Pu-erh is fermented and aged tea that comes in a compacted form. Produced exclusively in Yunnan, the South-Western province of China, the tea is produced in two broad styles - raw (sheng), and ripe (shu). Sheng pu-erh is left to ferment naturally, while the fermentation in ripe or shu pu-erh is done in controlled factory settings.
]]>Pu-erh tea is fermented and aged tea that comes in a compacted form. Produced exclusively in Yunnan, the South-Western province of China, the tea is produced in two broad styles - raw (sheng), and ripe (shu). Sheng pu-erh is left to ferment naturally, while the fermentation in ripe or shu pu-erh is done in controlled factory settings.
Sheng Pu-erh Tea
Raw pu-erh has a lighter body with flavors that can be earthy, floral, vegetal, herbaceous, astringent, and sweet. The character of a ripe pu-erh, however, is dramatically different. The body is heavy and flavors are rich, with dark notes of earth, leather, cacao, and mushroom.
The processing of pu-erh starts with the plucking of new leaves from tea bushes. The finest crop includes the "terminal" buds of the leaf (the youngest leaf shoots that are yet to open) and the leaves surrounding it. The fresh leaves are then brought to the factory where they are first withered indoors. The withered leaves are then tossed in heated woks to remove whatever moisture is left. This process also called "kill green" prevents the leaves from oxidizing when they are rolled.
Rolling the leaves brings the natural oils of the tea leaf out, as well as shaping them. After rolling, the tea is set out in the sun to dry. Up to this point, the processing is very similar to the production of green tea. Once the leaves are dry, they are now ready to be pressed into cakes.
The dry leaves are weighed - 357 grams for a standard size cake - and steamed in a linen bag. The leaves become limp upon steaming, and the linen bag is then tightened around it. This tight ball of tea is then put into a mold and pressed down with a heavy stone weight. Once the tea is sufficiently compressed, the bag is removed and the cake is set on a rack to air dry. This tea cake is now ready for fermentation and aging, a process that never ceases as long as the conditions are right. As the tea ages it acquires more depth, developing more mellow and redolent flavors.
Shu Pu-erh Tea
Shu or ripe pu-erh follows similar steps in production except before pressing of the cakes the leaves are moistened and kept in a large covered pile. This "wet-piling method" can last two-three months during which time the resulting heat and moisture trapped in the mass results in a deep fermentation of the leaves. Technically, this is considered to be a more challenging to make than sheng pu-erh.
While sheng dates back centuries, the method of making shu pu-erh developed only in 1973. The objective was to accelerate the fermentation, so that consumers did not have to wait for long periods - in some cases up to 10 years - before they could start drinking sheng pu-erh. The latter would be too bitter and harsh if not aged adequately. However, these days manufacturers are producing raw puerh that is fine enough to be consumed within a year or so of production.
Personal Preference
Which tea you would choose to drink - sheng or shu - is entirely upon your preference. While I have seen people stick to one or the other, there are also some tea enthusiasts who enjoy both of them equally. Personally, I am more inclined towards shu puerh. I enjoy its crisp, light body with earthy flavor and a balance of astringent and spring honey notes.
But I also enjoy at times the dark, heavy cup that a shu makes. I find it particularly invigorating on cold dark days or as in the evenings while signing off the day.
I have also recommended shu pu-erh to those who are looking to switch from coffee to tea with a fairly great deal of success. Coffee drinkers seem to enjoy the full body richness of the shu puerh.
If you are new to pu-erh I would advise you start with the shengs. Its lighter body and taste notes are more easier on a new palate. Once you are comfortable with that you can try the darker shus.
If you have any questions and comments about pu-erh please leave them in the comments below.
]]>In Yunnan, where the pu-erh exclusively comes from, there are a lot of very old tea trees. The tea plant, camellia sinensis, can grow to be tree if allowed. But it is a rare sight because in most parts of the world the tea plant is regularly pruned to keep it waist high for convenient picking of the leaves. Only in Yunnan, which also happens to be the birthplace of tea, old tea trees are a common occurrence.
These days pu-erh made from old tea trees are considered much better than from the cultivated and pruned bushes. In Yunnan, the latter is referred to as "terrace tea" which they have in plenty as well. The old tea trees are further separated into just "trees" and "wild arbor trees." While the former is tended to by villagers, the wild tea trees are found in forests and are completely ungroomed.
Tea from these forests are considered by some connoisseurs to be the best. The trees have deep roots and they bring flavors that are more interesting. We do have a preference for wild arbor tea only because it means that the chances of pesticide and other agro-chemical applied by humans are nil. But it is difficult to come across a pu-erh tea made from such wild tea trees because there is little of it and also due to the number of counterfeits around.
