Halmari Orthodox Assam and Earl Grey tasting

orthodox Assam; full name HALMARI Gold GTGFOP1 Clonal

Halmari Earl Grey

I didn't get to the last two of the Halmari Assam tea samples, one their highest quality orthodox Assam black tea, and I'll try an Earl Grey along with it.  As I've often repeated combined tasting makes more sense with similar teas, and these aren't that.  The main point is wrapping up trying them, since I'd like to clean the slate of what I mean to get to, but comparison could turn up something interesting.

I'll try to prepare these in a hybrid style in a gaiwan, more or less in between Western and Gongfu, or probably as a light version of Gongfu style, which isn't traditional.  The idea is to make small quantity infusions, adjusting for the unusual proportion as I go.  It's not ideal for tasting to use an unconventional brewing approach but it's not that atypical for me.  Related to informing background I've got a touch of a cold.  I'll probably re-try this orthodox tea version later this week to double check how a standard Western brewing approach works out, and hopefully I can shake this cold instead of it getting worse [editing note:  I'm adjusting the draft while I have a throat infection; that didn't work out].


I'll mention a little about what the orthodox tea is first.  It's listed as HALMARI GOLD GTGFOP1 CLONAL.  I don't keep up with those letter terms but I could swear that first "G" should be an F (which I won't explore, but the Wikipedia article on all that is a natural starting point).  I looked to their description to shed light on the "clonal" part:

Leaf : Long, selectively plucked and delicately rolled leaves with a generous sprinkling of chunky golden pubescent buds. Very exclusively made only during the 2 months of second flush season... 

One of our most iconic teas, the GTGFOP1 Clonal has won the North American Tea Championship is 2012,2013 and 2015.


Not much for detailed description, but winning awards is a good start.  Clonal is a reference to propagating the tea by cuttings to preserve consistent genetics, versus using seeds, but I'd expect that's related to a hybrid or other selected tea plant type with characteristics they want to preserve.

Review

I went too long on the first infusion, even though it was only for around one minute.  This really is a hybrid style of brewing, in the middle between Western and Gongfu, but some people would see it as a light proportion variation of Gongfu brewing instead.  Not that a brewing approach label really matters.  Part of that error--preparing it a bit strong--might relate to using slightly higher water temperature than I usually tend to for black tea, close to boiling point versus down between 85-90 C instead.

These teas would be fine across any temperature range, I'd expect, still making ok brewed tea at lower temperature more typical for green tea brewing, but hot water would probably be more standard, and variation would shift aspects balance slightly.  I'm often using slightly cooler water to accentuate sweeter flavors and de-emphasize astringency / feel elements, but for some that wouldn't be preferable at all, and different teas would work out differently.

first go, brewed a little strong (Earl Grey left, orthodox right)

Brewed a little strong I can only get the general range for the orthodox version; it's nice.  It is normal to brew on the slightly strong side for comparison tasting, using the standard "ISO" approach, for two reasons:  to set one level of parameters to use across many examples, and to help with identifying flaws in the stronger brewed version, which is said to highlight those (along with practice in trying tea made that way).  Nothing negative stands out.  The feel is a bit strong, and the taste is a little intense, leading towards dryness, but I'd guess this is exactly how a very good Assam brewed a little too strong should be, the right attributes in the right balance.  The malt is intense but I don't think it's going to take over the tea, back in the normal balance, and even brewed strong the flavors are still quite clean.


Brewed strong the Earl Grey is also a little intense, of course.  The balance of the bergamot (a type of orange essential oil) is the main thing, then after that the input from the tea itself.  I'd expect it will level off nicely, related to the proportion and how they're coming across a bit strong.  This won't be a bergamot-intensive version where you just can't tell what black tea is under that, although brewed strong the black tea isn't contributing lots to this flavor.

It won't be as distinctive and pronounced as the orthodox version, the black tea input, likely quite a bit more subdued.  It doesn't include bud material as the orthodox version does, which would change the effect a lot.  I'm not tasting anything "off" about it, but at a guess it will be a mild version of a black tea, as Assam goes, with no off flavors.  That mildness might be as well, since intense malt might not pair as well with bergamot.

