Ketlee Indian wild plant source sheng

Those friends I keep mentioning and I met with Susmit Pratik online not so long ago, hearing about how new tea types and region developments go.  I've received a really interesting looking set of samples since, and this is the first review of those, of an Indian version of sheng.  That's right, sheng, but from wild growing Assamica plants in India.  

before the others joined that session

It's going to be that much further from Yunnan sheng (which is really pu'er) for terroir differences, and especially related to the two versions of Assamica not being at all the same.  Or so hearsay consensus goes.  Genetics studies are something else; it's hard to place how the differences they cite would relate to processed and brewed tea.

I'll just say that it looks dark in the dry form, and get on with tasting.

Review:

first infusion:  a little light, the standard approach, but enough to start on description.  Even light it's clear this is different.  It's not bitter, not really astringent, but a warm dried fruit aspect stands out, which I think might be closest to fig.  Earthiness and warm tones fill in beyond that, including a good bit of mineral.  There's enough bitterness to it that it seems in the general range of sheng but the flavors seem much different.  

Terroir differences often seem to work out like that, that flavor range is what shifts across a tea type made in different places, and then base character beyond that can stay more common.  Bitterness varies by a lot of factors, with tea plant type a main one of those.  I should probably say more along with the impression of the next round. I could unpack the flavor that does come across more, which seems to include some cocoa, but that tends to shift over the first three rounds anyway, and what the tea expresses across a main infusion cycle seems more relevant.

second infusion:  I let this brew for around 15 seconds to get through the early part of the transitions, even though it would've been more optimum to go with 10, at the typical high proportion I tend to use.  Astringency and warm base mineral really come out in this; those will taper back brewed a little lighter.  Bitterness is present but hardly at all in comparison with the level of those other aspects.  

It's hard to describe what I mean by "astringency and warm base mineral."  This tastes a little like water coming out of a rusty iron pipe, but in a good sense.  I think there is more of that pleasant dried fruit and cocoa range beyond that, but the mineral really stands out.  This mouthfeel is really in between what is typical of sheng and some kinds of black tea, along with the flavor tones mapping back to that just as well.  I'm not saying that this is highly oxidized sheng, but I will add more about that.

When you first see this tea you wonder how it can be so dark.  Black tea isn't always that dark, or shu typically isn't, and aged sheng might not get that black after 20 years.  It's almost impossible for a typical sheng version to turn that color in 3 or 4 years time, regardless of storage conditions or starting point.  So what caused it?  I don't know.  It almost can't be high oxidation level; it's too dark even for that, and they must have processed this in a way somewhat similar to sheng.  If the leaves started out a dark purple that could be part of it.  I really don't know; I'll try to ask Susmit.

Then I'm not saying it's not like sheng, or that it's right in between sheng and black tea.  It seems mostly like sheng, but unique.  I wouldn't expect oxidation as an input to lead to this result, or at least not that alone, so I'm not intending to even imply that was it.  More oxidized sheng should lose most bitterness, and pick up sweetness, and maybe warm in tone a little, but not shift into black tea character range at all.  It would have to almost be shai hong to get to that point, really in between sheng and lightly oxidized black tea.  I think the next infusion, brewed lightly, will tell more of the story of where this is headed.  I haven't really filled in how much I like it yet, and I'm still placing it, but that should work then too.

brewing to be intense in short infusions (and dark, for young sheng)

third infusion:  the balance comes together brewed properly, and through an early opening up phase.  That fig range fruit is present, and it leans a little towards cocoa.  Warm mineral is really pronounced but in a nicer balance with the rest, not dominant.  Bitterness is essentially as strong a factor as the mineral in this, not how sheng usually goes, with mineral more of a supporting base tone.  And that's pretty much it.  The astringency / feel is novel, a little heavy and structured, seemingly tied to the warm mineral tone.  Something about the way it covers your whole mouth, towards the front as much as anything, feels like a black tea effect as much as sheng, but maybe I'm stretching interpretation a bit in saying that.

