{"id":31,"date":"2020-07-14T15:36:13","date_gmt":"2020-07-14T15:36:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/puerist.co\/yunnanpuertea\/?page_id=31"},"modified":"2025-11-24T16:42:15","modified_gmt":"2025-11-24T16:42:15","slug":"puer-tea-glossary","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/puerist.co\/yunnanpuertea\/puer-tea-glossary\/","title":{"rendered":"Glossary"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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ai hua, \u77ee\u5316; \u77ee<\/strong> means low or short. Together the two characters mean to dwarf or stunt. Copice. A term used to refer to trees that have been heavily cut back at some point. This could have been for a variety of different reasons: typically because it was felt the tree was too tall and difficult to pick or because there was little lateral growth affecting yield. This is not to be confused with trees that were cut or burned down at some point in the past, often to clear ground for crops that at the time were considered more necessary or valuable than tea, and have since grown back. There are many trees like this in the area above Yiwu. See also teng tiao\/\u85e4\u6761<\/a> for another style of tree management that is common in the Lincang-Lancang area but seldom used in Xishuangbanna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

an ji suan; \u6c28\u57fa\u9178<\/strong> – \u6c28 is ammonia, \u9178 is sour or acidic. Together refers to amino acid. Sometimes may also be written with the phoneme \u80fa – \u80fa\u57fa\u9178.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ba qi; \u9738\u6c14<\/strong> \u2013 . ba \u2013 \u9738 means hegemonic, or a noun: overlord or despot. So ba qi means strong, aggressive, and can refer to the \u2018qi\u2019 of tea, but is used more-so to refer to a certain quality in tea, but not necessarily (only) the qi. It tends more to refer to a set of overall qualities including flavour, \u2018punch\u2019 in a gastronomic sense, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

bao; \u8584<\/strong> \u2013 Thin, flimsy, weak. Used to describe tea that is lacking in flavour, body, \u2018thickness\u2019. A reflection of the lack of constituents in the tea. Also pronounced bo. i.e. \u5355\u8584\/dan bo<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

bao man; \u9971\u6ee1<\/strong> – Literally full, plump. Used to describe the flavour of a tea and the broth: full, rounded. Not thin. A reflection of the amount of constituents in the tea: \u5185\u542b\u7269\/nei han wu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

bei xiang; \u676f\u9999<\/strong> – \u676f is a cup. \u9999 means fragrance, so together means ‘cup fragrance. The fragrance that lingers in the jug or cup after the broth has been emptied out or drunk. With Puer tea it can sometimes be fairly complex as the temperature drops, and can linger from some time. It is distinct from the fragrance which is ‘in the broth’ which one might experience whilst the broth is in the mouth, or just afterwards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

biao er cha su; \u8868\u513f\u8336\u7d20<\/strong> – epicatechin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

biao er cha su mo shi zi suan zhi; \u8868\u513f\u8336\u7d20\u6ca1\u98df\u5b50\u9178\u916f<\/strong> – epicatechin gallate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

biao<\/strong> mo shi zi er cha su; \u8868\u6ca1\u98df\u5b50\u513f\u8336\u7d20<\/strong> – epigallocatechin gallate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

bing; \u997c<\/strong> – Cake or biscuit. Something shaped like a cake. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

bo; \u8584<\/strong> – See bao<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

bo; \u6ce2<\/strong> \u2013 Wave. The term \u6ce2-bo here has the same meaning as flush: \u7b2c\u4e00\u6ce2, di yi bo ,\u7b2c\u4e8c\u6ce2, di er bo, and so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

bo ji; \u7c38\u7b95<\/strong> – The two ‘zhu zi tou’, the \u7af9 characters at the top tell us it’s got something to do with bamboo. Bo ji are the winnowing trays, usually round, and made from woven bamboo that are commonly used in tea making.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cang wei; \u4ed3\u5473<\/strong>. Used to describe the flavour\/aroma of tea that has been stored poorly. Often used to refer to the aroma of \u2018Wet Stored\u2019\/\u6e7f\u4ed3 tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ceng ci gan\uff1b\u5c42\u6b21\u611f<\/strong>. \u5c42, layer,stratum, a part of a sequence. \u611f, feeling. So together, the sense, or feeling of layered-ness. Essentially of three types, relating to \u9999\u6c14, fragrance, \u53e3\u611f\/\u6ecb\u5473, mouth-feel, flavour and \u97f5, yun. The sense of a narrative or story, of changing elements that occur over a number of steeps as tea is drunk. One of the things that is particularly appealing about good Puer tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha an suan; \u8336\u6c28\u9178<\/strong> – \u6c28 is the character for Ammonia. \u9178\/suan means sour or acid. Together it refers to L-Theanine, the amino acid found in tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha bing; \u8336\u997c<\/strong> \u2013 Tea cake. This is a cake of tea that has been pressed by hand or machine into a compact form. Easy for transporting and storage. The more tightly pressed it is, the slower the tea will age. They can range in size from 100 gms to several kilograms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha chang; \u8336\u5382<\/strong> \u2013 Tea factory or plantation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha di; \u8336\u5e95<\/strong> \u2013 literally tea end or bottom. More commonly \u53f6\u5e95\/ye di<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha di; \u8336\u5730<\/strong> \u2013 \u5730 \u2013 di, land, ground. A more common expression used to refer to tea gardens or fields.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha duo fen; \u8336\u591a\u915a<\/strong> – phenols and polyphenols in tea: catechins, theaflavins, tanins. etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha guan; \u8336\u9986(\u513f)<\/strong> \u2013 Tea house. Not really a local term. More of a northern, or Beijing term. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha he su; \u8336\u8910\u7d20<\/strong> – theabrownine. \u8910 here means brown. Some translations give theobromine\/\u53ef\u53ef\u78b1<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha hong su; \u8336\u7ea2\u7d20<\/strong> – thearubigin. \u7ea2 being red.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha hu; \u8336\u58f6 <\/strong>\u2013 Tea pot. Made of porcelain, pottery or glass. Yixing pots are used for both cooked and raw Puer. Since they are pourous, the pots absorb flavours and chemicals from the tea. If one is serious about using Yixing pots, particularly for sheng Puer, one needs to be ready to get at least two pots \u2013 one for older and one for younger teas. And these should not be used for brewing other teas, and vice-versa. Yixing teapots will typically soften the flavours of sheng Puer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha hua; \u8336\u82b1 <\/strong>\u2013 Camelia flower<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha huang su; \u8336\u9ec4\u7d20<\/strong> – theaflavin. \u9ec4 is yellow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha jian lei; \u8336\u78b1\u7c7b<\/strong> – \u78b1 means alkali, \u7c7b is type or class. Together refers to theophyline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha ju; \u8336\u5177<\/strong> \u2013 Literally tea-tools. The paraphernalia for making tea gong-fu style<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha men (zi); \u8336\u95f7(\u5b50) <\/strong>\u2013 Another term for Gaiwan. \u95f7;men \u2013 to cover tightly. Not really used in Xishuangbanna, and probably a little dated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha nong; \u8336\u519c<\/strong> \u2013 nong is a farmer. A tea farmer or cultivator. See also nong min; \u519c\u6c11<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha pan (zi); \u8336\u76d8(\u5b50) <\/strong>\u2013 Tea tray. The tray with a drainage system \u2013 normally a simple pipe- that is used when making tea. Usually made from bamboo, wood or stone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha qi; \u8336\u6c14<\/strong> \u2013 Tea nature. The inherent energetic qualities in tea. That which makes it tea. Sometimes rather unsatisfactorily interpreted as \u2018tea energy\u2019; translating qi as energy suggests perhaps a rather too narrow idea of qi but it is an interesting term to consider since many people use the term. Ideas and experiences ofcha qi vary considerably; the taste of tea, the appearance of the leaves (particularly after steeping i.e. the life in the tea), any physical or psychological experiences one may have as a result of drinking tea are all aspects of cha qi. One cannot satisfactorily dissociate one from the other just as one cannot isolate sunshine from wind, which are both manifestations of weather, tian qi. If it did not have cha qi it wouldn\u2019t be tea, it would be something else. From a western point of view perhaps, cha qi is due, in some good part, to the presence of caffeine, theine, etc. The active constituents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha qi; \u8336\u65d7<\/strong> \u2013 theophylline. A natural bronchiodilator, only present in very small quantities in tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha qi; \u8336\u5668<\/strong> \u2013 a tea set (of tools)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha shi dian; \u8336\u98df\u5e97 <\/strong>\u2013 . A place to drink tea and eat snacks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha shi; \u8336\u5e02<\/strong> \u2013 Tea market. Also \u8336\u5e02\u573a\/cha shi chang or \u8336\u573a\/cha chang.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha shi; \u8336\u5ba4<\/strong> – tea room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha shu; \u8336\u6811 <\/strong>\u2013 Tea tree. A tree with a trunk, as opposed to a bush.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha su; \u8336\u7d20<\/strong> \u2013 Theine<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha tang; \u8336\u6c64<\/strong> – tea broth. See \u6c64\u611f\/tang gan and \u6c64\u8272\/tang se.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha tong; \u8336\u7b52<\/strong> \u2013 Tea cady or storage jar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha wan; \u8336\u7897<\/strong> \u2013 Tea bowl. This is typically a small handle-less bowl made from porcelain, terracotta or glass. As with Yixing pots, anything that is pourous is going to absorb flavours and should ideally be dedicated to one kind of tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha wei; \u8336\u5473<\/strong> \u2013 Tea flavour<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha wen hua; \u8336\u6587\u5316<\/strong> \u2013 Tea culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha ya; \u8336\u82bd<\/strong>. Tea tip\/s. \u82bd \u2013 ya literally means tooth, So the new shoots of tea leaves. These are generally the most prized, followed by other less exquisit formations such as yi ya yi ye,\u4e00\u7259\u4e00\u53f6 and yi ya liang ye, \u4e00\u7259\u4e24\u53f6, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha ye; \u8336\u53f6<\/strong> -Tea leaf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha ye guan; \u8336\u53f6\u7f50<\/strong>.- Tea caddy or storage container.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha ye hua; \u8336\u53f6\u82b1 <\/strong>\u2013 Tea leaf flower or simply Tea flower; Camelia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha yi; \u8336\u4eea<\/strong> \u2013 Tea ceremony. Not generally used to refer to the daily habit of tea making and drinking. Most habitual tea drinkers would be unlikely to use this term in reference to their tea-making activities. Not common parlance in Yunnan tea making circles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha yuan; \u8336\u56ed<\/strong> \u2013 Tea garden. Commonly used to refer to a tea plantation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha zhi; \u8336\u8d28<\/strong> \u2013 \u8d28 is nature\/quality, so together, maybe tea quality, or tea nature. The consituents that make it tea: Theine, caffeine. etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

