At a glance
Sui Yinzi, often called tea fossils, is a name used for small dense tea products associated with ripe Pu-erh. Check the actual ingredients and processing: the name alone proves neither added glue nor superior quality.
| Detail | What to know |
|---|---|
| Chinese name | 碎银子（茶化石） |
| Tea family | Pu-erh tea |
| Associated origin | Yunnan association in the old entry; actual producer and formula need checking |
| Leaf form | Small dense tea pieces sold under a commercial style name |
Taste and appearance
The old table describes hard dark glossy particles, bright deep-red liquor, woody/resinous or sticky-rice-like aroma impressions and a sweet, mellow, smooth cup. An aroma is not a full ingredients list. The retained reference photos do not establish which additives, if any, are in a particular packet.
The cover is the original dry-leaf illustration. These images are not TeaPlain tasting samples or proof of origin, grade, age, authenticity or image rights clearance.
Grade characteristics
This preserves the earlier Chinese edition’s sensory comparison. It is not a complete verified current standard table and does not grade your packet. Plant material, growing area, processing and grade are separate details. Decorative star rankings are omitted.
On a small screen, scroll the table sideways to compare the grades.
| Feature | Extra grade (old comparison) | Grade 1 (old comparison) | Grade 2 (old comparison) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shape | Dense thick even hard particles resembling silver fragments | Thick fairly even particles resembling silver fragments | Fairly even dense thick particles |
| Dry colour | Glossy black | Smooth lustrous black | Smooth lustrous black |
| Liquor | Bright deep red, full and lustrous | Clear deep red | Vivid clear red |
| Aroma | Woody/resinous, sticky-rice-like and tea aromas | Sticky-rice-like | Sticky-rice-like |
| Taste | Sweet, full, mellow, clean and mouth-watering | Sweet, full and brisk | Mellow and smooth |
| Infused material | Tight, lively and not loosened | Lively and tight | Intact, tight and lively |
These are inherited commercial-style comparisons, not a verified universal tea-fossil standard or a test for additives. Remaining intact during brewing does not prove purity, safety or higher grade.
Names and origin
Sui Yinzi refers to the resemblance to small pieces of silver; Cha Hua Shi means tea fossils. A seller’s particular rice-scented example declares use of an additional aromatic leaf, while a separate technical disclosure describes a tea-nugget/tremella formulation. These are examples of different approaches, not evidence of what most products contain. The old assertion that most are made with added glue, scenting, hydraulic pressing and polishing has no representative evidence here and is not retained. Nor is there evidence that the style is inherently superior to Lao Chatou.
Everyday benefits
Brewed without added sugar, this is an ordinary tea drink that can be an alternative to sweetened drinks and contribute to fluid intake. It contains caffeine. These everyday properties do not establish that this named tea treats disease, lowers blood sugar or improves sleep. No TeaPlain clinical or brewing test is claimed here.
Who may enjoy this tea
Choose an identified food product for its flavour after checking the complete formula. If you want unblended shou, select a plainly labelled product instead of assuming a commercial name guarantees purity.
When to take care
This tea-based product contains caffeine unless the actual label specifically states otherwise. Added scenting plants or other ingredients require their own identity and cautions; check the full formula and avoid any known ingredient allergy. For medicines, pregnancy or relevant conditions, discuss the exact labelled product with a clinician or pharmacist. An unspecified commercial style is not a treatment for weight, blood pressure or digestive symptoms.
Iron supplements: follow prescribed directions and ask the pharmacist about separation from tea-containing drinks; do not change treatment based on this page.
How to brew
Original prose: glass vessel with full separation
The original says heat-safe glass, 1:18, 100°C / 212°F, moisten/rinse the leaves, then pour off the drinking infusion after 10 seconds. It mentions more than ten infusions, a possibility rather than a guarantee. No duration or water volume is given for the initial moistening/rinse. Use heat-safe teaware with a strainer or another way to separate all the liquid promptly.
| Detail | Original prose with explicit ratio arithmetic |
|---|---|
| Tea | 5 g loosened from the compressed tea, an arithmetic example |
| Actual water | 90 mL / about 3 US fl oz measured actual water at 1:18 |
| Vessel | Heat-safe glass brewing vessel with a safe way to strain/decant fully |
| Water | 100°C / 212°F |
| Initial moistening/rinse | Mentioned, but no time or water amount specified |
| First drinking infusion | 10 seconds, then separate the tea liquor |
| Later infusions | Adjust to the actual leaves; more than ten is not guaranteed |
The 5 g / 90 mL example is arithmetic, not a measurement from a picture. These inherited directions are awaiting hands-on testing. Vessel capacity, water poured and liquid recovered are different quantities. Keep the original gaiwan illustration below separate. Take a measured portion, rather than steeping a whole cake, brick or large tuo in a mug, and let the drink cool enough to sip. A rinse is not a means of making mouldy tea suitable to drink.