I like it.  Novelty as an input is hard to place.  I like novelty, so that makes this experience positive for me, but for others it could be off-putting.  If it was supposed to be identical to Yunnan sheng it didn't work.  Given plenty of allowance for terroir and plant type input difference, which I think one should expect to make the tea different, it's just as it should be, still sheng, but a unique version of it.  Not "sheng pu'er" for the OCD purist language users out there, since it's not from Yunnan, but to me it's still sheng, "raw [something-similar]."

fourth infusion:  more of the same, maybe evolving to a slightly smoother range, or the flavor could be picking up some depth.  It's interesting considering what else what I've described as warm mineral might seem like to someone.  It could be interpreted as a towards-inky spice range, or just ink, I guess.  It's not completely unlike fruit, just way into a deep and rich dried fruit range.  Fig is close enough, but it's heavier, warmer, and sharper.  It's like that one warm catchy flavor in apple cider, but then many times over more intense, until it comes across differently.  

It's hard to notice but sweetness is making this unusual balance work.  Since it's not pronounced it's easy to miss, but drop that out and it wouldn't be the same.  Adding just a little sourness might make it much harder to relate to as well; it's not sour.  I suppose it could be interpreted as quite sour, but I don't parse interpreted flavor experience that way.  I've stopped including cocoa / cacao in the description here because it's heavier into mineral flavor, or as I've been going on about something at least related, like a very warm bark spice.

fifth infusion:  I see it as still improving.  Bitterness has eased up, and astringency and the heavy mineral, leaving space for the other pleasant range to shine through.  I think bitterness, astringency, and warm mineral had worked in this before in earlier infusions, but balanced more evenly with fruit it's even better.  The fruit is close enough to dried Chinese date, jujube, which--unless I'm getting those wrong, which is possible--come in different varieties, with this more like the sweet version that's close to date than a more sour version.

Feel and aftertaste balance a little better too.  It's coating more of my mouth than seeming sharper in limited range, and warm and pleasant aftertaste persists better.  It's nothing like that bitterness turning to sweetness, or focus on the rear of the throat, so judged against a standard sheng pu'er expectation it might not seem a close match.

sixth infusion:  catchier yet; this might have a few nice rounds of change ahead.  I'll describe it more at 7 and probably not list out 5 or 6 more rounds of notes.

seventh infusion:  this seems to be leveling off; it's still pleasant but the catchiest range might be thinning a little.  Some of the mineral and astringency form seems to be drifting towards normal sheng range, towards a green wood flavor and feel, versus that very heavier mineral.  Since I'm not really one for explaining late round infusions in the same detail, and tasting for over an hour isn't in my schedule, I'll probably leave it at that.

Conclusions:

Definitely different!  I really liked it, but it was hard to place if that related mostly to novelty or if it would seem even better once I adjusted to it more (or both, I guess).  I think results could be even better with brewing adjusted to try it even lighter.  I do adjust infusion time and strength round to round but I suspect that this particular tea might be good brewed very lightly.

I talked to Susmit, the vendor, about why this tea is so dark, and he thought it had to be mostly related to the novel plant type.  That's really the only interpretation that makes sense, since this could be a bit more oxidized than typical sheng, but it still shouldn't be this dark, and the level of oxidation that would account for color and character difference should've dropped out the bitterness that still was present.  It's just something different, related to plant type, terroir, and whatever else.

