While I was at Denong Tea in Pasadena, I was tea drunk enough to upsell things by myself. I asked how their cake of Sweet Clarity sheng puer was and Denong simply said it tastes like Sweet Clarity (roll credits). Either way, it was enough for me to blind purchase a 100 gram cake.
Denong Tea has some of the most beautiful of tea wrappers.
Dry Leaf and Steeping Method
The dry leaf is soft, sweet, and somewhat pungent in scent. The only information I could find on the material of Sweet Clarity is that it is from Xishuangbanna Prefecture.
I went pretty typical brewing method using 1 gram of leaf per 15ml of vessel size, gongfu style with boiling water, and a single rinse.
Tasting of 2016 Sweet Clarity Sheng Puer from Denong Tea
First and Second Infusion: The flavor intensity starts off light. Sweet Clarity sips in slightly savory, vegetal soup brothy, with random sips with a bit of pan char that got deglazed, but all sips have a crisp apple-like sweetness at the end. The aftertaste is a long lingering sweetness. All this flavor with the tea comes along with a thick and slightly sticky texture.
With each sip, the flavor gets stronger and stronger somehow, despite being the same infusion. If I reset my palate, it is a light tasting tea again. There are shenanigans going on with the thick sticky texture and that aftertaste note marinating my mouth.
Third, Fourth, and Fifth Infusion: 2016 Sweet Clarity is starting to get boiled a little too much. It is like the soup has simmered an extra 5 minutes after it was done. The tea is starting to get bitter, with a bit of a green pepper skin note and spinach with a bitter finish. What is strange yet interesting about this puer is the aftertaste is kicking and sweet, leaning floral and wildflower honey now.
There is some energy to this tea, but it is that chill relaxing feel. I feel like I need a nap, but yet I am quite caffeinated so I’ll have a restless sleep attempt.
Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Infusion: Yet another shift in flavor. The flavor is starting to die here as it is even lighter tasting with the only bitter stewed buttered spinach notes coming out at end of the sip. The aftertaste is still going by being strongly floral and a bit sweet. I tried for another infusion and just got bitter water.
Young sheng stomach report: 2016 Sweet Clarity this one wasn’t bad. I also drank this one on a near empty stomach, being overdue for lunch by 2 hours. I felt like I should have a light salty snack after. Though it felt like if I had this last year I would have had been more demanding of a tea needing a meal beforehand.
Comments
2016 Sweet Clarity sheng puer is a light, sweet sheng that leans slightly vegetal with a powerful lingering aftertaste. This tea is for people who chase the hui gan (aftertaste) or like light shengs. It does get on the bitter side at the end, but after each sip give it a few moments and you will be rewarded.
Sweet Clarity is the type of tea you need to dedicate a sit down to drink, this isn’t a chugger as you will miss the strengths of this tea. Often, I find excellent gongfu style teas are best shared, but Sweet Clarity is the exception. This is a tea to just sit alone, relax, drink, look out the window, then maybe try snoozing on the couch. I took a while to drink this tea, despite the infusion count wasn’t that high. I wasn’t thinking stressful thoughts of a never-ending kitchen remodel, but simply taking the time to relax and watch the birds loot my bushes of nesting material.
I find this tea intriguing. I prefer a stronger young sheng, but the aftertaste is what I like. It seems a cake I’ll drink down on days I need to ground myself.
