Darjeeling tea is a
tea
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and northe ...
made from ''
Camellia sinensis
''Camellia sinensis'' is a species of evergreen shrub or small tree in the flowering plant family Theaceae. Its leaves and leaf buds are used to produce the popular beverage, tea. Common names include tea plant, tea shrub, and tea tree (not to ...
var. sinensis'' that is grown and processed in
Darjeeling
Darjeeling (, , ) is a town and municipality in the northernmost region of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located in the Eastern Himalayas, it has an average elevation of . To the west of Darjeeling lies the easternmost province of Nepal, ...
or
Kalimpong District
Kalimpong district is a district in the state of West Bengal, India. Originally known as Dalingkot tehsil, the region was alternatively under the control of Sikkim and Bhutan. In 1865, it was annexed from Bhutan by British India under the Treaty ...
s in
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. Since 2004, the term ''Darjeeling tea'' has been a
registered geographical indication
A geographical indication (GI) is a name or sign used on products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin (e.g., a town, region, or country). The use of a geographical indication, as an indication of the product's source, ...
referring to products produced on certain estates within Darjeeling and Kalimpong. The tea leaves are processed as
black tea
Black tea, also translated to red tea in various East Asian languages, is a type of tea that is more oxidized than oolong, yellow, white and green teas. Black tea is generally stronger in flavour than other teas. All five types are made from ...
, though some estates have expanded their product offerings to include leaves suitable for making
green
Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 Nanometre, nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by ...
,
white
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
and
oolong
Oolong (, ; (''wūlóngchá'', "dark dragon" tea)) is a traditional semi-oxidized Chinese tea ('' Camellia sinensis)'' produced through a process including withering the plant under strong sun and oxidation before curling and twisting.Zhonggu ...
teas.
The tea leaves are harvested by plucking the plant's top two leaves and the bud, from March to November, a time span that is divided into four flushes. The first flush consists of the first few leaves grown after the plant's winter dormancy and produce a light floral tea with a slight
astringency
An astringent (sometimes called adstringent) is a chemical that shrinks or constricts body tissues. The word derives from the Latin ''adstringere'', which means "to bind fast". Calamine lotion, witch hazel, and yerba mansa, a Californian plant ...
; this flush is also suitable for producing a white tea. Second flush leaves are harvested after the plant has been attacked by a
leafhopper
A leafhopper is the common name for any species from the family Cicadellidae. These minute insects, colloquially known as hoppers, are plant feeders that suck plant sap from grass, shrubs, or trees. Their hind legs are modified for jumping, and a ...
and the
camellia tortrix so that the leaves create a tea with a distinctive
muscatel
Muscatel ( ) is a type of wine made from muscat grapes. The term is now normally used in the United States to refer to a fortified wine made from these grapes rather than just any wine made from these grapes. This fortified muscatel became pop ...
aroma. The warm and wet weather of monsoon flush rapidly produces leaves but they are less flavorful and often used for
blending. The autumn flush produces teas similar, but more muted, to the second flush.
Tea plants were first planted in the Darjeeling region in the mid-1800s. At the time, the British were seeking an alternative supply of tea apart from China and attempted growing the plant in several candidate areas in India. Both the newly discovered ''assamica'' variety and the ''sinensis'' variety were planted but the sloped drainage, cool winters and cloud cover favoured ''var. sinensis''. The British established numerous tea plantations, with the majority of workers being
Gorkhas
The Gurkhas or Gorkhas (), with endonym Gorkhali ), are soldiers native to the Indian subcontinent, Indian Subcontinent, chiefly residing within Nepal and some parts of Northeast India.
The Gurkha units are composed of Nepalis and Indian Go ...
and
Lepchas from
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
and
Sikkim
Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Province No. 1 of Nepal in the west and West Bengal in the south. Sikkim is also close to the Siligur ...
