have undergone the latter ageing more lento, but thought to show more complexity. Dry storage involves keeping the tea in “ comfortable ” temperature and humidity, thus allowing the tea to old age slowly. Wet or “ humid ” storehouse refers to the storage of pu’er tea in humid environments, such as those found naturally in Hong Kong, Guangzhou and, to a lesser extent, Taiwan. The practice of “ Pen Shui ” 喷 水 involves spraying the tea with water and allowing it dry off in a humid environment. This march speeds up oxidation and microbial conversion, which only loosely mimics the quality of natural dry storehouse aged pu’er. “ Pen Shui ” 喷 水 pu’er not alone does not acquire the nuances of dull age, it can besides be hazardous to drink because of mildew, yeast, and bacteria cultures. [ citation needed ] Pu’er properly stored in different environments can develop different tastes at different rates due to environmental differences in ambient humidity, temperature, and odors. [ 11 ] For exemplify, alike batches of pu’er stored in the different environments of Taiwan and Hong Kong are known to historic period very differently. Because the march of aging pu’er is drawn-out, and teas may change owners several times, a batch of pu’er may undergo different aging conditions, evening swapping wet and dry storehouse conditions, which can drastically alter its relish. Raw pu’er can be ruined by repositing at very high gear temperatures, or exposure to direct contact with sunlight, heavy vent flow, liquid water, or unpleasant smells. Although low to moderate breeze flow is authoritative for producing a good-quality aged raw pu’er, it is generally agreed by most collectors and connoisseurs that raw pu’er tea cakes older than 30 years should not be far exposed to “ open ” air since it would result in the loss of flavors or abasement in mouthfeel. The tea should rather be preserved by wrapping or hermetically sealing it in credit card wrap or ideally methamphetamine .

Ripe pu’er [edit ]

Since the ripening process was developed to imitate aged raw pu’er, many arguments surround the idea of whether aging ripened pu’er is desirable. largely, the consequence rests on whether aging ripened pu’er will, for better or worse, alter the spirit of the tea. It is often recommended to old age ripened pu’er to air out the unpleasant moldy flavors and odors formed due to maocha zymosis. however, some collectors argue that keeping ripened pu’er longer than 10 to 15 years makes little sense, stating that the tea will not develop further and possibly lose its desirable flavors. Others note that their experience has taught them that ripened pu’er indeed does take on nuances through aging, [ 36 ] and target to side-by-side taste comparisons of ripen pu’er of different ages. Aging the tea increases its prize, but may be unprofitable .

Vintaging [edit ]

The common misconception is that all types of pu’er tea will improve in taste—and therefore derive in value—as they get older. There are many needed variables for a pu’er tea to age beautifully. Further, the advanced ( shu ) pu’er will not evolve american samoa dramatically as the raw ( sheng ) type will over time due to secondary oxidation and zymosis. As with aging wine, alone finely made and properly stored teas will improve and increase in value. similarly, only a small share of teas will improve over a long period of time. From 2008 Pu’er prices dropped dramatically. Investment-grade Pu’er did not drop american samoa much as the more common varieties. many producers made big losses, and some decided to leave the diligence all in all. [ 39 ]

cooking [edit ]

training of pu’er involves beginning separating a assign of the compressed tea for brew. This can be done by flaking off pieces of the cake or by steaming the stallion cake until it is piano from estrus and hydration. [ 36 ] A pu’erh knife, which is similar to an huitre knife or a rigid letter opener, is used to pry big horizontal flakes of tea off the coat to minimize leaf breakage. Smaller cakes such as tuocha or mushroom pu’erh are much steamed until they can be rubbed apart and then dried. In both cases, a vertical sample of the coat should be obtained since the quality of the leaves in a cake normally varies between the open and the center. Pu’erh is normally brewed in the Gongfu style using Yixing teaware or a type of chinese teacup called a gaiwan. optimum water temperatures are generally regarded to be in the range of 85-99 °C depending on the choice and action of the pu’erh. The leaves are traditionally given one or more “ rinses ” before the inaugural infusion, involving exposing them to hot water system for 2–5 seconds and subsequently discarding the extract produced. This is done to saturate the leaf with water and allow it to decompress, american samoa well as remove any small leaf particles that could adversely affect the result of the first gear infusion. The first gear infusion is steeped for 12 to 30 seconds, followed by belated infusions repeatedly increasing by 2–10 seconds. The prolong steep sometimes used in the west can produce dark, bitter, and unpleasant brews. Quality aged pu’erh can yield many more infusions, with different season nuances when brewed in the traditional Gongfu method acting. Because of the drawn-out agitation in ripen pu’erh and slow oxidation of aged raw pu’erh, these teas much lack the bitter, astringent properties of other teas, and can be brewed much stronger and repeatedly, with some claiming 20 or more infusions of tea from one pot of leaves. [ citation needed ] On the early hand, young bare-assed pu’erh is known and expected to be potent and aromatic, yet very bitter and slightly astringent when brewed, since these characteristics are believed to produce better aged crude pu’erh .

