Loose Leaf Black Tea
Happy Valley's elevation produces a stunning tea with notes of muscatel, toast, wine and subltle peach. An exceptional Darjeeling.
The teas of Darjeeling are sought after by collectors and connoisseurs from one end of the globe to the other. Their delicate profiles, characterized by the almost etheral and so-called muscatel character are formed by mineral rich mountain soil and cool misty air that infuses each leaf with copious amounts of moisture. Nestled in the shadow of Mount Kanchenjunga, 3rd highest in the world after K2 and Everest, Happy Valley is the closest estate to the town of Darjeeling and the highest in the region at 6300 feet above sea level. The mountain is very dense at this incredible elevation causing the bushes to pollinate, a process believed to be responsible for the intense muscatel character Darjeeling lovers crave.
An English planter named David Wilson planted the first plant in the gardens that make up the estate in 1854. Wilson named his new plantation Wilson Estate and in 1903 sold it to an Indian aristocrat, Tarapada Banerjee who merged it with nearby Windsor Tea Estate and christened his new mega-property Happy Valley. The estate, in addition to its claim as the highest in Darjeeling, also boasts some of the oldest tea bushes in India. The youngest pluck-able bushes in the garden are 80 years old with some specimans going to 150. Today, with new management in place, the smiles in Happy Valley are infectious.
Happy Valley tea is a delight- delicate notes of cut peach, white grapes, wine interwoven with the telltale muscatel character make this one of the World's finest. Now that's something to be happy about!
Steeping Guide:
Amount of tea per 8oz cup: 1 tsp
Water Temperature: 195F
Steep Time: 3-5 minutes
