Assam Golden Tips Black Tea

Assam golden tips black tea gets its name from the golden buds in the leaf, most common in the second flush picked from May. The cup is malty and brisk with a honeyed sweetness, and it takes milk well or stands on its own. Brewed in a teapot at 95°C.

Origin & Story

Assam is where the story of Indian black tea began. In 1823 Major Robert Bruce came across the native tea plant in the Brahmaputra valley, guided by Maniram Dewan, who introduced him to the Singpho people. Bruce's brother Charles sent samples to the botanical gardens in Calcutta in the early 1830s, and the plant proved to be its own variety, Camellia sinensis var. assamica. The Assam Company was formed in 1839.

Maniram Dewan went on to plant gardens of his own and is remembered as the first Indian tea planter. The British hanged him in 1858, accusing him of treason during the uprising of 1857.

The tea grows on clay-rich floodplain soil at or near sea level, not on cool mountain slopes like Darjeeling's. Heat, humidity and monsoon rain shape the leaf, and tea writers tie the malty, brisk character of Assam to that climate. The region makes about 680 million kilograms a year, roughly half of India's tea.

Golden tips are the unopened buds. After oxidation and firing they turn a golden color, and sellers prize them for a creamy texture and a gentle sweetness. They are most common in the second flush, picked from about May, which tea writers call tippy tea.

In the cup, expect malt and honey over a brisk, bright body. Use water at about 95°C, 3 g of leaf for 240 ml, and steep for three to four minutes in a teapot. Drink it plain first to taste the tips, then add milk if you like.

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