“The amazing Dexter3657 sent me a large sample of this. Thank you! I was such in the mood for a good Darjeeling! This one was not in the data base, so I’m the first to review here. I don’t think...” Read full tasting note
Appearance, Flavor & Aroma:
The dry leaves of this very carefully hand-picked and hand-rolled Second Flush tea are a mixture of coppery-brown, dark & light green with a healthy amount of fuzzy, silver buds. The dry leaf aroma is mild, sweet and musky. The infusion is a bright honey-amber color with a musky-sweet and lightly floral aroma. In the cup, this exceptional tea is mild & musky with hints of flowers, mild astringency and an excellent bittersweet finish.
Note: the primary difference between this Second Flush Hand Rolled and the First Flush Giddapahar Hand Rolled is the level of oxidation. The Second Flush tea is more oxidized, so the flavors are less “green” than the First Flush and more toward the classic, “Muscatel” type flavor profile that Darjeeling Second Flush teas are so famous for.
Estate Information
Giddapahar (pronounced with 4 syllables: Gid-da-pa-har) Tea Estate was founded in 1881 by the Shaw family, who own and operate the estate to this day. Although it isn’t publicized as much as maybe it should be, this estate has the distinction of being the only estate in Darjeeling that has been under 100% Indian ownership since inception.
The estate is located right off the Hill Cart Road/Hwy 55 to the Southeast of Kurseong. The area’s most prominent physical feature is a large ridge known as “Eagle’s Crag” with its giant television tower that looms over the town of Kurseong, and, since the (compound) word “Giddapahar” translates from the local Nepali dialect into English as “Eagle’s Crag,” it’s pretty obvious where the estate got its name.
The total area of the estate is approximately 285 acres, and about 230 acres are covered by original China tea bushes with a few small areas of clonal varietals scattered throughout the estate.
Steeping Guidelline:
When infusing this Hand-rolled Second Flush Darjeeling tea, a Western-style approach is the way to go. We recommend using about 2.5-3 grams of leaf per cup, water at about 195F, and a 4-5 minute infusion time. This tea is difficult to make unpleasant or bitter even when oversteeped, but please adjust the amount of leaf, steeping time, and/or water temperature according to your taste.
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