Tea 101

So which tea did Queen Mary (1867-1953) so prize that she had to keep it locked in a cupboard?

According to James Norwood Pratt, pioneer of the current tea wave in the USA, it was "a fine Darjeeling with a pronounced muscatel flavor." This was the Queen Mary Tea Twinings sold as the personal choice of the late Queen Mary, he adds, in his book The Tea Lovers' Treasury.

A bit of internet "research" showed that Twinings had launched this tea in 1916 and discontinued it only in 2007, after over 91 years! It is amazing the brand lasted so long. But we amuse ourselves with the thought that they could have given it 10 more years and let it retire at a more auspicious and grand 100 years! That is if they had to drop this tea from their stable.

People sometimes have trouble pronouncing the word Darjeeling. Indeed there are a lot of teas whose names can sound a tad too exotic for its own good! We do not want you to not ask or try a tea just because you cannot say it. Because I originally come from Darjeeling, let me help you.
(The video should also help you with my name. :)

Darjeeling tea has historical roots in China, being transplants of saplings that Scot botanist Robert Fortune smuggled out of forbidden kingdom in early 1850s. Even though Darjeeling has come a long way both literally and figuratively in the tea world, carving out its own hallowed niche, it is fun sometimes to marry these two tea traditions.

Anthropologists assert that tea's culinary career began as an ingredient in prepared food. People would throw it in broths or ferment it for salads among other things, much before they actually started to brew it like we do today.

We are often asked the question, what is Darjeeling tea? Is it a type of tea, or what? Being Darjeeling tea specialists we thought of putting together a small post here that answers the question. Hope it helps. 

Oolong comes from the Chinese word “wulong,” meaning literally, black dragon. This is because the leaves of some oolongs appear like dragons in flight. Dragons are a symbol of “nobility and strength” and these characters are implied in the nature this tea.  

Meet some of the famous oolongs from China and Taiwan. These are oolongs that every serious tea enthusiast must aspire to have one day in his/her cup. We hope one day soon we will be able to offer all these precious jewels to our customers!  

Selecting good tea can sometimes be daunting. But there are a few things that can be kept in mind which will guide you in your selection.     Tea Bloom: Did you know that a halo is bestowed upon good tea?...

When I first began seriously pursuing tea, one thing odd that I had to learn was to stick my nose into the infused leaves. I had grown up amidst tea gardens of Darjeeling, and drank tea all my life, but until I entered the tasting room of a tea garden professionally 10 years ago, I never had thought of participating in the ritual of tea physically with my nose.