. After
independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
, the estates were all subsequently sold to businesses in India and regulated under the
laws of India. The
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
replaced the British as the primary consumers of tea from Darjeeling. As Darjeeling tea gained a reputation for its distinctiveness and quality, it was marketed more to Western Europe with many estates acquiring
organic
Organic may refer to:
* Organic, of or relating to an organism, a living entity
* Organic, of or relating to an anatomical organ
Chemistry
* Organic matter, matter that has come from a once-living organism, is capable of decay or is the product ...
,
biodynamic and
Fairtrade
A fair trade certification is a product certification within the market-based movement fair trade. The most widely used fair trade certification is FLO International's, the International Fairtrade Certification Mark, used in Europe, Africa, As ...
certifications and the
Tea Board of India
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of ''Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and norther ...
pursuing authentication and international promotion of Darjeeling teas.
History
''
Camellia sinensis
''Camellia sinensis'' is a species of evergreen shrub or small tree in the flowering plant family Theaceae. Its leaves and leaf buds are used to produce the popular beverage, tea. Common names include tea plant, tea shrub, and tea tree (not to ...
'' was first planted in the Darjeeling area in 1841 by
Archibald Campbell Archibald Campbell may refer to:
Peerage
* Archibald Campbell of Lochawe (died before 1394), Scottish peer
* Archibald Campbell, 2nd Earl of Argyll (died 1513), Lord Chancellor of Scotland
* Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll (c. 1507–1558) ...
who was working for the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
in this jungle-covered, sparsely-populated area to develop a
hill station
A hill station is a town located at a higher elevation than the nearby plain or valley. The term was used mostly in colonial Asia (particularly in India), but also in Africa (albeit rarely), for towns founded by European colonialists as refuges ...
for use by the British stationed in
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
. At the time, the British were seeking a source of tea outside of China and had both recently discovered a second variety of the plant growing in the
wilderness
Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...
of
Assam
Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...
and smuggled seeds and plantings out of China. The Chinese variety (''sinensis'') was planted in
Saharanpur Botanical Gardens and propagated in other Himalayan gardens where Campbell had acquired seeds from
Kumaun via
Nathaniel Wallich
Nathaniel Wolff Wallich FRS FRSE (28 January 1786 – 28 April 1854) was a surgeon and botanist of Danish origin who worked in India, initially in the Danish settlement near Calcutta and later for the Danish East India Company and the British ...
. While the original plantings succeeded, Campbell moved to
Lebong
Lebong is a valley about below Darjeeling town, West Bengal, India. It is about 8 km from the Mall, the central location of Darjeeling. The valley is noted for its race course. The Lebong race course is visible from the town of Darjeeling. ...
where he and several other residents planted a new batch, in 1846, of both varieties (''sinensis'' and ''assamica'').
A year after planting the first three Company experimental tea gardens in 1852, at Tukvar, Steinthal and Alubari, they reported having 2,000 tea plants and
Robert Fortune
Robert Fortune (16 September 1812 – 13 April 1880) was a Scottish botanist, plant hunter and traveller, best known for introducing around 250 new ornamental plants, mainly from China, but also Japan, into the gardens of Britain, Australia, a ...
was sent to provide an expert opinion on the "suitableness of the climate and soil of the Hills for the cultivation and manufacture of Tea".
While both varieties grew, the ''sinensis'' variety was flourishing, as it was found ''assamica'' preferred warmer and wetter growing conditions while ''sinensis'' had been selectively cultivated for higher elevations. The first commercial tea gardens were established in 1856 and by 1866 there were 39 tea gardens in Darjeeling, including the
Makaibari Tea Estate
Makaibari Tea Estate is a tea garden in the Kurseong CD block in the Kurseong subdivision of the Darjeeling district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Etymology
Makaibari literally means 'corn field'.
History
Makaibari Tea Estate, founded in ...
which had established the region's first processing factory for withering and oxidation, necessary for the product to survive the months long journey down to Kolkata and over to Britain. Success of ''assamica'' at the nearby
Dooars-Terai tea gardens led to infrastructure investments that would be extend up the
Darjeeling Himalayan hill region
Darjeeling Himalayan hill region or Darjeeling Himalaya is the mountainous area on the north-western side of the state of West Bengal in India. This region belongs to the Eastern Himalaya range. The Darjeeling district except the Siliguri subdiv ...
