Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black Tea
Where to Buy: Lochan Tea Limited
Tea Description:
This tea is no longer on their website however I can tell you more about the estate.
About the Tea Estate: Giddapahar is located on a mountain which is just a short drive from Kurseong. The garden is situated at 4864 feet above sea level. The Estate is a small family owned Darjeeling tea estate which is also known as “Eagles Cliff” lying very close to Kurseong town. From the estate, one can view the magnificent site of the mountains which also makes it the perfect site for taking photographs.
Giddapahar is almost 100% covered with pure china tea bushes and has followed the legendary classic grade production of Darjeeling Teas. The tea from Giddapahar Estate is very delicate due to the lower temperatures here and also because the area itself is covered by mist for a good part of the year. Teas are planted and picked by using traditional methods. Due to the temperature, the tea bushes from the estate produce a fine bouquet with great aromatic quality and a delicate floral smell.
Taster’s Review:
Eventho this Giddapahar SFTGFOP 1 CH 2nd Flush 2013, Darjeeling from Lochan Tea Limited is no longer listed on their site or available for purchase I wanted to give it an honorable mention because it really was a fabulous tea! As you can see from the description above the Giddapahar estate is a small family owned Darjeeling tea estate that is situated in a zone with lower temperatures which makes teas from this region very delicate.
This specific Darjeeling is mostly floral on the nose with hints of wet woodsy sniffs, too! The flavor matches the aroma and is first and foremost floral with wet woods on the end sip. I find this to be a good ‘working tea’ which means (to me) that I enjoying while working or writing trying to reach deadlines (such as this).
Have you had a tea recent that you rediscovered from your personal collection that deserves an honorable mention that may no longer be available for purchase? If so tell us in comments!
Giddapahar Muscatel Darjeeling Second Flush Black Tea from Golden Tips
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black (Darjeeling)
Where to Buy: Golden Tips
Tea Description:
An excellent second flush Darjeeling with an abundance of natural muscatel. A handpicked tea from the Giddhpahar tea estate in Darjeeling with gentle fruity notes, a rich aroma and a complete rounded flavor which is a defining characteristic of premium summer Darjeeling teas. A must-have for anytime of the day.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh, love! LOVE! This has the muscatel that I adore!
This is an excellent Darjeeling, one of the best that I’ve tried. The flavor is strong – this is a stronger tasting Darjeeling than the typical light-to-medium bodied Darjeeling. I’d categorize this as a medium-to-full bodied Darjeeling!
It has a really nice, well rounded flavor. It almost tastes too strong and well rounded for a Darjeeling because I typically think of them as crisper and lighter teas. This is much more robust and satisfying. I daresay, it would make a nice morning cuppa. Typically, I think of Darjeeling as an afternoon tea.
And it’s remarkably smooth too! This doesn’t have the astringency that I normally experience with a Darjeeling.
So, if the first few paragraphs of this review indicate anything to you, it should be that this is NOT your typical Darjeeling! Not by a long shot.
The flavor starts off sweet with notes of wood and grape. There is some of that Darjeeling ‘crispness’ right at the start, but as it moves to mid-sip, the flavor develops and becomes a richer experience for the palate. The grape flavor intensifies! By the finish, I’m getting a really lovely muscatel finish, but without a strong astringency. This has all that is really GREAT about a 2nd flush Darjeeling and none of the bad!
This is best hot. I think that this is true of most Darjeeling tea. However, I do recommend letting it cool for a few minutes before you start sipping. I find that the muscatel really shines through best after it’s had time to cool for about three or four minutes.
This Darjeeling is one that EVERY tea drinker should try.
2014 Giddapahar Spring Bliss First Flush (SFTGFOP1) from Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Description:
Giddapahar Spring Bliss as the name suggests is one of the most ‘Blissful’ First Flush tea we have. A very yummy tea which is ideal for all day.
