Vivek Lochan on status of Indian tea industry

Doke tea images provided by Vivek

After talking with Vivek Lochan recently about how social media group discussion goes, mostly on Facebook, I asked if he could fill in some background on the Indian tea industry in a Q & A form.  These are the kinds of ideas that should come up in online discussion, but it's hard to get starting points to develop to that.  

Most vendors and producers are posting online related to marketing, and tea enthusiasts might just show what they're drinking.  Marketing is fine, and it's interesting hearing about different tea types, or preferences, but it tends to not extend to a deeper level.  

This partly relates to me being the only moderator for a large Facebook tea group, International Tea Talk.  There had been interesting discussions there about a range of themes in the past, but it has shifted to occurring more in other places now, as tends to happen.  Reddit and Discord are active, for example.

For introduction Vivek is from a well-known tea producer family that owns and runs the Doke tea plantation.  His father, a main founder, is Rajiv Lochan, who has been very familiar in specialty tea circles for quite awhile.

This is their Doke website; there is more background there, and it lists some related social media channel contacts.  This blog post works as an intro to that background story.  This is a review in this blog about their Black Fusion flagship product, or one version of it, from back in 2021.

There is always a chance that different people could see different aspects or shifts in local tea industries differently, but to me it's quite interesting to consider thoughts from someone with more local area exposure than almost any of us will ever have, even given that kind of interpretation concern.  

I've discussed local tea industry themes in India quite a bit over the years, most in relation to discussions with Suzana Syiem, a close friend.  We even talked to Rajiv once about related themes, back in 2021 when Covid disruptions made talking to people online seem like a helpful outlet.  Most of this matches and extends what I'd heard before.

Vivek's input on tea industry status in India

How is specialty tea uptake going in India?  Do you see differences in how preferences are changing in other places?

Specialty tea is slowing increasing in demand and interest with customer across the country. People are willing to experiment more and with better buying power, they can easily afford to try more than once. The increase in availability of teas with flavours – natural like fruits and herbs or like mocktails kind of stuff – also helps attracting a newer audience of tea lovers who can’t necessarily be called tea lovers.

Specialty tea quality development often seems to relate to two different factors, to small, private producers developing a more artisan approach to making tea, and to experimentation and development by larger producers.  Is one of these inputs having the most impact, or others?

I think the abundance of small, private producers is having more impact. The larger producer is usually under economic pressure to produce more and sell more. The smaller producer usually doesn’t have as much pressure and is more open to experimentation to set himself apart from the crowd. 

These small growers sometimes mimic styles from other countries / areas but that is only apparent to a person who is well versed with teas from foreign nations. Most people are appreciative of efforts to partially ‘copy’ production styles while keeping the end result unique. Something like our Black Fusion from Doke seems to be well appreciated. 

Black Fusion, from that earlier review

In different places different approaches to promote awareness seem to work, eg. public tastings, or media articles.  What seems to make a difference there, and what doesn’t work?

Media articles, semi private tasting sessions, food pairings and free sample distributions seems to be working quite well. We are trying to get more hotels involved with setting up tea tasting and food pairing sessions so we can attract more people to the tea world. Larger public tastings don’t seem to work because then it can be difficult to engage with people. Engagement is important to have both the drinker and the brewer understand what each other are looking for - kind of like wine tasting sessions. 

Are cultivars in use continually evolving?  Can you add a bit about that?

The TRA is always working to introduce new cultivars or better the current crop of cultivars available [the Tea Research Association, a government run institution under the Tea Board of India]. They have certainly come a very long way in the past decade or so in making the tea crops more pest / insect resistant and sturdier against drought. Constant evolvement of the cultivars is very important.

I seem to recall mention of a specially designed sprinkler system doubling as irrigation and offsetting high temperature impact on tea plants at Doke.  Is that accurate?  Can you describe this more?

Yes – we have a new government sponsored irrigation system at Doke which has been working wonders for us for the past couple of years. Upkeep has been a little bit expensive at the beginning with sprinklers failing and pipes bursting but overall, it has been a great addition. The new sprinkler system has all its piping underground, so they are permanently placed unlike the old system which needed everything moved as and when required. Set up time and wastage is almost nil now. 

The older sprinklers had a larger coverage area per sprinkler with a stronger throw while the new system relies on smaller sprinklers creating an almost mist like situation. This results in better absorption of water in the leaves and in the ground. The sprinklers are situated according to a design generated by a computer program that takes into account terrain features like trees and elevation changes.

Are changes related to climate change impacting tea production?

Climate change has very severely impacted tea production throughout the country this year. A dry winter coupled with a very hot and dry summer had decreased growth very sharply up till May. The situation started getting better end May onwards with some rain showers. June and July has been much better with constant rain and some sunshine in between. The tea bushes are still under stress due to almost 6 months of rain deficiency, but the situation seems to be improving. 

How many flushes or harvest periods can you harvest from tea plants?

In North India, the tea season usually starts in March and ends in November end. Old hands like to say that it starts with the Holi Festival and ends with the Diwali Festival. This is true as both festivals are based on the lunar calendar. When either festival goes up or down in the date range, the tea harvest season seems to follow. Of course it is not an exact science but has been pretty accurate.

Can you add some description of background on major plantations in Darjeeling transferring from family ownership to corporate ownership?  Is this a concern for continuity of Darjeeling tea production?

Almost all the tea gardens in Darjeeling today are corporate owned with a head office in Siliguri or Kolkata and a managerial team at the garden itself. The only family owned and family run tea garden in Darjeeling today is Giddapahar. Both brothers look after all the aspects of the tea estate directly without employing any manager level employees. They make it seem easy to sustain a tea garden in the current economic situation but I know that it is anything but!

What factors are changing the local tea industry there most, among new themes like sustainability, fair trade, and safety (related to pesticide use and testing)?

The Food Safety Authority of India has recently highlighted the pesticide use but that is a very difficult situation to tackle. The Tea Board regulates what pesticides can be used in tea gardens and the dosage as well. A blanket ban is not possible as some pesticides banned by the Tea Board are allowed in other fields. Pesticide use also cannot be checked regularly at the field level. Soil testing takes time and labs are not very common. Made tea testing can be expensive and not every lot can be tested. People are becoming more aware about these things.