Next infusion

Prepared more typically--in one sense, at least--the orthodox version is great.  There is plenty of malt but it doesn't take over the tea.  A lot of nice sweetness balances that out, and there's more going on than malt.  Mind you if someone didn't like malty black tea they still wouldn't like this version but if typical Assam seemed one-dimensional, a bit rough, or unsophisticated and not well-balanced this version resolves all that.  The flavors-list style description is going to sound a lot like for any better Assam, I'd think, but how those elements come across, the exact expression of them, and more so how they balance is what defines this tea as being on a higher level.

Beyond malt a cedar or redwood like wood aspect fills in flavor depth.  The taste extends into a nice citrus element at the finish, nothing like the bergamot in a flavored tea but not completely dis-similar either, maybe in the orange zest range.  I'll work on pinning down another flavor aspect or two as I try a few more infusions.

lighter, a better infusion strength (Earl Grey left, orthodox right)

The Earl Grey is nice, of course with bergamot as a central flavor theme.  It's hard to separate out what the black tea is like aside from that, but I guess describing the mix is more valid.  Malt isn't intense, but it's there.  Some degree of wood-tone also comes across.  It might have sweetness and some citrus without the actual citrus added but combined it certainly does.  Mineral isn't as strong as I'd expect it would be if this were above average Ceylon instead, but there is some acting as a base for the other flavors.

It works; to me it's better than typical commercial Earl Grey versions.  Earl Grey isn't a page I've been on much in the past year, more so in the first half of last year, as I recall, but I can relate to it.  My favorite Earl Grey version so far was from Vietnam, from Hatvala, but then it was based on a plain black tea I liked alone, and I've not tried that recently enough to compare it to this from memory.

To me this type of tea works great as something you don't need to focus on, as a breakfast tea, more than one that would excel in a comparison tasting session.  The flavors balance is nice, just lacking subtlety of a better plain tea.  It would go with all sorts of foods very well, with enough sweetness and fruit to offset savory foods, and enough earthiness and body to offset sweet pastry.  Per my preference this tea works better drank with food than alone, even if it's something neutral like a butter cookie or biscuit, to help offset that bergamot orange tone, to reset from it while drinking.  A chocolate digestive is more or less exactly what I'm talking about, on the sweeter side, like a graham cracker with chocolate.  If you've never tried them life has at least one more re-affirming surprise in store for you.

the other British contribution to food, besides fish and chips (credit)

Third infusion

Brewed just a little stronger the orthodox version shows just a little pine-resin character, which is nice, even if it may not sound it.  The actual flavor range is a bit complex; it wouldn't be wrong to describe it as relating a little to cocoa, and with minimal imagination related to some sort of fruit (tamarind?).  The citrus is strong enough that would be more natural to flag.  The feel is cool too; a bit on the dry side, seemingly related to that pine flavor.  And as black teas go the aftertaste is quite pronounced.  Surely all of this relates in part to the very high proportion of buds in the tea.

Related back to those three Dian Hong (Yunnan black teas) that I compared awhile back this is definitely closest to the buds only version (golden tips).  I suppose personal preference would dictate how good a thing that is but I can at least definitely relate to this tea.  I suppose my absolute favorite for an aspects set might be more like a Chinese black tea, shifted more towards cocoa, a subdued dried cherry range, with just a touch of roasted yam, and a molasses sweetness background, but this tea works well for me.

The Earl Grey is still mostly bergamot; that's really as it should be.  The flavors are really clean, and the earthy complexity beyond that makes it work well.  It's in the malt, cedar / redwood, touch of pine range too, but it seems a quite different black tea, the balance is completely different.  It has a lot less pine going on, and probably less natural citrus, but of course that's just a guess.


I'm in a hurry today--always in a hurry; kind of how life goes these days--so I won't get through more infusions, although brewing these twice more I'd probably tease out another aspect or two, and notice how they work out for being stretched for infusion count.  These might express slightly more complexity brewed Western style for more of that coming out in a three to four minute soak, it just wouldn't work to experience flavors evolving layer by layer, as a Gongfu approach allows.  I'll try these teas again Western style and check in related to what turns up.

Second try, conclusion

I did try the orthodox version again brewed Western style; the results weren't so different.  I brewed the tea twice using a standard light proportion and 3 1/2 minute then around five minute second steep, brewed to a typical infusion strength.  The flavors range was the same:  malt, cedar, pine, and citrus, with good sweetness and a bit of fruit aspect that was harder to pin down for being more subtle, per my take close to dried tamarind.


