There are many tea pressing facilities in the area, ranging from small, family run to large scale operations.

Here is a short slideshow showing a medium-small scale factory pressing of Puer tea cakes. The cakes are of note because they have a small amount of Pang xie Jiao (Crab's legs) mixed into the tea.

 

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Making Puer Cakes in Menghai County. Summer 2008.
Click on a picture to start the slideshow..

Loose tea is prepared ......
and weighed before steaming
After steaming, the tea is put in a bag and shaped.
The tea is shaped into a disc form.
and prepared for pressing
The bag with the steamed, shaped tea is then placed on a wooden plank and a large 'mill-like ' stone is placed on top to compress the tea
The cakes of tea are then left for some time
a newly pressed cake.