Tealicious - A taste that tingles

I may have tasted many blends of tea as a regular consumer but what has increased my fixation to this wonder beverage are the Darjeeling and Premium Black Leaf Variants.

Darjeeling Leaf is grown in the notified gardens of the District of Darjeeling in the Indian State of West Bengal. Though the seeds sown were of  Chinese origin  the plant grew well and yielded leaf of amazing aroma and taste.

The premium production of this wonderful aromatic leaf depends upon the flush and also the estate it is produced in. The Tea Board of India certifies the authenticity of the produce. To bring the cost lower the leaf is also blended with premium black leaves. But this is not always the case as blending with the black leaf may yield a mix with superlative taste.  

Assam produces one of the finest black teas in India. While the leaf is cultivated in highlands in Darjeeling in this State it is cultivated at sea level. The State is a major producer and has large number of garden producing quality leaf. It is also known for its deep color and malty taste. It finds use in many exotic blends as well. But consumption is completely consumed by Indian masses. A part of exquisite premium blends are exported to UK and many other countries since ages.

Both Assam and certified Darjeeling tea are exported to exported to UK and many other countries. The finest premium blends are not for mass consumption cost prohibiting. But small quantities are added to create fine brands for mass consumption.    

Both teas are tealicious just buy, brew and enjoy.  

Tea tasting

The process of selecting tea leaves for blending is referred to as tasting. Tea tasting is an art which is by the virtue of being associated with industry as a blender. The primary senses responsible for tasting are the sense of taste, your taste buds of the tongue and the sense of smell or odor dependent upon your olfactory organs or the nose.

The tea leaves have three basic flavor profiles:

Foreground profile or the top note

Middle profile or the body note

Background flavor or the base note.

These three profiles characterize a leaf flavor and aroma. The aromatic and volatile compounds in the tea leaf are responsible for our taste and odor perception.

Apart from this the physical aspects and look and feel of the tea leaf also comes into the picture.

Mouth Feel for dryness and slipperiness.

Temperature for relative volatility of the constituents.

Method

The tea is prepared in a lidded container such that the volatile components are not freed but infused in the brew. The expert taster should frequently wash hands, rinse his or her mouth with pure water or eat bland biscuit etc. Sometime long hours would be needed to get rid of desensitization that has crept in after hours of tasting.

All the tea tasting happens in milliseconds.

In the tea flavor release process, first the solubility of the leaf in saliva takes place and the solubility components or the aromatic constituents are perceived by the taste buds. The volatile constituents then evaporate and reach the nerve endings in the olfactory region of the nasal cavity.

As stated tea tasting is an expert’s job and lot of hard work is required to understand the taste and aroma of leaves and create a master blend.