Are public sales platforms like Amazon—different variations of that—changing the tea sales landscape in India?

Amazon and other online platforms are certainly extremely helpful to market teas and find retail customers. We are seeing more and more of our customers moving online even if it is just to have an online presence. People are willing to purchase online and can find a wider range online compared to physical stores. 

What potential changes or developments could best improve the lives of tea plantation workers?

The biggest change would be to increase the wages of the workers, but the producer is barely able to make ends meet at the moment anyway. The consumer, the middleman, the wholesale buyer is certainly not interested at all in increasing their prices or reducing their margins. The tea gardens already provide subsidized rations, medical facilities and housing facilities but those can be a bit basic sometimes. The government could do more to help –  most of their programs don’t seem to be able to reach the right people.

Tippy Doke Fusion and second flush Giddapahar teas

This tasting theme related to getting to samples from last year that looked interesting, including a different "tippy" version of the flagship Fusion product from Doke, from Bihar, not one of the main tea producing regions.  Reviewing another Darjeeling with it is about using that as a benchmark, and just commenting here on more teas they sent.  Giddapahar rings a bell, I must have reviewed at least one or two from them before, but it's not that familiar.  Per usual I'll add more listing details and links during editing.

One atypical part of this review post is that I wrote these notes three weeks ago, dropping out of doing most writing due to spending nearly two weeks on a covid experience.  These tasting notes tend to be fairly complete anyway.

DOKE BLACK FUSION TIPPY:- FIRST FLUSH 2021 (now listed at $11.24 / 50 grams)

The best Indian black tea that has a combination of sweet and malty roast notes with caramel flavour aftertaste is a heart winner for most of the tea drinkers! Having a brewing time of 3 minutes, this tea fills the air with its aroma of caramel and a spicy texture that is beyond words to explain! Coming from Bihar, Doke Black Fusion is processed using Assamica tea leaves that compels the tea lovers to explore this tea.

I didn't see a listing for the Giddapahar tea through their outlet (Tea Swan), or a clear match through Google search.  That version was more for comparison purposes anyway, and it was interesting experiencing the contrast in styles.  I didn't take it to be indicative of a normal, standard style Darjeeling second flush, but that was fine, trying something pleasant and more unique instead.  Of course I mis-matched flushes, since the Doke was a spring tea, but it turned out to not matter related to style range since they had fully oxidized that tea version, unlike conventional first flush Darjeeling style.

Review:

interesting that the second flush Giddapahar, left, is less oxidized

Tippy Black Fusion:  interesting.  One part resembles a standard black tea, maybe towards Ceylon for being softer and including more mineral depth than Assam typically does, and from there distinctive dried fruit range enters in.  It's a little towards Chinese date, jujube, but it's not that.  Cocoa / cacao comes across as well; that part would be familiar to Chinese black tea drinkers.  The feel is nice, with a little dryness and fullness but nothing like harsh astringency edge.  People accustomed to drinking better loose tea wouldn't consider adding milk to this, although it probably would be ok, it's just not something that I would check.  This is quite pleasant, and it will probably develop a little more depth over the next two infusions, before levelling off.

Giddapahar AV2 Summer Delight Second Flush:  that's really quite nice too, but very different.  It's includes just a little more dryness but really the effect is just different, more than it's stronger.  A strong range of warm tones stand out in this, and it includes fruit as well, and a catchy spice-like aspect, which I'm not really clear enough on to describe yet.  The muscatel level is moderate; it's not a version that's all about blasting that, but it does include that distinctive grape / citrus / wine-like range.   The catchy part may be how the different aspects balance.  I wouldn't be surprised if a bit of dryness and light range mineral softened and deepened next round, so I'll do a more complete flavor breakdown then.

Doke Tippy Fusion on the left in all photos

Doke Tippy Fusion second infusion:  lots of transition; an inky sort of flavor range really ramped up.  It's hard to describe, not like the straight ink mineral range that can couple with lots of other integrated flavors in Wuyi Yancha oolongs.  This is towards sourness, just not sour in a typical sense.  It seems to couple with fruit range, like elderberry, as a variation of how a juice can come across.  

I like it, but personal preference would determine response to this.  Fruity, mineral based, heavy flavor range black teas seem really nice to me, but this is in a unique range.  We've bought a ligonberry jam from IKEA before; what I'm describing as sourness and fruit isn't that close to that, since these flavors are heavier, but it works in comparison to describe what I mean by fruit-like and sour.  That reminds me, there's a Laos berry tisane I've been meaning to review, gooseberry, maybe that was?

Giddapahar:  so different that it's cool experiencing one of these and then the other.  I had expected more astringency edge from this, given how broken the leaf is, and now it's showing up.  It's not exactly that green wood range that seems to stand out and be distinctive related to only Darjeeling, but it's close to that, a variation.  Warm tones broaden feel and flavor well beyond that, making it seem complex (which it is).  The part I'm interpreting as catchy might just be the way a pronounced root spice aspect links with less distinctive fruit, with the two complementing each other.  The aftertaste is just that astringency edge, not so far off the experience of bitterness, or this might be a feel aspect that seems to link to actual bitterness.  

It works, but the astringency and towards-bitter edge isn't in an ideal balance.  The water I'm using is probably around 90 C, maybe just over (but I tend to not check those things), and backing that off to 80 or 85 might be more optimum for this.  Not that I would; I brew tea using pretty much the same water temperature, and even brewing parameters, and how it works out is what I'm interested in experiencing.  If this was more broken I would brew it Western style, probably then easing up on temperature just a little, but it's ok for this approach, with astringency moderated by brewing time.

In giving it one last taste that spice range includes towards-root flavor but also fennel seed, as a more dominant aspect, which is interesting.

Doke, third infusion:  I brewed these quite quickly, at or under 10 seconds, because intensity is a bit much at this proportion, for both, but they're probably still not even close to light.  The lighter intensity lets the fruit show through better; it's nicer.  That still does remind me most of elderberry.  It's hard to say what that tastes like, in comparison with other berries; a bit like blackberry, but heavier on mineral, richer in flavor, less fruity somehow, even inky in taste range.  If you ever get a chance to try a good version of fresh elderberry pie with vanilla ice cream your life will be improved by that.

