Pu-er: Yunnan's winning tea
Other items about this tea were touted in Ming times from Tao Hongjing's (456 - 536 CE) annotations about bitter tea. They recommended using it with asparagus shoots and China-greenbriar leaves. Then and now, 'Elixir Tea' is thought useful for the aged. In the Records in Pulse Cases of the Qing Courts, this tea was recommended to cure chills and fevers, headaches and pains from colds, indigestion after a sickness, and nausea.
The nobility of the time, who had a liking for and overindulged in greasy and sweet food, believed in drinking pu-er tea. To them, in any of the above mixtures, it was useful in reducing obesity, improving digestion, alleviating depression, and promoting blood circulation. They also liked its taste and its effects on their mood. 'Elixir Tea' can be purchased in upscale Chinese supermarkets and tea emporia. It is still thought to be efficacious as an agent to reduce obesity. In China, it has been successfully tested on animals. Do not be fooled, however, should you want to use it to lose weight. Not all teas sold as a diet tea have it or any of the combination of ingredients used in Elixir Tea, nor are there any guarantees it will work.
The Chinese classify tea as a cold and bitter food. Its contribution when used for herbal purposes dates back at least to the Han Dynasty (206 BCE to 220 CE). Mixing teas with herbs is thought to have begun with the Southern and Northern Dynasties (420 - 581 CE) and continued to today. Large-scale consumption, that is every day drinking of tea in China started in early Tang Dynasty times (618 - 907 CE). It was the great poet Su Dong Po (1037 - 1101 CE) when writing about the Song Dynasty (960 - 1279 CE) who said that tea drinking was essential for (his own) good health. His living to age sixty-four was cause enough for other Chinese to follow him. They believed and took his words to heart. Jing Xinbo in the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644 CE) went further, he wrote about different teas in his book Food and Drink Recipes and said that one should drink it because it aids when needing to cure a disease, and it prolongs life.
Have you had your tea this day? Invest as the emperors did and be sure that at least some of the time you drink pu-er tea. You will be delighted you did. The Chinese believe in its many positive effects including its mood-enhancing effects and reduction of melancholy. They confirm that it stimulates digestion and should always be consumed after a large meal. In addition, they drink pu-er tea to help in weight reduction and detoxification as they say it cleanses the body of damaging substances. For those who drink it regularly, the Chinese believe that all tea stimulates their Qi and aids in assuring a long and healthy life.
