Tea:

Borengajuli - Estate Black Tea

Region:

Assam

Grade:   

FBOP (Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe )

Manufacture Type:  

Orthodox - exceptionally well graded

Cup Characteristics:

A flavory, bright and full bodied tea with superb malty highlights. Some term this character as jammy. A good self drinking tea that is suitable anytime of the day.

Infusion:  

Bright and tending coppery

Information:

Borengajuli is a wonderful tea estate that is in the Mangaldai district of Assam. On a clear day the Himalaya Mountains are clearly visible. The tea bushes of this estate have been carefully selected through natural cloning. This means that tea bushes that display outstanding characteristics such as yield, abundance of ‘tip', flavor, and regular and consistent sized leaf were replanted in a tea nursery. Leaf cuttings were then taken from these bushes to grow a ‘mother stock' of like tea bushes. From the mother stock more cuttings were taken which were then planted in the estate. The result is a high yielding tea plantation whose produce exhibits exemplary flavor, bright coppery color in the cup and outstanding leaf style. It is not wonder that Borengajuli has become one of the most sought after teas from Assam .

George Williamson pioneered vacuum packing at the estate level and Borengajuli was one the first Assam estates whose produce was vacuum packed. Tea goes through an natural oxidation process whereby it ages due to its interaction with oxygen. By vacuum packing this process is arrested until the vacuum is broken. When we repack Borengajuli it is out of a vacuum for no more than 30 minutes after which it is re-vacuumed. In essence this tea is literally 2 hours old, in terms of freshness. The only place to get fresher tea would be to go to the estate itself. Congratulations on your selection of one of the world's premiere teas. You will not be disappointed!

You might ask - What gives Assam tea its special characteristics? The Assam valley is dominated by the Brahmaputra River - a large slowly meandering river which over millennia of spring and fall flooding has deposited a rich loam over the valley. The soil is a deep and sandy and the region suffers a very hot and steamy monsoon season, but equally important a relatively dry and cool winter. Perfect conditions for the Assam tea bush. This area is also susceptible to earthquakes which can make the ground swallow up whole tea bushes but this does not affect the unmistakable rich taste of Borengajuli FBOP.

Brewing Instructions:

Hot Tea Brewing Method: As with all top quality teas, scoop 2-4 teaspoons of tea into the teapot, pour in boiling water that has been freshly drawn (previously boiled water has lost most of its oxygen and therefore tends to be flat tasting, steep for 2-4 minutes (to taste), stir (virtually all the leaves will sink), pour into your cup, add milk (do not use cream) and sugar to taste - sit back and enjoy a fleeting moment in Kenya - maybe you’ll catch a glimpse of a cheetah! (An interesting note - This tea can be enjoyed with or without milk - milk tends to mask a few of the delicate floral nuances but adding milk highlights the malty flavor.)

Iced Tea Brewing Method: (to make 1 liter/quart): Place 5 teaspoons of tea into a teapot or heat resistant pitcher. Pour 1 1/4 cups of freshly boiled water over the tea. Steep for 5 minutes. Quarter fill a serving pitcher with cold water. Pour the tea into your serving pitcher straining the leaves. Add ice and top-up the pitcher with cold water. Garnish and sweeten to taste.

Please note - High quality tea can ‘cream down’, meaning it looks like you added milk. This is normal for high quality teas and there is nothing wrong with your iced tea. High quality tea has a higher percentage of tannins which cause the ‘creaming down’.