, allowing more machinery and supplies to reach the tea gardens.
Darjeeling's population had grown from less than a 100 in the 1830s to 95,000 people with 100 tea gardens in 1885, predominantly
Indian Gorkha
Indian Gorkhas also known as Nepali Indians, are Nepali language-speaking Indians. The modern term "Indian Gorkha" is used to differentiate the ethnic Gorkhas from Nepalis.
Indian Gorkhas are citizens of India as per the gazette notificatio ...
and
Lepcha migrants from Nepal and
Sikkim
Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Province No. 1 of Nepal in the west and West Bengal in the south. Sikkim is also close to the Siligur ...
, as the
Darjeeling Himalayan Railway
The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, also known as the DHR or the Toy Train, is a narrow-gauge, gauge railway that runs between New Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling in the Indian state of West Bengal. Built between 1879 and 1881, it is about long. It c ...
, the use of
steamship
A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...
s and the
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popular ...
reduced shipping times.
![Bringing in the tea leaf, Darjeeling, 1890](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/Bringing_in_the_tea_leaf%2C_Darjeeling%2C_1890.jpg)
After the British nationalized the East India Company it only ever leased the lands to tea garden owners on 30 year basis and maintained the practice of only permitting 40% to be used for tea crops with 40% being left natural and 20% for housing and facilities. Following
Indian independence in 1947, practices shifted as British began to sell their stakes in the gardens to Indians and the 1953 ''Tea Act'' put the tea industry under the regulatory jurisdiction of the
Tea Board of India
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of ''Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and norther ...
. With more area being opened for tea crops at the expense of natural area and the introduction of pesticides and fertilizers, yields increased from 7.8 to 10 million kilograms between 1950 and 1960, though this came at the cost of increased soil instability. Despite a limited exemption for the tea industry the 1973 ''
Foreign Exchange Regulations Act'' the new foreign ownership limitations resulted in Indian nationals becoming majority owners of the Darjeeling tea industry. As the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
replaced the United Kingdom as India's largest tea customers, Darjeeling gardens were supplemented with ''assamica'' plantings to accommodate their preference for that variety.
Production methods again shifted in the 1990s as Western Europe and Japan replaced the collapsed Soviet Union as Darjeeling's principal customers and new garden managers were bringing the principles of
biodynamic agriculture
Biodynamic agriculture is a form of alternative agriculture based on pseudo-scientific and esoteric concepts initially developed in 1924 by Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925). It was the first of the organic farming movements. It treats soil fertility, ...
to their practices. In 1988,
Makaibari
Makaibari is a village development committee in Dolakha District in the Janakpur Zone of north-eastern Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census
The 1991 Nepal census was a widespread national census conducted by the Nepal Central Bureau of ...
became the first tea estate in India to attain
organic certification
Organic certification is a certification process for producers of organic food and other organic agricultural products, in the European Union more commonly known as ecological or biological products.Labelling, article 30 o''Regulation (EU) 201 ...
, followed by
Tumsong, and the first to gain
biodynamic certification, in 1993, followed by
Ambootia
Ambootia or ''Ambootay'' is a tea estate village in the Kurseong CD block in the Kurseong subdivision of the Darjeeling district in the state of West Bengal in India.
Geography
Location
Geo-location .
Ambootia is situated below Kurseong in the ...
.
Darjeeling could not compete with other tea regions in terms of quantity or price (due to its geographic limitations, remoteness, slower plant growth, inability to mechanize, among other factors) or so it focused on
quality
Quality may refer to:
Concepts
*Quality (business), the ''non-inferiority'' or ''superiority'' of something
*Quality (philosophy), an attribute or a property
*Quality (physics), in response theory
*Energy quality, used in various science discipli ...