cha zhuan; \u8336\u7816<\/strong> \u2013 Tea brick. \u7816 has \u77f3 shi as a radical which means stone or something to do with stone, so a brick shape of material from the ground, but the wider meaning of brick is a brick shape of any material. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

chao tian guo; \u671d\u5929\u9505<\/strong> – A style of mechanised wok heated by gas or electricity with a large revolving open drum that can pivot to empty the tea leaves out. Think of something that looks rather like a cement mixer, but a little larger than a common or garden variety. Typically, around 12 kg of fresh leaves can be processed each time, so it can reduce the amount of time spent processing tea but if done well can still producea tea that is very similar to hand fried tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

chen wei; \u9648\u5473<\/strong> \u2013 Aged, mellow. An expression which in Chinese can be used to refer to the flavour of aged alcohol, tea, etc. A puer tea that has been well stored for a number of years – there is no firm agreement about how long that might be – but likely at least seven years, depending on where the tea is stored – will start to show some notes of ‘chen wei’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

chen dian; \u6c89\u6dc0<\/strong> \u2013 sediment. i.e. small particles that are sometimes found in tea broth when tea is being made. In good quality tea there is very little, if any sediment. One can often see the very small hairs that grow on sinensis assamica<\/em> leaves floating in the tea soup having become detached from the leaf, but these do not appear as sediment or make the soup turbid .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

chou; \u7a20<\/strong> – dense, thick. Usually used to describe a the quality of a liquid, but sometimes also used for people. Often used together with \u7c98\/nian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

chui niu; \u5439\u725b<\/strong> – \u5439 \u2013 chui, to blow. \u725b \u2013 niu, cow, but in this case can be read as \u516c\u725b or bull. An almost default aspect of tea drinking \u2013 \u2018shooting the bull\u2019. The talk that often accompanies tea drinking and can be peppered with much knowledge, a little exaggeration and some humour. Also \u5439\u725b\u76ae. \u76ae \u2013 skin or hide. \u2018Blowing the bulls hide.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

chun; \u6625<\/strong> \u2013 spring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

chun cha; \u6625\u8336<\/strong> \u2013 spring tea. Normally divided into periods; \u5934\u6625; tou chun\/first flush, \u4e8c\u6625; er chun\/second flush, \u6625\u5c3echun wei, tale of spring. Also see \u6ce2-bo is also used.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

chun; \u7eaf<\/strong> \u2013 pure. Used to refer to the quality\/ies of tea. Not pin pei\/\u62fc\u914d. Not mixed or adulterated. Not za\/\u6742<\/p>\n\n\n\n

chun; \u9187 <\/strong>– mellow. Puer and mellow. Often used to talk about wine and other aged alcohol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

chun hou; \u9187\u539a<\/strong> – mellow and rich. Simple and kind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

da piao; \u5927\u7968<\/strong> \u2013 large ticket. The bigger loose label or ticket which is found inside a tea cake wrapper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

da shu; \u5927\u6811<\/strong> \u2013 \u5927, da \u2013 big,old. \u6811, shu- tree. Big\/old tree. A term used to refer to trees that could be anything from say 30 odd years to 70 yrs old depending where you are and who’s talking. Many different places have their own approach, so there’s no hard and fast definition of what qualifies as da shu. See Gu shu\/\u53e4\u6811.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

da ye; \u5927\u53f6<\/strong> \u2013 literally big leaf. The Chinese term for the broad leaf varietal camelia sinensis assamica<\/em>.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

da ye zhong; \u5927\u53f6\u79cd<\/strong> – the same as above. The \u79cd means variety, or \u54c1\u79cd\/pin zhong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

dan; \u6de1<\/strong> – thin, bland, tasteless. \u6de1\u8584\/dan bo – thin and weak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

dan ning; \u5355\u5b81<\/strong> – also a transliteration for tannin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

dan yi; \u5355\u4e00<\/strong> – single, singular, plain, one dimensional. The term is used to talk about the quality of a tea that lacks complexity. It may also be head in relation to tea gardens, describing the lack of diverse vegetation in a tea garden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

dan ya ; \u5355\u7259<\/strong> \u2013 Single tip. Considered to be the most prized formation, followed by dan ya, dan ye \u5355\u7259\u5355\u53f6; one tip,one leaf and dan ya, er ye \u5355\u7259\u4e8c\u53f6<\/a>; one tip,two leaves, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dian Hong; \u6ec7\u7ea2<\/strong> – \u6ec7 \u2013 Dian is an old name for Yunnan. So Yunnan Black Tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

dou; \u6296 <\/strong>– to shake or stir. One of the actions in frying tea. The leaves are typically turned in a manner that lets moisture out of the leaves but does not speed up the drying process too much. Periodically the leaves are shaken out. This allows moisture to escape, fresh air to enter and has a clear effect on the teas fragrance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

dou xiang; \u8c46\u9999<\/strong> – Dou is some kind of bean, xiang – fragrant, so together it means ‘beaney fragrance’. Synonymous with Puer tea that has been fired at too high a temperature and\/or for too long, producing a bean-like aroma that is reminiscent of green tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

dou cha; \u6597\u8336<\/strong> \u2013 Tea fight. A competition of tasting different teas to establish which is the best.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

duo<\/strong> fen yang hua mei; \u591a\u915a\u6c27\u5316\u9176<\/strong> – polyphenol oxidase. \u6c27 has the ‘qi zi pang’ \/\u6c14 character, so we can guess it has something to do with gas\/air. \u5316 can mean to transform or change – it also means chemistry – so yang hua together means to oxidise. \u9176\/ mei is a noun that means enzyme or ferment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

duo<\/strong> yuan<\/strong> fen; \u591a\u5143\u915a <\/strong>– polyphenol. Sometimes also just \u591a\u915a. \u591a mean many, so poly, and \u915a is the character in Chinese for phenol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

er cha su; \u513f\u8336\u7d20<\/strong> – catechin. May also be \u513f\u8336\u7cbe\/er cha jing. er generally means child or son, but also denotes something small, together with the suffix \u7d20\/su, means here basic element. Sometimes also \u513f\u8336\u915a.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

fang fa; \u65b9\u6cd5<\/strong> \u2013 method \u6ce1\u8336\u65b9\u6cd5 pao cha fang fa \u2013 tea brewing method.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

fa jiao; \u53d1\u9175<\/strong> \u2013 To ferment\/fermented. Shu Puer tea is a made by a process of fermentation or oxidation. Raw puer is referred to as hou fa jiao cha\/\u540e\u53d1\u9175 \u2013 post-fermented tea – which technically is said to be a mix of oxidation and fermentation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

fen li; \u5206\u79bb <\/strong>\u2013 to split, separate. Typically: \u8336\u6c64\u5206\u79bb\/cha tang fen li, separting of the tea broth. This refers to a sense that the tea, or its contents, has not dissolved in, or integrated into the liquid. This can sometimes happen because of a lack of skill in brewing – water temperature being too low, for example. It can also be caused by storage conditions, but is most commonly believed to be caused by relatively high moisture content in the dry leaves. Most likely due to the season in which the tea was made – it is fairly typical of summer tea. It could also be due to inherent qualities in the specific tea trees or tea gardens, though there’s not much proof for that argument. Having said that, there are certainly teas that start out OK, and will hold up fairly well for the first few steeps, but then will display this fen li tendency as the structure of the tea breaks down. This is surely an indicator of the quality of the tea and may be due to the age of the trees, environment, or issues with the management of tea gardens. Its antonym is perhaps \u51dd\u805a\/ning ju.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

