Yunnan Seven Son Tea Cake refers to compressed Pu-erh tea cakes, which belong to the post-fermented dark tea category. In recent years, Yunnan Pu-erh tea has mostly been made into round cakes, meaning flat, circular compressed teas. Because seven tea cakes are often packaged together in a single bundle, it is also known as Seven Son Tea Cake. Yunnan Seven Son Tea Cake is one of China’s most famous and popular teas.
Yunnan Seven Son Tea Cake is also called round tea due to its distinct, flat-round shape. Why is it called “Seven Son”? This is because seven tea cakes are typically wrapped together into a single bamboo-leaf cylinder, hence the name. As a type of compressed tea, it was originally shaped into cakes for convenient transport and storage. It was later discovered that this shape greatly benefits the post-fermented flavor profile, so the tradition continues to this day. Seven Son Tea Cake is currently the most common form of Pu-erh tea, available in both raw and ripe styles. Aged raw Seven Son Tea Cakes are extremely popular on the market and command high prices.
▲ Yunnan Seven Son Tea Cake is a type of compressed tea manufacturing method.
▲The concave depression on the back of the Seven-Cake Tea is designed for easy transport and storage.
The production process of Seven-Cake Tea includes harvesting, sorting, high-temperature sterilization, steaming and pressing, and aging. Puerh ripe (shou) tea requires an additional pile-fermentation (wo dui) process. The standard weight of a finished Seven-Cake Tea is 357g, though it will become lighter over time as moisture evaporates during aging. It has a diameter of about 21 cm, being slightly thicker in the center with a concave indentation on the back. Ripe Seven-Cake Tea should appear dark red, while raw (sheng) tea is mostly greenish-brown.
How to Brew Seven-Cake Tea
First, use a dedicated Seven-Cake Tea knife to insert into the concave depression on the back, then pry upward firmly to remove the tea leaves for later use. Boil spring water in a large tea kettle, using a tea-to-water ratio of 1 to 50, and steep for about 2 to 3 minutes.
▲Before brewing Seven-Cake Tea, use a tea knife to pry off the desired amount.