Overall balance is good, the moderate astringency, pleasant and integrated flavors, good sweetness.  There aren't really any flaws to work around.  The only limitation is that this style and character might not suit everyone, which is true of essentially every tea type.  I see some types as more universal in appeal but that interpretation might not be shared by others.  These including what I'm describing as towards sourness and bitterness work well in relation to the rest of the range, but they might serve as examples of range that wouldn't work well for everyone.  Backing off infusion strength makes the part seeming like sourness drop out in this, with plenty of fruit flavor and warm tone intensity remaining, so it's down to a matter of brewing it appropriately.  I don't think this would be as good made Western style, unless someone could be careful about dialing in final infusion timing and intensity.

Giddapahar:  brewed lighter the part I've been struggling to capture really stands forward.  This tastes like teaberry!  It's a minty sort of wild berry found where I'm from, in Pennsylvania, that people tend not to eat.  I've heard before that you can collect and brew the leaves, and that they can even be oxidized.  That sounds amazing, but I've never tried it.  As with the other tea intensity really supports lighter brewing; this is plenty strong enough, and much better balanced.  Sweetness stands out more, with astringency and the seemingly connected wood tone flavor dialing back.  

It can come across as an insult in tea circles to say that a tea would be good with food, but I could see how this would pair well with a lot of range.  That edge works better moderated by infusion strength, like this round is prepared, but that effect could also be countered by eating this with a raisin cinnamon roll.  There's even a hint of cinnamon in this, showing up better for the wood tone dropping with infusion strength.

Doke, fourth infusion:  more of the same, and quite pleasant.  

Giddapahar:  the same really; maybe transitioning just a little.  Both these teas will keep making positive, complex, balanced infusions for a number of additional rounds, and character will shift a bit more, but the notes are sufficient.

Conclusion:

For quitting taking notes that early both teas might have improved slightly over the next few rounds, especially the Doke version.  It picked up a nice brandy-like character, warming and adding depth, with sweetness towards toffee or heavy caramel.  Intensity stayed good for lots more rounds, with parts that someone might have interpreted as negative (for both) largely dropping out, the astringency edge and such.

It was interesting how different this seemed to me in relation to the other second flush Doke Fusion version I had tried and reviewed (here).  There was enough continuity that I could relate to them being branded under the same name but they weren't even close to identical, with this version much better, adding more depth, complexity, and positive nature across a broad number of rounds.

This Giddapahar was interesting for not matching Darjeeling second flush standard character I expected, but being positive in a different way.  As some sort of standard type comparison baseline it wasn't suitable at all, but as a novel, good quality, and pleasant tea version it exceeded my expectations.  I'll skip trying to compare either of these to some other standard range, and the impossible task of matching a general extracted quality level from one range of tea to another.  These were good, pleasant and interesting; that's enough.

not much for home life or outings to share lately, so them sleeping will do

still time for messing around in between all the rest and recovery

Arya Ruby and Giddapahar Second Flush Darjeelings

 

After talking to Rajiv Lochan in one of many social tea themed meetups this year he sent some different teas to try, some from Doke that they make, and others from other producers.  In addition to being a producer they offer other teas through a Tea Swan outlet.  I've been trying a good number of exceptional Gopaldhara teas for awhile but not so much of other Darjeeling, so this should be interesting.

I mentioned in that meetup summary post that Rajiv was one of the people that played a role in getting me into tea blogging.  By chance contact through a mutual tea friend we had talked a little online, many years ago, prior to the 8 years I've been writing this blog, and he sent me some tea samples back then.  There was no clear reason to, it was just an act of generosity and helpfulness on his part.  It's not as direct as the lure of potential free samples led me into more formal writing about tea, to blogging, but that helped bring up the potential for that support.  I wrote to practice writing and reviewing teas, and to share ideas, which I expected to tie to some form of discussion.

A bit on Darjeeling sources and styles prior to this write-up:  the novel part of Gopaldhara's processing has been to focus on creating whole-leaf tea.  These aren't exactly that; I can tell prior to opening the packages.  For a Chinese tea drinker that whole-leaf presentation would seem objectively better, but to an extent it will also just be a different style.  Once you open up the packages they look good though; the leaves are beautiful, and not so broken, whole enough that I don't expect related astringency to be a big problem.  

I picked these randomly from a set; I don't know if these match up well for trying together, or if they represent the best of that group.  If I remember right Arya is a well-regarded and therefore in-demand producer name, but that grounds a lot in a fairly unreliable memory.

The teas won't be as well suited for Gongfu brewing, so it wouldn't be right to try them that way, to not optimize outcome.  I'm not unfamiliar with Western brewing but since I use it for a broad range of styles that wouldn't Gongfu brew as well I suppose I might have parameters for conventional black teas a little less dialed in.  I could weigh it; the kids and I just did a science experiment using my wife's fairly sensitive cooking scale, but I don't weigh tea.  I started out "eyeballing" proportions over 10 years ago when I first got into loose leaf brewing and never altered from that.  It's uncanny how I can tell exactly how full a gaiwan will be with wetted leaves based on a broad range of types, that take up vastly different space in dry form.  It's like that trick in knowing exactly which tupperware will hold a dish of leftovers, every time; it's a mystery.

It'll be fine, I've got this.  I've tried a sensational amount of tea since that first set of samples, lots of it black teas, including a lot of Darjeeling and other Indian blacks.  Astringency will probably seem a little higher than I'm used to but that's not necessarily a universally bad thing, since in the right proportion it can give a balance to tea experience.  

There are no listings for either tea on their Tea Swan outlet but let's check how close those get.

Tea Swan Arya listing for "Delight": $10.49 for 50 grams  (there is no "Ruby" page just now, only "Delight")

They've probably sold out of Ruby, or sold it directly through a wholesale level.  This is most likely a different tea listing, a more medium quality level version, so it won't be helpful, and there isn't much on there about the producer background and such.  

The first Google search listing for Arya Ruby is from the Thunderbolt outlet, selling that for $32 for 50 grams, before it sold out.  Really?  Seems aggressive, but then supply and demand do determine pricing.  Vahdam had been selling 100 grams through Amazon for $19.99, so one third that pricing.  Without that "Ruby" type branding you'd never know if you are comparing apples to apples but with that designation on both they should be the same (the exact same apple from the same producer, not just broader grouping).

