How much do you know about ripe tea? How do you drink ripe tea, and have you experienced any reactions while drinking it?

Question: Is summer unsuitable for drinking ripe tea?

Explanation: Not necessarily. The idea that summer is unsuitable for ripe tea is an assumption based on the season's heat and the tea's red color, which gives a visual impression of warmth. But reality may not be so straightforward. Firstly, ripe tea is not 'heating' in nature. Tea is originally cooling; through fermentation, ripe tea merely loses its cooling property, becoming at most warm. Therefore, drinking it won't increase body heat. Moreover, modern environments are often air-conditioned. People wear light clothing in summer, but homes, offices, restaurants, and cars are frequently cooled. In such settings, drinking very cooling teas might be less appropriate. So, whether ripe tea is suitable for summer depends entirely on individual constitution and living/working environments.

Question: Some say they experience 'heatiness' or diarrhea immediately after drinking ripe tea. Why does this happen?

Explanation: This does occur. However, 'heatiness' isn't necessarily bad. Traditional Chinese Medicine differentiates between 'bringing to the surface' and 'suppressing.' Symptoms like heatiness, blisters, or small sores are considered 'bringing to the surface,' part of a treatment and adjustment process. From this perspective, it doesn't mean you are unsuitable for ripe tea; you should persist. Once toxins are 'surfaced' and expelled, the body reaches balance, and heatiness naturally stops. Some may experience mild diarrhea when first trying ripe tea, similar in principle to heatiness. Symptoms usually disappear after a day or two of adjustment.

Question: Can you drink ripe tea after it cools down? What about overnight?

Explanation: Cooled ripe tea is drinkable and offers a different flavor. Theoretically, ripe tea has already been oxidized and won't oxidize further, so it doesn't spoil overnight like green tea. It's safe. Based on personal experience, I and friends have drunk overnight ripe tea many times with no adverse effects.

Question: What are the health benefits of ripe tea?

Explanation: Ripe tea offers over 20 benefits, including warming the stomach, weight loss, lipid reduction, preventing arteriosclerosis and coronary heart disease, lowering blood pressure, anti-aging, anti-cancer, lowering blood sugar, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects, reducing harm from tobacco and heavy metals, anti-radiation, preventing dental caries, improving eyesight, aiding digestion, detoxification, preventing constipation, and relieving alcohol effects. Among these, warming the stomach, weight loss, lipid reduction, preventing arteriosclerosis and coronary heart disease, lowering blood pressure, anti-aging, anti-cancer, and lowering blood sugar are particularly notable.

Question: Why does some ripe tea taste sour? How to handle sour tea?

Explanation: Sourness in ripe tea can stem from several factors. First, material selection: tender leaves (like spring tea, all buds, one bud one leaf) are more prone to sourness. Second, excessive water during the 'wo dui' (pile fermentation) process. Third, light fermentation (below 70% completion) has a high probability of resulting in sour tea. Fourth, low fermentation temperature, where the pile doesn't heat up sufficiently, preventing proper fermentation and easily leading to light fermentation.

Sour ripe tea lacks enjoyable drinking quality and is best discarded. However, if reluctant, storing it for a period may allow the sourness to diminish through natural post-fermentation. This could take 3, 5, or 10 years, and is only a possibility, not a guarantee.