I have read many good puerh articles and blogs about the medicinal
properties of chen pi which is increasingly being added to shu puerh productions by western puerh vendors. Many of these
articles speak about the addition of chen pi either to enhance taste and to
fight colds- both of these are true. However,
most don’t speak to the deeper reasoning as to why chen pi is added to shu puerh…
There is only one herb in Traditional Chinese Medicine that
becomes more potent with age. That herb
is Chen Pi and it is correctly translated as aged tangerine peel. I have been told that a tangerine peel that
is freshly dried is not chen pi. Chen pi
is aged and as it ages it continues to become more potent as a medicinal as
chemical changes take place. If you have
ever tried antique chen pi it tastes very different than 10 year old chen pi
which tastes different than 3 year old chen pi.
As it ages it dries and loses mass to become a more concentrated medicinal. Therefore it will weigh less as it ages but
will be more concentrated medicine. Chen
Pi is also the only herb that increases in price the longer it ages. Very old or antique chen pi is very valuable
as its Qi becomes stronger and deeper … sound familiar?
It has frequently been mentioned that chen pi can treat
colds and coughs this is because chen pi enters the Lung and its taste is
pungent. Puerh doesn’t enter the Lung
and its taste is not considered pungent in Traditional Chinese Medicine. So the addition of chen pi expands the medicinal
effect and taste of puerh. Chen Pi also
enters the Spleen and Stomach and its taste is bitter and warming. Shu puerh also enters the Spleen and Stomach
and is bitter and warming. The combination
of chen pi with shu puerh acts to mutually accentuate the individual properties
of each making the effect on the digestion even stronger than the sum of its parts. Therefore it should also be stressed that
when chen pi is added to shu puerh it also makes for a much more powerful
digestiff after a large meal.
So… who will be the first vendor to press antique chen pi
into their shu ?
Peace
8 comments:
My problem with TCM is that all this stuff about what chen pi can apparently do, can all be stated without evidence and everyone just goes along with it.
Jon,
I think it’s actually the opposite. People’s experience with TCM as such an effective medicine leads them to state it with confidence.
Peace
I actually saw people in China drinking very old chen pi with puerh so they would use a bit of each basically. I always assumed shu puer was more sweet than bitter actually... .
Chinese herbs are fairly well researched, and have a long history of documented clinical use. My favorite herbal pharmacopeia has a good monograph on chen pi including clinical use, chemical components, toxicology, pharmacological effects, and research. Other more clinically significant herbs tend to have more research.
Curigane,
You are right. Tea is considered bitter and sweet in TCM- the more it ages, the more warmth it acquires. It also becomes less bitter and more sweet. The pile fermentation of shu puerh gives it both more warmth and sweetness and less bitter.
I missed that. Thanks for mentioning that.
Peace
Stephen,
Agree 100% with you. I also have an insanely thick, thousands of pages herbal TCM pharmacopeia. There is tones of research in there!
Peace
Sounds like we might have the same book. I prefer Chen's single herbs book, as well as his formulas book. Mighty tomes indeed.
Stephen,
Yes we do! I have both. Hahaha I have both of Bensky’s as well. His books focus more on the traditional reference to source texts, traditional theory, and traditional and alternative preparations of herbs.
For instance, Bensky mentions that Chen Pi is traditionally prepared by sun drying the tangerine peels but periodically spraying them with water. The spraying with water part is interesting because I believe it was done to ensure that the volatile oils of Chen Pi aren’t evaporated in the heat of the sun- although he doesn’t state that directly. He does state that the quality of Chen Pi is known from the vibrancy of its odour.
Peace
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