Pu-erh tea

„Pu-erh tea processing, although straightforward, is complicated by the fact that the tea itself falls into two distinct categories: the "raw" Sheng Cha and the "ripe" Shou Cha. All types of pu-erh tea are created from máochá (毛茶), a mostly unoxidized green tea processed from a "large leaf" variety of Camellia sinensis (C. sinensis assamica) found in the mountains of southern Yunnan.“

„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
iii) 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 /小叶种) being grown in the Lancang River area.“