Hi Sasha,

What is more important than government's regulation and vendor's creativity,
is that as consumers we know what we are drinking and paying for at the end
of the day; if a vendor sells me a compressed Wuyi oolong and say that it is
pu'er, at least I know what he is talking about - that it is "pu'er" in that
it is "compressed", not that it is from Yunnan or made from the pu'er leaf
varietal.

I think consumer knowledge is important. Vendors can come up with fancy
names, or jump on the money spinning machine and pull a fast one, but as
long as we are aware of what we are buying, we can appreciate the tea as it
is, and not as what the vendors purport it to be.

Danny

"Alex Chaihorsky" > wrote in message
. com...
> Hi, samarkand -
>
> You are absolutely right - new puer definition makes non-Yunnan leaf bing
> chas not puerhs. However my prediction is - it won't stick. The decision
> made by government officials most probably will remain what it is - text
> in the regulations.
> Puerhs are popular and there will always be people who would make good
> fermented pressed cakes and call their product puerh. Only if China will
> implement rigid system of laws and enforce it (like with wine in France)
> these decisions and definitions will start to work. Knowing how things
> happen in China I doubt that very much. The general freedom from patents,
> trademarks and licenses served China quite well and will continue to do
> so until Chinese patents will grow in numbers and quality and will need
> the protection against foreign infringers.
> Then and only then China will become patent protector rather than patent
> raider.
>