About Us
Tea Trekker is an online and brick-and-mortar source of fresh, premium tea. Tea Trekker teas are hand-selected by co-owners Mary Lou Heiss and Robert J. Heiss for their distinctive flavors and rich aromas. We are proud to support artisan tea makers and tea that represent the best in traditional tea making skills, from the top tea producing regions.
We are also authors and adventurous tea trekkers. Our deep respect for and passionate interest in artisan tea is the reason that we return to East Asia each year to observe, learn, taste and hand-select our premium teas.
Understanding tea is a complex study of how’s and why’s. Tea knowledge is comprised of minutia, lots of it, as well as recognizing the importance of both the large and small differences in each class of tea. Studying tea is a lifelong quest; one cannot learn all there is to know about the styles of tea in a few broad strokes. But happily, gaining an understanding of the details of tea cultivation and manufacture and learning as much as we can on our tea travels is what inspires us to keep learning.
When we visit tea-producing countries we become students to the tea masters that teach us. We return home each time with new knowledge, insights and appreciation for the craft of tea-making that we in turn share with our tea customers and readers.
In 2008 the New York Times tagged us ‘the Professors of Tea.’ We blush at this and like to think of ourselves instead as enthusiastic tea educators. Understanding the various aspects of tea - its growth, manufacture, and methods of preparation - and sharing what we have observed through words and pictures with our readers and one on one conversation with customers gives us great joy.
Together and individually, we present professional and vocational seminars and classes on tea culture and history, and lead group tea tasting workshops. In store we conduct Master Classes in Tea..
Please sign up for our e-newsletter for announcements of tea events and classes. And subscribe to Tea Trekker's blog, an informative and educational addendum to our website and tea books, which will be delivered directly into your inbox with each new post.
We are co-authors of the following books:
- The Tea Enthusiast's Handbook, A Guide to Enjoying the World’s Best Teas ( March 2010, Ten Speed Press )
- The Story of Tea: A Cultural History and Drinking Guide (October 2007, Ten Speed Press )
nominated in 2008 for a James Beard Foundation Book Award and an IACP Cookbook Award
- Hot Drinks: Cider, Coffee, Tea, Hot Chocolate, Spiced Punch and Spirits ( October 2007, Ten Speed Press)
Mary Lou is the solo author of :
- Green Tea: 50 Hot Drinks, Cool Quenchers, and Sweet and Savory Treats ( April 2006, Harvard Common Press)
