The production of puerh tea

As early as the Tang and Song Dynasties, the techniques used in the processing and production of Puerh had already set Puerh apart from other Chinese teas. This series of production processes not only defines the well known qualities of Puerh, but also are the necessary steps by which Puerh production must abide in order to, in fact, be named Puerh tea.


Rolling of recently harvested leaves in Meng Song, Yunnan Province.

 


Processed Tea Leaves or Mao Cha (毛茶) Production


In preparation for the pressing of processed tea leaves into any of the various shapes in which Puerh is found (disc, bowl, brick, etc.), fresh, large leaf, Yunnan tea leaves must first go through a series of determined steps or processes. They are as follows;

Pick Fresh Tea Leaves > Pan Fry > Roll > Sun Dry > Sun-dried Tea Leaves

鲜采茶叶 > 杀青 > 揉捻 > 晒青干燥 > 晒青毛茶

That process which sets Puerh apart from other varieties of Chinese tea is ‘sun drying’ or shai qing (晒青). The unique qualities of Puerh are said to be born of this natural, open-air, process.

 

Cooked and Uncooked (Green) Puerh Tea Production
Puerh tea is generally classified into two major categories; Cooked or ‘Shu Puerh’ and Uncooked or ‘Sheng’ Puerh. Both cooked and uncooked Puerh teas are produced from Sun-dried tea leaves (晒青毛茶) as mentioned above.


Uncooked Puerh

Uncooked Puerh can be considered as Puerh in its most primitive form. Uncooked Puerh consists simply of sun-dried tea leaves (mao cha) compressed into different forms (i.e., disc, brick, bowl, etc.) for continued storage and aging. For more than 1,000 years little change has occurred in terms of the production of uncooked Puerh tea. The types of tools and the techniques implemented have for the most part remained the same. This straightforward, traditional processing technique is the essence of ‘Sheng’ or Green Puerh tea.


Cooked Puerh

During the latter half of the 20th century, Chinese scientists began exploring the possibility of induced, high-speed artificial fermentation in the production of Puerh tea. By 1973, research and development conducted by Kunming Tea Factory had led to the successful creation of a new variety of Puerh tea, caled‘Shu’ or literally ‘Cooked’ Puerh tea.

In the production of cooked Puerh tea, sun-dried tea leaves undergo a unique process known as ‘pile fermentation’. Pile fermentation consists of prolonged submission to high heat and moisture in order to catalyze the oxidation of non-enzymatic Polyphenol compounds within the tea leaves. The outcome is a transformation of the leaves original chemical composition, a reduction in the tea’s bitterness and a purification of flavor and texture. The specific steps of pile fermentation are as follows:

Water Splashing > Piling of Tea Leaves > Cover with Damp Hemp Cloth

This process is repeated over an average of 30-40 days. The total period and the techniques applied during the process of pile fermentation will greatly alter the final product. Hence, this process is one that requires extensive experience and skill.


Pressing of the final Product
Rather than going into a lengthy explanation as to how uncooked and cooked Puerhs are pressed I’ve prepared this illustrative flowchart diagram.

 

Puerh Processing Chart