Pu-erh Shu Cha — Aged Tea Cake

Pu-erh (Shu Cha): The Aged Earth Treasure. Hailing from Yunnan Province, Shu Pu-erh (Ripe/Cooked) is a celebrated dark tea famous for its unique post-fermentation process, which rapidly ages the leaves. This results in a distinctive deep, earthy flavour, smooth texture, and rich, dark liquor. Often compressed into traditional cakes (bing cha), this tea improves significantly with age.

Flavour Profile & Tradition
Shu Pu-erh offers a profound, warming, and mellow sensory experience:

• Aroma: Deeply earthy (humus/wet wood), rich, and sometimes sweet like dried dates or molasses.
• Taste: Incredibly smooth, thick, and mellow, with notes of dark wood, mushroom, and a deep, comforting sweetness. The infusion is opaque, dark mahogany-red, nearly black.
• Appearance: Compressed cakes of dark, reddish-brown leaves. Tea is sold in broken chunks from the cake.
• Origin: Yunnan Province, China.

A Gift of Longevity and Warmth for the New Year
Pu-erh is a staple gift in China, symbolizing longevity, stable wealth (due to its appreciating value), and deep, enduring friendship. Its warming, gut-friendly properties make it the perfect tea to share during cold New Year festivities. Its classic, compressed form embodies tradition and permanence.

Brewing Guidelines
Use boiling water (212°F / 100°C). Always rinse the leaves quickly to "wake them up" before the first proper infusion. Brew using the Gongfu method with multiple, short infusions (15–25 seconds initially). Shu Pu-erh is the ultimate durable tea, easily providing 15–20 high-quality, complex infusions.