I was curious how this would seem in comparison to their other orthodox version that I reviewed and to be honest it seemed similar.  Both are complex, clean flavored, and full in feel but not really astringent, both well balanced, a bit intense but moderate on malt.  I would expect those similar aspects are balancing a little better in this orthodox version, that it's a little cleaner in effect (likely related to very slightly different feel and overall flavor effect), with a bit more fruit, but a difference would be clearer trying them side by side.


I actually posted a version of this before considering mentioning value, a subject bloggers tend to avoid but one I've been drifting into more lately.  As in other cases of direct sourcing buying this tea from Halmari would be an incredible value related to buying anything remotely like it from a resale vendor.  Don't take my word for it though; check the prices on their website and Google search similar alternatives. 


I didn't do as much with describing subjective preference in this post as I sometimes do, but related to what I prefer in teas of theirs I really liked their oolong version.  As I mentioned in that review post it shared some space with Darjeeling second flush teas and Oriental Beauty Taiwanese oolongs, which cover two nice and related ranges for tea aspects.

recharging to cause more trouble later

Halmari Hand-rolled Assam Oolong

a bit tippy as oolongs tend to go

Halmari, one main producer of Assam teas, sent an oolong version along with two orthodox versions of Assam black tea, one of which I've already reviewed.  And an Earl Grey; that should be interesting.  Indian oolong isn't a brand new concept but I've not tried many examples, and no specific versions come to mind (not a great sign).  As I only vaguely recall the versions I tried seemed a lot like a black tea, just backed off in oxidation level a little, not all that different than how that works out for Darjeeling first flush teas.  That wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing given how nice those can be.

Their description of this tea doesn't add that much to that but I'll cite it, since Assam oolong does seem atypical:

Halmari’s handcrafted tea follows the five basic steps of tea-making, however, it is carefully hand-rolled and oxidized repeatedly over the course of days. This unique method enables us to create beautiful complex layers of aromas and flavours from this tea. 

one minimum-requirement version of a processing chart (credit World of Tea)

Per World of Tea's processing chart the only minimum-requirement difference in types between oolong and black tea is that oolong is fixed at one step (heated to stop oxidation at one level).  Of course a lot of oolong is actually roasted too, and processing steps can vary, but I'm not going to develop all of that in this post.

Review

The dry tea smells a little like a Darjeeling,  with orange citrus or maybe even bergamot scent. But it's slightly earthier, an interesting combination.

I brewed the tea Gongfu style (odd mentioning what that is, but just in case:  using a high proportion of tea to water, and multiple infusions versus only two or three).  These instructions recommend Western style brewing, and I did also try that method later, which I'll describe at the end.  The first infusion was more a rinse, but not discarded, a normal approach for me. 

The taste is sweet with a good bit of fruit and complexity, but prepared light enough that I'll start the detailed review on the second infusion.  It's already clear that this really will be a type of tea that's new to me, not just black tea eased off a little on oxidation level, a bit different in character.

The tea is interesting.  The tie to Assam black tea related to the aspects is clear enough but that only seems to represent half of what is going on, and it's not based on a dominant malt aspect as Assam black tea tends to be.  It also shares a lot in common with Darjeeling, more so than any Assam I've ever tried.  I'd say second flush style since the astringency level isn't as light as in first flush, and since citrus / bergamot is so pronounced in this.  It's not exactly that, with a lot of the flavor in this tea expressed in a different citrus range.  It's still related to a type of orange, I'm just not going to venture which orange (blood orange, juice orange?; definitely not navel orange).

There is malt too, it just shares the space, only one part of what is going on.  From there the citrus range is next, then a black - tea related effect of oxidation, a specific kind of earthiness.  It's something I've been referring to as a resinous feel, which seems to relate to taste range that's a little towards pine.  There's a good but of mineral complexity under all that.

It's definitely novel, and doesn't remind me much of any other oolongs.  I'm guessing that this wasn't roasted at all, although not all oolongs are, and I'm not sure it would improve it anyway.  The oxidation level must be backed off that of their black teas but it's hard to notice that as a single cause input.  Oriental Beauty style oolongs are typically prepared at a relatively high oxidation level, up near the border of what would be considered black tea, and I guess this does share some commonality with that type, it's just not exactly the same.  It contains more bud material than oolongs typically tend to, or at least it seems to, so it ends up looking a little like some Oriental Beauty teas.  The fruitiness isn't far off some OB versions range (pronounced citrus is typical for those), and like those this tea has great sweetness, it just has a black tea-type earthiness underlying that which isn't common to those, maybe except in more oxidized versions nearer to the boundary for black tea.

