The final tea variety we will discuss, is possibly the least well known, especially to the Western tea world, and that is the Pu’er variety.
Pu’er Tea Basics
Pu’er, is a fermented, aged ‘green’ tea which is compressed into ‘cakes’/ discs of tea.
Pu’er Tea takes its’ name from the ancient tea trading town of Pu’er (strangely enough!). Historically, all tea sold in Pu’er was named Pu’er Tea, however now Pu’er relates solely to fermented green teas harvested in Yunnan Provence.
The word Pu’er in Hong Kong however uses the same Chinese symbols of Pu’er but is instead reads as Bo-Lei- which is sometimes the name used in the West to describe this tea.
By Aging the tea, it enables a reaction with yeast that allows the leaves to form mould and bacteria (much like with blue cheese production), and it is this which creates its’ distinct aromas, unbeknown to other teas.
The aging process for these teas can take many years for the tea to develop and improve its taste. As such aged Pu’er became quite rare and thus was very expensive to purchase. So much so in the early 2000’s this trend was identified and a number of new Pu’er farmers and traders entered the market to benefit from the high demand, although a few years later when supply was surpassing demand the ‘bubble’ burst and many of these new providers pulled out. Now the Pu’er market is more stabilised again.
Producing Pu’er Tea
Pu’er Tea is predominantly produced in the Yunnan Provence of China and has been produced here as long back as the 10th century. The tea plants grown within this region have large leaves with the capacity to take on woody and earthy flavours- if handled correctly that is.
Maocha (Rough Tea)
The first step of producing Pu’er is known as Moacha, which contains a series of processes:
- Plucking
- Withering
- Panning
- Rolling
- Drying
Plucking
As with all tea varieties the first stage of the process involves plucking the leaves to process. The leaves are handled carefully to prevent any bruising and unwanted oxidisation.
Withering
Once plucked, the leaves are initially withered primarily outdoors, under sun light, however this is weather dependent, on wet/ overcast days they can be withered indoors by light heating.
Panning
The withered leaves are then pan roasted, in large woks, for a few minutes to halt the oxidation process (killing the green)- as with most Chinese Green Teas. Where Pu’er differs from Green Tea however, is the producer although wants the oxidation to stop the enzyme activity, it is not to be stopped entirely as the aim is to keep enough bacteria alive to ensure fermentation can occur.
Rolling
The leaves are then rolled, by hand, similar to Black Tea rolling. This process is to slightly bruise the leaves, to allow minimal oxidisation.
Drying
The final stage of the Maocha is drying the leaves. The leaves are laid out in the sun to dry. However, in most Chinese Green Teas the leaves are air dried to completely stop all enzyme activity. With Pu’er Tea they go through sun drying to allow a small amount of enzyme activity to contribute to further minor oxidisation.
This concludes the Maocha process. The leaves can be sent direct to the factories to be pressed into Raw/ Green Pu’er or undergo further process to become cooked Pu’er.
Types of Pu’er Tea
The two main Types of Pu’er;
- Raw/ Green Pu’er (Sheng)
- Cooked/ ripened Pu’er (Shou).
Raw/ Green (Sheng) Pu’er
Under this variety once the Maocha process has concluded the tea only needs to be sorted and pressed into cakes (or into whatever desired shape is required) and fermented.
In some instances the loose Maocha tea can be sold as loose leaf Sheng tea.
Pressing
The Sheng Pu’er is taken and weighed out and distributed into their desired weight class. The dry tea is then lightly steamed so as to make the leaves more malleable and easier to compress together. A trademark or Nei Fei (a label in essence stating where the tea was made) with associated ribbons are placed on the leaves. The leaves, Nei Fei and ribbons, are then filled into a cloth bag/ wrapped in cloth before pressing.
A hand lever or, more commonly used, hydraulic press is used to press the tea into the required shape be this cake or brick.
Once pressed the Pu’er is removed from the cloth bags and placed on shelves where they are to air dry, to remove any residual moisture.