fang mian; \u65b9\u9762 <\/strong>\u2013 Front face or aspect. Refers to the front face of a cake or bing of tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

feng fu; \u4e30\u5bcc <\/strong>– \u4e30 means luxuriant, plentiful, abundant. \u5bcc means rich, wealthy, abundant, so together it also means plentiful, abundant. Used to describe a fullness of flavour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

fu za; \u590d\u6742<\/strong> – \u590d can mean to duplicate, but here means complex. \u6742 means mixed, irregular, miscellaneous. Together the two characters mean complicated, messy, not straight forward. So a negative meaning that might apply to tea leaves – i.e. not pure\/\u7eaf<\/a>\uff0cbut could also apply to aspects of the tea taste: flavour\/\u6ecb\u5473<\/a>, mouth feel\/\u53e3\u611f<\/a>, etc. c.f. \u6742\u8d27\u5e97\/za hua dian is a general store. \u6742 is also often used alone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

gan; \u5e72 <\/strong>\u2013 dry. Sometimes used to describe a certain feeling in the mouth, typically on the tongue or in the throat that is either due to the nature of the tea, or the way it has been processed or stored. Distinct from astringent. See also \u71e5\/zao.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

gan; \u7518<\/strong> – sweet<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gan tian; \u7518\u751c<\/strong> – sweet. Double sweet. The sweetness of a tea’s broth – experienced in the mouth as, or just after, the broth is in the bucal cavity – is different from hui gan\/\u56de\u7518<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gan cang; \u5e72\u4ed3<\/strong> \u2013 dry storage. Referring to tea storage that tends to be dry rather than excessively humid. Storing raw Puer in an excessively dry climate will have a harmful effect on the tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gai wan; \u76d6\u7897<\/strong> \u2013 literally lid-bowl. A steeping bowl with a lid. They generally come in two or three sizes. The most common is 140cl\/4oz. The lid is used to clear off any extraneous materials that may float to the surface on flushing and initial steepings. These (1 or 2) are typically not drunk. The lid is then used to partially strain the tea by holding it a little to one side as one pours the tea off through a fine strainer into a gong dao bei\/\u5171\u9053\u676f<\/a> or decanting jug.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gao; \u818f<\/strong> \u2013 Glue, paste, oil, gum. \u8336\u818f tea oil. Somewhat prized because of it\u2019s scarcity, cha gao can be found on the market in small quantities. When steeped, a very small piece will create a broth with a delicate pinky brown colour. The taste is also delicate, to the extent that it\u2019s often barely discernible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

geng; \u6897<\/strong> – A noun \u6897 is a stem or stalk. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

geng; \u54fd<\/strong> – A verb. To choke, to block, feel a lump in ones throat. Sometimes a sensation like this might be thought to be due to chemical residues in the tea, but could also be due to storage conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gong dao bei; \u5171\u9053\u676f <\/strong>– \u5171\u9053 – fair, just, even-handed. \u676f is a cup or vessel. Together means decanting jug. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

gong fu; \u529f\u592b<\/strong> \u2013 The skill or art of tea brewing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gong yi; \u5de5\u827a<\/strong> – skill, craftsmanship. Usually referring to the skill of the firer. The person ‘frying’ the tea, but also includes all other aspects of the tea making process including rolling and drying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gu gan; \u9aa8\u611f <\/strong>\u2013 \u2019bone\u2019 feeling. A relatively recent term. Along with \u8089\u611f\/rou gan<\/a>, it is attempting to describe aspects of a tea’s \u539a\u5ea6\/hou du<\/a>, as a measure of its \u5185\u542b\u7269\/nei han wu<\/a>. The contents of a tea that give the drinker a tactile sense of its \u53e3\u611f\/mouthfeel<\/a> (a feeling of the tea broth). gu gan can perhaps be understood as a demonstration more of certain aspects of the tea’s structure\/\u7ed3\u6784<\/a>: the things that give it a sense of structure – of which bitterness and astringency, sheng jin – are perhaps some of the more easily apprehended. gu gan and rou gan are not distinctly different and are perhaps better understood as being on a continuum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gu hua cha; \u8c37\u82b1\u8336 <\/strong>\u2013 Autumn tea. \u8c37 means grains and \u82b1 means flowers, but together refers to tea harvested in the Autumn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gu shu; \u53e4\u6811<\/strong> – \u53e4 – old or ancient. Together it means old or ancient tree though there is not a very rigorous system of categorisation and \u53e4\/gu,\u8001\/lao and \u5927\/big or old, often get used interchangeably, particularly since what is considered ancient in one area may not be referred to as ancient in another. Within China it is now not permitted to use these terms on Puer tea wrappers. qiao mu\/\u4e54\u6728<\/a> however is still allowed even though it has a less clearly defined meaning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gua; \u5be1<\/strong> – scant, tasteless, bland. An interesting character that also means widow. Generally written \u5be1\u5987\/gua fu, \u5987 meaning woman. In tea drinking parlance, \u5be1\u53e3\/gua kou means tasteless, bland. c.f. \u65e0\u5473\u4e4b\u5473<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

guan mu; \u704c\u6728<\/strong> \u2013 Literally means cultivated bush or shrub. \u704c \u2013 guan, to irrigate. \u704c has the water radical \u6c35so we can gues it has something to do with water. \u96da can mean a small cup, but here just provides the phoneme. This style of cultivation is relatively new in Yunnan, seemingly having only started in the early to mid 20th Century. Tea bushes are cultivated in rows. Guan mu cha is the tea from cultivated bushes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

gun tong; \u6eda\u7b52<\/strong>. \u6eda \u2013 gun, to roll. \u7b52 \u2013 tong, a cylinder, something cylindrical in shape. see \u673a\u5668\u6740\u9752\/ji qi sha qing<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hai ba; \u6d77\u62d4<\/strong> \u2013 \u6d77;hai-sea, \u62d4;ba \u2013 to protrude, extend from. Together it means \u2018above sea level\u2019. Altitude.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

he; \u559d<\/strong> – to drink. The \u53e3\u5b57\u65c1\/kou zi pang, gives us some hint to it’s meaning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

he qiao; \u559d\u77a7<\/strong> – to taste or drink. \u77a7 has the \u76ee radical, so we can guess it’s something to do with sight. It means to look or see. So the two characters together means something like ‘look and see’. Try.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hei dian; \u9ed1\u70b9<\/strong> – black spots, or pieces. A telltale sign that a tea was fired at quite high temperature and some of the tea leaves were burned a little in the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hong; \u7ea2<\/strong> \u2013 red. In China, what is called black tea in the English speaking world, is called red. Cooked Puer is sometimes mistakenly referred to as a black tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hong cha su; \u7ea2\u8336\u82cf<\/strong> – thearubigin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hong he su; \u7ea2\u8910\u7d20<\/strong> – theabromine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hong; \u70d8<\/strong> \u2013 Oven.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hong qing; \u70d8\u9752<\/strong>. Oven dried. Oven dried Puer is not only considered inferior to sun-dried tea, but according to the (legal\/government) definition of raw Puer tea it cannot be so classified as Puer tea must be sun dried. Nonethless, most tea producers have a drying oven, previously often wood fired, but now typically electric, which may used to dry leaves if the weather does not permit sun drying. If a tea farmer has made tea and by, lets say, the second day it has not dried, it will likely be spoiled, so it’s not possible to rule out the possibility that the producer may use an oven to try to salvage their tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hong pei; \u70d8\u7119<\/strong> – to dry or ‘cure’ tea, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hou; \u539a<\/strong> – means thick, rich, mellow. Often used together with \u9187\/chun<\/a> to form chun hou\/\u9187\u539a.<\/a> hou du\/\u539a\u5ea6, thickness, is a phrase that is also indicating a measure of a tea’s \u5185\u542b\u7269\/contents<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hou fa jiao; \u540e\u53d1\u9175<\/strong> \u2013 Post-fermented. \u540ehou \u2013 behind, after. \u53d1; fa \u2013 has many meanings; to develop, expand, bring into existences, start; rise or expand when fermented. \u9175 jiao \u2013 fermented. Together \u53d1\u9175 means to ferment. Confusion often arises as the term fajiao is used to refer to both processes of fermentation and oxidation. The more specific term yang hua \u2013 \u6c27\u5316<\/a> refers specifically to oxidation. Fa jiao as far as Puer tea is concerned comes in two forms: \u4eba\u5de5\u53d1\u9175\/ren gong fajiao and \u81ea\u7136\u53d1\u9175\/ziran fajiao. \u4eba\u5de5 means man made, so pile fermented. i.e. shu cha\/\u719f\u8336<\/a>. \u81ea\u7136 means natural, so naturally fermented, i.e. aged sheng cha\/\u751f\u8336<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hou long; \u5589\u5499<\/strong> \u2013 The throat. Often used in describing the experience of tea drinking. A pleasant feeling in the throat is a key factor in evaluating the quality of tea; \u5589\u5499\u8212\u670d\/\u5589\u5499\u4e0d\u8212\u670d or hou long shu fu\/hou long bu shu fu \u2013 a comfortable or uncomfortable feeling in the throat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hou yun; \u5589\u97f5<\/strong> – Literally charm, allure. Used to refer to any lingering sensations that likely remain after the tea has been drunk. Typically fall into three categories: \u7518, \u6da6, \u6fa1. As distinct from \u97f5\/yun or \u97f5\u5473\/yun wei – sometimes also referred to as \u540e\u97f5. See yun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hu pi su; \u69f2\u76ae\u7d20<\/strong> – cuercetin. \u69f2 is the name for a species of tree known in English as Mongolian Oak<\/em> (quercus dentata). \u76ae is skin, or in this case bark. The name generally used for quecus dentatae cortex<\/em>, part of the Chinese pharmacopoeia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hu wei; \u7173\u5473<\/strong> – \u7cca is burned, \u5473 is flavour or taste, so burned flavour. Handmade Puer tea, made in a steel wok always has the potential for hu wei if the processing is not well managed, and if it’s not serious it may not be a big problem. When tea is steamed before pressing it can reduce aromas from the leaves being burnt in processing a little, but it won’t remove the taste or the little black pieces of leaf – \u9ed1\u70b9\/ hei dian<\/a> that are a visual sign of the problem. If the tea has been machine ‘fried’, it won’t have ‘hei dian’ but if over fried could well have \u7126\u7247\/jiao pian<\/a>. Note: hu wei is distinct from yan wei\/\u70df\u5473<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hua; \u6ed1<\/strong> – smooth, slippery. Used to describe the velour or smoothness of tea broth. See \u987a\u6ed1\/shun hua<\/p>\n\n\n\n

