Tea Trekker

Lovely on my 2nd and third attempts at this tea. Took more care with water temp, a little lower this time. This appeared to keep the astringency at bay and allowed it to be more of an asset. Lovely mouthfeel to the first steep; a kind of thickness— Umami? Forgot to write about that initially. Think it got overpowered previously. Still would consider this tea a tad finicky, demanding your full focused attention.

Also, I think it’s important to note that Tea Trekker photographs their teas well; colors are accurate and samples are representative. Other than it being ever so slightly beaten up from the sample packaging (which I don’t particularly like) what they show is what I got.

Part of a sample pack I put together of their 2013 Longjing offerings, including Shi Feng, Dafo Village, Meijiawu Village and Weng-jia Shan teas. I’m really trying to school myself as to the differences in Longjings and Tea Trekker offers a great opportunity to compare. At roughly $60 total for 14 grams of each tea, that comes out to about $2 a steeping session. Not too shabby I figure, but certainly not cheap.

The first tea I’m trying from Tea Trekker is this Shi Feng. After sampling Mrs. Li’s Shi Feng from Verdant Tea, a variety of offerings from Teavivre, and some local offerings at Wing Hop Fung and Ten Ren in Los Angeles, I’m starting to think I may be more of a fan of Shi Feng Longjing. Aesthetically I really appreciate the wonderful look of Da Fo, but prefer what I’ve found to be the bolder taste statement that Shi Feng appears to make.

I’m far from proficient at really understanding the differences between Longjings, but I’m learning through all this experimenting. So please excuse errors I make or observations that may be incorrect. And PLEASE, feel free to share your thoughts and any information you may have that can help me broaden my knowledge. I really like Longjing tea and enjoy the flavor profile, brewing process and overall effect it has.

My initial notes may be somewhat superficial as I settle in to this tea, and I anticipate adding additional notes or comments with further brewing sessions as character is revealed. Also, as I did with my Teavivire 2013 Longjing tasting notes, I expect any notes I write on the 2013 Tea Trekker offerings will read much like a continued dialogue. So if you are interested in this comparison of teas, I’d recommend looking at any notes I write on Tea Trekker’s 2013 Longjings.

Using about 4-5g tea, I brewed tall glass method in my 10oz dbl wall glass tumbler, decanting to my Finum, leaving enough of a root to keep the tea leaves covered. This is my standard approach and tends to yield consistent results for me. I steeped a total of 5 times, 1st about 1 min, 2nd about 30 secs, 3rd about another minute to minute and a half, and the fourth I let sit quite a while, alternating between drinking directly from the tumbler and decanting. I drained the tumbler forgoing the root. The 5th steep I reheated my water and just did what I could to extract at a higher temp any flavor that might be left.

Overall impressions were consistent with what I like about Shi Feng; bolder flavors, toasty, with some astringency, followed by wonderful dry mouthfeel with a lingering sweetness. The astringency was bit stronger than I prefer with its initial hit, but it also is what lended this tea the aftertaste that I really appreciated. So I’m a bit torn with that observation and wonder if it could be resolved by experimenting with combinations of different brewing times and quantity of leaf. Though, that’s what I would call a “less forgiving tea.” A tea that can take my inconsistencies, slight variations on timing and water temps, different brewing vessels depending on what I’ve got going on, is an attractive trait and something I seek out.

Overall this tea took me on a bit of a journey that changed from steep to steep and was equally rewarding, and also quite unique each time. I’d say the 5th steep was lost on me, a bit tapped out. Perhaps the heat of the water was too high, though it still had a lovely color and some astringency left over, otherwise it was left somewhat hollow. Surprisingly though I did find some sweet aftertaste notes still playing over my tongue even at this stage.

A lovely honey colored brew, I was satisfied with this tea. It did hit me initially with that “juicy” description that Tea Trekker talks about, but the stronger tannic astringency was competitive, and took me out of it a bit. They talk about “yeasty,” and I’ll have to think about that a bit. I use to be a baker at an organic bakery in Montclair, NJ back in the day. I’m trying to place that “yeasty” descriptor. Maybe it’s akin to the “chestnut” people often think of with Longjing. I get that here. Less forthright, but present. Again, I’m taken back to this astringency. I feel weak-sauce using that term over and over, but as I nurse the 5th steep it keeps reminding me of it, though rather weak now.

I look forward to giving this another try and will update this note accordingly! FYI- My time and temp reflects the first steep.

As a side note, I’m not a fan of Tea Trekkers packaging. They use what appear to be mylar baggies that are heat sealed at the end. Basically they look like clear versions of small paper sandwich bags. Though I appreciate being able to see the leaf, I don’t think these bags do a great job of protecting the leaf. The plastic being rather fragile, I question the seal that is made and I also found that it tore once opened, making it useless. Sure, you probably want to move your tea to another container for storage, but not all of us have that luxury, so reusable bags are helpful. Otherwise shipping was reasonable, quick and the samples were boxed well.

Very sweet floral tea, extremely aromatic. I enjoyed this tea and am new to Darjeeling in general so its hard to have a serious opinion about this particular one. But its definitly worth a try

Roasty and malty, to me at least. Reminds me a bit, in a good way, of the Verdant Laoshan Black. And cacao nibs. Did not stand up to more than four steepings.

Strong brew, a little flat or one note. I enojoy the tea but its more of a value everyday tea than something i feel like i’m treating myself with. Ordered 4 oz of this but after the first cup I feel like that may have been an overkill, though at $10 or $2.5/oz its still a bargin.