Interestingly, the opposite was held true by the locals for a long time - they preferred the terrace tea over the others.
Packaging of Pu-erh Tea
Pu-erh tea comes in many shapes - disc (bingcha), brick (Zhuancha), bird's nest (toucha), mushroom (Jincha) and melon (Jingua). The most popular is the 357 gram disc, often referred to as a "tea cake." Each pu-erh cake comes wrapped in mulberry paper. This is important because mulberry paper is less dense and allows for air to pass through which is important for the continued fermentation of the tea.
A piece of paper is found embedded right into the leaves on the front of a tea cake. This paper called nei-fei is meant to authenticate the manufacturer of the cake. It is meant to deter counterfeits of popular brands in the market.
For wholesale manufacturers usually tie up seven cakes of tea in a large bamboo husks. This stack of pu-erh is called a tong. They make for a very interesting visual.
Fermentation and Recipes
So what exactly causes the tea to ferment in pu-erh tea and what does that process do to the tea? We are often times asked this question. Also the question how kombucha is different than pu-erh often arises because kombucha is also a fermented form of tea.
The fermentation in pu-erh is initiated when the tea is steamed and compacted. Microorganisms start growing in the tea leaves due to the moisture trapped in the cake. These bacteria and fungi react with the chemicals in the tea, producing different flavors while also changing the chemical composition of the tea.
The fermentation that undergoes in the pu-erh tea is "solid state fermentation," as opposed to kombucha where the fermentation happens in a liquid triggered off by a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY). Aspergillus niger, a fungus, is the predominant microbe found in both sheng and shu pu erh. Aspergillus niger is considered to be a "industrial fungus" because it is also cultured to produce substances like citric acid, gluconic acid, high-fructose corn syrup, and pectinases. The latter is used for cider and wine clarification.
While Aspergillus niger is relatively found more in shu pu-erh, research has uncovered in sheng pu-erh a yet underdetermined species of Aspergillus fungus in higher concentration. Other microbial members included Penicillium, Rhizopus, Saccharomyces, Actinoplane, Streptomyces and Bacterium.
The 2016 study "The Microbiome and Metabolites in Fermented Pu-erh Tea as Revealed by High-Throughput Sequencing and Quantitative Multiplex Metabolite Analysis "* also had some interesting findings:
Traditionally, pu-erh specially the ripe variety is thought to be very good for digestion. People in Asia, where pu-erh is popular, often drink shu with rich food like dumplings. Also pu-erh fans believe that both varieties of the tea impart a benefit at a more psychic level - triggering off a "qi" effect, where a warm fuzzy sensation can be felt in various parts of your body. Some describe it as a kind of a high.
Another scientific study identified statins, popular medicine against coronary diseases, in pu-erh.
Pu-erh Recipes
Pu-erh cakes come with a number printed on their wrapper. This number which is consists of 4 digits is called the "recipe." The first two numbers indicate the year, the third number leaf grade and the last number denotes the factory where it came from. For example our 2006 Feng Qing Raw Pu-erh Tea comes with recipe number 7813. This means the first production of this recipe took place in 1978. The grade of leaf used is 1 and it comes from factory number 3 or Xiaguan Tea Factory.
The most famous and sought after recipe number is 7542. A blend that started in 1975, with grade 4 leaves and made by factory number 2, which is Menghai tea factory.
There are 10 and more grades of leaf for making pu-erh. Although the higher grade means more larger and broken leaves, it is not a consistent system and does not reflect on the quality of the tea.
As for the factory and its corresponding numbers they run as below.
*The Microbiome and Metabolites in Fermented Pu-erh Tea as Revealed by High-Throughput Sequencing and Quantitative Multiplex Metabolite Analysis. - Yongjie Zhang, Ida Skaar, Michael Sulyok, Xingzhong Liu, Mingyong Rao,and John W. Taylor
**Effect of microbial fermentation on content of statin, GABA, and polyphenols in Pu-Erh tea. - Jeng KC1, Chen CS, Fang YP, Hou RC, Chen YS.
]]>Yunnan is the home of pu-erh tea, and more importantly it is the birthplace of tea itself. This south western province of China is nestled in the tropical lushness bordering Myanmar, Vietnam and Laos. According to Chinese documents, tea was discovered by the legendary Chinese Emperor, Shennong in 2737BC.
While the earliest beginnings of tea remain shrouded in myths and legends, we know at some point in history Yunnan and perhaps the neighboring province of Sichuan were the only regions growing tea in China. Tea cakes from Yunnan traveled to various parts of China and Tibet. The routes out of Yunnan followed by the caravans carrying tea formed the Ancient Tea Horse Trails, parts of which still exist. These routes went up into Tibet - and further into Bengal in India - and Central China. Traders on Ancient Tea Horse trail also carried salt, wool and ponies.
