2021 Kim Jong Yeol Saejak

 

It’s been a busy few months for me and my family … all good kind of busyness … but still so busy that it’s been at least a month since I’ve had given myself the time for a mindful gongfu session or an attentive evaluation session of tea.  It’s been years since I had such a long drought.  I assure you I am still throwing back lots of nice mug steepings and weeks long, a few steeps a day, sessions with some nice tea though.  Although I have naturally cut my caffeine/ tea intake in half, I feeling more alert and productive and not as stoned off of all that chaqi…. Hahaha…

One of my last nice gongfu sessions I had months ago was with an old favourite of mine- Kim Jong Yeol’s sejak.  I ended up purchasing some of this delicious stuff and a bunch of other Japanese green teas at the request of my better half while she is going through a green tea phase these days.  I ordered some from Pedro’s O5Tea outfit in Vancouver.

Me and Pedro go back a while so he kindly sent some complimentary samples of Japanese bancha free with my order.  Pedro knows I have a passion for traditionally/folk processed teas.  If you read the early blog entries you can see me exploring these in Korea at a time when those outside of Korea has never heard of such things.  However, I don’t have too much experience with Japanese bancha.  However, I always marvel at the deep and interesting tastes that come out of bancha. Pedro’s passion for Bancha is leading him to produce a documentary on traditional processed Japanese bancha.  If you are interested in this sort of thing you should contact him.

Anyways here is some brief but very satisfying notes on the 2021 Kim Jong Yeol Saejak...

Dry leaves have a deep sweet evergreen forest almost nutty edge.

The first infusion 30 seconds has a nutty sweet forest taste that goes into evergreen with a long expanding fresh nutty vibrant minty creamy sweetness.

2^nd has a sweet aqua cucumber forest green taste slight nutty finish with an evergreen like freshness.  Lingering sweet creamy evergreen forest in the mouth.  Nice clear alert and focused Qi.

3^rd infusion has a woodier onset with creamy sweet evergreen and more distinct roasted notes.  There is a subtle wood and cool aftertaste with an underlying roasted sweetness.

4^th is a woody and evergreeny with creamy woody creamy finish.  More of a cohesive together evergreen taste.

5^th has a more upfront vibrant green roast asparagus and evergreen sweetness.

The bag didn't last long in our house and was shared with friends...

The one thing that struck me the most with these sessions was how much ability I lost in evaluating Korean green tea with such a long absence from tasting.

If you don’t use it, you loose it.

Peace

2013 Kim Jong Yeol (Butea) Saejak Hwagae Valley Green Tea‏

This tea comes from good ol' Pedro from O5tea this Kim Jung Yeol (Butea) saejak has become a seasonal favorite throughout the years.  The dark and pale mix of green leaves smell of evergreen and minty sweet freshness. The leaves have a frosty sweet smell to them.

The first infusion delivers a creamy-smooth foresty evergreen taste. The mouthfeel and throat feel are expansive and spread a cool slightly menthol-mint taste across a light foresty-green base. A sugary taste is hung up in the teeth.

The second is a touch more foresty but brisk and fresh tasting. More of a greeny edge appears now, the slight cool aftertaste remains. It has a subtle forest depth with some frosty sweet notes pinned between. The mouthfeel is full and paints the mouth in a soft fuzzy coating.

The third has a rich, deep, velvety-forest-green taste. It is crisp and frosty sweet taste which coats the mouth. It has a deep long, forest taste.

The fourth contains deep foresty tastes with a slight woody edge now. The depth of the forest is noticeable the frosty sweetness is pushed to the edges of the taste profile. The mouthfeel remains full.

This tea leaves the mind alert and vibrant. Certainly enough vigor for this late in the afternoon. So the session ends there although it could easily go a few more infusions.

Peace

MattCha On The Move to Saskatchewan!

Regular readers of this blog probably noticed it slowly grind to a halt over the past few months. This was not due to a disinterest in tea or blogging but rather due to wrapping up in coastal Victoria, British Columbia and a move to the dry prairies of Regina, Saskatchewan. Through it all one has still been drinking lots of tea, in fact one is sipping on a 2013 Kim Jong Yeol Saejak purchased from O5tea.

