Production area: Darjeeling, Western Bengal
Harvest season: April
Cultivar: AV2, P312
This small isolated garden, one of the highest in the Himalayan area, is located in the far east of Darjeeling. Founded in the early 19th century, it has a rich and colorful history. In the 1930s, Samabeong produced tea bricks for the Tibetan market. The garden changed hands several times and was inactive for a long time before being acquired by the current owners in the early 1990s. At that time, the garden was certified as an organic fair-trade business. The garden contains 80 percent original Chinese varieties (C.s. var sjinensis). The rest is mainly planted with recent clones, such as AV2 and P312.
Tasting notes: This harvest yields a remarkably green tea with a lovely fresh quality. The large, lightly rolled leaves are delightfully bright and release smooth notes of fragrant hay and daisies. The mouth feel is light, and the liquid is lively with an interesting minty attack. The harmony of the spicy, fruity and floral aromatic notes reveals a remarkable complexity underlined by a rich texture with almost perfect balance.
Recommended infusion accessory: A gaiwan or zbong.