huang pian; \u9ec4\u7247<\/strong> – literally \u2018yellow leaves\u2019 or ‘old yellow leaves\/\u8001\u9ec4\u7247. The older growth leaves on a stem that if picked will not become tea in the way that younger, more supple leaves will, resulting in leaves that often look more yellowish after frying and are generally removed once the tea has dried. If there are not many they may well be left in as they provide more sugars than younger leaves. Several ethnic groups in the Xishuangbanna area prefer to drink a brew made from lao huang pian, rather than the younger leaves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

huang wan lei; \u9ec4\u70f7\u7c7b<\/strong> – flavanoids. Also \u9ec4\u70f7\u916e. \u9ec4 being yellow, \u70f7 are alkanes and \u7c7b means class or type.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

huang tong lei hua he wu; \u9ec4\u916e\u7c7b\u5316\u5408\u7269<\/strong> – flavonoids. \u5316\u5408\u7269 means matter joined together – i.e. compounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hui gan; \u56de\u7518<\/strong> \u2013 hui \u56de- return, come back, reply. \u751c, gan-sweet. Together \u2013 sweet return, sweet aftertaste. Used generally to refer to the sweet aftertaste of tea that is fairly common with raw Puer tea. It may be considered as an aspect of \u5589\u97f5\/hou yun<\/a>, but this is a little problematic as often people will indicate that the sweetness is apprehended in the throat more than the mouth where, physiology tells us, we don’t have the capacity to taste. Nonetheless, the idea, and indeed the experience of hui gan persists and is considered distinct from the simple sweetness of a tea’s broth which might well be sensed in the mouth and may not transform into hui gan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hun he; \u6df7\u5408<\/strong> \u2013 A mix or blend. Perhaps with some derogatory connotation. Used by some to refer to pin pei cha. i.e tea that is not pure; not tea from one single place, season and\/or type of tree. e.g. old tree tea leaves from two or more places , or tea from the same place but not only from old or ancient trees or bushes, or from different seasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

hun zhuo; \u6d51\u6d4a<\/strong> \u2013 Muddy, turbid. Good tea will produce a bright clear soup. Both \u6df7 and \u6e3e can be used. There could be some situations where a little cloudiness in the broth is not detrimental but if the broth is clearly turbid one may consider not drinking it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

huo xing\u3001\u6d3b\u6027<\/strong> – \u6d3b -alive. \u6027 – nature or quality, so liveliness, active\/ness. Used to describe the floavour or other quality of a tea and also the leaves, particularly after a tea has been steeped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ji qi rou (de); \u673a\u5668\u63c9(\u7684) <\/strong>\u2013 Machine rolled. Some machine rolled tea has a very pleasing appearance and most tea gardens, however small, will have a machine, which is generally electric, but sometimes hand operated. However, the best sheng puer tea is still hand rolled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ji qi sha (de); \u673a\u5668\u6740(\u7684)<\/strong> \u2013 Machine fried. Most tea farmers have a machine for the sha qing process, which is generally an electrically driven revolving drum, fired by a wood fire. Machine fried tea is probably better than poorly hand fried tea, but lacks the possibility of the more tactile method of hand frying. Some years ago the typical machine was a \u6eda\u7b52\/gun tong<\/a>. A revolving drum, often wood fired, where the tea was put in one end and came out the other. The three things that could be controlled were the temperature, the rate of rotation and the amount of tea that was put in at a time. Now there are more advanced machines available but may people still believe they produce tea that is inferior to hand fired tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

jia ji huang piao ling; \u7532\u57fa\u9ec4\u560c\u5464<\/strong> – \u7532\u57fa denotes a methyl group, \u9ec4\u560c\u5464 is xanthene, so together means methylxanthene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

jian; \u78b1<\/strong>; \u2013 alkali. Normally used when discussing the pH of water \u2013 a critical aspect of tea making. If water is high in TDS and has a high pH, i.e. the water is hard, it will likely have a negative effect on the aroma of tea and also produce some astringency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

jian; \u5c16 <\/strong>\u2013 Tip. Often in reference to a new leaf that has yet to open but will also be heard when describing tea tasting experiences \u2013 \u820c\u5c16; she jian \u2013 the tip of the tongue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

jin; \u7d27<\/strong> – tight. Usually used to refer to a feeling in the throat which is considered not pleasant: \u5589\u5499\u7d27. Usually thought to be aused by something undesirable in the tea, e.g. chemical residues, but could also be because of factors that occurred when the tea was being made. Could also be due to storage issues. c.f. \u5589\u5499\u8212\u670d\/\u5589\u5499\u4e0d\u8212\u670d<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

jin ya chi; \u7d27\u7259\u9f7f<\/strong> – Literally ‘tightens the teeth’. A local expression for a kind of puckeriness maybe accompanied by \u751f\u6d25\/sheng jin\u3001saliva promotion that is felt typically around the lower gums\/base of the teeth. An enjoyable quality, provided it disperses and gives way to sweetness at some point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

jin tiao; \u7d27\u6761<\/strong> – Refers to the way tea is rolled. Jin means tight, so tea that is rolled tightly.See also rou nian\/\u63c9\u637b.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

jiao gu lan; \u7ede\u80a1\u84dd<\/strong> – Latin: Gynostemma pentaphyllum. \u7ede can mean something like twisted or entangled. The ‘rao zi pang’: \u7e9f, gives an indication of that. \u80a1 means thigh or strand. \u84dd has ‘cao zi tou’: \u8279, which tells us it’s likely something to do with a plant. In this case indigo, but it also just means blue. It is a variety of vine that is indigenous to this part of Asia. It is included in the Chinese medicine pharmacopeia and people sometime blend small quantities with Puer tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

jiao pian; \u7126\u7247 <\/strong>– \u7126 also means burned, or maybe ‘scorched’ is better. \u7247 is a measure word for a flat object. Tea made in a ‘gun tong’ will not produce \u9ed1\u70b9\/hei dian<\/a> if the temperature is too high, but may produce leaves that are scorched.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ka fei yin; \u5496\u5561\u56e0<\/strong> – a transliteration of caffeine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ke ke jian; \u53ef\u53ef\u78b1<\/strong> – theobromine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

kou gan; \u53e3\u611f <\/strong>\u2013 Literally mouth-feeling. Dictionary definitions vary between mouth-feel referring strictly to textural character \u2013 i.e. \u8d28\u5730\/zhi di, indicating a purely tactile facet of the tea drinking experience, others to a broader definition of flavour. In tea drinking it is largely referring to the former, but cannot be easily separated from other gustatory and olfactory senstions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ku; \u82e6<\/strong> \u2013 Bitter. There’s good and bad bitter. Good bitterness can at times be very obvious, but only lasts for a short time before giving way to a sweet taste. Less appealing bitterness lingers in the mouth. \u5316\u4e0d\u5f00\/hua bu kai – does not dissolve. \u82b1\u5f00\/hua kai means to spread out, to dissipate,dissolve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ku di; \u82e6\u5e95<\/strong> \u2013 bitter base. Refers to a kind of bitterness that doesn\u2019t resolve, leaving a bitter residue on the tongue or upper palate. \u82e6\u5730\u91cd\/ku di zhong would be a term used where it was felt that bitterness was obvious and unrelenting. NOta very sought after experience <\/p>\n\n\n\n

ku se; \u82e6\u6da9<\/strong> \u2013 Bitter and astringent. The nature of new raw Puer is a little astringent and bitter, followed by a sweet aftertaste. However, a bitterness with no sweet aftertaste is not typical of Puer and an astringency which is not comfortable would not be considered good tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ku cha; \u82e6\u8336 <\/strong>\u2013 Bitter Tea. The tea from a variety of tea tree (Camelia Sinensis Assamica var.Kucha) found in an area around Mensong and also in Lao Man E.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