One has already found that drinking tea in the prairies already has its challenges. Firstly, the most obvious is that it is so dry here one is a bit concerned how the aged puerh and Korean teas will do. Secondly, the water here has altered the taste of most of ones teas. The tap water is so hard even with a off odour to it. It makes all tea carry a funny taste and does little for the mouthfeel and qi. All residence of Regina combat the hard water with booth water softening devices and by drinking large amounts of almost completely purified water- both which are not great for tea. There will be extensive articles about how I approach this water challenge in the coming months.

One first thought that there would be no one to share and learn about tea here in the middle of the prairies. In Victoria one had Jared and Mi Yu Ki from Jagasilk, the urasanke Japanese Tea Ceremony circle, my puerh drinking bud Antoine, and my new found Korean tea drinking guru Greg Demmons - so many people to share, learn, and experience tea with (Never mind Pedro of O5tea and Daniel of The Chinese Tea Shop in Vancouver 3 hours away). As Fate would have it, an old Chinese tea master opened up a modest storefront tea house just two blocks from my office. We have already shared many older cakes of puerh together in the teahouse which is so similar to many unpretentious Chinese tea shops that it truly feels like you have left to China when visiting. There will be many posts on him and his tea shop in the coming weeks and months.

Tomorrow one has planed to post on The Half-Dipper's China Chadao event.

Until then...

Peace

2013 ZeDa Saejak Semi-wild Hwagae Valley Green Tea

This 2013 ZeDa Saejak was produced by the same monk that had produced last year's 2012 ZeDa Saejak. Those interested can see this post on the background details behind this tea. Sam has pledged to donate 100% of the money paid for this tea to Unicef's Clean Water Project used to build clean water pumps in Africa. So don't hesitate, buy this tea, and help out a good cause!

The dry leaves kick off a very light, sweet-dew like odour. There is a whiff of sugary candy-apple like odour. The smell is very light, smooth, and sweet.  Sam of Good Green Tea has conceded that this tea is a late saejak pick rather than last years early saejak. The leaves however seem noticeably smaller than last years' which were more stemy.

The first infusion delivers a soft very floral creamy taste which fades in the mouth. The taste is simple, distinct, and pure. There is just a weak, slight pasty-bland, aftertaste of muted creamy sweetness. The mouthfeel is a touch sticky and is mainly located on the tongue and front of the mouth.

The second infusion delivers another pure buttery-creamy-floral taste. The initial taste is vibrant and fresh- very delicate. There seems to be no base flavours to prop up these ethereal tastes. A flash of grassy-fresh forest peeks in quickly, then out. The aftertaste is a simple bland-cream taste that is left in the mouth. The mouthfeel fills out the mouth with a thin coating.

The third infusion delivers much the same of these very distinct, pure, floral tastes. The floral tastes are strong, something more attributed to a fresh green oolong. There is a slight fruity grapey-muscatel edge to this infusion which develops after the initial taste begins to fade. This grape taste was apparent in the last infusion but much more obvious now. The taste doesn't linger too long before a soft, creamy-bland aftertaste is left in the mouth. The mouthfeel is thin and slightly sticky in the mouth. The qi sensation is very soft and smooth in the body.

The fourth infusion delivers much the same as the third. The high notes only fade just a little here.

The fifth infusion still has the initial taste of floral tastes. These florals seems a touch more perfumey now, heavier floral. When this taste fades there seems to be not much else which to grasp. The qi now starts pressing on the stomach just lightly. The sixth is a nice floral tasting water.

Link to Bret's (Tea Goober) Tasting Notes.

Peace

2013 Cho Tae Yeon (Jukro) Saejak Semi-Wild Certified Organic Hwagae Valley Green Tea

One has been drinking this tea for many years so in many ways Jukro's Saejak acts as a measurement tool. It gives an idea as to how the latest Korean green tea harvest is. Jukro is one of Korea's oldest and most reputable brands of green tea. Unlike every other producer of Korean tea, Jukro never sells its tea in bulk as to ensure freshness and consistency in every box of tea. This tea is available from Sam of Good Green Tea and arrived in a package last week.

Something that is new on the 2013 boxes are the USDA, JAS, and EU certified organic marks and a link to an English site that might make it easier for international orders.

The dry leaves deliver a cool menthol-forest odour with a crisp sweetness underneath.

The first pot is smooth and soft with creamy tastes that have a foresty-barely-woody sweetness. The mouthfeel is full and sensations reach the mid throat coating it in a soft, sticky sensation with even a little saliva generated pooling in the cheeks. A very slight floral odour is present in the aftertaste.

