Assam tea

Assam tea is a black tea named after the region of its production, Assam, India. Assam tea is manufactured specifically from the plant Camellia sinensis var. assamica (Masters).[1][2] Assam tea is indigenous to Assam. Initial effort of planting Chinese variety in Assam soil did not succeed.[3][4] Assam tea is mostly grown at or near sea level and is known for its body, briskness, malty flavour, and strong, bright colour. Assam teas, or blends containing Assam, are often sold as "breakfast" teas. For instance, Irish breakfast tea, a maltier and stronger breakfast tea, consists of small-sized Assam tea leaves.[5]

Assam
TypeBlack
Other namesNA
OriginAssam, India
Quick descriptionBrisk and malty with a bright color.

The state of Assam is the world's largest tea-growing region by production, lying on either side of the Brahmaputra River, and bordering Bhutan, Bangladesh, Myanmar and very close to China. This part of India experiences high precipitation; during the monsoon period, as much as 250 to 300 mm (10 to 12 in) of rain per day. The daytime temperature rises to about 36 °C (96.8 °F), creating greenhouse-like conditions of extreme humidity and heat. This tropical climate contributes to Assam's unique malty taste, a feature for which this tea is well known.

Though Assam generally denotes the distinctive black teas from Assam, the region produces smaller quantities of green[6] and white teas as well, with their own distinctive characteristics.[7] Historically, Assam has been the second commercial tea production region after southern China, the only two regions in the world with native tea plants.

The introduction of the Assam tea bush to Europe is related to Robert Bruce, a Scottish adventurer, who apparently encountered it in the year 1823. Bruce reportedly found the plant growing "wild" in Assam while trading in the region. Maniram Dewan directed him to the local Singpho chief Bessa Gam.[8] Bruce noticed local people (the Singhpos) brewing tea from the leaves of the bush and arranged with the local chiefs to provide him with samples of the leaves and seeds, which he planned to have scientifically examined. Robert Bruce died shortly thereafter, without having seen the plant properly classified. It was not until the early 1830s that Robert’s brother, Charles, arranged for a few leaves from the Assam tea bush to be sent to the botanical gardens in Calcutta for proper examination. There, the plant was finally identified as a variety of tea, or Camellia sinensis var assamica, but different from the Chinese version (Camellia sinensis var. sinensis).

Development in Assam

The intervention of the colonizing British East India Company was realized through a body of 'experts' constituting the Tea Committee (1834) to assess the scientific nature and commercial potential of Assam tea. The adherence of the members of the committee to the Chinese ideal (in terms of the plant and the method of manufacture) led to the importation of Chinese tea makers and Chinese tea seeds to displace the "wild" plant and methods already in place in Assam. However, after a period of experimentation, a hybridized version of the Chinese and Assam tea plants proved to be more successful in the Assam climate and terrain.

By the late 1830s, a market for Assam tea was being assessed in London; and the positive feedback led the East India Company to inaugurate a long drawn process of dispossession of agricultural land and forest commons through the infamous “Wasteland Acts” allowing significant portions of the province to be seized and transformed into tea plantations by private capital. The close symbiotic relationship of the colonial state and plantation capitalism through the colonial period is most succinctly captured in the term “Planter-Raj”.

The cultivation and production of Assam tea in the first two decades (1840–1860) were monopolised by the Assam Company, which operated in districts of Upper Assam and through the labor of the marginalised local Kachari and Kaibarta community. The success of the company and the changes in colonial policy of offering land to the tea planters (fee simple rules) led to a period of boom and expansion in the Assam tea industry in the early 1860s, but these did not necessarily translate into a dramatic shift in production (from China to Assam) due to the "makeshift" nature of plantations, poor conditions of plantation life (huge rates of mortality and desertion), and also (at times) the presence of purely speculative capital, with no actual inherent interest in tea production.

Production
A tin of Assam tea

Most of the currently operating tea estates in Assam are members of the Assam Branch of the Indian Tea Association (ABITA), which is the oldest and most prominent body of tea producers of India.

Steps

There are between two and seven steps involved in the processing of fresh tea leaves, the addition or exclusion of any of these stages results in a different type of tea. Each of these procedures is carried out in a climate-controlled facility to avoid spoilage due to excess moisture and fluctuating temperatures.

Withering refers to the wilting of fresh green tea leaves. The purpose of withering is to reduce the moisture content in the leaves and to allow the flavor compounds to develop. While it can be done outdoors, controlled withering usually takes place indoors. Freshly plucked leaves are laid out in a series of troughs and subjected to hot air forced from underneath the troughs. During the course of withering, the moisture content in the leaf is reduced by about 30%, making the leaf look limp and soft enough for rolling. Additionally, the volatile compounds in the leaf, including the level of caffeine and the flavors, begin to intensify. A short wither allows the leaves to retain a greenish appearance and grassy flavors while a longer wither darkens the leaf and intensifies the aromatic compounds.

Fixing or “kill-green” refers to the process by which enzymatic browning of the wilted leaves is controlled through the application of heat. It is held that the longer it takes to fix the leaves, the more aromatic will be the tea. Fixing is carried out via steaming, pan firing, baking or with the use of heated tumblers. Application of steam heats the leaves more quickly than pan firing, as a result of which steamed teas taste ‘green’ and vegetal while the pan-fired ones taste toasty. This procedure is carried out for green teas and yellow teas.

