Tea Estates-Darjeeling

We primarily chose our last vacation in India to be in Darjeeling for 3 reasons. (1) It has a very high Buddhist population and several monasteries and other Buddhist sites (We first wanted to go to Bhutan and learned that there is an American visitors fee of $200 per person per day!), (2) I love tea,  and (3) Our family from Calcutta was willing to meet us there (more on that tomorrow).

I was ready to experience the land of tea in Darjeeling. I went to a "tea class" and learned all about tea and tea tastings and did a lot of research on-line and asked friends about the best tea estates in Darjeeling. I was ready to show off my skills in the tea estates. I was told that the aroma and taste make the tea so good due to which Darjeeling tea is considered as ‘Champagne of Teas’.  Darjeeling tea is universally recognized as one of the finest and handpicked tea. Its flavor is so unique and exclusive that it cannot be reproduced anywhere else in the world. You can see why I was so excited.

Well, it was not exactly what I had imagined. I pictured sipping tea in a tea room overlooking the tea gardens and having lovely conversations and snacks. Thinking it would  be similar to my experiences at high tea in London and the U.S. To say the very least, it was an experience.

First tea estates was Happy Tea Valley. The only tea estate in Darjeeling. The road to the estates was so steep and curvy that we had to walk to the factory to get a tour and a tasting. Myself, my uncle, and my cousin were up for the adventure. We had fun on the hike down to the factory and back up to the road. We figured we might as well make the best of the walk.

 

When we got there, they did not seem too excited about giving us a tour but there were several other people ready for the tour.  They were not processing anything at the time and we were not allowed to take pictures, but we were able to take pictures while tasting the tea. It was fun to taste the teas. They all tasted very good. I could not tell if I was drinking a "bad" tea. We stood in line and got to try a spoon full. We did not sit down, we did not chat, and we did not have anything to eat. It was more of a taste and go sort of thing. Actually more like taste, buy, and go sort of thing. I was a bit turned off by it and did not buy anything. But content with the experience and of course loved the company.

Now, for our second tea estate, I had high hopes that this would be a much better experience. Several people suggested that I go to this tea estate and that it is the best tea estate. I thought maybe this would be different. I called the place, arranged the driver, and planned it so we could  see them processing the tea. Needless to say, it was not that much different and we could not even try any of the tea. I just bought the tea based on what everyone had said about this tea especially from the tea expert from my tea class. 

This time we went with the kids on our way to the airport. It was exactly midpoint from where we were staying and the airport. And we were told to wear caps and masks (I did get excited that maybe it would be different) but it was just for show because all the processing took place behind the glass.

However, there was one thing that was very different about the Makaibari tea estate and that is that they produce the rarest tea in India and it is plucked under the full moon. According to the Makaibari website, the tea is a ‘relaxing as well as anti-aging liquor’ that can be preferably sipped at bedtime.People there believe that the alignment of - the sun, moon, and other cosmic forces produces the exact conditions for the finest harvest. This ‘biodynamic’ or you can even call it ‘organic’ tea farm depends on a celestial calendar to make out when to harvest. But generally the plucking or picking season is from March to October. Moreover, during a full moon night, the Silver Tips Imperial tea leaves are plucked and packed before daylight to maintain the veracity of its fragrance. A spiritual ceremony is conducted at the sunset with drummers, performers and prayer chanters’ and this is how the process of picking of tea leaves starts.

And yes, I bought a bag of this rare tea along with several other teas. I might just have to have a proper tea party when we get home to make up for the lack of them at the tea estates!