It's All About Tea — hei cha

While butter tea usually causes confusion in most not familiar with it, it actually has a rich and interesting history. It has been a staple for people living in the Himalayas for centuries and continues to be so.

WHAT IS BUTTER TEA?

Butter tea has many names in different languages but is commonly known as po cha. It originated in the Tibetan Himalayas but is now commonly enjoyed throughout Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, India, western China and Mongolia. To make butter tea, four ingredients are needed: tea leaves, butter, water, and salt.

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Hei Cha is a post-fermented tea, just like pu-erh. In fact, essentially, pu-erh is hei cha. But it's not that simple. Not everyone can tell the difference between hei cha and pu-erh.

Hei Cha is an ancient tea with a rich tea history. For example, the original processing techniques of Liu Bao Hei Cha served as the basis for modern-day Ripe Pu erh preparation. (Read more)

There are two schools: one that says no to boiled water, and one that says that boiled water is totally fine. So some carefully watch (or listen) to our tea kettles, waiting for the perfect time to cut the flame off. It's true, every tea type has the ideal temperature that allows the tea leaves to open up to us in all their beauty. The perfect aroma, perfect taste – balanced brew. It is crucial to learn this.

However, during the Tang Dynasty (618 ~ 907), tea was brewed very differently from what we are used to today. People boiled tea! (Read more)

Nowadays, boiling tea is often seen as a way to spoil perfectly good tea leaves. However, if done right, this method of brewing tea deserves much more credit than it gets.

Boiling tea leaves is the most ancient method of making tea.
Back in the Tang Dynasty (618 to 907), when tea culture was gradually at its rise, tea leaves were boiled for prolonged periods. Sometimes they were cooked together with different spices. Different kinds of herbs, roots, fruits, and even chili and scallions weren’t uncommon accompaniments to tea leaves. (Read more)

Liu Bao is a tea of history. It is one of the oldest styles of tea preparation that is still preserved and drank to this day. It is believed that the processing methods of Liu Bao served as the base for modern-day Ripe Pu erh preparation. In fact, the two teas go through very similar processing partially because they are both part of the Hei Cha tea category. (Read more)