One thing to keep in mind from these outlet vendors is that you can bundle a few types and it won't matter if you pay a little more for any one if you can buy specific tea versions that you really want at the same time, or offset that difference in value with another.  The Doke versions are well worth trying out (Bihar region teas the Lochans make), and sampling teas from other regions at the same time would be interesting, especially if Nepalese tea could be part of that.  Nothing against Assam, since those can be great, and I have been surprised by how good versions from Sikkim and Manipur have been.

Tea Swan listing for Giddapahar AV2 Clonal Wonder Black Tea ($14.74 for 50 grams)

This definitely isn't the same tea; only first flush versions are listed right now, no second flush.  Darjeeling makers tend to sell different lots under different brands, or mix them, so without a clear brand match it's hard to identify that, even a tea would seem similar.

I suspect there would be a price difference between these two versions I'm reviewing but at significantly different prices I'd drink this tea if it cost less, for sure.  The review notes explain that part.

It's interesting considering the Tea Swan brewing advice (part of it):

If you have got the primary flush Darjeeling tea, warm water to 80-85C. For the second flush or harvest time flush, warm water to 85-95-C.

Add one teaspoon for each container into the teapot.

If you're making an 8 oz container, at that point include around 3gm of tea. Pour hot water into the teapot. Steep it for 3 minutes.

Seems like good advice, especially the temperature part.  One would hope that people know to re-brew a tea brewed at 3 grams per cup for 3 minutes, which is probably quite close to how I made these.  You can even stretch a third infusion out of 3 grams of tea preparing multiple cups but two rounds would extract the most positive character from the leaves.

Review:

Arya Ruby:  it's nice; there's nothing throwing off reviewing this as a positive, complex, balanced second flush Darjeeling version.  I've brewed it using parameters that will produce two different and pleasant infusions, a little heavier on proportion than for the old "teaspoon a cup" standard, but that's just how I make tea Western style.  Onto the flavor list part.

What I take to be muscatel does stand out as primary (an aspect range which I always thought I was clear on recognizing, but who knows).  Wikipedia suggests that muscatel is "a type of wine made from muscat grapes," which of course I've never tried, the wine or those grapes.  As I interpret it that aspect range is in between heavy and warm orange citrus tone, a bit grapey, with some character along the lines of  rich red wine or brandy.  Describing this tea is really mostly about describing a variation of that.  It's clean, positive in nature, with feel / astringency nicely balanced, not overly sharp or heavy at all.  If anything it's softer and smoother than I expected, but still full in structure.  I wouldn't say that it has a dry edge but compared to even softer Chinese style black teas it might come across as such.

The citrus is nice; it really makes it.  That pairs really well with the warmer and deeper mineral tones in this.  Even though I've got a lot to drink compared to the tiny Gongfu cups I'm still having trouble discerning a lot of other flavor list.  Muscatel really stands out, which isn't bad, since it's so positive, and since that is a complex set of flavors, really.  I suppose the warm range I'm describing might come across like aromatic wood, like cedar, or the other richer and deeper fruit flavor someone might interpret as in the range of dried tamarind.  Comparing and contrasting with the Giddapahar might help.

Giddapahar:  different!  But still overlapping some.  I like it, but it has more astringency edge, and it's moved off the "straight muscatel" effect into a warmer range, towards spice, or even a bit earthy.  Part of what I said about muscatel applies here too, but that's only one part of a range, more or less primary, but it stands out less, and it's evenly balanced with the rest.  The Arya Ruby had a wood-tone component that seemed like cedar but this comparable range is a lot stronger and heavier.  Of course I'm not guaranteeing that the proportion is identical, and that's exactly the kind of shift in effect that even a relatively minor difference in proportion or timing could cause.  Or even water temperature; I'm using water not far off boiling for these, but someone being careful to pre-warm devices and use right at boiling temperature water would see more astringency edge extract.

There's a catchy part to this, along with heavier flavors being interesting, but not necessarily really positive or negative.  It strikes me as being towards a spice tone.  The part that's slightly wine-like in nature in the Ruby is even stronger in this, for sure.  It makes for a mix of inputs that are positive and then some negative, in relation to the Ruby version, and the balance just lands in a different place.  On the negative side that astringency form isn't quite as smooth, and that dark wood / earthiness isn't really positive.  On the positive side the extra lean towards spice and the wine-like range is interesting and pleasant.  

For me liking lighter, sweeter, fruitier Chinese black teas (which I really appreciate heavy fruit flavors, mineral base, and overall complexity in, to be clear) they Arya is a natural fit, but if the idea is to have a tea with food that changes things a little.  The Chinese tea drinking theme is quite often not about that at all, maybe with a light snack used to offset just drinking a lot of liquid, and repeating tea-range experience too extensively for too long.  Personally I'm very open to using tea as an everyday beverage; it would seem odd to me for people to let that entirely drop out.  What are they having with breakfast, coffee?  From that more ceremonial Chinese tea drinking perspective saying that a tea would be good with food could be an indirect slight, like saying one of these would be great with milk and sugar added, just not that extreme.

There's one more related factor, while I'm on this tangent:  I eat just prior to drinking tea, or something light with tea, because I don't want to put my stomach through the experience of drinking a lot of tea without food.  I've never had any problems with my stomach, at all, and my digestive system works pretty much as well as it did when I was 18, but I'd like to keep it that way.  I don't blast my stomach with a liter and a half of tea with no food (usually; if I eat a little just prior to that I will, so reviewing often works out like that).  And I don't overdo it with caffeine, so that I never have to worry about long term effects from that.  With breakfast I drink tea, and also often with lunch, but I tend to not finish brewing cycles from breakfast and brew a bit more from then, since I've been working from home.

Second infusion:

Arya left; a bit more consistent dark color

Arya Ruby:  not bad, not so different, maybe with just a little more heavier flavor range (again which is also an expected outcome from brewing stronger, that experienced tasters can learn to factor back out, for using a standard strong-brewed approach for evaluation).  Heavy mineral steps up, more comparable in level with the muscatel range.  Bright flavor range doesn't drop out, related to citrus, but it's in a more even balance.  It's interesting how this is exactly what you would hope that a cheap Darjeeling tea bag would taste like, a standard type-typical optimum, but they never do.  