My description so far hasn't done it justice but there is a sweetness and lightness to the tea, offset by the complexity and bolder flavor range.  It's true that I'm expressing a contradiction, but there is a complexity to the experience beyond individual aspect input that is hard to pin down.  It's definitely not as light as lighter / "greener" oolongs always are, or even as roasted oolongs go, but it's not as heavy, earthy, or astringent as black teas.

For the last infusion I went over 30 seconds and it was just a little intense;  I'll back off that.  Prepared on the light side this tea really shines, bright with lots of fruit, lots going on.  The feel isn't even thin, and brewed strong--what would be normal strength for other teas, at least related to brewing time--that feel might be too much, along with the flavor not being as positive.  Using the same parameters as this for the Dian Hong (Yunnan / Chinese black teas I tasted yesterday, at least related to when I made these notes) those black teas wouldn't taste like much, especially the two leaf-type versions (versus the one bud / gold tips version).

Part of the taste range is back at cedar / redwood, matching the orthodox black version I tried earlier, but it's layered along with the rest in this.  There isn't that much common ground with light rolled oolongs to talk about,  or with Wuyi Yancha or Dan Cong styles.  It's closest to Oriental Beauty, as I'd mentioned, but it seems just as close to Darjeeling second flush tea as well, sort of in between the two.

The malt aspect is different than in Assam black teas.  It's still in a malt range but beyond being only one flavor contribution among others instead of dominant the effect is lighter, and the aspect itself different.  I tend to describe malt as spanning a range of earthier and heavier flavor,  like aged rusty iron pipe, to being much softer, lighter, and sweeter, more like ovaltine, closer to cocoa, or more like the original sense of a fermented grain.  This might be closer to the middle now, still a bit towards the heavier side, but less so than as expressed in Assam black teas.

The fruit effect transitions some along later infusions, but still in a similar range.  It's becoming lighter in character and perhaps more complex rather than less.  It's at a place where interpretation of individual elements could vary quite a bit, but then to some extent that would have been true of the fruit and earthier aspects in earlier infusions too.  It's slightly wood-like, but it's also picking up a touch of root spice complexity.

On the next infusion I went a good bit longer, over a minute.  The tea is brewing out, fading after a good number of infusions, but the aspects range is staying consistent, and it's still possible to brew with that more intense,  heavy-earth, thick feel.  It comes across as slightly dry made that way.  I'll stretch the tea to brew another infusion or two, or it would work to try and get the last out of it by trying cold-brewing (putting it in the refrigerator with slightly warm--but not hot--water, overnight or for at least 8 hours).

A second try, Western brewed

Whenever I'm brewing teas Gongfu style (using that tea proportion and timing) for types that would either typically be prepared Western style, or I think might do better that way, I try to check results making them using both processes.  And I did that for this tea.

The results did seem similar.  Again this tea reminded me a lot of a second flush Darjeeling, not that far off a black tea style related to oxidation level, but a good bit fruitier than most tea types tend to be.  The muscatel was swapped out for other orange citrus range to some extent, and the oxidation level and subsequent malt / earthiness / astringency was subdued, but it was definitely still along the same line.  It did well related to using that approach; it was easy to make, and provided plenty of flavor, even though I really did use a light infusion proportion compared to how I generally make teas. 

This tea is soft enough that it would work well across a range of infusion strengths.  There is no notable astringency to brew around, and just enough earthiness and structure to give it a bit of feel, perhaps a bit softer than it might seem it would be given the flavor range balance.  Related to overall balance and the "clean" nature of this tea, there is a subtle way that teas come across that shows them to fit somewhere on a range.  Let's express that as ranging from flawed, to decent tea, to instead really good, and at the highest end of that spectrum something exceptional.  This tea is pretty far towards the more positive end of that scale.  Some teas can come across as very subtle and sophisticated, and also intense at the same time, as better Dan Cong can, and this tea is a bit more along the lines of a conventional tea tied to that scope of effect, similar to how better than average Oriental Beauty oolongs tend to come across.  The flavors aspects set is nice and unique though; all in all a very nice tea.

Typically it's not a blogger's place to mention cost and value related to tea but per my take it would still make sense to buy this tea at twice the listed price, with some teas of comparable quality and overlapping aspects range selling for more than that.

