Pu-erh for “Dummies”

101 The Basics:
Pu-erh - Pu-er - Puer (Mandarin) Poli or Po Lee (Cantonese)
Named after its trading center: Pu-erh County, in southern Yunnan province.
Pressed / Compacted Tea, the tea leaves are processed and compacted into various shapes.
Originally compressed to facilitate loading on animal (horse) packs for ease of transportation.
It was discovered that the tea produced a unique and satisfying taste, better at journeys end than at the beginning.
Thus began the; stories, myths and legends of aged tea.
The various names, mainly denote: Factory and compressed shape:
Ball - Bowl –Mushroom - Square brick – Rectangular brick – Cake - Disk
MengHai (factory) Bing (cake shape) cha (tea)

Two main categories of Pu-erh: Raw / Uncooked or Cooked
Uncooked Pu-erh:
... is the original form of Pu-erh teas and has little or no fermentation. Gradually it was found that by storing them in a dry condition for several more years, the teas mellows with pleasant lingering taste. The longer uncooked Pu-erh is stored the better and more mellow the taste.
Cooked Pu-erh:
.... is commonly accepted that the cooking process was invented and in use around 1972. Some reports claim it could have been in the early 50’s.
The cooking process accelerated the effects of natural aging. Factories use a combination of heat and moisture to achieve the desired results.
Because of the heat generated during the process, it has became known as: "cooked tea”.

Could this trio be next ???....