2013 Giddapahar Hand Rolled, First Flush Darjeeling

I know the whole where, when and why of how my infatuation with tea began. It seems so long ago, and..... I guess it was. I,m thinking it was about forty or so years ago was when I first encountered a cup of really good Darjeeling tea. It obviously made quite an impression on me.  That particular Darjeeling I just happened to stumble upon, a fortunate recipient of circumstance. I was visiting a friend in San Francisco and had stopped in at a local coffee shop. She had ordered a pot of Darjeeling and I had a cup from her pot. That first cup marks the beginning of a never ending search for good tea.

A lot has changed since then. What, with the invention of that world wide inter-web thing-a-mo-bob. Anybody reading this is aware of how easy it is to get just about anything you can think of.

I have bought tea from Norbu on just a few previous occasions. He now sources his own teas. Not just buying online and reselling. He has a pretty wide selection with teas in every category. Green, Oolong, Black or Puerh. This tea is entirely hand made, which is rare for Darjeeling.  Norbu was so impressed upon tasting this tea that he bought the entire (albeit tiny,3 kg.) lot.

Now isn't that a pretty site? These leaves are very large, crispy and flaky. The scent of the dry leaf is extremely floral and with just a hint of vegetation. The flavor matches the aroma to perfection. Sweet, floral with just the slightest trace of greenery. There is no astringency at all. The muscatel flavor and aroma we expect from a Darjeeling are there, but being pushed to the background they are barely noticeable.

I don,t brew Darjeeling teas using a Gong fu method. Just one 3-4 minute steeping works out best for me. In my opinion, using a gong fu approach doesn't  work well because the flavors are too hit or miss. All the flavor aspects need to be represented in one fell swoop to be fully appreciated.

Even though the cups are brown you can see the color of the brew. A light golden, amber. The tea smells sweet with florals coming out the ying-yang. You can see in the picture below that there are some stems still attached to the leaves. In my book this is not a bad thing at all. In fact I kinda like teas with some stems still in the mix.

I've had these cups (made by Park Jong Il ) for over a year but never used them before today, they are just a tad too small for my liking. I have never used them for photography purposes before because I reckoned the brown glaze wouldn't allow the teas color to be accurately represented. But there it is.......plain as day.

A cup of good Darjeeling always brings back memories. It,s funny how with just one sip, that distinctive flavor takes me right back to where it all began. I,m right back in San Francisco sitting on a side walk cafe with a cool ocean breeze.

Minus the pony tail and flip flops!

Puttabong Estate 2nd Flush Darjeeling

Yes, it's that time of year again. When you see the second flush Darjeeling's on the market then you know Autumn is just around the corner. From Uptons, the go-to place for Darjeeling teas. Upton's is from my experience, just about the most professionally operated online tea vendors out there on that inter-web thing. Ive been buying from them for maybe the past 10 years or so and never once have I had any problem. Very prompt service, order's are almost always shipped out the same day and it's not unusual for my order to be delivered within one to two days after ordering. O.K. here go's....Puttabong Estate 2nd flush SFTGFOP1 Cl/Qu. These acronyms are the grading system India uses to get REAL specific about just what pigeon hole these teas fit into. In other words, Super Fine Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe "Grade" 1 Clonal Queen. A bit much.....isn't it?

At their best Darjeeling has got to be one of the most sublime teas there is. But Darjeeling has not been up to snuff for several years now. Last year Darjeeling suffered a draught and the teas were not on a par with previous years. You could find the occasional gem here and there but all in all it was another year of disappointment.

Ive noticed something different about Darjeeling's in the past few years, there are more and more of them displaying a malty flavor in the cup. I don't remember ever having noticed this before. The malty flavors are something that I would expect from India's native Assamica varietal of tea tree. True Darjeeling is made from China clonal bushes, which leads me to wonder if they are gradually introducing their native tea trees into the gardens. And if so, why? Is there a higher yield? Easier to grow?

Ive had an on again, off again, love affair with Darjeeling teas for years and years. When they are good, they are REALLY good. But more often than not they get an "it's pretty good" ranking from me. This Darjeeling falls into the later category. Puttabong has never been one of my preferred estates but with this years 1st flushes from Puttabong getting such rave reviews I thought maybe they deserve a re-investigation from me. I,m still not that impressed. It's a good quality everyday type of Darjeeling. You know, the kind of Darjeeling you are likely to find in gourmet grocery stores. The dry leafs colors are beautiful, presents the full color spectrum of browns, oranges and some rusty reds with the occasional silver tip.

This tea is fresh, I,ll give it that much. It has some of the stereotypical aspects I want to see in a Darjeeling but it's falls just a little short of being all it could be. A little fruity and floral, too astringent with normal brewing methods. By keeping the steeping time shorter than what I would usually go for some of that astringency can be left behind in the pot. The flavor isn't as fully developed as it should be and the body is a tad thin, it's just kinda flat. For the past several years Darjeeling hasn't been getting the quality they are capable of. Not their fault though, there's nothing they can do about the weather. But I,m not calling it a day as far as this years Darjeeling's are concerned, I plan on trying Arya Estates 2nd flush when they come out. Arya is (in my opinion) just about the best there is when it comes to the second flushes. Especially the "Ruby" grade.

Sorry for that glaringly orange pic up there, don't know what I was thinking when I took that. The tea ware? That's a set made by Hokujo, a Japanese potter. Hokujo's tea wares are the best of the best when it comes to hand made pottery. Very high grade, well processed clay. His skill is baffling, every line, edge has perfect uniformity. I normally use this pot for green teas but every once in a while I,ll brew something like this tea in it. This set is one of my most cherished pieces, my Sencha just wouldn't be the same without it. But as with all things in life, you get what you pay for, his wares are not cheap. I think the pot alone is a little under $200.00 Hokujo rarely uses a glaze on his wares, I guess he wants the focus to be on the clay itself. Why would you want to cover that clay with anything?