Halmari Gold orthodox Assam

I'm trying a sample of an Assam black tea sent for review by the Halmari Tea Estate.  I'll start in with review, and get back to how this relates to other versions they make at the end.  It's sold as an orthodox tea, with leaves a bit chopped as some other orthodox tea versions go, but it's certainly on the more tippy side.

Review

It's malty!  The flavor profile is clean, with good balance and complexity beyond the malt, so it seems like pretty good tea.  Beyond isolating more flavors one main question will arise:  how good?  I might also mention that I first brewed this tea in between a typical Western proportion and timing and a Gongfu approach, using a gaiwan, so really closer to the latter.  Using a hybrid style is actually somewhat typical and familiar to me, but I'll get back to trying it prepared more conventionally as well, using a straight Western approach, and will mention how results vary for both.

In their instructions they are almost certainly assuming that someone would use boiling point water, but trying out backing off that temperature just a little is probably worth checking out, since the slight variation in outcome would map differently to different personal preference.  I made this using water just under boiling point for the first brewing, and I'll get back to using hotter water in the second Western brewing trial.

instructions; basic, reasonable

I would guess that it's the high proportion of tips giving the tea a more resinous feel and slightly piney flavor, both positive.  The tea really just tastes like a better version of Assam; mostly malt, some mineral range grounding that, not quite as pronounced as in some better Ceylon I've tried.  There is also an earthy range, pretty close to cedar wood, or maybe redwood instead.

For the second infusion I went slightly cooler and faster to try a light version of the tea.  I can check a more standard infusion strength next time to see what transition might be occurring.  My impression doesn't change much trying a very light brewed version instead; the same list of aspects and relative proportion applies.  The feel and flavor intensity lighten but the aspects stay the same otherwise.

On the next infusion--medium in brewed strength--the malt drops down to a more evenly balanced level related to the other two higher range aspects, pine and cedar wood.  If using a Western brewing approach based on a three or four minute steep time someone would experience the average of those first three steeps, more or less (but sometimes results do vary more than one would expect, and it's not that simple).

Brewed stronger the next time the pine aspect picks up.  It's actually in between the somewhat rosemary-like flavor of pine needles and the earthier, richer scent of a pine cone, tying into the wood aspect.  Mineral underlies that, but in a way that's subdued compared to in some Ceylon.  It's still plenty malty, of course; that's still the main aspect, balanced by the others.


I'm assuming this would seem like one version of an English Breakfast tea to many, an unblended variation.  It's probably just a good bit better than most versions related to tea quality level, and more distinctive related to being a single type, perhaps giving up some complexity due to not being a blend of tea types.  Blending teas might relate to two different factors, really:  achieving a balance of aspects by combining teas that vary, as for Bordeaux blend wines, a mix of five grape types, and for covering up flaws in one or more of the teas, or offsetting using lower quality versions of all of them.  There is no flaw to compensate for in this tea (although essentially any tea version could be better in some ways), but it does express a specific and limited aspect range, with intense flavor most pronounced.

It would work really well with a range of different foods, probably better than drinking it without anything.  It's not really astringent, at least as I'm preparing it, but not really a soft or mild tea either.  The taste range is bold, for sure.  It would offset either savory or sweet foods well, I would expect.  I did try it in later infusions along with a mild vegetable and tofu mix with rice at lunch, which worked, but it could hold its own alongside stronger food or counter sweet pastry well (more my typical breakfast).

It would almost be a shame to blend a tea with this clean effect, balance, and complexity.  But that could work; it has a lot of that particular flavor range to contribute.  It would probably be fine with milk, I'm just not used to tea prepared that way.  This tea's flavor profile would work well in some type of Christmas blend, along with cinnamon and fruit elements (like in this post, or this one).

Brewed Western style; a second trial

It's pretty much the same; again with malt dominating, pine and wood filling in the flavor range, with mineral tones as a base.  Some sweetness balances those aspects, and the overall flavor profile seems relatively clean in character, not muddled by any off earthiness. I expected using hotter water, brewing at full boiling point, to ramp up astringency more but the feel of this isn't an issue for drinking it plain.