The second infusion is very light with sweet floral tastes coming first followed by foresty-barely-woody aftertastes. These tastes develop a buttery-sugary note which breaks and trails into distant slightly creamy floral notes. The foresty base supports and underlies these sweet, light flavours. The taste is clean and pure. The qi is very very tranquil, sensory information is more vivid, and the mind calm and content. Even minutes later there is a lingery soft-cloudy creamy almost floral sweetness. Mouthfeel and throatfeel are complete with every bit of space coated with a soft, slightly sticky coating.

The third infusion has an initial taste of foresty-woodiness mixed with some barely muted sweet notes. The sweet tastes crest in the mouth and become creamy but still share even space with a pine-wood-foresty taste. The mouthfeel now develops a slight coarser edge. Minutes later a sweet high note skirts over the still present pine forest taste.

The fourth infusion delivers a watery-woody-foresty-sweet-floral initial taste- the flavours have merged together now and are harder to initial separate them. A woody-pine taste lingers while a sweet creamy note skates off into the distance. The mouthfeel still has a slight coarser edge.

The fifth infusion starts with a muddled-foresty-sweet taste now. A distinct sweet-almost-strawberry, barely creamy taste develops then fades. The mouth- and throatfeel are now a touch rubbery, softly sticky, and slightly dry. A tone of distant sweet florals are found on the breath minutes later.

The sixth infusion a watery, foresty, sweet taste much the same as the fifth. It carries a drier, almost scratchy mouthfeel now which signals the end of this tea.

Bret's (Tea Goober) tasting notes.

Peace

First 2013 Korean Teas Are Here!!!

The first Korean teas to arrive in North America come from no other than Sam of Good Green Tea. Until this year, most living in America had to wait until early June to have their pick of the fresh harvest. Last week Sam started offering the famous Jukro Saejak and his small batch sourced ZeDa Saejak for sale on his webpage. He is expecting a shipment of teas from SangKye and Hankook within the next week.

A few weeks ago Gabriel of Jiri Mountain Tea Company was the first English website to offer 2013 Korean tea. At that time he had offered a ujeon and a personally produced wild Jiri Mountain "rock tea". He has since added a saejak picked and traditionally produced by Park Yeong-Ok and Seo Gyeong-Saeng.

Expect posts on some of these teas sometime this week.

Peace

The First 2013 Korean Teas Are Now Available

It has been a cooler winter than average which has been the trend in Korea over the past decade. As a result the Saejak harvest is now underway. Most dealers here in the West don't start getting their Korean teas until after the saejak and then jungjak is picked. English speaking dealers on the ground in Korea however can start offering them immediately. Gabe from the Jiri Mountain Tea Shop has done just that.

The Jiri Mountain Tea Shop was the very first online tea shop to sell the 2013 harvest starting last week. The tea in question is a completely traditionally made first pick ujeon tea from one of the most traditional tea picking areas of Jiri mountain- land on the banks of the Seomjin river. The tea is produced by Lee Deok-Ju whose family has been producing traditional tea from the same area for 40 years.

The Jiri Mountain Tea Shop web site also offers a sample pack of 2013 Jirisan "Wild Korean Rock Tea". It is likely an balhyocha produced in a way similar as this traditionally made tea.

One has just updated the List of English Online Korean Tea Vendors and Their Korean Teas. Watch in the coming weeks as new 2013 teas make their way to these sites.

Peace

2012 Soa Tea Jungjak? Certified Organic Boseong Green tea

Have taken a bit of an unintended break from tea blogging. Things are well but have gotten more busy, lost some spare time in the mornings so the time to drink in ceremony and blog has been lost. Today one enjoys a pot in the late afternoon. It is a sample that was picked up at at the Busan Tea Festival by fellow Korean blogger, Gabe Fife of The Korean Dojang. The sample is by Korean tea producer Soa Tea from the Bosong tea producing area of Korea. One found a wild flower growing in a field near by, struggling against the elements, and thought to pick it- company to enjoy this green tea with...


The small sample packages are opened into the warmed tea pot. They contain dark green-brownish, medium large jungjak grade leaves. The smell given off is of roasted nuts and soft subtle grains. There is just a slight suggestion of almost menthol, more woody-forest odours.