Read the original illustration separately
Illustration method, generic Pu-erh graphic. Warm the empty cup, add about 7 g, rinse with boiling water once or twice according to its text, add water again, decant through a sharing pitcher and fill drinking cups about seven-tenths full. The bottom gives an illustrative 7 g / 100 mL water reference, 95°C / 203°F for new tea and 100°C / 212°F for older tea, but no steeping or rinse duration. These generic age/temperature rules do not establish a method for every tea-fossil formula. The seven-tenths fraction describes the drinking cup, not measured brewing water. Warming empty teaware is separate from rinsing leaves. Use the actual maker’s complete method rather than mixing missing timings with the 1:18 prose.
For ordinary teaware options, see brew without a gaiwan. Keep each complete method together instead of selecting temperature, dose and time from different preparations.
Adjust your cup
| What you notice | One change to try |
|---|---|
| Too strong, bitter or drying | Separate the liquid from the leaves; shorten contact time or use less tea next time |
| Weak or watery | Keep the measured water fixed and try a longer infusion before changing the leaf dose |
| Later infusions become stronger | Check whether liquid was left sitting with the leaves |
| Different from a flavour description | Compare the actual product and method; a description is not a promise for every cup |
Change one variable at a time. For a fuller sequence, see fix a disappointing first cup.
How to buy
Require full ingredients, named maker, batch/date, net weight and directions, including any scenting plants or other additions. A smooth hard surface is not an authenticity or grade test. Do not assume a rice-like aroma means literal rice, added fragrance, or no additions without the label.
See buy your first Chinese tea for packet comparisons.
China price reference
Undated figures retained from the Chinese edition, in Chinese yuan (CNY). No original brand, batch, harvest or quotation date was recorded. These are not verified current retail quotes, a market average or manufacturer-suggested retail prices.
| Chinese-edition tier | CNY per 500 g (one jin) | Equivalent CNY per 100 g |
|---|---|---|
| Extra grade | 580 | 116 |
| Grade 1 | 400 | 80 |
| Grade 2 | 250 | 50 |
Per 100 g is an arithmetic conversion, not a quoted packet. Do not infer a missing sensory or price tier. Compare actual growing area, style, harvest, roast, weight and channel. A currency conversion does not make a UK or US retail offer comparable to a China historical figure.
How to store
Original storage method
The old method describes conditional long-term storage, with duration depending on the tea, processing and actual storage history. It uses a clean, odour-free, shaded, relatively ventilated place, a clean carton or kraft bag without fully sealing the outer package, and original bamboo-shell wrapping where supplied. It keeps tea on shelving above floor level, away from walls, separates different types and batches, and checks it every few months.
Its targets are below 25°C / 77°F and below 70% relative humidity. These are inherited environmental references, not a validated universal ageing optimum, a target humidity to create, or a guarantee of remaining life. A partly closed carton is appropriate only where the surrounding conditions are clean, dry and suitable; it is not protection from a damp room. Follow the actual label and its specified conditions first.
In a UK or US kitchen
Choose a dry, stable place away from the stove, dishwasher steam, sunlight, spices, chemicals and food smells. Ventilation does not mean leaving tea exposed on a worktop or near an open damp window. Protect both the bulk pack and a small working portion from moisture and contamination. Do not deliberately humidify tea to imitate a factory fermentation pile. Check condition as well as dates; reject obvious mould, water damage or abnormal mustiness rather than trying to rinse it away. Long-term keeping is conditional, not a promise that every tea improves indefinitely. See storing opened tea.
For a scented or otherwise blended formula, the complete product label overrides plain-Pu-erh storage assumptions. Do not infer indefinite ageing suitability from the tea component alone.
Origin, processing and history
The old process map says rough tea, fermentation, softening, moulding, pressing and cutting. It does not show added glue, flavouring or polishing, and cannot prove those steps for most products. Individual formulas differ; a patent or a single seller’s statement is not a market survey or confirmation that an unknown packet follows that method.
Common questions
Can smell or an unbroken pellet prove whether glue was added?
No. Neither a sticky-rice aroma nor a dense piece identifies its ingredients. Obtain the actual complete label, maker and processing information. An unverified market-wide claim cannot determine the composition or safety of your packet.
Can I move one number from this recipe into a different vessel?
Keep leaf form, measured dose and actual water, temperature, timing and separation together. Nominal capacity or a fill fraction is not a measured ratio.
Compare Lao Chatou, or browse the pu-erh tea overview.
Editorial notes and updates
Updated 16 October 2026. Valid original descriptions, sensory comparisons, prose and image methods, storage handling, China price figures and usable pictures are retained with their scope. Doubtful medical, ranking and exact historical claims are revised or omitted. Current full grade clauses and historical prices are not certified. Original Chinese-labelled graphics have English reading notes; no TeaPlain tasting or brewing test is claimed. Internal research and image audits record the decisions.