The strength of flavor of the tea is plenty strong enough in a relatively light preparation.  I can see why this type of tea would make sense for blending; it's as intense across that limited flavor range as any type or version I've ever encountered.  CTC Assam is like this but with much stronger astringency, and the flavors aren't quite as distinctive.  That's per my past experience, at least; it's not as if I drink that much Assam.  I've been reviewing other Assams recently, but I won't really focus on comparing this tea to those.  Maybe later, after I've tried a few versions, but comparisons across months of time can be problematic, not just related to taste memory, also to factoring in the effect of expectations shifting.

brewed leaves

Background on the type

I just ran across an interesting introduction to black teas that covered the general types, so it seems a good starting point for mentioning more about what Assam is, then moving on to introducing the producer and this specific tea version.

it kind of works

That article was called "Black tea:  global variety for every taste" by Peter Keen.  The trick for writing a general summary overview like that is what to include and what to leave out, in addition to getting the ideas right.  Both were fairly successful.  Since this is a tea blog I'll have to criticize some choices and content a little but in general it all works.

Assam is listed as the boldest, most full-bodied type.  That matches this review fairly well, and my general impression; they're not light black teas, not really even medium.  Astringency and flavor tend to mix as factors, with the former really relating quite a bit to processing style, and probably also growing conditions, but as flavor intensity goes Assam tends to be on the strong side.  That author mentions this producer in citing some characteristic source examples:


Hamrutty is soft and smooth. The leaf is flecked with gold tips. These are a common feature of great Assams and help lessen the astringency common to most. Halmari offers a wide range of both high end and broken leaf teas. Mangalam’s teas are lighter than most Assams, without losing their punch and robustness.  These are terrific buys.


Ceylon may well be a little lighter, as shown in that graphic, although to some extent it tends to just swap out malt for ramping up the underlying mineral effect too, still lighter, but also just different.  The "brisk" reference in that Ceylon section of the graphic really relates to astringency, as I understand it, which varies by other factors than origin.

Darjeeling and Chinese teas tend to be lighter yet, and I'd even agree with this placement, saying that Darjeeling tends to be a little stronger in flavor between the two.  Here's where a complication comes in that didn't make the cut for level of detail:  first flush Darjeeling tend to be less oxidized, and not really black tea at all, so it almost doesn't make sense to consider them as the same type of thing.  They're lighter than all other black teas because they're not black (fully oxidized).  Some Darjeeling first flush have a good bit of a characteristic form of astringency but that also relates to lots of factors, and some are quite soft, even fruity.

I've ran across the description "congou" for Chinese teas but it doesn't come up much.  Per one source it was a reference to Gong Fu, used more often to describe a general brewing approach, converted to a marketing term that isn't common now.  Area diversity is the complication there; Keemun and Yunnan blacks (Dian Hong) are mentioned in the article, but per the standard story Lapsang Souchong, a Fujian black, was really the first example of a fully oxidized tea.  But who knows, really; I'm not sure how well conventional understanding and the actual history matches in this case.

Beyond all that missing the next level of detail is kind of a given for a shorter work.  The overall take and choices for where to cut that off weren't so bad.  I'd have covered more characteristic flavor descriptions but that's how related choices would go; people would say different things.

About this producer, Halmari

tea plants!  (photo credit Halmari site)

For purposes here it may not be necessary to say more than that they're a tea plantation in the Assam region, but I will anyway.  Their own intro, the start:

Halmari is located in the Moran district of Dibrugarh, Assam and comprises of 374 hectares of land.


Apparently that works out to 924 acres, a lot of space, and they have 100 year history to go along with all that land to work with.  Their description of this tea:


Leaf : A fine blend of deeply rolled clonal orthodox leaves with a sprinkling of golden tip.

Liquor : Bright, full bodied with hints of clonal character.

Per the site descriptions and pricing their GTGFOP1 Clonal is essentially the next level up of a similar tea, with the pricing on this particular tea quite fair for as good as it seems.  By that I mean this tea costs a fraction of Chinese teas at a comparable quality level, but then I am comparing direct online producer sales to foreign retail outlet sales, not really the same thing.  I still have other samples to review, including an oolong that should be interesting, and I'll see if more doesn't turn up about plant type somewhere along the line.


"Clonal" is a reference to preserving consistent plant genetics by using cuttings as opposed to seed-transmitted growth, an idea that comes up with Darjeeling and other region teas, but there are still details about what the plant actually is.  Variety Assamica as a general type, of course, but I mean beyond that, how it might differ from what was growing wild hundred of years ago, or is present in Yunnan, China now.  All that is really only of academic interest anyway; all you really need to know is experienced by brewing the tea.