. While the certifications provided an indication of a superior product, its practices also helped the gardens cope with erosion, slope instability and soil depletion that had become prevalent with pesticide and artificial fertilizer applications on the rainy hillsides. Yields had reached 14 million kilograms in 1994 but, with organic practices over much of the tea gardens, yields fell to an average of 9 million kilograms in the late-2010s. In pursuit of differentiating Darjeeling tea, the Darjeeling Planter's Association had been established in 1983, to promote the product in other countries.ccording to estimate by
Tea Board of India
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of ''Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and norther ...
, of Darjeeling tea was produced in 2021; this constitutes about 0.005% of total produced in India.
Logo and trade mark
In 1983 a logo was created, currently property of the
Tea Board of India
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of ''Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and norther ...
, consisting of the side profile of a woman holding two leaves and a bud. It is registered as a certification trade mark in the UK, USA, Australia and Taiwan, as a
collective trade mark
A collective trademark, collective trade mark, or collective mark is a trademark owned by an organization (such as an association), used by its members to identify themselves with a level of quality or accuracy, geographical origin, or other charac ...
in the EU and registered internationally in the
Madrid system. In 2000, the Tea Board created new licensing requirements for Darjeeling tea exporters, including product authentication and a prohibition on blending, which allowed them to issue
certificates of origin
A Certificate of Origin or Declaration of Origin (often abbreviated to C/O, CO or DOO) is a document widely used in international trade transactions which attests that the product listed therein has met certain criteria to be considered as origina ...
. In 2004, Darjeeling tea became
India's first product to receive legal
geographical indication
A geographical indication (GI) is a name or sign used on products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin (e.g., a town, region, or country). The use of a geographical indication, as an indication of the product's source, ...
protection under the World Trade Organization's
TRIPS Agreement
The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) is an international legal agreement between all the member nations of the World Trade Organization (WTO). It establishes minimum standards for the regulation by nat ...
and in 2011 it was given Protected Geographical Indication status in the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
.
Terroir
Environmental factors combined with a history of organized cultivation and processing has created a
terroir
(, ; from ''terre'', "land") is a French term used to describe the environmental factors that affect a crop's phenotype, including unique environment contexts, farming practices and a crop's specific growth habitat. Collectively, these conte ...
unique to Darjeeling tea. It has been marketed as the "Champagne of teas"
and been subject to undisclosed blending with other teas or purposeful mis-labelling.
Relative to other teas, Darjeeling tea is most similar to
Nepali tea
Nepali tea is a beverage made from the leaves of tea plants (''Camellia sinensis'') grown in Nepal. They are distinctive in appearance, aroma and taste, but are similar in many ways to tea produced in Darjeeling tea, perhaps because the eastern ...
.
Geography and climate
![Darjeeling Tea Plantation, India](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/Darjeeling_Tea_Plantation%2C_India.jpg)
Darjeeling tea is grown in the
Darjeeling
Darjeeling (, , ) is a town and municipality in the northernmost region of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located in the Eastern Himalayas, it has an average elevation of . To the west of Darjeeling lies the easternmost province of Nepal, ...
and
Kalimpong district
Kalimpong district is a district in the state of West Bengal, India. Originally known as Dalingkot tehsil, the region was alternatively under the control of Sikkim and Bhutan. In 1865, it was annexed from Bhutan by British India under the Treaty ...
s, an area bound by
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
to the west,
Bhutan
Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...
to the east and
Sikkim
Sikkim (; ) is a state in Northeastern India. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China in the north and northeast, Bhutan in the east, Province No. 1 of Nepal in the west and West Bengal in the south. Sikkim is also close to the Siligur ...
to the north. The
Tea Board of India
Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of ''Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and norther ...
defines "Darjeeling Tea" as having "been cultivated, grown, produced, manufactured and processed in tea gardens in the hilly areas of
Sadar Subdivision, only hilly areas of
Kalimpong District
Kalimpong district is a district in the state of West Bengal, India. Originally known as Dalingkot tehsil, the region was alternatively under the control of Sikkim and Bhutan. In 1865, it was annexed from Bhutan by British India under the Treaty ...
