Darjeeling Summer & Tea Mysteries ~ Eli

Frustratingly, i’m of two minds about tea mysteries. One: who doesn’t love a good mystery? Two: i’m supposed to be writing as if i really know this stuff, and when things are left up to conjecture i can be totally wrong (which results in inevitably myself). But then… no one really asked me to make this blog, it’s just a creative way of keeping my mind off of the things that suck in my life right now like motivation and isolation and dilation and excommunication. >.>

Way back at the beginning of summer during Darjeeling Week (i don’t expect you to remember) i mentioned that although it may add to a tea’s mystique, it drives me crazy when tea vendors don’t specify which garden/plantation/Estate a tea was grown at. They will often tell you which region a tea is from and which style a tea is in, but some vendors (ie. Steven Smith, etc.) withhold information as to exactly where it was grown such that tea lovers will have to buy from them in order to get that exact taste (why that would be necessary… invokes eye rolling). For blogging purposes that practice is incredibly exhausting. I can’t gain the knowledge of what’s special about which Estates and which to pay attention to if i don’t know exactly what i’m drinking. Additionally, there’s a great deal less to write about for such a tea, and as you can imagine those blogs don’t end up making for very interesting reading (some of which have been stillborn). :-/

Eli, being the fun-loving, girl-friendly host that he is has a tendency to leave minutiae out of the equation.  Today’s tea however, he was good enough to mention is specifically from Mim Estate, high grown at 6,800 ft above sea level (*swoon*). As it happens I have reviewed at least one Mim Estate before and know it to be unique, so already Darjeeling Summer is pretty enticing. Additionally, Eli gave it a cute name: simply called “Darjeeling Summer” (meaning it’s a 2nd flush, having been harvested directly after the monsoon season). Realistically, i could have determined that from just observing the liquor color and flavor, but it does make for a good deal more elegant of a name, don’t you think? In this case the redacted knowledge that spawns the mystery however, is exactly how this Black tea was originally scored (eg. what makes it special/rare/what’s missing/how does it stack up against other Blacks from the same Estate?). Let’s see if we can discover that tidbit through some tried and true Holmesian deduction, shall we? xD

What can be observed from this 2nd Flush Mim? In aroma it’s biscuity and malty and maybe a little Tippy? In flavor it’s slightly rougher than i would have imagined, more similar to an Assam or Nilgiri. However, Darjeeling Summer does have Tip and a slightly herbal almost sage note, so possibly a TGFOP (Tippy Golden Flowering Orange Pekoe)? Texture-wise Darjeeling Summer is consistent with most other decent though not exceptional Darjeeling Blacks: a rolly/curly medium-low tea grit that tickles the dorsal ridges of the tongue but doesn’t linger. Eli also suggests it should be steeped at 210 for 3-7 minutes, so it’s not too delicate. Finally, Darjeeling Summer’s pure russet liquor and strong heterogenous mix of Tippy loose leaf (see the Macro image below, compliments of my new drool-worthy Olloclip Macro Pro) confirm this Darjeeling was probably sold as at least “TGFOP”. Beyond that, i can simply say Eli’s Darjeeling Summer is a wonderfully drinkable Black tea (and you should definitely let him push you into buying at least 3 ounces like i did).

1. Aroma – 93
2. Taste – 93
3. Texture – 94
4. Spunk – 93
5. Price – 97
6. Availability – 96
7. Appearance – 94

Mean score – 94%

So even if i’m wrong about all of the above, it’s totally worth the money. ;)