YUNNAN CHITSU PINGCHA

YUNNAN CHITSU PINGCHA, also called Yuancha, is manufactured from pu’er tea, one of the profound famous teas of the world. It was made through a process of optimum fermentation coupled with high temperature steaming and pressing.

It affords a bright red yellowish liquid with pure aroma and fine taste, characterised by a sweet after taste of its own. Hence, it has distinct characteristics from other teas.

To drink such a tea, you will not only find it very refreshing and thirst quenching, but it also enhances digestion apart from relieving your fatigue or intoxication. These benefits are commonly known throughout the world since many centuries ago.

Shape

Pu'er is compressed into a variety of shapes. Other lesser seen forms include: stacked "melon pagodas", pillars, calabashes, yuanbao, and small bricks (2–5 cm in width). Pu'er is also compressed into the hollow centers of bamboo stems or packed and bound into a ball inside the peel of various citrus fruits.

Image	Common name	Chinese characters		Pinyin	Description
		S	T
	Bing, Beeng, Cake, or Disc	饼茶	餅茶	Bǐngchá	A round, flat, disc or puck-shaped tea, the size ranges from as small as 100g to as large as 5 kg or more, with 357g, 400g, and 500g being the most common. Depending on the pressing method, the edge of the disk can be rounded or perpendicular. It is also commonly known as Qīzí bǐngchá (七子餅茶, literally "seven units cake tea") because seven of the bing are packaged together at a time for sale or transport.
	Tuocha, Bowl, or Nest	沱茶	沱茶	Tuóchá	A convex knob-shaped tea, its size ranges from 3g to 3 kg or more, with 100g, 250g and 500g being the most common. The name for tuocha is believed to have originated from the round, top-like shape of the pressed tea or from the old tea shipping and trading route of the Tuo River.[18] In ancient times, tuocha cakes may have had holes punched through the center so they could be tied together on a rope for easy transport.
	Brick	砖茶	磚茶	Zhuānchá	A thick rectangular block of tea, usually in 100g, 250g, 500g and 1000g sizes; Zhuancha bricks are the traditional shape used for ease of transport along the ancient tea route by horse caravans.
	Square	方茶	方茶	Fāngchá	A flat square of tea, usually in 100g or 200g sizes, they often contain words pressed into the square.
	Mushroom	紧茶	緊茶	Jǐnchá	Literally meaning "tight tea," the tea is shaped much like túocha, but with a stem rather than a convex hollow. This makes them quite similar in form to a mushroom. Pu'er tea of this shape is generally produced for Tibetan consumption, and is usually 250g or 300g.
	Melon, or gold melon	金瓜	金瓜	Jīnguā	Its shape is similar to tuóchá, but larger in size, with a much thicker body decorated with pumpkin-like stripes. This shape was created for the famous "Tribute tea" (貢茶) made expressly for the Qing Dynasty emperors from the best tea leaves of Yiwu Mountain. Larger specimens of this shape are sometimes called "human-head tea" (人頭茶), due in part to its size and shape, and because in the past it was often presented in court in a similar manner to severed heads of enemies or criminals.

Whatsoever it is, please don’t take our word for it. But try it yourself and taste it yourself. Kindly let us know your real experience, and share it through the comment column provided below.

To know more about my preferred pu’er tea of my own collection, a 2004 product of Menghai Tea Factory Xishuangbanna, Yunnan China, please click the link below:-

 

James Oh

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