A call to support Darjeeling's tea gardens
Summary
Darjeeling’s planters must come together to protect their terroir and defend its unique qualities
Every year, when it’s time for the year’s spring harvest, my thoughts turn to Darjeeling. Lately, these come with a lingering anxiety and a growing despondence. In the years that I have made my acquaintance with tea, Darjeeling has gone from being a very special tea to one that is struggling to stay afloat. Several factors have brought it to this place, from climate to labour to politics along with an oversupply of tea in the global market.
There are 87 gardens that come under the geographical indicator for Darjeeling tea, that allows a tea to be sold as Darjeeling. Of these, quite a few have closed this season as they are simply unable to run it profitably. And yet, here we are with the first flush teas. There’s a resilience to planters—and their tea bushes—that keeps them at it, season after season.
It doesn’t take away the concerns surrounding Darjeeling tea’s future. The one thought that recurs in conversations with planters is the need for more marketing and promotion. More people, especially within our country, need to discover and make their acquaintance with Darjeeling tea. Many planters still speak of its “legacy". The problem with selling legacy is that it obliges us to value something. And Darjeeling today needs more than rest on its legacy alone because it is much more than its legacy. Elizeth va der Vorst, Brazilian tea importer, says it best when she calls Darjeeling tea a sensorial and cultural heritage. Anne-Fréderique Dayraut, who promotes Indian tea with her Sanskriti Collection in France, describes Darjeeling as having a “kind of lavish austerity."
Also read: Try roasted Darjeeling teas
To promote the world’s most favoured tea, Darjeeling’s planters must come together to protect their terroir and defend its unique qualities. Some planters have wondered if there are lessons from Champagne, Bordeaux or Scotch. They are although historically a celebratory drink, Champagne has also benefited, in modern times, from the work of the Conseil Interprofessionnel des Vins de Champagne. Formed in 1941 to promote the wines made in France’s Champagne region, it represents 16,200 winegrowers, 130 cooperatives and 370 Champagne houses. What began as a way to protect the “wealth of their terroir" and the name, “Champagne" now has a threefold agenda—to ensure the economic stability of the industry, enhance technical knowledge of farmers and winemakers and to protect the name globally so that it’s not misused. For instance, calling Darjeeling the “Champagne of tea" is a misuse of the appellation.
I asked Dayraut about her recent trip to these hills. “Darjeeling is really unique, a kind of miracle with this incredible nature/human team. I don’t think that you will have such a difference between the three flushes anywhere in the world."
“Darjeeling is irreplaceable," says van der Vorst, an unabashed love every Darjeeling fan echoes. So, this season, yet again, here’s a call for support for Darjeeling. The first flush teas are out. As always, the black tea is the prime offering.
Also read: Savour the best of Nepali food with a thakali thali
TEA TAKES: Avongrove and Giddapahar’s blacks (tswing.com/collections/first-flush). I am also eager to try the offerings by Ringtong, Rohini and Gopaldhara from the Goodricke stable (nathmullstea.in).
Tea Nanny is a fortnightly series on the world of tea. Aravinda Anantharaman is a tea drinker, writer and editor. She posts @AravindaAnanth1.
