Country of Origin: India
Leaf Appearance: small, somewhat broken
Ingredients: black tea
Steep time: 3 minutes
Water Temperature: 195 degrees
Preparation Method: Teavana Perfect Tea Maker
Liquor: gold
I’m generally a 2nd flush kind of gal but sometimes the odd mood does strike for a 1st flush. This one was crisp with floral notes over a mellow vegetal background. There was some natural sweetness but it was a bit too astringent for my liking. Some tea drinkers prefer their tea this way so please don’t take my perspective as a harsh judgement. The wonderful thing about tea is that there is something out there for everyone. My sample did have many more broken leaves than I was expecting to explain the unpleasantness. Damage in shipping is most likely the culprit since this tea traveled all the way from India. The other teas that I have tried from Udyan Tea have all been excellent. If you find yourself in a similar situation, cooler water will usually help to cut down on astringency. I used the rest of the sample to cold brew a pitcher of iced tea and found that result to be much more enjoyable. I am quite surprised to find that this is actually the first tea that I’ve reviewed from Gopaldhara Estate. One day I hope to be able to taste something from every garden in Darjeeling.
Gopaldhara Spring Special Black Tea 2015 sample provided by Udyan Tea.