One of the hubs of the Trails fell in town called Pu-erh from where the tea takes its name. But in 2007 the name of the town was changed by the local government to Ninger. Pu-erh is now the name of the entire district and the district headquarters, both of which was earlier called Simao.
Pu-erh tea reached great popularity during the Han Dynasty (206BC - 220CE). However, after the collapse of the dynasty tea cakes went out of favor. The reasons are not very clear why that would happen except that tea was now being grown in other parts of China, and it did not have be transported over long distances. Hence no need to compress them into cakes. Loose leaf tea had arrived. The first emperor of Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Zhu Yuanzhang outlawed compressed tea altogether citing unnecessary burden that it imposed on tea makers.
Manpo Village in Xishuangbanna. By User:Doron - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1702211
It was small mercy that Yuanzhang's edict did not reach Yunnan due to its remote location and also the region was not completely under the control of the imperial court.1 Although the cakes continued to be pressed in Yunnan it's currency2 and prestige steadily declined. By the close of the 20th Century pu-erh was just a ghost of its former self, being peddled as an inexpensive trinket for tourists visiting Yunnan. The Yunnanese did not drink it either thinking it to be an "inferior" tea compared to the loose leaf style pioneered in the eastern provinces like Fujian.
Things dramatically changed when in 1994 Taiwanese tea connoisseurs arrived in Yunnan. These tea enthusiasts from the rebel nation had come upon vintage tea cakes sold off by residents of Hong Kong who were relocating ahead of the Chinese takeover of the island in 1997. When the Taiwanese first came to Yunnan with their new acquired tea cakes the locals had no idea what they were talking about. The Taiwanese wanted to know where they could find similar cakes whose source they had traced to Yiwu in Yunnan.
An Akha woman in Xishuangbanna. By Henrik Hansson Globaljuggler - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5607234
In Yiwu the guests from Taiwan were met with general bewilderment. Cakes were no longer pressed in this run down village which had seen better days. No one had much knowledge about pu-erh tea in general although old tea trees were still in plenty and the villagers continued to make maocha, the raw material for pu-erh. The locals were astounded to hear the prices pu-erh tea that was once made in their area was fetching in Taiwan and Hong Kong.
Finally, two men in their sixties were found who had worked in a pu-erh factory that once existed in Yiwu. With their help, the Taiwanese tea experts and their aged tea cakes, a process of "teaching, learning, and imitating began."3 This was the start of the revival of pu-erh tea in Yunnan which we are benefiting from now.
Pu-erh Sub-Regions in Yunnan
Some of the prime pu-erh manufacturing areas lie along the Mekong river in districts of Xishuangbanna, Simao and Lincang. Ethnic local minorities like Bulang, Deang, Wa, Hani and Jinuo along with the Han immigrants are involved in the pu-erh manufacturing and trade.
Leaping Tiger Gorge in Yunnan. By Jo Schmaltz - originally posted to Flickr as Hiking the Tiger Leaping Gorge, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8108826
Yiwu, Menghai and Lao Banzhang are some of the most famous and sought-after places for pu-erh lie in Xishuangbanna. Rivalry between these sub-regions is understandable. However, it does come as a shock to learn that the folks from Yiwu, specialists in the sheng (raw) pu-erh "despised" shu (ripe) pu-erh that Menghai specialized in, raising fears that such tea was "unclean and harmful." 4
Other areas in Yunnan notable for pu-erh production include Lincang, Dehong and Pu-erh (Simao).
A view of Pu-erh City. By Jo Schmaltz - originally posted to Flickr as Hiking the Tiger Leaping Gorge, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8108826
Historically, pu-erh from the Six Famous Mountains now all located in Xishuangbanna were highly prized. They include:
Gedeng
Mangzhi
Yibang
Manzhuan
Mansa (Yiwu)
Youle
Production in Mangzhi and Youle have considerably declined over the years, and the fame of Six Famous Mountains don't seem to have the draw of the yesteryear.
Map of Pu-erh growing regions in Yunnan. From Puer Tea, Ancient Caravans and Urban Chic. Jinghong Zhang
In recent times another set of six mountains have emerged to claim the mantle. These new mountains are:
Nannou
Bulang
Bada
Nannou
Mengsong
Jingmai
With this we conclude our introductory series on Pu-erh tea. In our main blog we will continue to feature various pu-erh that we offer. In the process we will learn and share this wonderful tea together. If you have any questions or comments please do not hesitate to submit them below.
1,3,4. Puer Tea, Ancient Caravans and Urban Chic. Jinghong Zhang
2. Pu-erh tea at one point was used as a currency. You could use it to pay for many essentials including Tibetan ponies.