Making tea cakes is a traditional art form in Yunnan, China. The leaves of this tea were grown at a high elevation garden on Wuliang Mountain and processed at a Puer factory in Simao, a district in Puer City. Although it began as a way to preserve tea traveling in caravans over long distances, the art of making Puer tea cakes has continued into modern day. First, the freshly plucked tea leaves are withered, roasted, and sun dried to make Mao Cha or “rough tea”. The rough tea is then steamed and molded into the tea cake shape using stone weights (traditional method) or a simple die press (modern method). Cakes are hand-wrapped in paper in the final step.
Cake is approximately 4" in diameter (10.16 cm).
Brewing Instructions
Break off a piece, roughly 1tsp, steep for 4 mins with boiling water.