I'm a big time tea drinker. For me, tea surpassed the usual cup-in-the-morning habit. The act of drinking tea went far beyond the usual and I started to search for more. Don't get me wrong, I'm not some psycho with an abnormal tea addiction. I love tea because it has many properties that contribute to a healthy living, cleans your system from toxins, and eliminates the free radicals, which are a known cause of cancer.

First thing first - my tea of choice is the bulk loose leaf tea. I personally avoid buying tea bags with finely ground tea leaves, because they usually have colorants, pseudo-natural flavors, preservatives, and/or chemicals – to improve the flavor that tea leaves naturally have.

During my “tea-scape” exploration, I discovered lots of interesting types of tea and ways they are processed. I could not understand at first why someone would age tea leaves, roast or process them in different ways. I thought that tea is just a regular drink with nothing special in it.
Time passed by. I’ve read a lot of articles about undisclosed properties of teas and decided to try something new; decided to take the journey to "The Secret Steep".

The first tea I decided to experiment with is called Pu-Erh. Depending on the steeping time and its age, it steeps in hues from amber-red to deep-brown and it tastes like dirt to some people. The flavor of the tea is bold, interesting and earthy. I like to wake up and have a cup of Pu-Erh; it reinvigorates me more than a cup of coffee. I discovered that this tea can be consumed as a regular-table tea, or as a drug. This raised my curiosity - was there something I didn't know about it? 

This brought me to a different type of Pu-Erh steeping, which I like to call "The Secret Steep". Discovering this secret brought me answers to some of my questions – why this tea is kept in the ground for a specified amount of time? Why do people drink it despite its nasty flavor? The answer is that it’s kept in the ground to allow it to ferment. Fermentation gives the tea the specific flavor, and also increases the amount of the caffeine and L-theanine (an amino acid which promotes body relaxation) contained in the leaves. The surplus of these components acts like a drug to your body and brain; they make you feel alternated.

To achieve an “interesting” feeling, you should use "The Secret Steep":

1. Get a regular cup and fill half of it with Pu-Erh. The older the tea, the better, but don't buy the most expensive one. Usually the regular one will work too.
2. Add boiling water until you fill the cup.
3. Cover with a plate and let it steep for about 10-15 minutes.
4. Pour in a smaller cup and enjoy the tea by making small sips, like you would drink an extremely hot drink. Don't add sugar, even if the taste is too strong.

After a couple of sips you will start enjoying the flavor. After you finish the first batch of tea, repeat steps 2-4. This time you can add some sugar because it will be kind of bitter. I drink it without sugar anyway; I guess I'm used to the flavor already. My favorite tea "Tieguanyin" can be brewed using "The Secret Steep" method as well, but I’ll speak about that in the next article.

While enjoying your tea, relax and play some good music, watch a good show, swing on a hammock or sit on a bench and watch the sunset.

If you ask me how it feels, I would describe it as a mellow to strong relaxation. The body feels very calmed, loose and lazy although your brain is still active and energized. It's an interesting combination like sweet and salty, black and white, yin and yang. It's a balance between the soul, body and brain, which will make you want to just chill.

The only drawback I noticed is that it acts as an energy drink to your brain despite all the laziness and relaxation. It will be hard to fall asleep for a couple of hours, so please don't drink this infusion before bed. Start a good 4-5 hours before your usual bedtime if you want to try "The Secret Steep". Other than that, there are no negative effects that I have observed. Also this does not cause any addiction. I’ve tried this steep a couple of times with a big gap in between, and I'm completely fine.

I hope you will enjoy a cup of “secretly steeped” Pu-Erh. If you decide to try this method, please share the experience with me.

Have a nice cup of tea!