Is Pu'er tea bitter? The difference between raw Pu'er tea and cooked tea

Pu’er tea has a bright red soup, which many people think is bitter. So, is Pu'er tea bitter? What is the difference between raw Pu'er tea and cooked tea?

Is Pu'er tea bitter?

Everyone has different tastes. Some people like strong tea with strong taste, while some people like light tea and fragrance. They have been fascinated by the effects of Pu'er tea for a long time, but others Whether it tastes bitter or not is a concern for people who like to drink light tea.

Everyone knows that the bitterness and astringency of tea are the nature of tea, but the amount of bitterness and astringency can be controlled by brewing techniques. For example, the speed of brewing the soup can often affect the taste experience of tea when you drink it.

As the saying goes, "tea cannot be made without bitterness or astringency." The bitterness and astringency of tea mainly comes from polyphenols. By understanding the formation mechanism of polyphenols, you can control the bitterness and astringency of tea.

The polyphenols in tea are mainly catechins. Catechins are divided into monomeric catechins and ester catechins, of which ester catechins account for about 70% and are responsible for the The main component of the bitter taste of tea. This is the first time that the academic community has discovered the key enzyme for the synthesis of ester catechins. From this, people can control the bitterness and astringency of tea by regulating gene expression and enzyme activity to affect the synthesis amount of ester catechins.

Flavonols are also polyphenols. They mainly exist in the form of glycosides in tea and affect the astringency of tea.

Some merchants now regard the bitterness, astringency, and domineering nature of Pu'er tea as the best Pu'er tea, but they do not know that Lao Banzhang in Pu'er tea is bitter, astringent, and domineering. Almost everyone wants to rely on or contact Lao Banzhang. In fact, the tea in each place has its own taste and characteristics.

There are two types of bitterness in Pu'er tea, one is seasonal bitterness, spring tea is the best, the most fragrant, sweet or sweet aftertaste. Summer tea is the worst, bitter in the mouth, sometimes close to the bitterness of traditional Chinese medicine. Because there is abundant rain in summer, although it contributes to the width of the tea strings, it also causes a bitter taste. On the contrary, plants that receive sufficient sunlight have a sweeter taste. , fruits and vegetables are the same.

The second is the bitterness of regional cultivation. The taste of tea largely depends on the soil and weather. "Oranges grown in Huainan are called tangerines, and those grown in Huaibei are called tangerines." This is the truth. In the producing areas of many Pu'er teas Generally speaking, Lincang, Simao (today's Pu'er City) and Banna are the main Pu'er tea producing areas. There are also some places where the climate and soil are not suitable for the growth of Pu'er tea. The grown tea is so bitter that it is difficult to taste it. Of course, this kind of suffering is also said to be intense by some people, which is indeed misleading.

The difference between raw Pu'er tea and cooked tea

1. Comparison of the appearance of raw Pu'er tea and cooked tea

Raw tea (also called green cake) , the tea leaves in the tea cake are mainly green and dark green, some turn to yellow-red, and white is the bud head.

Ripe tea (also called ripe cake). The color of the tea leaves in the tea cake is black or reddish brown. Some bud teas are dark golden yellow, with a strong smell similar to musty, and the fermentation is light. Some have a smell similar to longan, while those with severe fermentation have a stuffy straw mat smell.

2. Comparison of the production process of raw Pu'er tea and cooked tea

The production process of raw Pu'er tea: after the fresh leaves are picked, they are dried → rolled → dried in the sun, that is, raw and powdered Tea, or sun-dried green tea. The sun-dried green tea is steamed at high temperature, placed in a fixed mold to shape, and dried in the sun to become a pressed tea product, which is also called raw cake.

The production process of ripe Pu'er tea: after the fresh leaves are picked, they are dried → rolled → sun-dried, which is raw loose tea, or sun-dried green tea. Sun-dried green tea is artificially quickly matured and fermented, and sprinkled with water. The stacking process is called ripe loose tea. The stacking technology was successfully tested by Kunming Tea Factory in 1973. In other words, the ripe tea before 1973 was all fake, and there was no ripe tea at all before 1973. The cooked loose tea is then steamed and shaped to become cooked and pressed tea.

3. Comparison of soup color between raw Pu'er tea and cooked tea

The soup color of raw tea: green-yellow or golden yellow, more translucent

The soup color of cooked tea: Maroon or dark red, slightly translucent.

4. Comparison of the leaf base of raw Pu'er tea and cooked tea

The leaf base of raw tea: New tea products are mainly yellow-green and dark green, with high activity and flexibility. , elastic. Good tea has no variegated colors, is striped and shaped, and remains in the shape of a whole leaf when unfolded (of course, this is not the main basis, it depends on the place and type of tea).

The bottom of the leaves of ripe tea: The bottom of the leaves of those with light fermentation is reddish brown but not flexible. The bottom of the leaves of heavily fermented tea is mostly dark brown or black, hard and brittle.

5. Comparison of the effects of raw Pu'er tea and cooked tea

The main effects of raw Pu'er tea: Raw Pu'er tea has a strong aroma and a high content of tea polyphenols. It is a good drink to prevent cancer. Drinking Sanpu during the day is very refreshing. It has a clear feeling that cleanses the body and mind. It also significantly smoothes the blood vessels.

The main effects of cooked Pu'er tea: it has significant weight loss effect. Ripe Pu has been lightly fermented and contains a large number of beneficial bacteria. The tea is mild in nature, warms the stomach and nourishes the stomach. According to the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, cooked tea is basically warm in nature and is the most suitable tea for women to drink.

What does Pu’er raw tea mean?

Many people think that Pu’er raw tea is raw and does not go through the process of tea frying. There is nothing wrong with this understanding, but Not specific enough.

Pu'er raw tea refers to Yunnan large-leaf sun-dried green tea as raw material, aged in a natural way, without artificial "fermentation" or "fermentation" treatment, but after processing and modification. The collective name for various Yunnan teas (cake tea, brick tea, Tuo tea, and Longzhu).

Pu'er is mainly produced in Pu'er City, Mojiang, Ning'er, Jingdong, Menghai, Mengla, Gengma, Cangyuan, Shuangjiang, Lincang, Yuanjiang, Dali, Pingbian, Hekou, Ma Guan, Malipo, Wenshan, Xichou, Guangnan, Xishuangbanna, followed by Panxian and Rongjiang in Guizhou, Fusui and Zhaoping in Guangxi, Nanjing in Fujian, Ruyuan, Lianshan, Maoming in Guangdong and Changjiang, Qiongzhong, Hainan Ledong, Baoting, Lingshui and other places. Born in tropical and tropical mountain forests at an altitude of 1200-1400 meters. It is also distributed in northern Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, and India. Rare species. Wild tea trees (including cultivated wild tea trees), also known as Pu'er tea, are distributed in southern Yunnan and Hainan. Among them, there is the "Tea Tree King" in Yunnan, which is over 1,800 years old. It is a relatively large plant. Although local measures have been taken to protect it, the plant is still subject to human interference. If management and protection are not strengthened, there is a risk of being destroyed and killed. As the population in Yunnan increases, the natural forests shrink sharply. At the same time, many people go to the mountains to pick wild tea leaves every year around the Qingming Festival, and the number of wild tea trees is also decreasing.