The Sheng Pu’er can then be wrapped in a paper wrapping. The cakes are then grouped into sevens and packaged in bamboo bark.
They are then left to age between 10-50 years, Sheng Pu’er are not considered fully mature until they have aged for 30 years.
The finest Raw Pu’er have been aged upwards of 30 years, due to this ongoing nurturing process these can fetch a pretty penny much like a fine aged wine.
Cooked/ Ripened (Shou)
To produce Shou Pu’er, during the Maocha the fermentation process is accelerated by exposing the leaves to high heat and humidity. This is achieved by placing the leaves in a dark room covered with a little water and a cloth. They are then exposed to high humidity and heat (between 200C- 300C) For up to 65 days, being turned continually through this process.
Shou Pu’er are a more modern process of producing Pu’er, being developed in the 1970’s in an attempt to significantly increase the aging processing. Shou Pu-er only requires up to 65 days to reach full fermentation. Unlike the Sheng Pu’er, Shou is to be consumed immediately after the fermentation period as they are not deemed to age better with time. For this reason Shou Pu’er are considered, by tea purists at least, to be an industrial product and an inferior tea, as such is a considerably cheaper version.
Shapes of Pu’er Tea
As well as there being differences between Sheng and Shou Pu’er you can also find Pu-er in different shapes and sizes.
The common shapes are as follows:
- Cake/ disc- these are probably the most common shape but can vary in size and weight, but the standard sizes are 357g, 400g or 500g
- Brick- Probably the second most common shape, with popular weights of 100g, 250g or 500g
- Bowl/ Nest- which weighs between 100-250g
- The cube- the smallest size weighing circa 5g
Flavourings
Tasting notes- Pu’er teas have earthy notes, with hints of undergrowth. They can be said to resemble coffee or chocolate.
How to brew Pu’er Tea
Preparation– Flake off a portion of the Pu’er from the compressed shape and place in the tea pot
Temperature– 85-99 Degrees C
Steeping time– the first infusion is steeped between 12-30 secs and subsequent infusions increasing by 2-10 secs
Multiple re-infusion– Quality aged Pu’er can be aged upwards of 20 times where younger aged Pu’er is likely to provide a more bitter flavouring on numerous infusions.
Take with Milk– No
Rinse Tea? Yes typically the leaves are given 1 or 2 rinses before first infusion. Rinse for between 2 and 5 seconds and then discard the water. This is to saturate the leaf to decompress it, whilst removing any small leaf particles that could affect the flavour.
Caffeine
Pu’er tea contains caffeine, between 30 to 70 milligrams.
Health Benefits of Pu’er Tea
As discussed in previous posts all teas have a number of health benefits, due to the goodness contained within the leaves, such as antioxidants and L-theanine. The below list provides some potential health benefits of drinking Pu’er Tea.
(please note that the below claimed benefits of Pu’er Tea have been proposed by other third parties, these are not the findings of nor been researched by the Author, it is for the reader to do their own research as to the validity of the health claims made):
1. Antioxidant Activity
As with all tea types, Pu’er contains antioxidants. Antioxidants have health benefits as they are believed to help remove free radicals from the body- Free radicals can cause damage to human cells which can lead to signs of aging and some chronic illnesses.
2. Heart Health
It is believed that drinking Pu’er Tea could help lower cholesterol levels and aid lipid metabolism, if consumed along with a healthy and well balanced lifestyle.
3. Gut/ Digestive Health
Drinking Pu’er Tea could help to aid digestion and encourage healthy gut bacteria, which may alleviate gastrointestinal discomfort.
Personally Experience
I have only dabbled with Pu’er tea (a loose leaf Sheng, as a loose leaf as opposed to a cake/ brick etc). I can confirm that Pu’er have a grassy, musty flavouring. On my first experience it was not ‘my cup of tea’ (see what I did there), the musty, almost mouldy taste was not the most enjoyable or refreshing tea I have tried. However, I will not be deterred and do intend to purchase an aged cake Sheng Pu’er. I will of course write of my findings.
Perhaps you have a more enjoyable experience of drinking Pu’er tea!