lei hu luo bo su; \u7c7b\u80e1\u841d\u535c\u7d20<\/strong> – \u80e1\u841d\u535c is carrot, \u7c7b is type\uff0c or kind, \u7d20 again is a basic element. Together means carotenoid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

lu cha; \u7eff\u8336 <\/strong>\u2013 Green tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

mao cha; \u6bdb\u8336<\/strong> \u2013 Tea that has been fried in a tea wok or a machine of some kind & then rolled & sun dried. \u6bdb\/mao means hair, feather or fur but can also mean rough or unfinished: \u6bdb\u8def\/mao lu – a rough road, \u6bdb\u576f\u623f\/mao pi fang – an undecorated or ‘bare’ house. ie the empty shell of a house. So mao cha also sometimes is undestood as rough or unfinished tea. i.e. tea that has noty yet become Puer tea as it has not yet been steamed and pressed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

mao er duo; \u732b\u8033\u6735<\/strong> – \u732b – cat. Literally cat’s ears. Possibly some kind of natural mutation or sub-varietal of the xiao ye zhong trees that are fairly common around Yi Bang, along with xi ye zi\/\u7ec6\u53f6\u5b50<\/a> . It generally does not affect the whole tree, so that on a particular tree there are leaves that are ‘mao er duo’ without the whole tree producing the same kind of leaf shape and structure. Typically, though not exclusively, the leaves produce \u5939\u53f6\/jia ye -two split leaves on either side of a stem but often without a tip. In reality, there’s probably not much tea around that is genuine mao er duo. Since it’s become a ‘thing’ the understanding of what mao er duo are exactly has changed – there is now tea that is referred to as mao er duo which in the past would not have been considered as such.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

mao zhuang ti; \u6bdb\u72b6\u4f53<\/strong> – \u6bdb is hair, \u72b6 is form or shape, and \u4f53 can mean body or part of the body or maybe substance. Here together it means trichomes. The fine hairs that grow on leaves. See also \u7ed2\u6bdb\/rong mao<\/p>\n\n\n\n

men; \u95f7 <\/strong>\u2013 to cover tightly. Used to decribe the process when steeping tea for a longer period of time to bring out the flavour. Also used as a descriptor in relation to frying tea. To ‘men’ i.e. to leave the leaves in the wok for longer than would be normal, usually at a moderately low temperature. It can have the effect of thickening up the flavour but a detremental effect on the freshness\/fragrance of the tea. See \u6e05\u723d\/qing shuang<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

men huang\uff1b \u95f7\u9ec4<\/strong> – \u9ec4 – yellow. Men huang is a step in the processing of yellow tea that some people have been using with Puer tea. Typically, when the tea has been fried – \u6740\u9752, it is removed from the wok and shaken out onto a mat or bo ji to cool. With this ‘men huang’ process, the hot leaves are deliberately heaped up on a mat for some time – it could vary from a few to several minutes. (See here for more discussion on this process). Men is also used to refer to an approach at a stage of frying where the tea leaves are moved and shaken out less in the \u6740\u9752\/sha qing process, resulting in a tea that has a slightly ‘steamed’ quality which affects the fragrance and makes the leaves yellower. Generally it will produce a tea that is not \u6e05\u723d\/qing shuang<\/a>, and which many people would not consider desirable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

mo shi zi er cha su; \u6ca1\u98df\u5b50\u513f\u8336\u7d20<\/strong> – gallocatechingallate. As above the \u7d20 is sometimes replaced with \u9178\/suan. \u9178 is an acid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

nai pao; \u8010\u6ce1<\/strong> – Nai means durable, tolerant, hardy. Pao is to steep\/infuse. Together it describes how tolerant a tea is of steeping. One of the characteristics of Puer tea, particularly old or ancient tea tree tea is that it can be steeped many times usinga gai wan or pot, often twenty or so times and still produce some flavour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

nei fei; \u5185\u98de<\/strong> \u2013 \u5185 -nei inside\/inner, \u98de \u2013 fly. This refers to the inner label which is embedded a little into the front of pressed tea cakes, bricks, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

nei han wu; \u5185\u542b\u7269<\/strong> – \u5185 – inside, \u542b – contain,include, and \u7269 – thing, matter, content, substance. So together, the constituents. The compounds, etc. that are found in tea: minerals, polyphenols, catechins, sugars, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

nei xiang; \u5185\u9999<\/strong> \u2013 refers to a kind of fragrance that is not \u2018yang\u2018 or obvious, and may even not well perceived till after the tea has been swallowed. Sometimes also \u5e7d\u9999 \u2013 you xiang.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

nian chou; \u7c98\u7a20<\/strong> – Used to describe the feeling of tea broth in the mouth or throat – viscous\/stickiness. A tactile rather than taste sensation. Also \u7c98\u7a20\u5ea6\/nian chou du or \u7c98\u7a20\u611f\/nian chou gan. The degree of feeling of the stickiness\/viscosity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

nong; \u6d53<\/strong> – thick, dense, concentrated, strong. Used to talk about the density of the flavour of tea, or about the quality of the broth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

nong chou; \u6d53\u7a20<\/strong> – Both characters mean thick, dense, so together it means think, dense, creamy, concentrated. See \u519c\u90fd\/nong du.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

nong du; \u6d53\u5ea6<\/strong> – \u5ea6 is degree or extent, so used to describe the amount of thickness, density, nong du bu gou\/\u6d53\u5ea6\u4e0d\u591f is a phrase that can be used to describe a tea which does not have a great deal of ‘content’, of constituents in the leaf that give it flavour. bao\/\u8584.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

nong li\uff1b \u519c\u5386<\/strong> – \u519c refers to agriculture or farming. \u5386 is used for history but means ‘to experience’ or ‘pass through’. It also denotes calendar, so \u519c\u5386 is the traditional Chinese calendar which is a lunar calendar. c.f. \u519c\u6c11\/nong min is a farmer. \u8336\u519c\/cha nong<\/a> is a tea farmer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

nong min; \u519c\u6c11<\/strong> – \u6c11 means people or folk. So nong min is farmer, or agricultural worker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

nong xiang; \u6d53\u9999<\/strong>. \u6d53 nong \u2013 dense, thick, concentrated. Together it means strongly or densely fragrant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

pang xie jiao; \u65c1\u978b\u811a<\/strong> – Latin; (Viscum articulatum Burm.f.) Literally Crabs legs. A parasitic plant that grows on trees in sub-tropical regions. When it grows on the tea tree it absorbs flavour from the tree and makes a sweet, refreshing drink, hot or cool. Very limited availability. Puer cakes can be found that have Pangxiejiao mixed into the cake. Normally around 10-15%. It is also part of the Chinese medicine pharmacopoeia \u2013 said to have a diuretic effect and is used to clear heat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

pao; \u6ce1<\/strong> -To soak or steep. \u6ce1\u8336. To steep or brew tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

pao tiao; \u629b\u6761<\/strong> – Pao means to throw or fling. This is a term that refers to a method of rolling rather lightly. The opposite is jin tiao \u7d27\u6761.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

pei er cha<\/strong> su; \u914d\u513f\u8336\u7d20<\/strong> – gallocatechins. Also sometimes \u966a\u513f\u8336\u9178\/pei er cha suan. Sometimes it is also written as \u6ca1\u98df\u5b50\u513f\u8336\u7cbe\/mo shi zi er cha jing. \u6ca1\u98df\u5b50 is the name for Allepo gall<\/em> \uff08Quercus infectoria<\/em>\uff09 a species of oak tree which has a history of use as an herbal medicine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

piao; \u98d8<\/strong> – floating. Usually used to describe a tea with fragrance that seems separated from the broth and, in the mouth, the fragrance appears distinct from the broth, not rooted in it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

pin pei; \u62fc\u914d<\/strong>. A blend or mix. pin pei Puer comes in many forms; tea from a particular place, but comprising of old tea tree leaves mixed with tea bush leaves or, old tree tea from different areas or seasons mixed together, or finally, a combination of all of the above.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

pin zhi; \u54c1\u8d28<\/strong> \u2013 Quality or character. \u54c1 means grade, class, character. \u8d28 also means character, nature or quality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ping; \u8bc4<\/strong> \u2013 To criticise,review. To appraise. The \u8a00\u5b57\u65c1\/’yan zi pang’ tells us the character has something to do with language or maybe communication. In tea drinking, to appraise tea. To taste.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ping wen; \u5e73\u7a33<\/strong> – Smooth, steady, even. Used to refer to the taste of tea. Puer should be smooth and steady without any sudden changes in the flavour as steepings progress. A sudden change or loss of flavour is an indicator of poor quality. Good Puer can be steeped 20 to 30 times and maintain it\u2019s flavour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Po Shui Jie\uff1b \u6cfc\u6c34\u8282<\/strong> – Water Splashing Festival. \u6cfc is sprinkle or splash, \u6c34 is water, \u8282 can be a joint, knot or node. It’s also a classifier for segments of things, but also means festival. Like much of (Theravedan) Buddhist SE Asia this holiday in the middle of April marks the Buddhist New Year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pu\u2019er; \u666e\u6d31<\/strong> – Also Puer, Pu \u2013 er etc. Pu\u2019er is the modern pinyin spelling. The place name of the Old City of Pu\u2019er through which pack horses transported the tea from Southern Yunnan. The names were recently changed; Pu\u2019er is now Ning Er and nearby Simao has the adopted name of Pu\u2019er. Locally, in spoken Chinese at least, Ning Er is still Pu\u2019er.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pu\u2019er Tea; \u666e\u6d31\u8336<\/strong> – That \u2018Puer Tea\u2019 was given this name suggests that historically this kind of tea \u2013 post fermented camelia sinensis assamica must have come from the south and west of Puer for there to have been any sense in transporting it through that city. The majority of good Puer tea still comes from the Xishuangbanna region. Puer County itself was not an historically important tea producing region.
Yunnan Provincial Government has stipulated that for tea to qualify as Pu er it must be;
i) of the Broad Leaf variety (Sinensis Assamica)ii) grown in the Lancang (Mekong) River region ii) sun dried. The third point is important as there is much tea grown in the Lancang River area that is not sun dried.
There are also increasing amounts of Small Leaf Variety (xiao ye zhong \/\u5c0f\u53f6\u79cd) being grown in the Lancang River area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

