Pu'er tea: Drink it for health, drink it wrong and you'll be sick. Do you really know how to drink it? Which people should drink more of it?

Pu-erh tea is a mysterious existence in the Chinese tea world. The four major tea-producing regions, 20 provinces and over 1000 counties and cities produce teas that can be classified into six categories of tea. But Pu-erh tea is involved in a lot of controversy. Some people think it should be categorized as black tea, while others prefer to put it into the green tea category. Why?

Some people say Pu'er is the terminus of tea drinkers, regardless of where they start, ultimately they will bow to Pu'er tea for its aroma and taste. However, there are also a lot of people who hate Pu'er from the beginning, thinking that it has a strange flavor, uncomfortable to drink, and not very sanitary either. So, how should Pu'er tea be drunk? Will you really drink it?

1. You must understand the difference between raw and aged Pu'er tea.

Before you drink Pu-erh tea, first learn to recognize it. Don't just assume anything that looks like a cake or brick is Pu-erh tea. Don't think any loose tea leaves piled in the tea box are old tree leaves, and not really Pu-erh tea.

In fact, according to the definition of Pu'er tea, it is a unique specialty in Yunnan Province, a national geographical indication product. Only teas made from fresh leaves harvested within specific ranges in Yunnan and processed with corresponding techniques qualify as Pu'er tea.

Pu-erh tea can be divided into green leaves and ripe leaves according to the processing technology. The green leaf is made from raw materials of Yunnan big-leaf tree variety, processed by high temperature pressure pressing. The matured tea is based on the green leaves and then undergoes artificial heating, steaming and humidification fermentation, and finally presses it into shape.

From a processing standpoint, Pu'er fermented tea and black tea's process are roughly the same, and there is no major dispute that it belongs to the category of black tea. The production technology of Pu'er raw tea is actually based on green tea kill-greening, adding one tight compression procedure, which has a large difference with black tea, should not be classified as a type of black tea, but also very difficult to directly classify into a type of green tea.

Of course, from the shape of tea leaves, tight-pressed tea is only a main form of Pu'er tea. In fact, in addition to Pu'er tea brick, Pu'er tea cake and tea biscuit, there are also loose Pu'er teas, although their quantity is small and mainly stored as local inventory in Yunnan.

How to drink Pu'er tea?

Pu-erh tea is divided into raw and ripe, all can be stored, has the characteristics of more aged than aroma. The older the tea, the higher the nutritional value, the better the experience of drinking. In addition, Pu-erh tea also has a lot of potential for appreciation, the longer it is stored, the better it is converted, and the price is higher.

When brewing pu-erh tea, you can brew freshly produced green and ripe tea only once. When washing the tea, use boiling water, with a 5~10 second steeping time. When brewing, use boiling water at 100 degrees Celsius for about 10 seconds of steeping time. Brew five times in succession and adjust each brewing interval accordingly.

Raw Pu-erh has a strong stimulation, its tea nature is similar to green tea, and there may be some bitterness. Many novice tea enthusiasts find it hard to accept at first. In this case, choosing Sheng Pu from the start might be a good option. The newly made Sheng Pu, after artificial fermentation with the help of manual piling, has undergone a change in nature, its stimulation is not strong, and its tea nature is milder and more smooth. When drinking, it feels sweet and full-bodied without any bitterness, making it easier for tea enthusiasts to accept.

If it's a long-stored old tea, whether it's green Pu or ripe Pu, it needs to be pre-waked first. When brewing, use boiling water for a rinse twice around to achieve the goal of nourishing and waking the tea, quickly awaken the sleeping tea quality, make the taste more balanced and better.

Each time the tea should be brewed with boiling water, the amount of tea can be between 8 grams. The specific amount may depend on your personal taste and preference. Tea brewing can produce a soup in about 10 seconds. It is possible to repeatedly brew for more than 10 times.

3. Who is suitable for drinking Pu'er tea?

Pu'er tea is a natural antique that can be drunk, absorbing the essence of heaven and earth, and undergoing long-term storage transformation, with high nutritional value. In addition to quenching thirst, it can digest food, reduce oiliness, improve internal circulation, promote metabolism, and achieve good health effects. Generally, people who drink Pu'er tea are beneficial to body and mind, and the following several types of people will be more nourished by drinking Pu'er tea.

People who smoke often. Pu'er tea contains a large amount of carotene, which is beneficial to detoxify nicotine and counteract the effects of smoking. People who smoke frequently can drink more mature pu'er tea.

Frequent drinkers. Although tea does not have the effect of sobering up, pu-erh tea can effectively protect the stomach and intestines once it enters the body, reducing the irritation caused by alcohol. Especially in ripe Pu, there are more soluble sugars than other teas, with a greater protective effect.

People who stay up late are prone to overwork their bodies, which would be detrimental to their health in the long run. Pu'er tea contains a large amount of caffeine, which can stimulate the central nervous system and make people more excited. Drinking some pu'er when staying up late will help concentrate one's mind and complete work better.

People who often face computers. We all say that green tea can have the effect of anti-radiation, but actually Pu'er tea also has a similar effect. People who often face computers should drink more Pu'er tea because Pu'er tea contains more polyphenol and vitamin C, which can effectively reduce the damage to eyes caused by screens.

In general, Pu-erh tea has a relatively mild flavor and can be good for maintenance, especially aged tea can have beneficial effects on both physical and mental health.