The first infusion is prepared and yields a light, watery, melon, juicy grass taste. A faint goji berry taste finishes in the mouth as well as a slight tree bark taste which is somewhat brackish. The mouthfeel is very soft, like softened mineral water, that safely glides over the tongue. The first cup embraces the stomach but is not harsh to it.

The second infusion has a slight medicinal-menthol taste which lingers in the mouth. There is a menthol, woody-bark taste that comes later with subtle faded choke-cherry notes that pop into the profile. The mouthfeel has a slight sticky consistency which is found mainly on the roof of the mouth and tongue. Minutes later a distinct black licorice taste fills the mouth, dancing on the breath.

The same medicinal-menthol taste lingers on in the third infusion and in every infusion thereafter. It dominates much of the profile and is likely an indication of some oxidization that has took place either from packing and repacking and/or from shipping. Melon-grass notes slip in and out of the profile for a minute or so after swallowing. The fourth infusion is much the same but the mouthfeel is noticeably heavier and slightly sticky/pasty in the mouth. The fifth infusion is much the same, the taste is what ddok cha tastes like after a year or two- still enjoyable.

The next few infusions are much the same but have a lighter-grassy-bark quality to them. The sample of balhyocha of the same tea garden should gives us a better example of what Soa Tea is all about...

Until then...

Peace

2012 "Roasting Sejak" Ssang Kye Semi-wild Jiri Mountian Green Tea

 
First things first... Yes, there is an obvious mis-translation here. The translation of this tea should actually be "Roasted Sejak" not "Roasting Sejak". The name differentiates it from Ssang Kye's other saejak, their "Jaksul Saejak". This is Ssang Kye's premium saejak offering that is all hand picked in late April and undergoes special, traditional, all hand made processing. The traditional processing that this tea undergoes uses oak firewood and mulberry leaves to heat the iron cauldron rather than the much more economical and easier to control gas heat. This tea is finished off with a sandalwood charcoal roasting.

This tea was purchased in an order from Good Green Tea this summer. Sam still has this tea available. Have been drinking it off and on for a few months now- the onset of cool damp weather has put one off regular green tea consumption. Well, let's see if all this effort produces a superior saejak?

The pale, deep green dry leaves smell of fresh, smooth, almost creamy, minty-forest odours. They are added to the warm pot...

The first infusion is very sweet. Light sprouts and creamy-milky-foresty tastes appear with deeper forest taste lingering underneath The aftertaste is very sweet, light, soft vegital-celery taste. The mouthfeel is light velvet and slippery and is felt mainly at the back of the mouth and into the throat. It is not that present in the front half of the mouth.

The second infusion starts once again very sweet, light, creamy-forest. It ends with creamy floral notes and almost unnoticeable dry wood notes lingering underneath. It develops into a creamy-chalky, candy-like sweetness in the mouth. The mouthfeel is felt slightly cooling in the mid and upper throat. It now fills out the rest of the mouth with nice stimulation. The qi warms the chest and the heart and makes them light along with the head. The limbs feel of a slight coolness so does the back.

The third infusion starts off with a soft, unassuming, minty-forest taste which turns slightly sweet, barely woody, and very creamy-chalky. It flourishes into a chalky full taste in the mouth and leaves a somewhat long aftertaste. A faint, sweet melon taste lingers in the mouth. The high notes drop a bit in this infusion.

The fourth infusion sees a more wood-forest , barely sweet, minty-cool-melon initial taste. A woody finish becomes more pronounced now. Then it transforms to a slightly cereal note before quickly disappearing into faint roasted barley. The barley stretches into some barely noticeable fruit notes that hide under faint roasted cereal suggestions. The longer the aftertaste the more distinct the melon taste becomes. The qi brings one into a relaxed alertness.

The fifth infusion has sweet, dry, woody-forest initial tastes. These tastes turn slightly chalky then slowly stretch into a taste which has sweet edges of melon that hide under dry wood tastes. The dry wood taste is now predominant throughout the profile of this tea even masking some of the aftertaste. The full mouthfeel becomes dry and stimulates the mouth and offers a slight cooling in the throat still.

The sixth is much the same as the fifth but it is more watery now. Loosing the stronger wood tastes of last infusion, it is much smoother throughout the profile. The mouthfeel has softened and the aftertaste is much more creamy. The seventh is pretty much the same as the sixth, a bit more watery.

Peace