Here’s a quick comparison of the three most recent sheng puer arrivals. Each was steeped in 150ml gaiwan with 8 grams of tea, 15 second rinse, and then 20 second steeps (with close-to-boiling water each time).
This is the softest of the three. It was made by Mr. Yang Xiu Hai, the same gentleman who made our 2018 Yiwu Sheng Puer, though this one comes from the Menghai region. It’s light and fruity – reminds me of those mornings where breakfast was a quick bowl of instant peaches and cream oatmeal (with hoppy beer added to your oatmeal – not that I’ve ever done that…). There are small mineral and bitter elements that service the cup like pinches of salt to the cookie dough recipe. The mouthfeel is soft and smooth and memories of grapefruit in the exhale. This tea has an important quality that our typical assessments have no words for - it just feels good to drink. Some teas feel good because they taste good. Some teas feel good because they are ritualistic or nostalgic. All these are good reasons to drink those teas. But I swear there is an objective measure for teas that just plain feel good. This tea is gentle and present. The most important things rise to the top without saying much at all. Like a sad song without lyrics, you just know.
This is the most complex of the teas mentioned here. It was made by Mr. Zhao Tian, who lives on the famous tea producing mountain of Nan Nuo Shan (see blog post for more about him). The steeped aroma of this one is a bit damp and fishy, maybe gamey. If you haven’t had much puer tea before, you may not find it pleasant. But as it cools, the aroma sweetens up like apricots. Puer teas can have a “wildness” to their character that’s just difficult to describe other than…wild. When I attempt to describe it, I often say off-putting things like those above, but they are terms of endearment. Those untamed savory/charcoal-like flavors get balanced with familiars like hops and grains. The mouthfeel has a granite-like texture (without all the weight that implies) and there’s a certain electrical intensity to the cup (not quite bitter, not quite astringent) that seems to be uniquely present in some puer teas. It starts out light, but intensifies through the second and third steeps. Even the 4th and 5th steeps are still very present while becoming more subtle. It is not sweet, it is not soft, it is not simple, but still very easy to drink. Like a good riddle, it lacks many affirmatives, but you enjoy it none the less.
This tea is the strongest of the bunch and the most affordable (those two attributes have no inherent connection). It was made by Mr. Liu Zhao Quan, a tea-school classmate of our mutual friend Mr. Tang. This tea has a notable sharpness, which is not bad, but it will make its presence known. It can easily be controlled by reducing the amount of leaf used or limiting steep times, but I wouldn’t shy away from the challenge if you’re willing. The floral/bitter/charcoal flavors flex their muscles early with a full and oily mouthfeel. It’s a good performance, but it can overpower if you’re not careful. The tea is warming and travels to the gut quickly, which lasts much longer than the aftertaste in the mouth. These are admirable qualities for an inexpensive puer and I highly recommend it as an everyday tea. The landscape on this one flattens out sooner than the others mentioned here, but you can still easily get 4-5 steeps. Those last rounds have a gentler, melon-like sweetness that makes for a pleasant finish, but it signals that the house lights are about to come on and the show is over.