Yiwu Pu'er Cake | Chinese Raw Pu'er

Pu’er also spelt Pu'erh is a famous type of Chinese tea. It is made with sun-dried Shaiqinmao tea leaves (Yunnan big-leaf variety). Pu’er tea has been produced in Yunnan province for more than 2000 years, but due to its unique origin, history and process of production, it hasn’t spread to other areas until much later; hence it is sometimes referred to as “national treasure tea”. The unique features of this tea are its ageing ability and health benefits. Pu’er is well known for the mellowness, bitterness and sweetness brought by ageing. Other teas can be aged for a few years if taken good care of; however Pu’erh can be aged for decades with a remarkable effect on the caffeine content and polyphenol - antioxidant substances contained within it.

Yiwu, located in the MengLa district of the Puerh tea area, is renowned for its ancient tea tree plantations. This region is characterized by vast wild forests where numerous old tea trees thrive. Yiwu is famous for producing exceptional old tree Puerh tea, particularly in the 15 renowned villages known as the "7 cun 8 zhai." The tea from this area is highly regarded for its soft taste and captivating aroma. Interestingly, some of the old tea trees grow on both sides of the border between China and Laos, adding to the uniqueness of Yiwu tea.

Pu'er is often referred to as a "cake" as it resembles the shape of a cake or a biscuit in Chinese known as "Bing." For Pu'er tea to be sold as "Pu'er" it must be processed in the cake form. Tea Journeys also acquires large quantities of the loose leaf Pu'er known in Chinese as "mao cha" but this would be like the Australians producing sparkling white wine and assuming we can just call it Champagne. in homage to its long standing lineage and history Pu'er needs to be sold in cakes and grown in Yunnan Province for it to be classified as a true Pu'er. Of the regions, we source our Pu'er available to our customers we always source from areas growing without the use of pesticides and chemicals. This is integral to such unspoilt flavours that can be savoured from these highly revered teas.