To reference Ketlee's description, I'm not sure which sheng version this was, and they have a few.  I originally guessed it was their 2019 autumn version but it turned out to be their spring 2020 version, so this is revised:

2020 spring cake:  

The dry leaf smells sweet with notes of honey and almond desserts dominating it. The wet leaves after the wash have aroma of red berries and Indian gooseberry. The first infusion is of pale yellow colour and has notes of black grapes and walnuts. From the second infusion you start getting notes of ripe red berries, black raisin and a woody dryness on the finish. The woody character is more apparent in the third infusion with a stark cedarwood note which is minty as well as woody. The fourth infusion has a bit of spice, specifically cloves. These spice notes are present in all our wild teas and there is no doubt about the fact that they present themselves wildly different in different teas. The fourth infusion is also thicker in texture and you can notice that the leaves have opened themselves for a complete infusion. 

As you go further into your gongfu session, you are greeted with various sweet and fruity notes like ripe plum, honeysuckle, raisins and honey. The woody notes are also better explored in later steeps with interesting woody notes such as sandalwood, cedarwood and even agarwood which develops into a lot more intense version of itself with an year of age!

That's about as close as vendor descriptions tend to ever get to what I write, which would always vary some related to varying interpretations of aspects.  Brewing it a little lighter might make it easy to pick up fruit aspects, and would moderate astringency, which was at a good level as I experienced it.  

Readers here would be familiar with how to relate to brewing instructions, but I should mention how I interpret their brewing guidance (which I didn't even check prior to preparing it; I just don't):

Steeping Time : 3 minutes western style, 20 seconds gongfu style adding 10 seconds every subsequent steep

Leaf Quantity: Treat it as a classic Indian tea, 3 gms per 120 ml for gongfu and 5 grams for 400 ml western style

Recommended Steeping Temperature : 90-95°C

Recommended Steeping Method : Gongfu style

Those last two lines work; I wouldn't expect this to give as good results brewed Western style, and using water a bit off boiling point temperature is probably fine (which a lot of tea drinkers have almost have philosophical differences in opinion about).  It goes without saying but brewing this for one infusion only Western style would be madness; this is a really durable tea, as any variation of sheng always is.  

Using 3 grams for 120 ml for a Gongfu approach is probably on the order of half the proportion I use, but I take it that the difference can be adjusted back out in changing infusion time.  I tend to use around 10 second infusion times, adjusted in relation to how the prior round went, in some cases shorter.

I can never relate to those staggered progressions (add 10 seconds a steep), since the tea won't change intensity that fast.  A 20, 30, and 40 second cycle of three rounds wouldn't be so different than brewing double that tea to water proportion for 6 infusions, but doubling infusion time over the first 5 and 6 rounds isn't how that normally works, even for teas that are less durable than this one, that "brew out" faster.  Anyway, it's easy to adjust timing based on the last round, regardless of whether you are trying to follow a vendor's guidelines or just winging it.

Related to price this works out to 32 cents a gram (at full cake price; the 2019 version had been 25 cents a gram in the first write-up version).  Since there are no other examples of this kind of tea there is also no market price.  That seems fair, for as novel and pleasant as this tea is, and in relation to that not being atypical of Yunnan sheng pricing range, maybe just high in relation to the range of most Indian teas.  That would work out to over $115 or so a cake (a standard 357 gram version).  That would've come as a shock to me a few years ago, but that's in the general range of what vendors charge for good quality sheng pu'er versions now [a statement that worked better for the $90 range for the other 2019 version; over $100 is a bit high for upper medium quality Yunnan sheng].  

That general pricing shift for sheng seems more fair if you consider that the range of "good quality" probably is different than teas offered a half dozen years ago.  The range of versions offered shifts over time, and demand increasing pushes that pricing up too, so in the end it just is what it is.  

Meeting Susmit and Maddhurjya, Ketlee vendor and Assam tea farmer

 

Back to India for a meetup series, a sort of exercise in networking and idea sharing.  This was interesting for combining a vendor and producer perspective.  A vendor who sells tea directly is both (Maddhurjya does, but he mostly sells wholesale to other outlets), but they are really different things.  Per usual I'll go through what we covered that stood out to me, but not really summarize everything.  A short bio introduces both people who joined first (with Ralph, Suzana, and Huyen also hosting as usual).