Judging choice [edit ]

Spent leaves of badly stored shu pu’er. Note the crumble leaf faces that are barely held together by leaf veins quality of the tea can be determined through inspecting the dry leaves, the tea liquor, or the exhausted tea leaves. The “ true ” quality of a specific batch of pu’erh can ultimately only be revealed when the tea is brewed and tasted. Although not concrete and sometimes subject on predilection, there are several cosmopolitan indicators of choice :

• Dried tea: There should be a lack of twigs, extraneous matter and white or dark mold spots on the surface of the compressed pu’erh. The leaves should ideally be whole, visually distinct, and not appear muddy. The leaves may be dry and fragile, but not powdery. Good tea should be quite fragrant, even when dry. Good pressed pu’er cakes often have a matte sheen on the surface, though this is not necessarily a sole indicator of quality.
• Liquor: The tea liquor of both raw and ripe pu’erh should never appear cloudy. Well-aged raw pu’erh and well-crafted ripe pu’erh tea may produce a dark reddish liquor, reminiscent of a dried jujube, but in either case the liquor should not be opaque, “muddy,” or black in color. The flavors of pu’erh liquors should persist and be revealed throughout separate or subsequent infusions, and never abruptly disappear, since this could be the sign of added flavorants.
  • Young raw pu’erh: The ideal liquors should be aromatic with a light but distinct odors of camphor, rich herbal notes like Chinese medicine, fragrance floral notes, hints of dried fruit aromas such as preserved plums, and should exhibit only some grassy notes to the likes of fresh sencha. Young raw pu’er may sometimes be quite bitter and astringent, but should also exhibit a pleasant mouthfeel and “sweet” aftertaste, referred to as gān (甘) and húigān (回甘).
  • Aged raw pu’erh: Aged pu’er should never smell moldy, musty, or strongly fungal, though some pu’erh drinkers consider these smells to be unoffensive or even enjoyable. The smell of aged pu’erh may vary, with an “aged” but not “stuffy” odor. The taste of aged raw pu’erh or ripe pu’erh should be smooth, with slight hints of bitterness, and lack a biting astringency or any off-sour tastes. The element of taste is an important indicator of aged pu’erh quality, the texture should be rich and thick and should have very distinct gān (甘) and húigān (回甘) on the tongue and cheeks, which together induces salivation and leaves a “feeling” in the back of the throat.
• Spent tea: Whole leaves and leaf bud systems should be easily seen and picked out of the wet spent tea, with a limited amount of broken fragments. Twigs and the fruits of the tea plant should not be found in the spent tea leaves; however, animal (and human) hair, strings, rice grains and chaff may occasionally be included in the tea.[ quotation needed] The leaves should not crumble when rubbed, and with ripened pu’erh, it should not resemble compost. Aged raw pu’erh should have leaves that unfurl when brewed while leaves of most ripened pu’erh will generally remain closed.

Practices [edit ]

In Cantonese, the tea is called po-lay ( yue yale : bou2 nei2 ). It is much drink in during blind summarize meals, as it is believed to help with digestion. It is not rare to add dry osmanthus flowers, pomelo rinds, or chrysanthemum flowers into brewing pu’er tea in order to add a sparkle, fresh bouquet to the tea liquor. Pu’er with chrysanthemum is the most park coupling, and referred as guk pou or guk bou ( 菊 普 ; yue yale university : guk1 pou2 ; pinyin : jú pǔ ). sometimes wolfberries are brewed with the tea, plumping in the serve .

research [edit ]

There is no testify that consuming pu’er tea promotes loss of body weight in humans. [ 40 ]

democratic culture [edit ]

In the japanese manga Dragon Ball, the mention of the character Pu’ar is a pun on pu’er tea .

See besides [edit ]

Notes [edit ]

1. ^[41] The original transliteration of this character in The Great Tea Mountains of Southern Yunnan, however, is “boa”.[26] Among many of the minority groups of China ‘s southwesterly, the chinese fictional character 鉧 is used to indicate cauldrons or pots.The original transliteration of this quality in, however, is “ feather boa ” .

References [edit ]

far reading [edit ]

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