Very light, pale color with a pleseant and sweet smell. The taste is light, refreshing and subtle. You can taste a little of the the fire or charcoal but its barely noticable. This is extremely smooth and I think should be a great drink for the spring/summer

Yummm, this is an extremely soft and floral tea, not necessarily a morning brew but its so delicate and unique that you just can’t not appreciate this tea. I received this as a free sample from Tea Trekker and was excited to try this. I was not disappointed

Sipdown, 187. This sample comes to me thanks to Ellen!

I decided a wanted a simple green tea for the late afternoon. I totally winged it with the steeping parameters on this one; since I had slightly more leaf than I would typically use I checked it after 1 minute of steeping, then decided I wanted a little more and added 30 seconds. This was a pleasant green tea. It was slightly nutty by overally pretty green and leafy. Somehow not in quite a cooked greens way, though, more like fresh kale. I didn’t get any sweetness, though I admit I did expect some from the name, but I still definitely enjoyed the cup.

Sipdown, 177. (I stealth sip-downed another tea by including it with some others in a cold brew). Thanks to Ellen for a sample of this tea!

This is one of those long, wiry teas that makes it impossible to portion out in a teaspoon. I used to fret about them, but now if I make them at work, western style, I just put what “looks right” into my infuser and fly by the seat of my pants. The sample that Ellen sent looked like maybe a bit much for one cup but possibly not enough for cup, so I decided to just put it all in one and only do a 1 minute steep to start. My winging-it was compounded by the fact that Tea Trekker no longer carries this tea and it doesn’t appear on their website, so there aren’t any steeping instructions for it. Nor are there any other notes for it here on Steepster. Nor is there any other tea in the database that seems to be the same type of tea from a different supplier. They describe it (preserved here on Steepster) as a green tea and/or baozhong, so I decided 180°F sounded good.

Seems to have worked out well (for any tea-newbies out there reading this, it took me a long time to become that confident winging it with an unknown tea). The steeped tea smells buttery and a bit chestnutty, and that carries over to the flavor as well. It’s a bit sweet and definitely nutty. I like the heft and body that it has, which definitely reminds me of a baozhong/pouchong over a green tea. As it cools, more floral orchid notes come out, especially in the aftertaste, which is pleasant and slightly unexpected! It’s a tasty tea, and too bad it’s not available anymore!

A solid Yunnan dian hong offering. It doesn’t quite scratch my cocoa-malty Yunnan itch, though.

I originally steeped this at 5 minutes, and didn’t like the results. Far too much flavor to taste. 3 minutes leaves the tea enough room to bloom in the water.

1tbsp for 18oz

Yeah… It’s still a good Yunnan, but there’s that touch of astringency that I’m not loving. Especially since I now know that astringency is not inevitable (see Butiki Taiwanese Wild Mountain Black). If brewing under 3 minutes at 180 is still coming out too astringent for me, I’ll have to pass on ordering this again.

1 tbsp for 18 oz

Amazing to me how some teas can be astringent when sipped at certain temperatures but not others. This tea has a lovely, smooth, classic Yunnan flavor, but only when it was warm — not too hot, and not too cooled down. Such a beautiful red color in the cup. Since I got my double-walled clear tea glasses the other day, I’m really noticing the color of the liquor more.

Perhaps a little shorter steeping next time, and it will be perfect.

2 tbsp in 24 oz pot

First tea of the morning. I already knew that my stomach is sensitive in the morning, so this morning, after a few sips with no additions, I found it too bitter/astringent and added a splash of soy creamer. After a few more sips, I also had to add a teaspoon of sugar (for whole pot). Then, I found it tasty and smooth.

After a little more, I realized I was starting to feel a little icky, so I started eating some Carr’s wheat crackers (very reminiscent of digestive biscuits). AHA!!! Now the tea was perfect. Amazing how a bite of something every few sips changes everything.

I think I’ve discovered that I simply have to eat something with my morning tea even if it’s just a slice of toast.

The last cup of the pot was like a perfect morning brew. If I eat with the tea, I bet I could decrease or eliminate the cream and sugar too.

1 heaping tablespoon in a 12oz pot

More flavorful and rich than yesterday’s Everest black. Only a very slightly astringent after taste. A tiny bit of sugar knocked that right out without changing the flavor. A very good black tea for my taste.

I feel like I’m starting to hone in on the flavor I’m looking for.

Ya know, it’s just not that special. To me, it’s not worth the premium price it commands. I’m starting to realize that for my regular daily drinking, I’m going to have to find 2 or 3 pretty basic teas (like a basic Keemun, a basic Yunnan golden tip, and a basic Taiwanese oolong), and then have a few over-the-top spectacular ones that I treat myself to once in a while. (See Butiki.) This tea would not fit into any of those categories, so I don’t think I will purchase it again.

Yummy! I did 3 infusions at the same settings. I used 2 1/2 tbsp for a 12 oz pot which is half of what Tea Trekker recommended. Using the amount they suggested would have used up my whole sample which was supposedly 14 grams!

Very smooth with a classic black tea flavor — somewhat like a Darljeeling if memory serves. A little astringency creeps in as the tea cools down. The third infusion was not too flavorful, so I think two was optimal.

Good Dragonwell with a complex flavor. I really like this tea I’ve been able to get 3 steepings out of it by using a little more than the recommended 1.25 teaspoons & steeping the last one for 3-4 minutes.

My new favorite white tea. This tea has the unmistakable flavor of sweet potatoes that I find in the best white teas. I will be drinking this for a long time to come.

This is a beautiful fragrant Japanese green tea. Vegetable in the best sense of the word when speaking of tea. I love it.