Susmit:  founder of Ketlee tea, an online vendor based in India, selling unique Indian teas.  These include an Indian version of sheng, which is particularly unique, and also smoked teas, Indian oolongs, and other range.

Maddhurjya:  Assam tea farmer and producer.  I've met Maddhurjya visiting here in Bangkok, so I've already written about him (in an interview post about development issues, beyond the reviews).  He is trying out new processing methods and equipment, based on traveling and training in China and Taiwan, and importing tea processing equipment.  The main sub-themes seem standard enough now but they are still quite timely and important, developing a small producer based alternative to larger scale tea production, and moving towards organic, whole-leaf, higher quality tea production. 

Maddhurjya is beside me in blue, beside Kittichai, the Jip Eu shop owner

capture with cats

Susmit and Indian sheng development

Before most others joined Ralph, Susmit, and I talked for a half hour about Ketlee's sheng, about how it is, and how development of a type new to India worked out.  As far as he knew sheng--not "pu'er," according to most, but the same type, just without the name that's reserved for Chinese versions--was never produced in India, and I'm not aware of it existing elsewhere either.  We discussed how Singpo falap might be similar, ending on agreeing that it's not the same at all.  I've tried only one version and it was good though, and not so different than a bamboo sheng version from Yunnan (not that everyone would use that type description there), and really not so far off sheng style, even though processing isn't the same.

what it looks like, photo credit the Ketlee site

To summarize, the version Susmit sells is from wild, old-plant sources, plants for which he couldn't identify a clear history.  And he sells other wild origin Manipur material teas, and Indian region versions that aren't so common, from Sikkim and elsewhere.  Good accounts and records go back 250 years or so but the plants were almost certainly there before that.  With better dating attempts some of the living plants there might be older than that; kind of an odd way to revise a limited historical account.

As to that tea version character he said that it's not bitter like Yunnan sheng (maybe just a little?), different in aspect character.  That comes up for wild teas even in Yunnan, and also for variations in South East Asia (a recurring theme in this blog; I've written about that at least a dozen times).  Beyond that we didn't get far for a review flavor list description, or speculation about aging potential, the kinds of issues people would experience by trying the tea.  He did mention how processing development worked out, that making "dragonballs" had been breaking up leaf material so they switched to small cakes.  And producers needed to iron out other processing details along the way, like processing the tea leaves fast enough to limit natural oxidation.

It really makes you wonder how it will age, doesn't it?

A venture in producing and selling local versions of specialty teaware is interesting, especially for including gaiwans.  These are porous clay versions, raising a conditioning issue (some people would use only one tea type per device related to that form), but it's a smoothed finish porous version, so I don't know how that interrelates.  Helping develop a new teaware tradition is a good match with exploring new tea types.

Indian and foreign demand for higher quality--and more expensive--teas

This was a really interesting theme, how ramping up awareness goes.  It's bit by bit, according to Susmit (and Maddhurjya, to some extent, but his less direct consumer exposure narrows experience down to one producer's sales case).  Within India it's developing; that's something I have relatively little feel for, even though I hear a little about how that goes about every other week.  From the sound of it his business being viable at this early stage also depends on foreign sales and demand, since few Indians are open to changing tea types and consumption habits.  But the process has started.

2019 versions of Maddhurjya's tea, or maybe that was 2018

We discussed how to develop that, drawing on examples of other cultures where it either moved faster or was also slow to take.  Susmit's impression is that physical shop infrastructure in countries like Russia--the Moychay case I keep writing about--enables them to support customer tasting, or events, and facilitates learning about brewing and gear.  Selling tea online he can just post descriptions or images, or discuss themes in groups, which only goes so far.  That make perfect sense, and matches my experience, that discussion and posted content can only have a limited reach or impact compared to helping people prepare and try tea.  I've tried to support the same function in holding local tasting events, even setting up a Bangkok based Facebook group for that, but it was inactive even before the 2020 pandemic shut down social gatherings.

