Understanding Puerh, Pu'er or Pue'rh tea

June 7, 2023

All Pu-erh teas come from Yunnan province, an extraordinary province in southwest China.
It is home to twenty-five percent of all species, plant and animal, in all of China.
Mystical and vibrant, Yunnan blooms with the rain, with life.
It is the birthplace of all tea and is home to more varieties of tea trees than anywhere else on earth.
Yunnan is a series of stepped plateaus, the westernmost of which borders Tibet. The waters flowing through this region all come from crystal clear mountain springs and glacial streams high in the Himalayas.
Puerh tea has deep and ancient roots in this land where the great journey of tea began long, long ago.

Between heaven and earth; Yunnan; His fields; thousand-year-old forests.

The Shaman of the Jing Mai mountain and his century-old Puerh tree.

Puer is one of the most complex teas, existing in different forms.

It is similar to our oenological culture with its terroirs and its grape varieties.
The maturation and aging methods make it possible to obtain unique products.
Conservation strategies and secrets will unlock unexpected tastes and palates.
There are two families: Raw tea and cooked tea; the Sheng and the Shou.

Sheng (raw) is lighter and greener. Shou (cooked) is darker and richer.

Puerh tea is picked, withered (to oxidize and dehydrate the tea), fried (to kill the green enzymes that make the tea bitter and to stop oxidation), rolled (to break down the cells and expose the internal essence of the tea ), and finally dried in the sun.
If the tea is then left to ferment naturally, in conjunction with the microbes it contains, we call it "Sheng" or "raw" Puerh.
The “youth” of young Puerh tea is felt through your vital energy vital energy, stronger and invigorating, fills the body and elevates the spirit.
Your Qi (pronounced “chi”).
In some cases, they may be a few years old, but they are still considered young.
A Sheng Puerh will be considered aged after at least twenty years of conservation.
According to some wines, its value could reach the same as a bottle of Petrus.
Just like wines and to appreciate their character which evolves over the years, I recommend that you buy young Sheng Puerh, age them, and while waiting to taste aged Shou Puer, more affordable and generous.
Sheng Puerh (raw) teas are generally greener, composed of lighter leaves with lighter infusion tones.
Raw teas are known and renowned for melting fat. However, both Shou and Sheng have these properties, just like many other teas.

If the tea is then stacked and doused with water, covered with thermal blankets and turned, in order to artificially ferment it, we call it "Shou" or "ripe" or "cooked" Puerh.
In the 1970s, a style of processing called Shou (or "firing") was developed to speed up the burning (发酵) Faxiao process.
This process of transformation is notably a consequence, “because of or thanks to” the period of cultural revolution when the crops gathered with few or no people to take care of them, saw this transformation take place.

Shou processing involves the application of heat and humidity, as well as inoculating the tea leaves with beneficial bacteria.
It takes one year for the harvested tea leaves to become “ripe” or “finished” Puerh.
Some “ripe” Puerh are also aged for a flavor more similar to traditionally produced Sheng Puerh.
Shou Puerh is known for its earthy flavor and aroma, dark and rich liquor and its melting Qi. As they say in China, it warms and nourishes the stomach（养胃）Yǎng wèi. Highly recommended for people experiencing digestive problems, high cholesterol levels or high blood pressure.
Shou Puerh (cooked) teas are easily identifiable by their darker and often black colors with more charged visual and taste expressions.

Some aged Sheng Puerh teas (raw) can take on a darker appearance but will be distinguished on the nose by a greener and more floral power. The budget, in any case, will not deceive you!

They both come in different forms and packaging.