Tea sommelier Lim Eun-hye walks you through black tea by origin—flavor profiles, brewing differences, and the cultural stories behind Darjeeling, Assam, and Ceylon. Guest properties, take note.
06. Exploring Black Teas by Origin: Characteristics, History, and Culture (Part 1)
By Tea Sommelier Lim Eun-hye (Brand Manager, Tea Grace)
About the Author Lim Eun-hye
- Tea Sommelier Institute Gold Course Graduate
- Beverage menu consultant for cafe franchises and independent shops
- Tea product development consultant
- Milk tea and tea-ade one-day class instructor and corporate trainer
- Online store operator, columnist for blogs and MAGAZINE ON
Hello, I'm Lim Eun-hye, tea sommelier at Tea Grace.
Dear MAGAZINE ON readers, how has your year started? I'm curious how you're preparing for the upcoming Valentine's Day.
Lately, I've been knee-deep in a full product relaunch for Tea Grace — a bit stressful, yes, but also deeply rewarding. Working alone is tough, but with the right team, even hard problems feel manageable. This month's tea gathering was exactly that: I ran new product tests with many fellow tea lovers and got invaluable feedback. We tested cleaner, more delicious blending formulas and applied the results to developing new tea beverage variations.
We're also redesigning Tea Grace's packaging. To get diverse opinions, I surveyed students from my tea classes. The fact that we're building this new product story together with tea enthusiasts makes the process even more meaningful. Stay tuned for the Tea Grace relaunch — there's a lot to look forward to.
Last time, we talked about how to brew a great cup of black tea. Quick recap: Don't forget to preheat your teapot — it's a small detail, but crucial. Follow the right water temperature, water volume, and tea-to-water ratio, and you'll unlock a much better cup.
Starting this time, we're diving into the origins of black tea: characteristics, history, and culture by region. I originally planned one article, but the content grew longer than expected. So I'll split it into three parts: India, China, and Sri Lanka.
Today, we begin with India, the world's largest black tea producer.
India: The Land of Black Tea
Have you heard India's nickname? For me, "the land of black tea" instantly brings India to mind. India is currently the world's largest producer of black tea, accounting for over 35% of global production. Domestic consumption is enormous too, which drops India to third place in exports — but annual output still grows by about 5%. Tea estates stretch all the way into Bangladesh, which gained independence from India. Chai tea is so central to Indian life that people call it "the soul of India." You simply can't talk about India without talking about tea.
Indian black tea falls into three main categories: Assam, Darjeeling (both familiar names), and the slightly lesser-known Nilgiri. All three names come from place names in India. Let's look a little closer.
India is the world's largest black tea producer, accounting for over 35% of global production.
The Birth and History of Assam Tea
First, let's talk about Assam, India's most widely produced black tea. Assam tea comes from Assam state in India. It's larger and richer than Chinese-variety teas, with a worldwide reputation. Assam state is the largest single tea-growing region on Earth and India's top tea-producing area. Tea estates typically thrive at high altitudes, but Assam — a lowland region — defied expectations and proved remarkably productive.
India became the world's number-one tea producer in the early 20th century, largely thanks to British influence.
In 1823, when India was still a British colony, a British major named Robert Bruce was exploring the Assam region. Assam lies at India's northeastern tip, near the borders of Bangladesh and Myanmar — an area few Westerners had reached at the time.
During his expedition, Robert was offered a cup of tea by a local resident. That tea was Assam tea, and this encounter marked the discovery that Chinese tea varieties grew in Assam.
When Robert first saw the Assam tea tree, he was stunned. The Assam variety towered at 12 meters — roughly three times the height of Chinese tea bushes.
Classifying Tea Plants
A quick aside: how are tea and tea plants classified? The tea plant's origin is China. Because classification standards vary so much, trees are broadly grouped into large-leaf and small-leaf varieties. Tea plants in East Asia generally have small leaves (small-leaf variety), while Assam tea plants are large-leaf varieties.
When the British — who'd been importing tea from China — realized they could grow tea in India, they saw a golden opportunity. Within a few years, the Assam variety attracted enormous Western attention, and mass cultivation began across India.
Assam CTC for milk tea: a robust, full-bodied base with no competing fragrance
Characteristics of Assam Tea
Assam tea leaves contain high levels of tannins, making them ideal for black tea production. This variety has been crossbred with Japanese and Chinese tea plants to create new hybrid cultivars. To this day, Assam remains the most widely cultivated black tea variety in the world.
Assam tea has a deep, full body, a distinctive malty note, and a clear, rich amber hue. Because its flavor and aroma are so robust compared to other teas, Assam is often used as a base for milk teas and blended teas like English Breakfast.