Ralph shared how in Germany there are layers to tea interest, vending source scope, and types demand, which is how that would more or less go everywhere, just mapped out differently.  Here in Thailand there are specialty tea enthusiasts, but so few that businesses based around catering to demand are slow to develop.  Outside of Chinatown I'm familiar with two higher end specialty tea vending businesses, with two other exceptions, Peace Oriental (a chain now relying on pre-made blends sales) and Monsoon (a long story; a Thai tea producer making something novel, mostly blends and also wild-origin tea, so it overlaps).  

There are other mall shops, or booths, so maybe we're not running so far behind other places outside China, Taiwan, and Japan.  That one level of German small vendors selling familiar high quality teas (Wuyi Yancha, sheng pu'er, Taiwanese oolongs, etc.) is probably much smaller in scale than the first levels of more mainstream outlets, just perhaps more developed there than here.

Assam tea production issues

I won't do justice to conveying everything Maddhurjya shared, but I'll mention some highlights.  He makes high quality whole-leaf tea, versions of which I've reviewed here, but it's been a couple of years since I've tried them.  He says that he's still adjusting technique and improving them, which I don't doubt, but they were already pretty good then.  That approach is a somewhat small movement in Assam but other producers and vendors have also been headed in that direction.  The awareness and demand side trails that direction, it seems, so that producers also need to develop foreign sales channels to make the business viable (so the same issue for producer level and direct retail sale level).

Related to production, needing to use the same types of equipment foreign tea producers do has been a limitation in the past, rolling or drying machines and such.  To some extent more hand made tea is potentially better, but it's not practical to make tea completely by hand at significant scale (even low volume compared to main plantations), and for some steps results are better from machine processing.  This Farmerleaf reference on processing Taiwanese style oolong adds detail to that.  Maddhurjya encountered significant personal expense in traveling to places like China and Taiwan to study production methods, and to import equipment, and per his account he's not quite to the point to where established volume of production and sales covers that earlier expense.

This is a good place to clarify a broader point: developing a brand new range of tea products is cost intensive.  Kenneth of Monsoon Tea has discussed this with me in the past (the Thai wild tea producer that I mentioned).  Years of exploration and work can precede profitable product development.  It seems this must skew the early supply and demand factors relating to cost of those new-form teas.  Market rates are going to limit what they can be sold for, unless teas are so novel that there is no established market rates, and even then demand patterns have to match up for sales to occur.  

I'm not necessarily saying that Ketlee sheng and Maddhurjya's teas are more expensive now than they will be once ramped-up production covers initial investment and overhead better; demand will shift and increase along with supply-side cost issues leveling out.  I'm just pointing out that if a tea seems a bit pricey that doesn't necessarily mean that a producer or vendor is making a significant profit on it, at least initially.  Or maybe any profit at all, depending on those early expenses.  

To tie all this back to basic economics, as any given producer or vendor gets initial expenses sorted out pressure from market entry from other sources should moderate market rates and set prices for the related goods.  Other factors can disrupt that.  A spike in demand, for any reason, could support keeping prices high, and entry of a large supply of products identified as comparable could drop market rates, potentially making sustainable business difficult.  In an odd twist specialty tea sold as high cost versions can sometimes imply the product quality is high, shifting demand pattern positively just by raising pricing.  I guess that part is marketing, not economics.

We also discussed organic production issues.  It's problematic that certifications can really mean less in places like India and Thailand; testing steps can be avoided, replaced by personal payments.  Maddhurjya knows that he isn't putting chemicals on his teas (pesticides, at least; we didn't discuss fertilization), but for having large plantations located around his farm that doesn't necessarily mean he could pass the most strict forms of testing, due to incidental contact with sprayed compounds applied nearby.  For real forest grown tea the issue more or less drops out; it wouldn't be practical to apply pesticides to plants already growing in a stable and natural local ecosystem.  Per discussing testing with Jan in the Netherlands awhile back completely naturally grown tea may not be completely clear of any tested compounds risk, since some natural compounds can be identified as posing a health risk, and levels of those may vary still based in natural growing conditions.