qiao; \u4e54<\/strong> – Literally, tall. Used to refer to older trees, but without any clear indication of age. Essentially refers to a tree with a trunk. i.e. qiao mu \u4e54\u6728 or \u4e54\u6728\u8336.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

qing; \u9752<\/strong> – Green or blue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

qing bing; \u9752\u997c<\/strong> – Green cake. This is a term that was in the past frequently used to denote a raw puer cake but fell out of use as \u751f\u666e\u6d31\/raw puer became a more accepted term.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

qing cao wei; \u9752\u8349\u5473<\/strong> – Green grass aroma. Qing cao wei is perhaps an indicator that a tea has been wilted for slighlty less time than might have been ideal or more likely, of tea that has been pan fried a little shy of ‘done’. Sometimes this is done intentionally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

qing chou wei; \u9752\u81ed\u5473<\/strong> – Strong green aroma, maybe. See above. Can generally refer to the smell that is present to varying extents with newly made sheng cha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Qing Ming Cha; \u6e05\u660e\u8336<\/strong> – Said to be tea that is picked three days either side of the springtime festival \u2013 Qing Ming Jie \u6e05\u660e\u8282- Tomb Sweeping Festival which usually falls on April 4th, 5th or 6th. (actually on the first day of the fifth solar term of the Traditional Chinese Calendar or \u519c\u5386\/nong li<\/a>). This is not really a concept that’s well fitted to old or ancient Puer tea havesting. There are many times when older trees do not flush till rather later in the month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

qing shuang; \u6e05\u723d<\/strong> – Fresh and cool, light, refreshing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

qing xi; \u6e05\u6670<\/strong> – \u6e05 and \u6670 both mean clear, distinct. So together is the same meaning – clear, distinct, limpid. Not \u6742\/za<\/a> or \u6df7\u6d4a\/hun zhuo<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

rou; \u67d4<\/strong> – Soft, delicate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

rou gan; \u8089\u611f <\/strong>\u2013 \u2019meat\u2019 feeling. A relatively recent term. Along with \u9aa8\u611f\/gu gan<\/a>. An attempt to describe aspects of a tea’s \u539a\u5ea6\/hou du<\/a>, as a measure of its \u5185\u542b\u7269\/nei han wu<\/a>. The contents of a tea that give the drinker a tactile sense of its \u53e3\u611f\/mouthfeel<\/a> (a feeling of the tea broth). rou gan can perhaps be understood as a demonstration more of certain aspects of the tea’s fullness – bao man; \u9971\u6ee1<\/a>, ceng ci gan\uff1b\u5c42\u6b21\u611f<\/a> : the things that give a sense of fullness or narrative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

rou he; \u67d4\u548c<\/strong> – \u548c means mild,gentle. So soft, gentle, supple,delicate. A quality of tea flavour and character.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

rou nian; \u63c9\u637b<\/strong> – To roll or kneed. Much Puer tea is till generally hand-rolled, though rolling machines are common and most tea farmers have one. Bush tea is invariably machine rolled as the price the tea fetches is low compared to old or ancient tree Puer tea, and rolling by hand is labour intensive and felt to be less \u2018cost effective\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ru kou; \u5165\u53e3<\/strong> \u2013 (To) enter the mouth. The experience when tea first enters the mouth. The initial impression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

run; \u6da6<\/strong> \u2013 soft, delicate<\/p>\n\n\n\n

run hua; \u6da6\u6ed1<\/strong> \u2013 smooth. Oily maybe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

san; \u6563<\/strong> – loose, scattered, divergent. Usually heard in the phrase \u6563\u8336\u3001san cha, loose tea. A term used instead of mao cha. \u6563 is also used to describe an experience when drinking tea where the broth ffeels to disperse in the mouth. Not \u7d27.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

se; \u6da9<\/strong> \u2013 Puckery, astringent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

sha qing; \u6740\u9752<\/strong>. \u6740 is literally to kill. \u9752 is a descriptor for a green-bluish colour. So \u6740\u9752 translates as killing green. The process of pan \u2018frying\u2019 fresh tea arrests the action of plant enzymes that will have begun after picking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

sha guo tou: \u6740\u8fc7\u5934<\/strong> \u2013 Sometimes also sha guo du: \u6740\u8fc7\u5ea6. Over-fried. To some extent a subjective yardstick. Over-fried does not mean burnt, but that the time in the wok at too high a temperature has been exceeded, resulting in a tea with more \u2018green tea\u2019 type qualities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

shai; \u6652<\/strong> \u2013 To dry in the sun. \u6652\u592a\u9633, \u6652\u5e72, to sun dry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

shai qing; \u6652\u9752<\/strong> \u2013 Sun dried. This is a critical aspect of Puer Tea processing. Oven dried tea is considered inferior to sun-dried. The Provincial Government has ruled that Puer tea must be sun-dried.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

shan tou cha; \u5c71\u5934\u8336<\/strong> – Literally ‘mountain top tea’. Tea that comes from one particular mountain, or part of a mountain. Single origin tea. As opposed to pin pei cha\/\u62fc\u914d\u8336<\/p>\n\n\n\n

shang e; \u4e0a\u989a <\/strong>– the upper palate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

she mian; \u820c\u9762<\/strong> \u2013 \u820c, she \u2013 tongue,\u9762, mian \u2013 face, surface of something. So the blade of the tongue, or dorsal aspect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

she jian; \u820c\u5c16<\/strong> \u2013 The tip of the tongue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

sheng; \u751f<\/strong> \u2013 Can mean many things: to give birth to, grow, life, but here means raw, uncooked, unprocessed. Here used to refer to Puer tea that is made from maocha that does not undergo further processing,other than steaming and pressing where it is made into cake, brick, etc. form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

sheng jin; \u751f<\/strong>\u6d25 \u2013 \u6d25 is saliva, so together with \u751f, means to promote saliva, or induce salivation. It’s a particular quality which seems adjacent to astringency but is not the same exprerience. c.f. jin ya chi; \u7d27\u7259\u9f7f<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

sheng wei; \u751f\u5473<\/strong> – Literally ‘raw flavour’, due to tea not be fired enough to properly ‘kill green<\/a>‘. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

shi cang; \u6e7f\u4ed3 <\/strong>\u2013 wet storage. Storage that is intentionally humid. Done in order to attempt to speed up the ageing process of Puer tea. It has risks associated with it from effectively shortening the \u2018life\u2019 of the tea, having a deliterous effect on the plant constituents \u2013 not least the aromatics compounds to ruining the tea altogether.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

shi cha; \u6e7f\u8336<\/strong> – shi, \u6e7f wet or moist. To moisten the tea. The first steep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

shou; \u719f<\/strong> \u2013 Cooked, ripe, familiar, See also shu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

shou gong; \u624b\u5de5<\/strong> \u2013 Literally hand-work. Hand made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

shu; \u6811 <\/strong>\u2013 Tree.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

shu cha; \u719f\u8336 <\/strong>– \u719f has two meanings: one is ripe, as in fruit, etc. The other is ‘cooked’ or ‘done’ so it’s a term that could be used to decribe the end stage of the ‘frying’ of sheng puer. One may sometimes hear the term \u719f\u900f\u4e86, meaning it’s cooked through or ‘done’ (in itself a quite variable concept). The second, more common meaning, is to refer to pile fermented Puer tea\/ wo dui cha. See also shou ch<\/a>a<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

shui lu; \u6c34\u8def<\/strong> – The experience of the broth moving through the mouth. Does it dissipate or does it move directly through the mouth down into the throat? Is it hard or soft\/delicate? Related to \u53e3\u611f\/mouthfee<\/a>l, but more concerned with the feeling of the trajectory of tea through the mouth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

shun hua; \u987a\u6ed1<\/strong> – \u987a- smooth\uff0c \u6ed1 – slippery. Together smooth and slippery, oily maybe. A pleasant lubricating quality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