What Is the CTC Method?
Remember the CTC method from our November article? It's a mechanized tea-processing technique. While it doesn't match the flavor and aroma of handmade orthodox teas, CTC enabled mass production — and played a huge role in making black tea accessible to the masses.
Over 90% of Indian tea is made using CTC. Most tea from Assam is CTC grade, primarily used domestically or in tea bags.
Tea Grace's "Assam CTC for Milk Tea" embodies these qualities: a robust, full-bodied base with no competing fragrance — beloved for its role in milk tea.
The Birth and History of Darjeeling Tea
Tea cultivation spread across India. Less than 20 years after Assam tea was discovered, in 1841, Dr. Campbell — a British botanist — successfully cultivated Chinese-variety tea in the village of Darjeeling. This marked the birth of Darjeeling tea, the most famous and celebrated Indian tea.
Darjeeling is not far from Assam, but it has unique geographic traits. Unlike lowland Assam, Darjeeling is a high-altitude region near the borders of Nepal and Bhutan. It's also close to the borders of Tibet and Sikkim. Sikkim is particularly notable: it touches four countries at once — Bhutan, China, Nepal, and India. The Himalayas, which run along the Chinese border, play a huge role in Darjeeling's distinctive flavor.
How can a mountain range influence tea flavor? The Himalayas stretch across northern India, Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan, and southern Tibet. These high-altitude regions stay cool even in summer and turn bitterly cold in winter. Growing tea on the slopes of the Himalayas is extremely challenging. Yet Chinese tea plants somehow adapted — and the climate gave Darjeeling its unique character.
Darjeeling is a high-altitude region near the borders of Nepal and Bhutan, close to Tibet and Sikkim.
Characteristics of Darjeeling Tea
Darjeeling is nicknamed "the champagne of teas" and ranks among the world's three most prestigious black teas.
High altitude, dramatic temperature swings that create mist, abundant rainfall, and crisp mountain air — all these factors enhance the tea's flavor. When mist settles on the tea leaves, high-altitude winds sweep it away, and bright sun dries the dampened leaves. This ever-changing weather and steep day-night temperature difference — rather than harming the plants — create Darjeeling's signature character.
Darjeeling tea is lighter in color than other black teas, with a pale orange hue. It's smooth, delicately sweet, and refined — the polar opposite of Assam. The unique muscatel grape note mingled with floral fragrance makes Darjeeling a true prestige tea.
Tea Grading Systems
I've mentioned tea grades a few times. What do they mean?
Tea grades are based on the processing state, leaf shape, size, and plucking order. After these basics, more refined criteria are applied to distinguish top-tier teas from lower grades. Different tea origins have different maximum grade ceilings.
The highest grade is called FOP (Flowery Orange Pekoe). Due to Darjeeling's unique characteristics, only FOP-grade or higher teas are typically produced there. This makes Darjeeling more expensive than other teas, which is why it's sometimes blended with teas from other regions.
How Indian Tea Culture Spread Worldwide
Once tea cultivation took root in India, Britain — as the colonial power — launched full-scale commercialization.
In 1845, both Assam and Darjeeling teas were commercialized, and Britain made enormous profits. The commercialization of tea coincided with Britain's Industrial Revolution and had a profound historical impact.
Because India was a British colony, Britain no longer needed to import tea from China — giving it leverage in its power struggle with China. As Indian tea production met British demand and grew further, the British launched massive advertising campaigns to export it abroad.
Mass-produced Indian tea was cheap, which made it popular among the working class. Exports soared, and Britain grew wealthier. Historically, Britain used the capital generated by Indian tea cultivation, production, and export to fund further colonial expansion — ultimately becoming the world's dominant power.
Today, we explored the characteristics, history, and culture of Indian tea — the first installment in this series. How did you find it?
Next time, we'll dive into China's diverse teas, history, and culture with even more interesting stories.
Instead of overeating and overdrinking on holidays, why not share a warm cup of tea with your loved ones? I hope tea culture takes root in Korea's holiday traditions.
Wishing you a happy and prosperous Lunar New Year.
Milk tea made with Tea Grace's Assam CTC base
[Series Index]
2018. 09 Understanding Tea and Property Differentiation
2018. 10 Blended Teas and Why You Should Drink Tea
2018. 11 Black Tea Stories (1)
2018. 12 Black Tea Stories (2)
2019. 01 Black Tea Stories (3)
2019. 02 Black Tea Stories (4)
2019. 03 Black Tea Stories (4) – 2
2019. 04 Black Tea Stories (4) – 3
2019. 05 Black Tea Stories (5)
2019. 06 Green Tea Stories (6)
2019. 07~ Green Tea Stories
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