Pu-ehr drunk effect

Hi Dada,

Can you tell us a little more about what type of puerh it was? Black, green, young, old etc?

One concept that applies to puerh, particularly older puerh, is called Qi. Qi means energy, and when used in reference to tea (Cha Qi) it often takes on spiritual overtones. i.e. The lifeforce that flows through everything etc etc. I am *not* kidding, perhaps someone familiar with Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) could explain it further. Anyway some puerhs are known to have a very strong Qi which could explain some of the sensations you are experiencing, particularly if it is an aged green puerh.

Another possibility that would apply only to cooked or black puerh is the quality of the cooking process. This process closely resembles composting. Many bacteria strains are created during the process. Factories under pressure to pump out more puerh quickly may not monitor this process as carefully as they should and undesirable bacteria strains could be allowed to multiply. There have been batches of poorly made black puerh that have been know to make people sick.

So please tell us more about what you have and where you got it?

Mike

Funny. One of the purported benefits of puer is helping drunks sober up. Your symtoms sound like somebody drinking too much tea for the first time. You said you drink tea. I wouldn't drink cooked puer on an empty stomach. Nervous system absorption of tea is different from pot to pot. I experience mild euphoria light headedness first thing in the morning on an empty stomach with most any tea. A little puer goes a long way. I eased myself into it and now drink the cooked almost like molasses with an evening meal. I feel it is the most medicinal of the teas I drink in the sense I can feel immediate and long term effects. One time I ate too much kimchee and thought I needed the emergency room. I survived by drinking puer which put out the fire immediately. I should be more proactive and know my vitals but I would describe myself as hypertensive and feel drinking puer helps somewhat. I don't drink uncooked puer on a regular basis.

Jim

Dada wrote:

It is a China Pu Erh Yunnan: that's what the label says. Well, I have a green pu-ehr, the kind they sell to supermarket...it has a form similar to a nest. It doesn't give me any problem. Cheap but not bad. I bought the loose China Pu Erh to Peter's Tea House

an italian tea chane store. It has usually good tea qualities, and it have a great choice. What kind of bacterias do you mean? I know that pu ehr has, usually, the opposite effect: it heps to assimilate alcool, sugar, etc. I mean, it is not a matter of energy. I don't fell "overcharged", it is another matter: I feel like I had drunk some bear, or alcool. I makes me feel a little sleepy. And, in addicition, I feel a strange feeling to my palate. It seems to intesify my feeling of water temperature. Never felt something similar. I have never drunk it with empty stomach, always after lunch or dinner. It is really strange. I mean it would be, in my opinion, more probable to feel sick drinking a strong black russian tea (like Tajga) then to feel like this drink a beneficial, healty, "medicinal" pu ehr.

Dada wrote:

Hi Dada,

This is from my website:

Microbes One of the main reasons that Puer is so unique is that Puer tea is a living thing! Many different microbes are active during the manufacturing process of the puer cakes. Some of these microbes have very short lives and are only present during certain phases of the manufacturing process, while others are predominate throughout the entire manufacturing process. It is these microbes that are believed to be responsible for the many health claims associated with Puer.

• Aspergillus Niger - This is the main microbe that has been identified in Puer. It is a yeast-like fungus that is often used in Industrial food processing. Think of yogurt, buttermilk, and sour dough bread and you get the idea. For more information see The Aspergillus Website (very technical) * Saccharomyces - This little puppy is where that hauntingly elusive sweetness comes from. It is the second most prevalent microbe in Puer. It is a single-celled yeast that has no mycelium, reproduces asexually, and ferments sugar. * Penicillium - Penicillium retards the growth of undesirable fungi and bacterium. It is a bluish green fungus that grows on stale or ripening food. Some forms of penicillium are used to make cheese and others are a source of the antibiotic penicillin. * Rhizopus - Rhizopus is one of the microbes that has a short life. It is present during the fermentation process and contributes to the softening of the leaf. It is actually a mold that causes decay very similar to the common bread mold. To maintain the proper amount of Rhizopus the Tea Master must tightly control temperature and humidity. * Aspergillus Glaucus - This one is undesirable and can actually cause excessive decay and poor quality, it can be minimized by maintaining proper temperature during the fermentation phase. Apparently this microbe is sometimes utilized to make lower grades of Puer but I am not sure what the advantage is. It is a pale blue/green fungus or mold often found on leather and cheese. * Others - It is believed that other microbes exist, even if just for a short period of time, during the fermentation phase. Unfortunately the constantly changing, often unrepeatable, and continually evolving microscopic environment has proven extremely difficult to analyze.

Mike

Reading that, it looks like nothing different to yogurt, or other foods. Even if this microbes should be not monitored during the processing, I can't believe that could give strange effects. I bought it in a quality tea shop and it sounds strangeto me that it could be a cheap pu ehr. Today I saw at the supermaket a Twinings Pu erh...maybe I could try with it to see what happens.

I recently drank about a quart of pu-ehr and didn't have this experience. Of course the entire quart was two one pint infusions from

6 gr. of the tea so there might not have been enough there.

Maria