suan; \u9178<\/strong> – literally sour or tart. Some tartness or sourness is considered one of the normal flavours of tea, but whether it is acceptable will depend on the situation. It is not uncommon for some sheng Puer to have a slight sour taste which can occur during storage, particularly when the tea is relatively young, say 2-4 years old. After that it tends to abate. Some people rfer to it as \u59b9\u5b50\u5473\/mei zi wei, or plum taste. Tea that has been in storage for a long time can also have a slight sour note, but after bringing the tea out and airing it for some time the aroma will disappear. These two situations need to be distinguished from a sour flavour caused by incorrect processing. Most likely from tea that has not been properly sun dried after rolling or, if the tea has been pressed, tea that has not dried properly after pressing where there is an excess of moisture still in the leaves. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

suo hou; \u9501\u5589<\/strong> – \u9501 is a lock, or to lock. So to lock the throat. An unpleasant tight feeling in the throat after drinking tea. Often thought to be caused by chemicals in the tea, but could also be because of processing issues, or even poor storage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

tan qing; \u644a\u9752<\/strong> \u2013 The process of laying freshly picked leaves out to allow the moisture content to diminish before frying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

tang gan; \u6c64\u611f<\/strong> – \u6c64, soup or broth. \u611f\/gan, feeling. The feeling of the broth in the mouth: smooth, rough, chalky, etc. Part of \u53e3\u611f\/kou gan. Distinct from \u6ecb\u5473\/zi wei, \u56de\u7518\/hui gan, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

tang se; \u6c64\u8272<\/strong> – \u6c64, soup or broth. \u8272\/se, colour. The colour of the broth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

tao xi; \u8ba8\u559c<\/strong> – <\/strong>\u8ba8, can mean a lot of things: discuss, demand, marry, ask for . \u559c means like, love, enjoy. Together the phrase means likeable, charming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

tai di; \u53f0\u5730<\/strong> \u2013 Literally mesa or plateau. \u53f0\u5730\u8336 tai di cha refers to tea bushes that have been planted and are still young. They are also the broad leaf varietal and have generally been grown from the seeds of old trees. They are not inherently bad, but the use of chemicals in their cultivation is pervasive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

teng tiao; \u85e4\u6761<\/strong> – \u85e4 is cane or rattan. tiao describes a long thin object or stick and is also used as a measure word for such objects. Teng tiao refers to tea trees that have been repeatedly cut back to produce many relativley thin stems, so it looks more akin to a stand of bamboo than a tea tree. A style which seems popular in the Lincang-Lancang area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ti gan; \u4f53\u611f<\/strong> \u2013 literally \u2018body feeling\u2019. Rarely used in relation to other teas, but the term has become part of the Puer drinkers lexicon. Some interpret it very broadly: as an expression that covers any sensory experience, including gustatory and olfactory experiences via the five sense organs. Personally, I see it more as a term that might include somesthetic sensations, of which ‘qi’ might be considered a part, that we are able to perceive internally or on the surface of the body. In either case, it is something which is generally attributed to the high levels of constituents in Puer tea. (see here for further reading)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ti tou; \u5254\u900f<\/strong> \u2013 bright and limpid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

tian xiang; \u751c\u9999<\/strong> \u2013 \u751c, tian \u2013 sweet.\u9999, xiang \u2013 fragrant. Used to refer to Puer tea that has a sweet \u2013 fragrant flavour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

tiao suo; \u6761\u7d22<\/strong> – tiao describes a twig or a long narrow piece of something. Suo can describe a rope or cable. Together tiao suo is the way tea leaves are rolled\/twisted. The outward appearance of the dry leaf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

tong; \u7b52<\/strong> \u2013 Literally a barrel or barrel shaped object. A tong in Yunnan tea culture is a bundle of 7 tea cakes wrapped in the outer skin of bamboo which naturally sheds from around the base of the bamboo stem. Each cake weighs 357grams so making a total of 2,499 gm. Said by some to have been calculated in order to remain under a specific legislated weight of 2.5 kg. There were originally said to be 8 cakes in a tong. The 8th being paid as a levy. An earlier unit of weight in China was the liang. A cake of tea weighed 7 liang and 7 cakes in a tong made 49 liang. The reasons for the typical 6 tong in a jian are less clear, but maybe to do with the amount of weight a pack-horse could carry \u2013 16 liang in a jin, or a catty (then equivalent to 1.3 pounds or 600g). The most a horse could carry was thought to be 60 catties, though the figures don\u2019t quite add up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

tou liang; \u900f\u4eae<\/strong> \u2013 \u900f \u2013 tou, to penetrate\/penetrating. \u4eae \u2013 liang, bright. Together means bright, transparent. Used to refer to the quality of tea broth. If the broth is muddy, i.e. not transparent, it is a sign that there has been a problem with manufacturing and\/or storage. See also \u900f\u660etou ming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

tou ming; \u900f\u660e<\/strong> \u2013 \u900f \u2013 tou, See above. \u2013 \u660e \u2013 ming, bright. Bright, transparent,clear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

wei dao; \u5473\u9053<\/strong> – \u5473 – taste, flavour. \u9053 has many meanings – way,path,method,doctrine, reason, talk, etc. but together these two characters mean flavour, taste or smell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

wei diao; \u840e\u51cb<\/strong> \u2013 Literally to wilt. A process more typically used in relation to the production of black tea, but the term is often used interchangably with tan qing: spreading fresh leaves out in the shade to allow the moisture content to reduce by about 10 percent prior to frying. Contentious as some people maintain that wilting was not traditionally part of the puer sheng cha process. (see here for more discussion)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

wo dui; \u6e25\u5806<\/strong> \u2013 \u6e25- wet, moisten, \u5806 – heap\/pile \u2013 wo dui \u2013 \u6e25\u5806, literally wet – pile. The process of \u2018pile fermentation which is used to make \u2018aged\u2019 or \u719f\/shu Puer tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

wu dao: \u6342\u5230<\/strong> – \u6342 – to cover, seal, muffle. wu dao is generally used to describe fresh tea leaves that have not been well managed after picking. Possibly because they were packed in a bag or basket too tightly in order to transport them. In that situation an exothermic reaction starts quite quickly and the leaves give off heat and will begin to ferment. In some areas of Xishuangbanna it is almost unavoidable due to the distance and accessibility of some tea gardens, but if minimised the effect on the tea quality for Puer tea is not excessive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

wu wei zhi wei; \u65e0\u5473\u4e4b\u5473<\/strong> – \u65e0 – nothing, without, \u5473 – flavour. Together, the phrase is pointing to a kind of tea drinking experience where the flavour is very mild (many might say non-existent), but which nonetheless has something – flavour maybe, or other aspects which are less easy to apprehend – which gives the tea appeal, and is distinct from \u6de1\/dan<\/a>, \u8584\/bo<\/a>, \u5be1\/gua<\/a>, etc. Considered by some to be the pinnacle of (Puer) tea drinking. Legend has it that the term was first used by Qian Long of the Qing Dynasty (1736-1795) but there are also other attributions. In any case, something of a holy grail. The amount of tea in the world that’s truly worthy of the description is surely small.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xi cha; \u6d17\u8336<\/strong> – \u6d17 is to wash. So washing tea or moistening tea at the beginning of a tea drinking session. Many people disagree with the term ‘wash tea’ which implies somehow that it is not clean. It may be that in the process of making sun-dried mao cha that there are extraneous items that end up in the tea – small pieces of bamboo, twigs, etc. but with contemporary Puer production this possibility is very slight. If a tea is clean there is no reason not to drink the first steep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xi ni; \u7ec6\u817b<\/strong> – Fine and smooth. Exquisite. Referring to a particular quality of \u53e3\u611f\/kou gan. Velour maybe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xi ye zi; \u7ec6\u53f6\u5b50<\/strong> – fine leaf. Another lesser known sub-variety oxi ye zi; \u7ec6\u53f6\u5b50 – xi means fine or maybe thin, so thin leaves. One of the varieties, along with mao er duo\/\u732b\u8033\u6735 <\/a>which is picked selectively around Yi Bang.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xian wei; \u9c9c\u5473<\/strong> – \u9c9c means fresh, or sometimes, salty. \u5473\/wei means taste or flavour. Together these two characters refer to the Japanese word used in english – umami. One of the five basic tastes or flavours. It is not used that much when describing sheng Puer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xiang; \u9999<\/strong> \u2013 Fragrance\/fragrant<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xiang gan chun hou hua\/\u9999\u3001\u7518\u3001\u9187\u3001\u539a\u3001\u6ed1<\/strong>. Another phrase which attempts to encapsulate the important parameters of tea tasting. See \u9187\/chun<\/a>, and \u539a\/hou<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

xiang gan zhong hua; \u9999\u3001\u7518\u3001\u91cd\u3001\u6ed1<\/strong> – xiang is fragrant, gan is sweet, zhong can mean heavy, weighty, and hua as an adjective means smooth or slippery, though it can also mean slippery in the sense of cunning. Together the four characters make up one of a number of common phrases which proscribe ‘good’ tea. See also xiang, gan, chun, hou, hua\/\u9999\u3001\u7518\u3001\u9187\u3001\u539a\u3001\u6ed1.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

