I’ve been coming home for lunch lately and getting as many small pots worth of sheng pu’er in as I can before heading back to work. Not rushing of course. And it’s doing great things for my mood.
This wild Yiwu sheng has certainly changed since last sipped a few summers ago during the throes of Covid social insanity: https://steepster.com/derk/posts/408020
The tea has that unique wild tea taste that I feel I can never put words to. Something like leafy medicine, or maybe yerba maté – high alkaloid content. Long-lasting bitterness moreso in feeling than in taste. This tea has more oomph than some wild sheng and less than others, sitting closer to those with a deeper, more powerful sensation.
Most of the characteristics are still present. The signature-to-me Yiwu date-caramel-honeylike sweetness in aroma and on the sip has gotten deeper but this is not among the sweeter Yiwu teas. Early astringency isn’t bothersome and gives way to light oiliness later. Again, both a clear mind and a comfortable yet energizing feeling that is different from the effects of caffeine alone. My mood was lightened and concentration noticeably sharpened for the second half of the work day.
Where the flavor (and leaf aroma) has made a marked change is in the development of a deepened fruitiness that spans the low to high tones along with some teenage tang. Passionfruit, bright red raspberry, orange and apricot grace the taste. The spicy leaf-and-bark impression is still present, balanced by that mossy airiness. Something I didn’t pick up on last time was cooling eucalyptus. One thing that caught me was that the dry leaf now smells like a specific chocolate bar I sometimes enjoy — Passion Fruit in Ruby Chocolate by Chocolove. The ruby chocolate tastes to me like a combination of a white chocolate and a milk chocolate that lacks strong lactose flavor; throw in a hint of berry fruitiness.
What has mostly disappeared is the initial creamy mouthfeel (which I would hope returns given more aging) and the strong drying quality (which I hope has mostly phased out). The floral quality is also aging out.
I didn’t take any notes today, recalling this entirely from memory. Given the amount I’ve written, I’d say this tea made a very favorable impression. I’ll consider buying a cake when I finally make a damn dent in all my sheng samples :P A handful of years ago, wild teas would almost always leave me reeling from intensity. Seems like I’ve finally grown into that energy <3
Flavors: Apricot, Astringent, Autumn Leaf Pile, Bark, Bitter, Caramel, Chocolate, Dates, Eucalyptus, Fruit Punch, Fruity, Honey, Medicinal, Moss, Oily, Orange, Passion Fruit, Raspberry, Spicy, Tangy, Wet Wood, White Chocolate
