Gray & Seddon's Pu'er and compressed teas including loose and compressed smoked and unsmoked "bo'lei"

The word "pu'er"(sometimes spelled "pu-er" or pu-erh") is the name of a town in Xishuangbanna, a region in the southern part of Yunnan Province. In ancient times tea produced in this region was traded at Pu'er, and eventually the tea itself acquired this name. In order to preserve the tea and to facilitate its trade with merchants travelling the Silk Road, a method was developed which led to the steaming of pu'er tea and then compressing it into various shapes - usually a type of bowl shape or a "brick". This type of tea is known as "tuocha". Tuocha teas can also be known by different names such as "bing cha" (or "beeng cha" or "ping cha"), and "fang cha". These names simply refer to the type of shape into which the tuocha is pressed - eg bing cha is "biscuit shaped" and fang cha is "square shaped".

Pu'er tea is a fermented and aged green tea, and exists in loose as well as compressed form, in a variety of grades. All pu'er teas tend to have a musty smell, somewhat reminiscent of old socks! The taste of these teas is much more pleasant, with the best grades possessing a sweet mellow flavour. They produce a strongly coloured liquor and the one serve of leaf is capable of many infusions. Some pu'er teas can be quite smoky. The best pu'er teas are made from ancient tea bushes (some of which are so old - over 1000 years - they are tall trees!). If good pu'er tea is stored properly it will improve with age, rather like a good wine. Very old pu'er is highly valued and can fetch enormous sums per ounce, making the "cellaring" of good pu'er at least as good an investment as cellaring red wine. In fact aged pu'er can improve over at least 100 years, whereas very few wines would last that distance! As enthusiastic consumers of both types of anti-oxidant, we recommend hedging your bets and cellaring both!

Once unwrapped, pieces of tea are broken off for brewing

	In addition to the traditional "Bing" cha, *Gray & Seddon* offer several other types of tuocha, as well as three grades of loose pu'er tea, including a very rare Emperor Pu'er. The tuocha displayed at left is a medium round tuocha "Nugget" weighing about 100g - unfortunately it is not as photogenic as the Bing cha, bearing instead a rather unfortunate visual resemblance to something which dog owners are often exhorted to remove from footpaths! The Nugget is available individually or as a set of 5 wrapped in bamboo leaf.
	If the thought of approaching the Nugget as your first tuocha is a bit overwhelming, we have some "Mini Tuocha" which may be ideal tuocha "starters". Each Mini makes one cup (plus repeat infusions).
	To complete our tuocha line up, we offer a "Pipe" tuocha which is compressed and smoked inside bamboo, before being removed and sliced and wrapped in bamboo leaf. Each "Pipe" weighs 200g and is sliced into about 20 slices.
	qty:

LOOSE PU'ER TEA

To complete our range of Pu'er teas, Gray & Seddon offer 3 grades of loose pu'er. The Pu'er Special is a smooth, slightly smoky tea making a typical dark black brew, very good as an accompaniment to oily foods. Big savings on this tea if ordered in 200g or larger quantities.

Next grade up from the Pu'er Special is the Palace Pu'er - somewhat smoother & not as smoky as the Special & also an excellent choice with oily foods.

Our top loose pu'er is Emperor Pu'er made from high quality leaf and aged for longer than the other pu'ers in the range. This is the smoothest most refined pu'er tea we offer, and it is of a much higher quality than is readily available elsewhere.

HEALTHY PU'ER?

For centuries the Chinese have maintained that pu'er tea is beneficial to the digestion. More recent studies lend support to that contention, and there is even evidence to suggest that regular consumption of pu'er tea can assist in lowering blood pressure and cholesterol!

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