xiang nong; \u9999\u6d53<\/strong> \u2013 aromatic<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xiang tian; \u9999\u751c<\/strong> \u2013 Fragrant and sweet. Both literal and figurative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xiang qi; \u9999\u6c14 <\/strong>\u2013 Fragrance. Puer can be quite fragrant, but highly perfumed tea is genereally suspect, because it is not natural for ancient tea tree Puer to be that fragrant, in the way say, of Wulong tea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xiao shu; \u5c0f\u6811<\/strong> – literally ‘small trees’. Used to denote trees that are not old enough to be ‘da shu’ but are also not bush tea. i.e. they are trees essentially growing naturally, but could be anything from a few years to decades old.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xiao ye zhong; \u5c0f\u53f6\u79cd<\/strong> – \u5c0f – small\uff0c \u53f6 – leaf. Small leaf varietal. There is some disagreement over whether this variety of tea tree, known locally as ‘small leaf variety’, is indeed distinct from da ye zhong\/\u5927\u53f6\u79cd<\/a>\/camellia sinensis var. assamica<\/em>, and more similar to sinensis sinensi<\/em>s – the small leaf variety of camellia sinensis var.sinensis<\/em> that is widely cultivated in eastern China, or whether it is in fact a sub-varietal of sinensis assamica<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xie tiao; \u534f\u8c03<\/strong> – \u534f, to coordinate. \u8c03, to tune, harmonise. So together it means harmonius: What this means for a good Puer tea is that all the qualities: \u82e6\/ku, \u6da9\/se, \u9999\/xiang, \u56de\u7518\/hui gan, \u751f\u6d25\/sheng jin, \u539a\u5ea6\/hou du, \u5589\u97f5\/hou yun, etc. all appear in a harmonised way that creates an impression of richness and fullness, rather than plain or simple: \u5355\u4e00\/dan yi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

xing cha; \u9192\u8336<\/strong> – \u9192, to awaken, so together this means to awaken the tea. The term is sometimes used rather than \u6d17\u8336\/xi cha to describe the process of moistening the tea – \u6e7f\u9192\/shi xing. i.e. the first time water is poured onto the tea before drinking it. The term is also used to describe the process of breaking up a cake of tea that has been stored for some time and allowing it to air: \u5e72\u9192\/ gan xing. Sometimes put in an earthenware jar for the purpose. Puer tea that has been in long term storage is best not drunk straight away, and will improve greatly if it goes through a period of airing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ya; \u7259<\/strong> – Tooth. Used to describe a single tip or newly formed leaf that has not yet opened. See dan ya<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

yan wei; \u70df\u5473<\/strong> – \u70df is smoke or maybe smoked\/smokiness, so yan wei is a smokey aroma or taste. It occurs for completely different reasons from \u7173\u5473\/hu wei<\/a> and is distinctly different. In the past, a fair bit of tea, particualry from the Bulang Shan area had a smokey aroma to it, mostly due to the fact that mao cha was stored in traditional houses with an open hearth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

yang hua; \u6c27\u5316<\/strong> \u2013 \u6c27 \u2013 yang means oxygen, yang hua means oxidation. The more correct term for the oxidation process which takes place in the production of certain types of tea such as black tea. See \u53d1\u9175 \u2013 fajiao<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ye; \u53f6<\/strong> \u2013 Leaf. cha ye \u8336\u53f6 \u2013 tea leaf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ye bing \u53f6\u67c4 <\/strong>– \u67c4 has a ‘mu zi pang’\/\u6728\u5b57\u65c1, the radical for wood which gives us a hint about the character’s meaning. \u67c4 as a noun can mean a handle, but here means stem. Usually used for fruit, leaves or flowers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ye di; \u53f6\u5e95<\/strong> \u2013 The tea dregs. By looking at the tea dregs one can get a clearer picture of the original leaves; what kind of tree they were from etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ye lu su; \u53f6\u7eff\u7d20<\/strong> – chlorophyl.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ye mai; \u53f6\u8109<\/strong> – \u8109 has ‘yue zi pang’, the moon radical, so here we can guess it maybe has some connection with the body, or a body part. Generally, ‘mai’ refers to veins and arteries, so here, when used with ‘ye’ it refers, as it does in English, to the veins of a leaf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ye pian; \u53f6\u7247<\/strong> – \u7247 is a flat, thin piece of something and can also act as a classifier for films, TV plays, etc. Together with ye\/\u53f6 it refers to the lamina of a leaf – the main flat body of a leaf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ye sheng; \u91ce\u751f<\/strong> \u2013 Wild, feral. Whilst there is still a comparatively large number of truly wild tea trees in Yunnan, most tea does not come from them, coming rather from arboreal trees.i.e. trees that were originally cultivated, but then left untended for many years, or bushes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ye yuan chi; \u53f6\u7f18\u9f7f<\/strong> – \u53f6 again is leaf, \u7f18 means edge or fringe and \u9f7f means tooth, so the teeth on the edge of a leaf – serrations. It could also just be \u53f6\u7f18 – leaf margin,. or leaf edge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

yi ya yi ye; \u4e00\u82bd\u4e00\u53f6<\/strong> – One tip, one leaf. A high quality picking standard that is mostly used for other kinds of tea and rarely used for Puer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ying; \u786c<\/strong> – hard. Can be used in reference to a tea’s broth amongst other things: \u6c34\u8def\u786c\/shui lu ying to describe a kind of hardness of the feeling\/\u53e3\u611f of the tea broth in the mouth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

you xiang; \u5e7d\u9999<\/strong> \u2013 hidden fragrance. See nei xiang\/\u5185\u9999<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

yu shui cha; \u96e8\u6c34\u8336<\/strong> – Literally Rain water tea. Summer Tea. Less prized than Spring Tea or Autumn Tea. The flavour is usually less fulsome than Spring tea. Also, it is often oven-dried (hong qing; \u70d8\u9752) as it is harvested in the rainy season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

yu wei mian chang; \u4f59\u5473\u7ef5\u957f<\/strong> -\u4f59\u5473 refers to an agreeable aftertaste. \u7ef5 can mean continuos, for a long time or drawn out. \u957f means long, so together the two characters also mean long lasting, drawn out. Yu wei mian chang is therfore is a way of referring to a particularly long lasting aftertaste, or \u5589\u97f5\/hou yun<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

yuan liao; \u539f\u6599<\/strong> – Raw Material. The original ingredients used to make a cake, brick. etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

yun; \u97f5<\/strong> – Charm, appeal, allure. A difficult term to render into English as it refers to a quality of tea that \u2018cannot be apprehended by the five senses.\u2019 Generally used with hou; \u540e, after, later- hou yun – or sometimes \u97f5\u5473\/yun wei. Any pleasaNY (or may be not so pleasant) feelings that linger after the tea has been swallowed. It can be distinct from hui-gan, which we can maybe categorise as an extension of the ‘taste’ experience, Yun is something less tangible, but could well include some hui gan along with other aspects of tea: aroma, sweetness, energetics, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

za; \u6742<\/strong> – means mixed, irregular, miscellaneous. See fu za\/\u590d\u6742<\/a>. Not pure\/\u7eaf<\/a>, not clear\/\u6e05\u6670.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

zao; \u71e5<\/strong> \u2013 Dry.Often used to refer to a dry feeling in the mouth that may be experienced when drinking tea. Also see \u5e72.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

zhang; \u6a1f<\/strong> \u2013 Camphor. \u6a1f\u6811, Camphor tree. Zhang wei; \u6a1f\u5473 \u2013 Camphor flavour. This is sometimes present in old tea tree Puer. Due, it is said, to the presence of Camphor Laurels in tea gardens where they were planted as a form of natural pest control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

zhong xiao ye zhong; \u4e2d\u5c0f\u53f6\u79cd<\/strong>. Literally middle-small leaf varietal. It’s debateable whether these varietals, along with zhong ye zhong are truly distinct varietals of da ye zhong, or whether they are sub-varietals, natural or cultivated, of sinensis assamica.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

zhong ye zhong; \u4e2d\u53f6\u79cd<\/strong>. Literally middle leaf varietal. Found mostly in some areas around Xiang Ming: Mang Zhi, Yi Bang.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

zi juan; \u7d2b\u5a1f<\/strong>. Purple Beauty. A purple leaved variety of Sinensis assamica which has been produced in Yunnan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

zi wei; \u6ecb\u5473<\/strong> – \u6ecb has many meanings, one of them being ‘taste’. \u5473 means taste,flavour,odour (see \u5473\u9053<\/a>). Together it means taste or flavour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

zi ya; \u7d2b\u82bd<\/strong> – \u7d2b is purple. \u82bd is tip. So purple tip. A sub-variety of sinensis assamica<\/a>. There are trees, often at quite high altitude, that naturally produce some tips that are purple. This is due to environmental conditions (high UV?) rather than varietal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ai hua, \u77ee\u5316; \u77ee means low or short. Together the two characters mean to dwarf or stunt. Copice. A term used to refer to trees that have been heavily cut back at some point. This could have been for a variety of different reasons: typically because it was felt the tree was too tall and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-31","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/puerist.co\/yunnanpuertea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/31","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/puerist.co\/yunnanpuertea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/puerist.co\/yunnanpuertea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/puerist.co\/yunnanpuertea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/puerist.co\/yunnanpuertea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/puerist.co\/yunnanpuertea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/31\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1389,"href":"https:\/\/puerist.co\/yunnanpuertea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/31\/revisions\/1389"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/puerist.co\/yunnanpuertea\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}