..., and
Kurseong subdivision
Kurseong subdivision is a subdivision of the Darjeeling district in the state of West Bengal, India.
Subdivisions
Darjeeling district is divided into the following administrative subdivisions:
Police stations
Police stations in the Kurseon ...
...of the
District of Darjeeling in the State of
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...
, India." The tea gardens are located on the hillsides of the
Eastern Himalaya
]
The Eastern Himalayas extend from eastern Nepal across Northeast India, Bhutan, the Tibet Autonomous Region to Yunnan in China and northern Myanmar. The climate of this region is influenced by the monsoon of South Asia from June to September. It ...
, between 600 and 2,000 metres in elevation. That
Geography of West Bengal, physical geography of the
Darjeeling Himalayan hill region
Darjeeling Himalayan hill region or Darjeeling Himalaya is the mountainous area on the north-western side of the state of West Bengal in India. This region belongs to the Eastern Himalaya range. The Darjeeling district except the Siliguri subdiv ...
, between the
Himalayas
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...
and the
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean, bounded on the west and northwest by India, on the north by Bangladesh, and on the east by Myanmar and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India. Its southern limit is a line between ...
, results in the land experiencing cool air with dry winter months from November to February followed by
monsoon
A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscil ...
weather in the summer months between July and September. The
subtropical
The subtropical zones or subtropics are geographical zone, geographical and Köppen climate classification, climate zones to the Northern Hemisphere, north and Southern Hemisphere, south of the tropics. Geographically part of the Geographical z ...
and
wet temperate forest cover that developed under these conditions left slightly acidic loamy soils with high organic materials. Being on steep slopes, the soil is well-drained and deep enough for long root systems, necessary for anchoring soil on slopes. Being on the sides of the hills, at high elevations where cool dry air interacts with warm moist air, there can be persistent fog or cloud cover during the growing months. These are ideal conditions for the ''Camellia sinensis sinensis'' plant which flourishes with well-drained, slightly acidic soils, with periods of dormancy, and limited direct sunlight.
Cultivation
The ''Camellia sinensis'' seeds originally planted came from China but new plantings come predominantly from saplings taken from a few
cultivar
A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture, ...
s, such as Bannockburn 157, Phoobsering 312 and Ambari Vegetative 2, which have been specifically adapted for Darjeeling.
The climate creates four distinct periods of cultivation, each of which has unique characteristics. The plants are plucked by hand every five to ten days, most typically of their top two leaves and a bud, however, based on growing conditions and desired product just the bud or the bud and top leaf may sometimes be plucked.
The first pluckings in Spring, generally March into May, are referred to as the first flush. These first leaves following the winter dormancy are the most tender leaves the plant will produce and result in a tea that has a gentle, very light colour and aroma, and a mild astringency (or briskness). The second flush is harvested in May and June, after the ''
Empoasca
''Empoasca'' is a genus of leafhoppers belonging to the family Cicadellidae subfamily Typhlocybinae.
Species
* '' Empoasca abrupta'' DeLong, 1931
* '' Empoasca affinis'' Nast, 1937
* '' Empoasca alsiosa'' Ribaut, 1933
* '' Empoasca apicalis'' ( ...
'' and ''
Homona coffearia'' have attacked the plant, releasing compounds that create a distinctive full-bodied
muscatel
Muscatel ( ) is a type of wine made from muscat grapes. The term is now normally used in the United States to refer to a fortified wine made from these grapes rather than just any wine made from these grapes. This fortified muscatel became pop ...
flavour in the tea. The attacks by the leafhopper and moth release defensive chemicals from the plant and naturally begins oxidation process within the leaves. These first two flushes are the most sought after by tea
connoisseur
A connoisseur ( French traditional, pre-1835, spelling of , from Middle-French , then meaning 'to be acquainted with' or 'to know somebody/something') is a person who has a great deal of knowledge about the fine arts; who is a keen appreciator ...
s.