Note: after drinking this tea for a few days and experimenting with brewing parameters I realized that cooler water and shorter infusion times bring out some malty flavors as well as the fruit, leaving a lot of the biting astringency behind in the pot. Still.....not a great tea but better than I initially thought.

Duflating Estate Assam FTGFOP#1 CL/SPL

From Upton,s I got this at the same time as the Risheehat Darjeeling. This Assam is what I call a "show" tea. The very best they are capable of producing, and it shows. Especially in the price. A 400 gm bag, $93.60. The dry leafs colors are incredibly rich, mostly reds and browns with a profusion of golden tips. Such depth and intensity in the color. The dry leaf is also very soft and velvety to the touch, it makes me want to grab a handful and just feel it. (but I don't) I think Assam teas are to readily dismissed as cheap black tea. And a lot of it is, but in the hands of the farmers and producers who care about the tea they can be just as nuanced as any other tea. For an invigorating morning cup you cant beat an Assam. This teas aroma makes my mouth water. It smells like malt (of course) spice, some honey. This Assam brews a really clean tasting cup, none of the heaviness usually found in Assam tea,s. The teas brew is as clear as could be. A deep amber, not the ruddy brown of lesser Assam's. With this one I wouldn't dream of putting any milk in the cup, just a dab of sugar brings out the subtleties in this tea. I don't bother weighing this tea just a rounded tsp. in an eight oz. teapot, 3-4 minute infusion and presto a gorgeous cuppa. These teas are very expensive and not something I keep around for everyday use but what the hell a cup of this once or twice a week shouldn't hurt anyone,s budget.

Another thing I like about Upton,s is that it,s run in a very professional manner. Very consistent customer service. As long as they have your order before 1:00 PM the order goes out the same day regardless of the shipping method. Also they offer a variety of shipping options. Ive been buying from Upton,s for years and without exception they have shipped every order I have ever placed the same day.

Risheehat Estate Darjeeling

Another Darjeeling for ya. From Upton,s Tea,s this is a SFTGFOP #1 SP/CL second flush. In plain English, super fine tippy golden flowery orange pekoe grade #1 special clonal. A 200 gm bag of this one will cost ya $35.64, not bad really considering it,s quality. Upton,s are definitely the go-to guys for Darjeeling and Assam tea,s. What I especially like about Upton,s is their lack of image, no gimmicky packaging, not a lifestyle oriented co. Ive always thought of them as being kind of a tea broker. I,m pretty sure some of the online vendors tea,s were purchased from Upton,s and then repackaged.
This tea is almost sold out so if anybody wants to try it you should order asap. Having barely even got the bag open I,m accosted by the extremely pungent aroma of the dry leaf. Floral, citrus and fruity. Pretty much in that order. You can smell this tea from across the room, extremely aromatic.The dry leafs color is a little on the dark side, a mix of dark browns, reds and greens. Long wiry, well twisted leaves. The aroma of the infused tea is also very pungent. This tea is very "bright" extremely floral and kinda lemony. The muscatel flavor and aroma that most people think of when it comes to Darjeeling is there, but taking a back seat to the flowers and fruit. There is the slightest trace of maltiness in the cup. As I had said in a previous post, Ive been stuck on various Oolongs and Japanese tea,s for a while now and I had forgotten how good Darjeeling,s could be. This is an exellent Darjeeling tea but it doesnt have the flavors that I most enjoy. Which is that full bodied fruity, muscatel thing.

Mariage Freres Darjeeling

Darjeeling Tea is a tea that I always used to have on hand. For the past couple of years Ive been more focused on Oolongs and Japanese Sencha and kinda forgot how much I like Darjeeling. I think that Darjeeling more than any other tea is affected by the weather and other uncontrollable,s. When it,s a good year the tea,s are amazing. But for about the past 5 to 6 years Ive not seen anything that came close to a "good" year for Darjeeling. That's not to say the tea,s are bad, but nowhere close to the legendary status their known for. Having said that though I have been buying a few here and there and am happy to say I,m not disappointed with my purchases. This tea is from the Princeton Estate, T.G.F.O.P. is the acronym assigned to this tea. Which means Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe. But I also like another definition I read on another tea blog which is Too Good For Ordinary People. HaHa. This Tea,s is comprised of a mix of small whole leaves and broken leaf. This appears to be a blend of both first and second flushes. The dry leafs colors range from dark browns, light greens and rusty reds. The aroma of the dry leaf is fruity, slightly peppery and floral. One thing I like about this company is that they nitrogen flush the tea tins. Which means that the tea will stay fresh for a very extended length of time. *Using the standard rule of thumb for Darjeeling,s I used 2 &1/4 gms. of tea for 6 oz. boiling water with an infusion time of 3&1/2 min. The result is a crystal clear golden amber cup of some darned fine Darjeeling. Heady aromatics fill the air, smells like pears, grapes and flowers with that slight peppery smell that makes me want to drink cup after cup. (but I don't) I do add the slightest touch of sugar to Darjeeling's. I think the addition of sugar can sometimes bring out and highlight some of the more delicate flavors in a Darjeeling. The tea,s flavor follows right along with the aroma with the slightest "briskness" or as a lot of tea vendors call it "nuttiness" in the cup. A 100 gm tin,s price is $17.00, not bad really. For anyone interested in trying this tea I know that most William Sonoma specialty cooks stores carry this brand of tea,s.

*even though giving the "official" qty, steep time recipe this is a tea that I just eyeball it and go with the 1&1/2 tsp. or so tea for the 6 oz. water.