They got oxidation level just right in this, it seems; the warm tones work well, the citrus / muscatel really hits, and the overall balance is great.  It should be relatively fully oxidized, for second flush style, and it is.  I think a lot of generic Darjeeling tea bags end up being all sorts of different leaf colors because they're mixing lots of all sorts of things (to get an optimum, to be most generous, or making the most of offsetting lots of different flaws, on a more practical read).

Astringency might have picked up a little but probably not as much as the flavor description made it sound.  The balance is good; the tea is very approachable, not harsh in the slightest.  At the right level astringency can just complement the flavors, and work as a style input rather than a flaw, and this is around there.

Giddapahar:  this balances a little better, maybe a little lighter versus the other being a little heavier.  I don't think that has to do with proportion or process in any way, just how the two versions naturally transition.  After thinking it through a little more I think the "catchy" part, that I couldn't really place, might relate to a subtle and well-integrated root spice input (like sassafrass or root beer, not so much like ginseng, and definitely not ginger).  A woody tone is probably as negative as positive, but kind of neutral, really some of both.  It gives the rest good balance but offsets the clean effect just a little.  

Astringency is comparable to in the Ayra version for this round; it's not harsh at all, just enough structure and dryness to fill out the experience.  

Conclusions:

To be clear there are no flaws in both teas, as I interpret them; they're well made, and surely made from good material, with a universally positive experienced aspect outcome.  They're quite good, even better than I expected.  I like Darjeeling, so my expectations were positive, but the quality for both of these is really good.

Some potential "negative" one might interpret relates to style, expecting or liking something else more.  Good quality Assam or Ceylon is also like that; you wouldn't dislike those for including any flaws, but might not like them as much as other types for preferring other character.  Ten years ago high quality Assam probably wasn't very common at all, while that wouldn't have been so unusual for Ceylon or Darjeeling, but lots of good orthodox examples turn up now, and small-batch, specialty producer versions that can be really exceptional.

So just how good are they?  That's harder to say.  I'm not really a specialist when it comes to higher end, standard character Darjeeling, although I've tried a good bit over the years.  I really can't place these in relation to the best versions produced by other Darjeeling estates, or sold by specialty outlets like Vahdam, Tea Box, or Golden Tips.  At a guess these are pretty far up the scale, pretty good even as pretty good Darjeeling goes.  It would be interesting to see if a pricing difference implied a potential quality difference between these two, but demand factors in too, so the reputation of a producer might change pricing, along with how the tea actually is.

I've been drinking more Gopaldhara than all other Darjeeling combined for a few years and I can say more about how they compare to their tea.  The style is different.  These seem more like good versions of what I've come to expect from second flush versions in the past, while Gopaldhara is pushing onto doing entirely whole-leaf versions, not even broken, and experimenting with different processing steps and styles.  To me, and this is just my take, not necessarily what anyone else thinks, their teas end up being much lighter in tone and fruitier, and closer to good Chinese black teas in style.  Astringency drops out to the extent that instead of considering whether it balances or not it's a minor input.  Fruitiness bumps up, and flavor intensity, with range of flavor aspects shifting.  Per my personal preference I like their teas a lot but I think that partly ties to preference specific to me, as a tea enthusiast more into Chinese teas.  These two versions probably match prior typical Darjeeling type better, which for some might make them better.

I think for drinking these teas, or what I've tried from Gopaldhara, with food that evens things up a lot too.  That extra bit of astringency edge doesn't just add balance to other sweetness and flavor range, it could help counter a food input.  

I'm reminded of how back during my wine drinking days that was a main thing everyone kept on about during pairing discussion, about how for certain types of foods, a lot of them, both reds and whites needed a degree of astringency edge to hold their own, to balance.  Then some other foods might not require that; it would depend.  A wine maker friend pointed out that in some cases shared aspects makes for a great pairing and in other cases it's the contrast that helps.  I remember one other wine specialist friend talking to a restaurant owner about how he drank vodka and grapefruit with food because it had plenty of acid range to match up with anything.  He was only partly joking (he was drinking vodka and grapefruit juice just then), and for both I think that theme made a lot more sense than it did to me.  How could you even taste food drinking that with it?  To clarify these guys were kind of snobs, but also just "on their own page;" where we were was like that.

sporty looking wine enthusiasts, and that general scene (photo credit)

So on the whole I think these were really nice.  "How nice?" might relate to style preference more than any attempt at objective quality assessment.  I probably liked the Arya just a little more, but I think some of that preference issue mapped over to this judgment too, more than judging quality.  The novelty in the Giddapahar version was equally interesting and positive, I thought, but I just love fruit, moderate astringency, and a lighter balance in black teas, and the Ruby version tipped towards that a bit more.  The Ruby might have given up a little for complexity, but both had plenty going on, and both really lacked any significant flaws.  

Really I would have to try both a few times to dial in my favorite brewing approach and see how a lasting impression versus a first impression worked out.  There's a good chance that a heavier range and more complexity in the Giddapahar might seem better for repeated drinking, with Arya more positive in an initial taste, perhaps comparable to how the old "Pepsi challenge" made Pepsi seem superior for sipping a bit of both, but too sweet for many for drinking a lot of it.

It will be interesting trying more versions of Darjeeling from Rajiv, and then some more from Gopaldhara, to compare with these.  I think that both these versions set the bar pretty high.   

a birthday celebration at a local restaurant, a family tradition

everyone takes a better picture than me, even aside from the strange movie-villain long hair look

just days prior; their birthdays are close, and we don't get observation on the actual date right

Doke Black Fusion, 2021 second flush

 

We talked to Rajiv Lochan, a well-known tea industry figure, about developing a new tea region in Bihar, the Doke plantation there.  That discussion, part of an online meetup series, was summarized here.  Not so directly related he was kind enough to send some teas for review, including their signature Doke Black Fusion, which I'm reviewing in this post (many thanks!).

There isn't that much more to say beyond the backstory covered in that post, with the exception of mentioning that they are also related to an online tea outlet, Tea Swan.  This and teas mentioned in some following posts might be available there.

There is a second tippy version of a second flush Black Fusion tea in that set, which I've not tried yet, to clarify why a related version mentioned elsewhere might sound a little different.  Their description:

DOKE BLACK FUSION

The best Indian black tea that has a combination of sweet and malty roast notes with caramel flavour aftertaste... This tea fills the air with its aroma of caramel and a spicy texture that is beyond words to explain! Coming from Bihar, Doke Black Fusion is processed using Assamica tea leaves that compels the tea lovers to explore this tea...

