What Is Pu-erh Tea?
Pu-erh originated in Southwestern China's Yunnan province over 1000 years ago.
Pu-erh tea is divided into two categories: raw pu-erh (sheng pu-erh) and ripe pu-erh (shou pu-erh). Unlike other types of tea, pu-erh goes through fermentation. Pu-erh tea often undergoes aging, which can last for decades. This is what gives this tea its iconic, bold, earthy flavor.
Pu-erh can be produced from sun-dried tea leaves of the Assamica variety. While only Yunnanese sun-dried tea can be called pu-erh, the same trees are growing in Laos, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, and Vietnam.
Pu-erh Tea From Myanmar
Myanmar is a hot country with an extended rainy season in the summer. The heat, coupled with the wet and humid environment, is perfect for growing tea. Tea farmers produce hundreds of tons of pu-erh year-round. Most of these come from the summer harvest, fewer from the autumn harvest, and only a couple of tons come from the spring harvest. Spring harvest pu-erh tea is not only rarer but noticeably more delicious. Much like any other tea type, the first harvests always produce the sweetest, most delicate, and aromatic tea leaves.
Myanmar Pu erh vs Yunnan Pu erh Tea
Pu-erh tea originated in Yunnan province over 1000 years ago. However, the proximity of Myanmar to Yunnan is without question. Myanmar shares a border with China’s Yunnan province and the region of Guo Gan (Kokang), where many ancient wild tea trees (gushu) grow, and the region has been part of China at different periods throughout history. Although it is now part of Burma, many Chinese people (90% of the region's population is ethnically Han Chinese) continue to live in the area and produce tea.
When examining the ancient tea trees growing in Guo Gan, many are of close age to those found in Yunnan. It would be of no surprise if thousands of years ago, it was all one large tea-growing area undivided by the strict borders of common times. In fact, the ecosystem is the same as it is in other parts of Yunnan.
While pu-erh from Myanmar can’t officially be patented as pu-erh, most pu-erh enthusiasts will still consider it pu-erh, taking into account all the above-mentioned circumstances.
The beauty of the tea trees that grow in Guo Gan is unparalleled. The region itself is somewhat remote and not easy to get around. While Yunnan is one of the world's top tea-producing regions, Guo Gan remains relatively untouched. This is why we can find forests with ancient tea trees growing wild without the use of pesticides or fertilizers.
Kokang, aka Guo Gan, has faced significant hardship for decades, including a long history of armed conflict between local militias and the Myanmar government that continues to flare up to this day. The region has also had a complicated history tied to the drug trade. Alongside these struggles, many in the region have also turned to agriculture, including sugarcane and tea production, as a steadier, safer source of income
For more information on the political situation of Kokang and its relation to tea production, we recommend checking out this article.
