Penshui (噴水)

[Evan Draper]

Apparently penshui (噴水) "spray water" is a process of making fake aged puerh. How is this different from the wodui (don't know the characters) step that all shou puerh goes through?

[shah82]

Producing shu is a pile of leaves on the floor or in the basket. It's a controlled fermentation process. With shu, I believe there is attention to even fermentation, and bad stuff is removed. It's also steamed, pressed, and dried in an oven, which retards microorganism growth.

Spraying water on just ferments the surface of the bing, and can cause unwanted microorganisms to proliferate uncontrolled, including things that can be poisonous, if not also noxious.

[Evan Draper]

Ah, so penshui is done to an existing bing, post-production, presumably by an unscrupulous broker and not a manufacturer. That seems the crucial difference. Thanks.