Tea:
Adagio Teas Company Loose Leaf Black Tea 'rohini first flush' Darjeeling
March 2023 harvest
Origin: Darjeeling, India
Farmer: Jhapan Thapa
The 'first flush' tea of the spring in Darjeeling is famous for its lively bite and abundance of fresh flavor. These rare teas look almost like green teas, but they are actually black tea. This year’s Darjeeling First Flush comes to us from the misty slopes of the Rohini Tea Garden in Darjeeling, India. This very early first bud plucking is called jethri kupi which translates from Nepali to the honorable designation “Eldest Daughter” denoting the very first growth of the spring season. Interestingly, jethrikupi also a word from the Manipuri dialect that means “jasmine flower” – perhaps a nod to the floral notes in this early plucking. The leaves offer a nice quantity of fuzzy leaf buds that soften the cup but increase the complexity. A little smoother, more silker on the palate than the typical Darjeeling First Flush, the spring blossom notes here really caught our attention. Traditionally steeped as a black tea with boiling water, some may prefer a green tea treatment with brisking steaming water for multiple infusions and a more delicate finish. Green oolong tea drinker should also try this one. Grown at roughly 1000-1500 ft, the spring weather was favorable for a third week of February plucking.
Steep:
2 tsp
212°F
2 min
kati loose tea system 12oz
Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: sweet, floral, fruity (grapes, stone fruit)
Steeped Tea Smell: slightly grassy, fruity, light floral
Flavor: vegetal, nutty, stone fruit (nectarine)
Body: Medium
Aftertaste: fuzzy
Liquor: translucent light orange brown
Resteep:
4 min
smell: floral, vegetal
color: darker orange brown but still translucent
taste: vegetal, floral, sweet (nectarine), fuzzy mouth feel finish
Resteep:
6 min
astringent, should have steeped for less time
Update 5 min less bitter and tasty
Rating: 3/4 leaves
Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing
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