The plant rapidly grows during the monsoon flush from July to September with larger and less flavourful leaves. The persistent rain also results in less complete withering and oxidization during the processing stage. Some estates create green or white teas from these as they demand less withering and no oxidation, however, when completed as black tea this flush is often sold below the cost of production for use in blending and domestic consumption. After the rainy season, the final leaves grown before the plant's winter dormancy are referred to as the autumnal flush. They are harvested in October–November and provides a herbaceous and soft muscatel flavour but with a fuller body and darker colour than previous flushes, and is compared favorably with
Nepali tea
Nepali tea is a beverage made from the leaves of tea plants (''Camellia sinensis'') grown in Nepal. They are distinctive in appearance, aroma and taste, but are similar in many ways to tea produced in Darjeeling tea, perhaps because the eastern ...
s.
Processing
With few exceptions, Darjeeling produces
black tea
Black tea, also translated to red tea in various East Asian languages, is a type of tea that is more oxidized than oolong, yellow, white and green teas. Black tea is generally stronger in flavour than other teas. All five types are made from ...
s. Each tea estate operates their own equipment so that processing can begin the same day as plucking. The leaves are first brought indoors where they are air blown overnight to dry them sufficiently so that their cells can be ruptured, initiating oxidation, when rolled without breaking the leaf. Darjeeling teas, especially the first flush, tend to be withered longer than other black teas; a hard wither can reduce a leaf's water content by more than half, affecting
polyphenol oxidase
Polyphenol oxidase (PPO; also polyphenol oxidase i, chloroplastic), an enzyme involved in fruit browning, is a tetramer that contains four atoms of copper per molecule.
PPO may accept monophenols and/or ''o''-diphenols as substrates. The ...
activity and leaving a more green appearance. Some tea estates will produce a batch of Darjeeling
oolong tea
Oolong (, ; (''wūlóngchá'', "dark dragon" tea)) is a traditional semi-oxidized Chinese tea (''Camellia sinensis)'' produced through a process including withering the plant under strong sun and oxidation before curling and twisting.Zhongguo ...
by limiting the amount of oxidation. After rolling, the leaves are left to oxidize on trays before being fired to reduce the moisture level down to approximately 2% and sealing the ruptures which will be reopened with consumer's hot water. The sorting of the dried product according to
tea leaf grading
In the tea industry, tea leaf grading is the process of evaluating products based on the quality and condition of the tea leaves themselves.
The highest grades for Western and South Asian teas are referred to as "orange pekoe", and the lowest ...
is completed and shipped to
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
for auctioning, though many estates sell privately under contracts.
Preparation, flavour and aroma
With the exception of the first flush, orthodox (i.e. not
crush, tear, curl) Darjeeling teas are generally prepared in the same manner as other black teas. Tea connoisseurs recommend a water temperature ranging between to in a single infusion of 3 to 4 minutes, whereas first flushes, like other early spring teas such as
Jin Jun Mei tea, use water of slightly lower temperature at 85 to 90 °C and an infusion time of 2 to 3 minutes. For every 150 milliliters (
cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay, ...
) of water used, 2 to 3 grams (one
tablespoon
A tablespoon (tbsp. , Tbsp. , Tb. , or T.) is a large spoon. In many English-speaking regions, the term now refers to a large spoon used for serving; however, in some regions, it is the largest type of spoon used for eating.
By extension, the ter ...
) of loose leaf tea is added. As Darjeeling teas are low in malt and bitter characteristics and are appreciated for delicate floral and fruit aromas, milk and sweeteners are typically not added. Their high
tannin
Tannins (or tannoids) are a class of astringent, polyphenolic biomolecules that bind to and precipitate proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids.
The term ''tannin'' (from Anglo-Norman ''tanner'', ...
content allows them to be paired well with carbohydrate-rich foods, such as baked goods and pasta.
