Pu'er tea the "ripe" Shou Chá. All types of pu'er tea are created from "máochá" (毛茶), a mostly unoxidized green tea processed from "Camellia sinensis" var. "assamica", which is the large leaf type of Chinese tea found in the mountains of southern and western Yunnan (in contrast to the small leaf type of tea used for typical green, oolong, black, and yellow teas found in the other parts of China). Maocha can be sold directly to market as loose leaf tea, compressed to produce "raw" "shēngchá", naturally aged and matured for several years before being compressed to also produce "raw" "shēngchá" or
Camellia taliensis Camellia taliensis Camellia taliensis (also Yunnan large leaf varietal tea, wild tea, 大理茶) is a species of evergreen shrub or small tree whose leaves and leaf buds are used to produce tea. It is of the genus "Camellia" of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. "C. taliensis" is an important wild relative to the cultivated the tea plant "Camellia sinensis." It also belongs to the same section "Thea" as "C. sinensis." It is an endangered species due to human overpopulation causing fragmentation of the plant's natural habitat and from overpicking of the leaves for the tea market. "Camellia talensis" has