Maddhurjya cleared up some points in later discussion, about how they stopped using any chemical pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers since 2002 on their farm.  It originated with a practical concern, his family putting any available funds toward his father's medical care when he had cancer, and education expenses.  Then later that negative turned into a positive, since they learned exactly what the trade-off would be in terms of production impact, and moved on to supporting organic and limited input growth related to potential health impact concerns instead.

Maddhurjya also mentioned that he is developing limited direct sales, just not on the scale or form of setting up a webpage, or exploring in-person channels, opening a shop or attending markets.  At first demand for higher priced tea versions had been a significant limitation, he said, but the relation to other forms of food expenses and potential for a different form of tea experience has opened some people up to the experience of orthodox specialty tea, even at significantly higher costs than for CTC tea versions.

Next steps, future direction

Maddhurjya is helping other local farmers develop their processing capabilities, both in relation to processing steps and equipment use.  At least some; we didn't discuss details, but seemingly in the sense of limited knowledge sharing versus co-op development.  He's focusing on making narrower plant-type input tea versions related to his own production, tying to previous mention that the plant types his farm had already been growing were mixed.  He mentioned potential for new areas of wild tea development; it's not limited to where it is already known and in limited use.

Susmit is really at the cutting edge of sourcing unusual types and new source area products (new to some markets; local teas have been around in India), so his business model is already about new directions.  To the extent possible, increased Indian awareness of other tea range and demand will support further developments.  The sheng is already somewhat well received, but per his account demand in places like the US and Singapore leads demand from other places, with that balance related to India not so clearly narrowed down in this discussion, to be clear.

In discussing these things, and pricing issues, and comparing that to my own preferences and buying habits, it makes me consider to what extent specialty tea is a luxury good, and what that means.  I've posted in an online group about specialty tea types recently and met with comment about how the cost is really high in comparison with tea-bag tea.  For the average person, maybe even in the US, this could be a factor.  

A tea bag can sell for significantly less than 5 cents, and moderate quality loose tea might cost 20 cents a gram, with someone often brewing 3-5 grams per session (with 5 grams producing several cups worth of tea).  $1 for two large mugs of high quality tea (or a dozen tiny cups) seems pretty good to me, but it's not as if this is a limit. 50 cents to $1 per gram really represents the higher end cost of higher quality teas, and it keeps going from there.

Where am I going with this?  None of those numbers is quite to the level of a $20 bottle of wine, or even $10, but it's worth keeping an eye on to what extent people may not have access to this form of interest.  It seems possible that perception is as much a concern as the actual cost.  

Susmit mentioned that with higher end coffee appreciation the equipment costs can really add up, specialized grinders or espresso machines, or even the more basic pour over devices.  In some online tea groups there is a natural acceptance that to really have the full experience you need to buy a tea tray, several $100 or more clay pots, a number of cool looking cups, and so on from there, onto using charcoal to heat a cast iron pot.  You really don't need all that (no offense intended, to people on that page), only a way to boil water and a $10 porcelain gaiwan, which I buy for less that that in the local Chinatown.  But a shared group acceptance that you should own it all is potentially enough to set it as an implied requirement to play a normal role in that specific subculture.  You might need some handmade natural fabric clothes too, later on.

I doubt that cost is main concern.  A lot of people might need a more direct motivation to explore a beverage range, and accept the costs, beyond "it tastes better."  It has to be a relevant part of a culture, or at least regarded as a somewhat mainstream option.  Once it enters personal experience scope, once someone sits down and tries better quality tea, that could become less relevant.  Then specific starting points for types become important, and introductory gear issues, brewing approach, and so on.