[
Darjeeling teas are best known for the ]muscatel
Muscatel ( ) is a type of wine made from muscat grapes. The term is now normally used in the United States to refer to a fortified wine made from these grapes rather than just any wine made from these grapes. This fortified muscatel became pop ...
flavour, described as a "musk
Musk (Persian: مشک, ''Mushk'') is a class of aromatic substances commonly used as base notes in perfumery. They include glandular secretions from animals such as the musk deer, numerous plants emitting similar fragrances, and artificial sub ...
y spiciness", "a unique muscat
Muscat ( ar, مَسْقَط, ) is the capital and most populated city in Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is s ...
-like fruitiness in aroma and flavour", that develops in the second flush and is present to a lesser degree in the subsequent autumnal flush. While general tea flavours are created by thearubigin Thearubigins are polymeric polyphenols that are formed during the enzymatic oxidation and condensation of two gallocatechins (epigallocatechin and epigallocatechin gallate) with the participation of polyphenol oxidases during the fermentation react ...
s and theaflavin
Theaflavin (TF) and its derivatives, known collectively as ''theaflavins'', are antioxidant polyphenols that are formed from the condensation of flavan-3-ols in tea leaves during the enzymatic oxidation (sometimes erroneously referred to as ferment ...
s, chemical analysis on Darjeeling teas show their unique muscatel flavour is the result of 3,7-dimethyl-1,5,7-octatrien-3-ol and 2,6-dimethyl-3,7-octa-diene-2,6-diol, with other aromatic compounds coming from linalool
Linalool () refers to two enantiomers of a naturally occurring terpene alcohol found in many flowers and spice plants. Linalool has multiple commercial applications, the majority of which are based on its pleasant scent (floral, with a touch of ...
, benzyl alcohol
Benzyl alcohol is an aromatic alcohol with the formula C6H5CH2OH. The benzyl group is often abbreviated "Bn" (not to be confused with "Bz" which is used for benzoyl), thus benzyl alcohol is denoted as BnOH. Benzyl alcohol is a colorless liquid w ...
, cis-3-hexenol, α-farnesene, benzyl nitrile, indole
Indole is an aromatic heterocyclic organic compound with the formula C8 H7 N. It has a bicyclic structure, consisting of a six-membered benzene ring fused to a five-membered pyrrole ring. Indole is widely distributed in the natural environmen ...
, nerolidol
Nerolidol, also known as peruviol and penetrol , is a naturally occurring sesquiterpene alcohol. A colorless liquid, it is found in the essential oils of many types of plants and flowers. There are four isomers of nerolidol', which differ in the ...
and ocimene
Ocimenes are a group of isomeric hydrocarbons. The ocimenes are monoterpenes found within a variety of plants and fruits. α-Ocimene and the two β-ocimenes differ in the position of the isolated double bond: it is terminal in the alpha isomer. ...
. Otherwise, Darjeeling teas are described as possessing a flowery fragrance and fruity (grapes, plums, apricots, peaches, pineapple, guava, or citrus fruits), flowery and woody aroma notes, and a little more astringency than their Chinese counterparts.
Organization
The Tea Board of India recognizes 87 tea estates (also called "tea gardens") as producers of Darjeeling tea. Cumulatively, they cover 17,500 hectares of land. Apart from these estates, a relatively small amount of tea is produced in farm cooperatives but they lack processing and quality control infrastructure. Some of the notable tea estates include:
, width="25%" align="" valign="" style="border:0",
* Arya
Aryan or Arya (, Indo-Iranian *''arya'') is a term originally used as an ethnocultural self-designation by Indo-Iranians in ancient times, in contrast to the nearby outsiders known as 'non-Aryan' (*''an-arya''). In Ancient India, the term ' ...
* Avongrove
* Badamtam
* Balasun
* Castleton
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* Glenburn
* Gopaldhara
* Happy Valley
* Jungpana
* Lopchu
, width="25%" align="" valign="" style="border:0",
* Makaibari
Makaibari is a village development committee in Dolakha District in the Janakpur Zone of north-eastern Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census
The 1991 Nepal census was a widespread national census conducted by the Nepal Central Bureau of ...
