According to GenerationTea.com, Pu-erh yea has many benefits that are not widely known, like increased energy, improvements to heart health, cleansing of toxins and free radicals, cancer prevents, etc. This tea, cultivated exclusively in the Yunnan province of China, has a nice fruity, earthy, and almost musky flavor tone to it. However, preparing the tea is somewhat different to the other varieties.
Unlike regular black tea, Pu-erh tea is brewed at a much higher temperature of 212F. You have two choices on brewing. You can either use the traditional Asian bowl known as the Gaiwan, or you can use a regular teapot.
The first step is to prepare your tea leaves. When you buy aged Pu-erh tea, remember that is comes in three forms: regular leaves, a brick, or like a cake. If you have leaves, proceed as you would normally for any tea. For the cakes and bricks, you break off a piece and use that. The ratio is 1g of tea for 15ml of water.
The next step is to rinse the tea leaves. This is another departure from brewing regular tea. Fill the vessel with water and then remove the water right after. The cleaning process opens the Pu-erh tea leaf and allows more flavor during the brewing process.
With a regular teapot and leaves, steep the tea for three to four minutes. Using the Gaiwan, steep with increments of 10 seconds for each steeping. For the western method, you can expect two to three cups, while the Asian method will yield six to eight cups.