AROMA : Caramel, Currants and a Finish of Grapefruit, Notes of Malt, Spices

FLUSH: 2nd Flush 2020

CAFFEINE: High

SERVING : Hot and Cold - Both

ORGANIC/NON-ORGANIC: Non-Organic

TASTING NOTES : Sweet & Malty Roast Notes With Caramel Flavour Aftertaste

Review:

First infusion:  a little light; I tend to brew tea that way, using a fast first infusion to evaluate a tea, then get a more grounded opinion based on a stronger infusion the next round.  Intensity seems the main limitation in this infusion, and I can't really separate that effect from the light brewing approach.  It seems like it might be a limitation of the tea beyond that, but next round that will be clear.

Flavor that is present is positive.  Rich toffee like flavor is primary, with rich dried fruit or heavy floral flavors beyond that.  Unpacking those will be easier based on a stronger infusion.  A base mineral effect is nice, and aftertaste carries over nicely.  There are no notable flaws but sweetness seems limited (although again, next round will tell that part of the story better).

Second infusion:  I brewed this a little long to make sure to resolve the intensity issue, in the range of 15 seconds.  It might not sound like long but for this infusion proportion it is.  The heavy mineral base flavor ramps up considerably, dominating the overall experience.  That does connect in a positive way with a toffee sweetness, the actual sweetness level is just moderate.  

Some degree of rich dried fruit and heavy floral fills in beyond the mineral taste, and toffee, so it is complex, in a sense. The feel is nice, not astringent, but with significant body that supports the rest in a positive way.  I'll try the next round a little lighter and try to place the character better.  I would expect the tea aspects to balance out a bit, and maybe for it to evolve to become a little more complex.

Third infusion:  it is developing nicely.  Sweetness picks up; that does help.  It's an unusual form of it, covering more than one flavor that seems sweet.  This almost seems like a roasted tea, based on what I'm experiencing, but that also doesn't seem right, given expectations about the type.  It might just be that a heavy mineral range comes across, standing out more than a typical underlying base layer.  

Flavors are complex; more vegetal range fills in along with warm mineral, toffee sweetness, non-distinct dried fruit, and what I interpret as warm floral range.  When people drift off onto talking about a tea seeming like some sort of cookie that applies here, maybe like a graham cracker, or for British people like a digestive.  It is good.  

Fourth infusion:  

Fifth infusion:  an interesting spice range flavor picks up; it's a good sign that transitions are positive this far along.  At the same time woodiness also increases, and that mineral base flavor range shifts, so the overall change could either be seen as positive or not depending on interpretation.  Overall it's distinctive and complex.

Conclusions:

I like the tea.  It's complex and balanced, with all positive aspects, as I've described.  But I'm also drawn to considering what seemed like a limitation.  For having good flavor complexity and a nice base, and decent but moderate sweetness, there is a layer of the overall profile that's limited.  It's a richness or depth, maybe a mid-range complexity.  It might be that a heavy mineral tone is a pronounced part of the experience, and usually that's experienced as a base for the rest, not a dominant aspect, again almost as if this is a roasted tea.

It really could just be that the style is unfamiliar to me, the region-influenced character, or level of oxidation, and that trying the exact same tea a few more times it would seem to balance better.  Dian Hong, my favorite Chinese black tea (from Yunnan) tends to have a rich, complex depth, at times with a "high end" or forward aspect that is light or not very pronounced, and it could just be that difference, emphasis on a different flavor range not matching my own expectations.

This tea might work better brewed Western style; it can be hard to know without trying any one version both ways.  Sometimes splitting the experience apart in layers adds an interesting dimension, and in other cases combining those provides a more ideal overall balance.  It kept transitioning in positive ways across a number of infusions, beyond the ones with notes listed here, which is a good sign in relation to it being positive brewed across a longer infusion time, the Western approach.

To be clear I'm judging this in relation to good versions of small batch produced tea, and against good versions from the Chinese tradition, or the best of what is made in plantations elsewhere.  This is better than any commercial black tea I've tried coming out of Thailand, and probably roughly on par with better limited production versions, or at least better than most of those, again with my own bias towards Yunnan style throwing that off (not far from the North of Thailand).  It's quite good, and the one critique here is about placing that in relation to the highest potential for black teas.

Talking with Rajiv Lochan

 

Rajiv Lochan is a well known and respected member of the international tea community, and it was an honor to meet online and talk with him.  Where I live, in Thailand, really doesn't have people in roles involving changing tea production, sourcing, or awareness (not so actively, anyway), which limits how far options changes and common awareness progresses.  The US does have people playing a variety of different roles, the transition just takes time.

Per usual I'll talk about what we discussed, keeping details limited to a summary of what is interesting.  As is typical we made a start on interesting sub-themes more than we delved deep into them, because an hour or so of discussion only goes so far.  This talk meandered less than most do; it was nice that Rajiv helped steer it back to different participants contributing their own input, and addressing some basic tea themes, where tea culture, types development, economics, and awareness stands in India.  In other informal meetups tangents veered a bit further in random directions, which can be nice for social purposes, but Indian tea culture and types development are such broad subjects it was best to stick with that range.

These topics aren't covered in any particular order, maybe just related to what makes the most sense first, what sets context for the other range.

Doke tea, and Rajiv's background

Rajiv is a veteran of the tea industry.  He and his family has founded a tea estate, Doke, and also developed an online tea outlet, Tea Swan.  He described that early background more than I'll cover in detail here, about taking up tea trading at a relatively early age, after spending substantial time working in the industry.  Later forms covered more consultancy work range, then finally onto developing local production, related to Doke.  This is intended more to set context than as a detailed biography, and for most people familiar with tea industry themes some of that context might already be clear.

I've heard about Doke for quite some time, and reviewed teas from there in the past.  I reviewed their signature "Black Fusion" main product last in 2017, and I think I reviewed some of the earlier white tea they produced back in 2013.  Rajiv explained that black tea is their main product at this point, with green tea and a lesser-volume production white as primary others, and them moving away from production of a Rolling Thunder oolong, but not ceasing making that.  He explained that their Black Fusion tea progresses in quality and character as they make adjustments to processing and irrigation (even though it's been good for years, per trying it).  He said that it's well received, in appropriately high demand for the volume they can make, so it works well for them to focus on that.  Green tea is popular and in demand for the well-known reasons; some people prefer that range, and some associate it with health benefits.