* Margaret's Hope
* North Tukvar
* Okayti
* Phoobsering
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* Phuguri
* Pussimbing
* Puttabong
* Thurbo
* Mission Hill
The Government of West Bengal
The Government of West Bengal also known as the West Bengal Government, is the subnational government of the Indian state of West Bengal , created by the National Constitution as the state's legislative, executive and judicial authority. The ...
owns the land on which the estates are located and administer 30 to 90 year leases under the ''West Bengal Estates Acquisition Act'' to companies operating the estates. The West Bengal government is also involved in providing regulatory supervision of numerous aspects of estate operations, including land use and labour agreements. The Darjeeling Tea Association (affiliated with the Indian Tea Association
The Indian Tea Association is a trade association of Indian tea producers. The head office is in Kolkata (Calcutta).
History
The Association was founded in 1881 to protect the interests of tea planters in British India
The province ...
) is the trade association
A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific Industry (economics), industry. An industry tra ...
that represents the tea estates and exporters in business and labour affairs. They jointly negotiate together with the various unions and the government so that workers across numerous tea estates receive the same compensation.
Labour relations are complex as, in addition to the seasonal influx of temporary work
Temporary work or temporary employment (also called gigs) refers to an employment situation where the working arrangement is limited to a certain period of time based on the needs of the employing organization. Temporary employees are sometimes ...
ers, the permanent workers can be permanent residents of the estates where, pursuant to the ''Plantations Labour Act'', housing, education, health and other services are provided by the estate, in addition to a base salary. Because the provision of these services are required by law, fair trade
Fair trade is an arrangement designed to help producers in developing countries achieve sustainable and equitable trade relationships. The fair trade movement combines the payment of higher prices to exporters with improved social and enviro ...
organizations, such as the Fairtrade International
Fairtrade International, or Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International e.V. is a product-oriented multistakeholder group aimed at promoting the lives of farmers and workers through trade. Fairtrade's work is guided by a global strategy fo ...
, allow their fair trade premiums be paid to plantation owners, rather than the workers, on condition that the owners can only use the premium to offset some of the costs of providing these services. Studies of this arrangement have suggested that this has negatively effected the livelihoods of labourers, as owners have more than correspondingly reduced their contributions to the required services.[ This also complicates wage negotiations as marginal increases are feared to come at the expense of a loss of social services. However, the low wages contribute to a high rate of ]absenteeism
Absenteeism is a habitual pattern of absence from a duty or obligation without good reason. Generally, absenteeism is unplanned absences. Absenteeism has been viewed as an indicator of poor individual performance, as well as a breach of an implici ...
of workers seeking higher paying work elsewhere. The tea estate workers have historically relied on workers coming from Nepal as a source of inexpensive labour. Consequently, Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong and their tea estates are populated predominantly by Indian Gorkha
Indian Gorkhas also known as Nepali Indians, are Nepali language-speaking Indians. The modern term "Indian Gorkha" is used to differentiate the ethnic Gorkhas from Nepalis.
Indian Gorkhas are citizens of India as per the gazette notificatio ...
people. They have developed a unified ethnic identity and advocated for independence from West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...
. Occasionally, actions of the Gorkhaland movement
The Gorkhaland movement is a campaign to create a separate state of India in the Gorkhaland region of West Bengal for the Nepali speaking Indians. The proposed state includes the hill regions of the Darjeeling district, Kalimpong district and ...
have disrupted operations of the Darjeeling tea estates, such as the 2017 bandh
Bandh (Devanagari: बंद) (literally: shutting down) is a form of protest used by political activists in South Asian countries such as India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the s ...
.
See also
* Darjeeling Planters' Club
Darjeeling Planters' Club is the club of Darjeeling Planters Association, located in the town of Darjeeling, in the Indian state of West Bengal. This association was formed in 1892 under the chairmanship of Mr. S.K. Bhasin, dissolving D.B.I.T.A. ...
* North Bengal Tea Industry
References
{{West Bengal
Darjeeling
Darjeeling district
Kalimpong district
01
Indian tea
Black tea
White tea
Oolong tea
Geographical indications in West Bengal
Tea industry in West Bengal