Ilam
estate has a Darjeeling-like character with good muscatel flavour.
Some may ask: ‘What is the muscatel flavour?’ When you taste this tea
you will experience an almost perfume like character that some tea
drinkers call ‘Chanel like’: others call the Darjeeling character
‘slightly over-fired’ or oaky. The muscatel flavour is the natural
taste of the tea - becoming more pronounced during April (light tasting
with astringency and intense flavor) and June (intense flavor with more
body).
The flavour is on account of the altitude of the tea estate,
the soil conditions in the Himalayas the weather patterns, temperature,
the originating species of the bush (Chinese genus as opposed to the
Indian genus) and fermenting techniques; it has nothing to do with the
tea being over-fired (over-fired is a description of poor manufacturing
techniques). The leaf appearance is very typical of a well-produced
high mountain grown Nepalese tea. It appears mottled with brownish and
greenish leaf - almost camouflage-like. This appearance is caused the
myriad of different mother bushes, the older age of the bushes and the
subsequent fact that the leaves ferment differently.
The area where Ilam is produced is high in the Himalayan
Mountains. The slopes where the tea is produced are extremely steep
which makes it very difficult for the tea pluckers to go about their
work. At Ilam one is surrounded by the high snow covered peaks of the
world’s highest mountains. It is truly a very scenic area. The quality
of this tea befits the tremendous efforts undertaken to produce the tea
and the beautiful surroundings.