Those are the basics, with irrigation development, history in developing that production, and plant-type inputs filling in more interesting range.  Related to irrigation obtaining adequate water sources and setting up the infrastructure is a significant feat, but they've went one step further in converting form to a misting system, to both offset high growing temperatures and to drop stress on plants in relation to foliar watering.  Ok, he really didn't go into that last detail, but plants can absorb water and even nutrients through leaves, so it's obvious enough how this could work really well related to plants' capability to use water.

The history was just a summary, so I'll leave most of that out.  A bit of discussion of tea cultivars was interesting, about how India developed a standard set of plant types over time, in a similar form that's more familiar to me in relation to the numbered series of Taiwanese cultivars.  It just doesn't work to bridge into all the range that's really interesting based on that starting point:  what tea types went into what cultivars, and what properties relate to many of them (productivity related, disease or pest resistance, environmental tolerances, water demand, related to processed tea characteristics, and so on).  We would need another talk to go further with all that, probably with a plant breeding export joining to help reduce it all to summary form.  

Rajiv did mention that one cultivar shares some characteristics with the now-popular purple tea theme, related to atypical coloration and unique compound inclusion, which affects flavor character, and probably even health benefit properties (which tea producers and enthusiasts do well to keep framed as an undeveloped subject).  Rajiv mentioned that his personal favorite, among related tea plant types and final forms, are Yunnan purple tea varieties.  Lots of people feel that way; it's a general range-- and one specific product form--that comes up as often as any other in a Yunnan Sourcing Fans Facebook group, and I've tried at least one interesting and pleasant version from Farmerleaf before.

Huyen's nephew caught part of it

Indian tea awareness, preference, and culture change over time

This subject comes up in talking to people everywhere, including India, but it takes very consistent forms in discussion with tea producers and vendors from India.  India's history relates to producing high volume, automated process produced, low to moderate quality tea.  To some extent Darjeeling versions serve as an exception in relation to this paradigm, and to some extent they are also an example of it.  In talking to Rishi of Gopaldhara the main focus was on discussing how they've put a lot time and effort into adjusting harvesting and processing processes, to produce more whole-leaf and higher quality tea forms, which included changing over some processing equipment to forms used in China.

Rajiv expressed the same ideas, but from the experienced perspective of a long time tea trader and direct vendor.  According to him for a long time the main focus of competition in the Indian tea industry was on who could produce and sell the cheapest products.  We didn't get into related sub-themes, but he said that this broad trend didn't fare well for increasing tea quality over time, or supporting high standard of living for tea production staff.  As everyone else we've talked to in India stated gradually this perspective is changing, and people are realizing that better forms of tea offer somewhat different experiences. But that awareness curve is occurring faster in Western nations, and to a limited extent doesn't apply in the same way in other Asian countries.

Of course I've just spent years discussing the same themes in relation to South East Asia, so it's not as cut and dried as a summary that many Asians already know about better tea.  Even in China most people drink very moderate quality tea.  Even in Japan, per my understanding, although I'm less clear on that status and the details.  At any rate Rajiv discussed how their Doke teas do have a foothold following in many countries, with that awareness and uptake not as far along in India as it might be for Indians universally preferring tea as a beverage.  The potential is huge for that to develop further.

Doke tea brewing variations

In trying what was surely even a less developed earlier form of their Black Fusion four years ago I can see why it would be well received in other countries.  I found the tea to be very approachable, unique, pleasant, and complex, without the limitation of a high level of astringency found in many black tea versions.  Rajiv asked an associate join us from Japan, (Chitose Sashida), who described how they experimented with alternate brewing forms there and had great success with  a cold-brewed, iced, and shaken version.  For me it's a little odd to take a tea that turns out that well and try to change results, but I still sort of get it.  Even though there had been limited astringency to "brew around" in that version that I tried the final effect could be completely different using different preparation methods.

She and Rajiv described the results as not even tasting exactly like tea, taking on a high degree of fruitiness, and even an alcohol-like quality, relating to part of the depth.  I'm not philosophically opposed to drinking tea cold, cold-brewed, or even slightly adjusted with citrus or whatever else, I'm just on the plain brewed page myself.  All the same I can see where this subject and the issue of introducing the tea to an audience not sharing my main preferences could overlap.  

Thailand has picked up a love of ready to drink tea from Japanese influences; it's everywhere.  Even high-end "boutique" versions of RTD teas are now produced here.  I tend to not even try them, but they must be well-received, for continuing to increase in type and number.

one variation, being sold in the Central World mall in early 2020, before the world changed

a high end local Ceylon version, photo credit their FB page

I'm not trying to say that Doke should move into RTD tea just yet; they can sort out what product forms they think would work best for them.  To me it's hard to even relate to cold brewing, and that much harder to consider buying a bottle of any pre-brewed tea.  Tea awareness and demand needs to connect with existing preference, but tied to my own preference a likely and promising end point is soaking leaves in hot water yourself, without adding any flavor before drinking the result.  Of course that's a biased perspective; this is a tea blog.

Wild tea plants, adopting foreign styles

Very near the end we started into some really interesting scope that connects with a lot of other range I've explored through teas from lots of different places.  Both of these topics, that of wild tea plants, and the adoption of foreign styles of processing and presenting teas, are very controversial.  Since a lot of what I wrote in an initial draft about that subject is more my perspective than what we discussed I've split it off to a separate post instead.

Conclusions

It was all very interesting, discussing these issues, and drawing on the wealth of knowledge and perspective Rajiv possesses.  I appreciate and value tea enthusiast perspectives too, but that other context adds range of what can be covered.

It would be nice to talk again and get further with some specifics.  The most interesting discussions we've participated in have all been like that, pointing towards more we might discuss later.  Which we're not really getting to just yet, repeating meetup guest attendance, but when we do it would be nice if we could talk with Rajiv again.

