The production process for Pu'er raw Tea is as follows: plucking, withering, pan-firing, rolling, sun-drying, weighing, steaming and compressing, drying, and packaging.

Plucking:

Hand-pick one Bud with two leaves.

Withering:

Spread out in a shaded, well-ventilated, and dry area, typically placed above bamboo trays or mats.

Pan-firing:

Eliminate the grassy scent and evaporate some of the moisture, which aids in shaping during rolling. After this step, the color of the leaves changes from fresh green to dark or dark green.

Rolling:

Manually roll the leaves to form them into strips. This involves two stages: coarse rolling and re-rolling, with particular emphasis on the re-rolling of stems and branches.

Sun-drying:

Naturally dry the rolled leaves under sunlight, preserving the maximum amount of organic substances and active ingredients, and retaining the original flavor of the tea.

Weighing:

In the past, for ease of calculation and transportation, 367 grams per cake was the standard weight for Pu'er tea. Nowadays, due to changing consumer demands and market needs, the specifications have been adjusted.

Steaming and Compressing: Steam-moisten the sun-dried leaves and place them in stone molds to be tightly compressed into shape.

Drying:

Air-dry naturally to control the moisture content below 13%.

Packaging:

Wrap the tea cakes in white cotton paper, bundle them with bamboo sheaths into tubes, and pack them in baskets. However, in recent years, to adapt to the rapid changes in the market and save time, materials, and labor costs, some are directly packaged in cardboard boxes. The forms of packaging are constantly evolving, becoming diverse, and bamboo sheath packaging is no longer the only method for Pu'er tea cake packaging.

The characteristics of Pu'er raw tea are “Sweetness, smoothness, fullness, thickness, harmony, vitality, and purity.” The tea is compact and robust in appearance, with clear and uniform strips, a dark green lustrous color, a thick and smooth taste, slight bitterness and astringency that dissipates quickly, a pronounced throat resonance, a strong tea aroma, a lively and delicate flavor that is dense and substantial, a pure and elevated character, rich layers, and a high degree of durability when steeped.