Oxidation results in the browning of the leaves and intensification of their flavor compounds. From the moment they are plucked, the cells within the tea leaves are exposed to oxygen and the volatile compounds within them begin to undergo chemical reactions. It is at this stage that polyphenolic oxidase, including theaflavin and thearubigin, begin to develop within the leaves. Theaflavins lend briskness and brightness to the tea while thearubigins offer depth and fullness to the liquor that’s produced. In order to bring out specific intensities in flavors, tea makers control the amount of oxidation the leaves undergo. Controlled-oxidation is typically carried out in a large room where the temperature is maintained at 25–30 °C and humidity stands steady at 60–70%. Here, withered and rolled leaves are spread out on long shelves and left to ferment for a fixed period of time, depending on the type of tea being made. To halt or slow down oxidation, fermented leaves are moved to a panning trough where they are heated and then dried. Due to oxidation, the leaves undergo a complete transformation and exhibit an aroma and taste profile that’s completely different from the profile of the leaves that do not undergo this process. Less oxidized teas tend to retain most of their green color and vegetal characteristics due to lower production of polyphenols. A semi-oxidized leaf has a brown appearance and produces yellow-amber liquor. In a fully oxidized tea, amino acids and lipids break down completely, turning the leaves blackish-brown. The flavors in such a tea are more brisk and imposing.

Rolling involves shaping the processed leaves into a tight form. As a part of this procedure, wilted / fixed leaves are gently rolled, and depending on the style, they are shaped to look wiry, kneaded, or as tightly rolled pellets. During the rolling action, essential oils and sap tend to ooze out of the leaves, intensifying the taste further. The more tightly rolled the leaves, the longer they will retain their freshness.

Drying In order to keep the tea moisture-free, the leaves are dried at various stages of production. Drying enhances a tea’s flavors and ensures its long shelf-life. Also, drying brings down the tea’s moisture content to less than 1%. To dry the leaves they are fired or roasted at a low temperature for a controlled period of time, typically inside an industrial scale oven. If the leaves are dried too quickly, the tea can turn abrasive and taste harsh.

Aging some teas are subjected to aging and fermentation to make them more palatable. Some types of Chinese Pu-erh, for example, are fermented and aged for years, much like wine.

Separate time zone

Tea gardens in Assam do not follow the Indian Standard Time (IST), which is the time observed throughout India and Sri Lanka. The local time in Assam's tea gardens, known as "Tea Garden Time" or Bagan time (also used by Myanmar as MMT), is an hour ahead of the IST.[9] The system was introduced during British days keeping in mind the early sunrise in this part of the country.

By and large, the system has subsequently been successful in increasing the productivity of tea garden workers as they save on daylight by finishing the work during daytime, and vice versa. Working time for tea laborers in the gardens is generally between 9 a.m. (IST 8 a.m.) to 5 p.m. (IST 4 p.m.) It may vary slightly from garden to garden.

Noted filmmaker Jahnu Barua has been campaigning for a separate time zone for the northeast region.[9]

Geography
An Assam tea garden

The tea plant is grown in the lowlands of Assam, unlike Darjeelings and Nilgiris, which are grown in the highlands. It is cultivated in the valley of the Brahmaputra River, an area of clay soil rich in the nutrients of the floodplain. The climate varies between a cool, arid winter and a hot, humid rainy season—conditions ideal for growing tea. Because of its long growing season and generous rainfall, Assam is one of the most prolific tea-producing regions in the world. Each year, the tea estates of Assam collectively yield approximately 680.5 million kg (1,500 million pounds weight) of tea.

Assam tea is generally harvested twice, in a "first flush" and a "second flush". The first flush is picked during late March. The second flush, harvested later, is the more prized "tippy tea", named thus for the gold tips that appear on the leaves. This second flush, tippy tea, is sweeter and more full-bodied and is generally considered superior to the first flush tea. The leaves of the Assam tea bush are dark green and glossy and fairly wide compared to those of the Chinese tea plant. The bush produces delicate white blossoms.

See also
  • Tea leaf grading
  • Tea-tribes of Assam
  • Indian Tea Association
  • Tocklai Tea Research Institute

References
  1. "Tea Classification". Toklai: Tea Research Association. Archived from the original on 21 April 2012. Retrieved 25 March 2009.
  2. "Camellia sinensis var. assamica". ITI Standard Report Page. Retrieved 28 March 2009.
  3. Barua, D.N., Dr. (1989). Science and Practice in Tea Culture. TRA Pub. p. 509.
  4. Chen, Jin; Wang, Pingsheng; Xia, Yongmei; Xu, Mei; Pei, Shengji (February 2005). "Genetic diversity and differentiation of Camellia sinensis L. (cultivated tea) and its wild relatives in Yunnan province of China, revealed by morphology, biochemistry and allozyme studies". Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution. 52 (1): 41–52. doi:10.1007/s10722-005-0285-1.
  5. Campbell, Dawn (1995). The Tea Book. Pelican Publishing. p. 203. Retrieved 2 March 2013 – via Google Books.
  6. Pettigrew, Jane (2004). The Tea Companion. Running Press. p. 106. Retrieved 2 March 2013 – via Google Books.
  7. Goswami, Roopak (29 December 2011). "Assam CTC fetches record price". The Telegraph.
  8. Nitin Aant Gokhale (1998). The hot brew: the Assam tea industry's most turbulent decade, 1987–1997. Spectrum Publications. p. 4. ISBN 978-81-85319-82-7.
  9. "Assam tea gardens an hour 'ahead' of India". ZeeNews.com. Retrieved 18 July 2013.

Further reading
  • Kiple, Kenneth F.; Ornelas, Kriemhild C. (October 2000). The Cambridge World History of Food. 1. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-40216-6.
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