Doke black fusion

This tea needs no introduction, but I'll mention a little background anyway.  It's probably the one specific tea I've heard most about through other review and online discussion, the Lochan family / Doke plantation's development of their own signature style of black tea.  From the name alone it's a hybrid style, which I won't be investigating further in this write-up.  I'll keep it simple, a description of a tea.  That never works, but this time it will.


I should add that this tea was provided by the producer for review (many thanks for that).  I tried some teas from them awhile back, in 2013, provided as samples back then too, but scanning back I only reviewed one.  Their tea production is new enough that I've followed them online related to developing new styles since, but I've been all over the map trying teas from different countries since then, with no proper focus on any one of them.

Review

The smell of the dry tea is nice, rich, sweet, a bit complex, with raisin or date undertones along with a bit of earthiness and other fruit, and probably some citrus.  The tea is small twisted leaves or leaf parts with some buds.

The first infusion I went a little light, brewing the tea essentially in between Gongfu style and Western style in a gaiwan, kind of typical for me.  I just tried brewing Longjing using a straight Western approach, and I'm sort of off that page so I liked it better a second time as I'm used to making teas now, which varies by type.  This tea would be different prepared in a conventional Western style, although in general that tends to just switch aspects balance around a little.  Vendors often recommend the style they think works best, or provide options, which is advice based on lots of relevant experience, but it could never fully account for individual preference differences.

The initial taste is really nice, sweet, with plenty of fruit (raisin, towards muscatel but not exactly like that, probably more I'll get to later).  It has a soft maltiness, nothing like an edgy Assam, but towards that, maybe better described as toasted pastry, similar but softer.  From there lots of description might fit, and that general range might extend a little towards cocoa; the tea is complex.  The flavors balance is definitely nice, without astringency to work around, and decent feel / structure.  It's no wonder people go on about this tea, especially given that it's just getting started.

The next infusion is a nice coppery reddish brown, at normal infusion strength, maybe a touch lighter than some would like their black tea prepared.  Brewed a little stronger the astringency picks up, still limited to more of a feel or structure, still not edgy.  That strikes a nice balance with the sweetness and flavor complexity.  It's enough structure that the tea wouldn't work as well brewed at significantly higher infusion strengths, not like some of the softer Chinese black teas that have no limit related to that, so you can keep going with range of concentration depending on preference.  In the range where I would prefer this tea related to flavors balance the feel is also positive, complimenting the flavors and the rest of the experience.

There is just more of the same related to those flavors mentioned earlier, a nice intensity.  There isn't really one dominant flavor; a number of aspects integrate and balance.  Raisin and cocoa does underlie the rest, and there is some citrus, maybe across a range of very light muscatel and a bright citrus tone, more like zest spray from a Thai juice orange, bright but not as bright as navel orange zest tone.  A general richness more or less relates to toasted pastry in flavor.  An underlying mineral tone does remind me a little of the taste of copper, going all the way back to sucking pennies in my childhood.  I even found out from experience what happens when you accidentally swallow one; the doctor said it would probably work its way out, and I've not seen it on a routine health-check x-ray since so it must have.

Those are the basics, as I interpret the tea, but with the degree of complexity one could probably keep going.  It all really works.  It's not so far off what I expect better Assam than I've ever tasted to be like.  I've tried some decent versions but none that struck this balance, none with this fruit focus and approachable nature.  But I've definitely not tried enough better Assams that invoking a type comparison here--as I just did--makes any sense.  And it's been long enough that I'm tasting this against a different set of preferences and range of experience, with a good bit of transition in brewing preference over the last couple of years.

The next infusion is consistent, not varied.  I might mention that mineral tone does underlie the experience but it really provides the context for it, along with the feel and sweetness, in three different senses.

All this makes me wonder about the "fusion" part.  Is the character so appealing to me because I'm really attached to Chinese black tea styles, and they've moved towards that, likely by adjusting processing steps?  I'd look into it but I really do feel bored with my posts going on forever.

The next infusion (four, I think) improves a little, the best one yet; that's a nice surprise.  The fruit brightens a good bit, not that it was at all earthy or murky before.  The character has been clean and well balanced throughout, but all that range extends a little towards that bright fruit nature in Juicyfruit gum (not that far from Fruit Loops cereal of pandan leaf, since that product reference is a bit dated).  I think other fruit description may have been warranted before too, it just would have been a supporting aspect, and it's easier for me to list out main elements than to extend that to a long list as some reviewers can.  It reminds me a bit of persimmon, in addition to what I'd already mentioned, maybe spanning the range of fresh persimmon with the raisin effect touching on that of dried persimmon, but surely even that's not the end of it.

The feel of the tea had been interesting before but that steps up just a little too.  I'm not all that attached to feel in tea; a bit of fullness to support the complexity of the experience is enough for me.  But it's worth noting this one is doing something different, related to the way your tongue reacts to it, it feels full, causing some tightness at the rear and sides of the tongue.  It has more aftertaste going on than black teas often do too, a lingering sweetness.  I suppose it is more pronounced at the rear of the tongue but I don't mean that as a comparison to anything else, or as any sort of claim, as people tend to attach to something described in a similar way.  I like tea for the taste, mostly, and this one tastes good.

On to infusion five, this is where better Chinese black teas wouldn't be finished, prepared in this way, but the longer infusion times and natural transition cycle would change their nature, with different elements coming out.  More forward and brighter flavors tend to have dimmed and underlying earthy tones tend to come forward around this point.  A little of that does occur but there's still plenty of brightness to experience.  That coppery mineral tone picks up, and the toasted pastry aspect has changed, moving a bit towards what I think of as tropical hardwood tone.  I'm not actually tasting any tropical hardwoods but I do keep my clothes in a wardrobe--like closet, but a furniture version--that has an interesting scent, like cedar or redwood's laid-back but much more exotic cousin.

This tea should have a few more rounds to offer, it will just be tricky to get the infusion strength right without overdoing it on the mineral.  The astringency could overtake the character too, brewed incorrectly, but it hasn't been in the form of a biting edge, it's expressed as a moderate feel and structure.  This seems like a good place to leave off anyway, maybe extending past a short and simple description as it is.


The tea is nice!  I was concerned it might not fare well in relation to its reputation, since high expectations can make it harder to appreciate a good tea rather than easier, but the novelty and positive character lived up to the build up.  Part of that is about how well a tea style matches up with preferences and this one worked well for me.