Pu Er is the only tea that improves with age, and
the only one that actually undergoes a fermentation.
The tea starts as either a green or
partially-oxidized tea that is dried and then piled
up beneath a damp cloth and "fermented" for days or
weeks and then dried again. This type is of Pu Er is
called "shou" or "mature/ripe" Pu Er. (Another type
is "sheng" or "unripe," which is stored for a long
time until the flavor ripens slowly in the humid
climate of southwest China.) Pu Er tea is sold as
a loose tea or is pressed into a mold to create
various shapes (bricks, wheels, bowls, mushrooms,
etc.). Compressed tea was easier to transport
long distances in earlier times. The result of Pu
Er's unusual processing is a
very earthy, full-bodied tea similar to a black tea.
The Chinese have long considered Pu Er tea medicinal
and good for quenching thirst, digesting oily foods,
reducing cholesterol, detoxification (as a
diuretic), aiding in weight loss, among many other
things. Recent research
on the benefits of Pu Er have been stimulated by
reports of exceptional longevity found in Pu Er drinkers
in Yunnan Province where the tea is produced, as
well as by the health of Pu Er drinkers in Tibet
where the diet is lacking in fruits and vegetables.
Organic Pu Er is milder and less earthy than
the Yunnan Pu Er.Good
for multiple infusions.
China, Yunnan Province
Earthy, full-bodied
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