This is a tea that actually meets the First Flush mantra of ‘LIGHT & BRIGHT’. It is a full bouquet of fruity peach like notes and if you really care to understand what PURE CHINA BLACK TEA tastes like, this is the ideal tea. We assure you that it will be difficult to stop with just one cup.
A BLISSFUL, DELIGHTFUL, ENERGETIC tea from the house of GIDDAPAHAR TEA. A must have for every tea connoisseur.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh wow … what a lovely first flush Darjeeling!
The above description is pretty effective at describing this tea: light, bright, aromatic with notes of peach that don’t just tickle the nose but also the palate with peachy flavor!
The dry leaf looks very much like a Darjeeling: the leaves vary in color from green to brown. I like that these are long and wiry leaves rather than chopped and torn. Once brewed and completely unfurled, you can see that these are whole leaves. I like that.
When it comes to Darjeeling tea, I usually use a slightly lower than boiling temperature, because Darjeeling tea usually is not oxidized for quite as long as other black teas. I go with 195°F and steep the leaves for 2 1/2 minutes. This produced a light amber colored liquor that is delightfully fragrant.
And delicious!
As I mentioned before, I can taste the peach. I am loving that. I don’t typically taste peach-like notes in a Darjeeling tea. This is sweet and fruity with lovely floral notes that are dancing in the background.
Darjeeling teas tend to be lighter in texture and this is no exception, but this doesn’t have the same dry astringency toward the tail that other Darjeeling teas tend to have. This has a silkier texture than I’m used to with Darjeeling teas, and I am enjoying how easy and smooth it is to drink.
I know I’ve said it before, but if you are a fan of Darjeeling Teas … you really should give Darjeeling Tea Lovers a try. I have been so impressed with everything that I’ve tried from them. Their teas are top notch. An apt name for this company, because it would seem to me, based on everything that I’ve tried from them, that this is a company that has dedicated itself to acquiring the very finest teas for lovers of Darjeeling tea!
Giddapahar Muscatel (2nd Flush) from Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black (Darjeeling)
Where to Buy: Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Description:
GIDDAPAHAR MUSCATEL, manufactured by Giddapahar Tea Estate which produces some of the world famous Darjeeling Teas. The garden is famous due to its distinctive 2nd Flush. The larger part of the garden is planted with CHINA BUSHES which are ideal for the 2ND FLUSH MUSCATEL.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Having just gotten over a bad cold, I was worried that perhaps I would not miss the wonderful subtle flavors of this Darjeeling. I feared that perhaps my taste buds were still impaired and that I’d not be able to detect the lovely muscatel that is promised in the name of this tea.
Fortunately, my taste buds seem up to par now, because I can taste the amazing muscatel notes here. Sweet and fruity, with a slight fermented fruit note going on … like fermented grapes. That is to say, there is a wine-like character to this cup that is quite delightful!
In the background, I can taste notes of earth and wood … deep and oak-y. These flavors come in toward mid-sip and are especially noticeable in the aftertaste, and they offer a very intriguing contrast to the sweetness that is introduced to the palate at the start.
Shortly after the fruity sweetness, I notice a sweet, exotic floral tone followed by a clean, almost bubbly kind of sensation over the palate. It’s almost effervescent. I want to describe it as a sparkling mineral water kind of taste that together with the astringency of this tea, creates an almost champagne-like experience. I don’t know if this is why some refer to Darjeeling as the “champagne of teas,” but, it would certainly give me cause to refer to it as such. It’s quite remarkable, and really very enjoyable.
Overall, the flavor is very light and crisp. I find this lightness to be very invigorating. Something that can put a skip in one’s step. Vibrant, complex and bright. A lovely experience!
Giddapahar White Orchid – 2nd Flush from Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Description:
This tea has been made from PURE AV2 plants at an elevation of 6500 ft. A specialised team of tea pluckers pluck the finest 2 leaf and a bud under the full moon beam. No wonder this tea is distinctive from the others.
It gets its name ‘WHITE ORCHID’ as Giddapahar T. E. Is situated in the town of Kurseong which is also known as ‘The Land of White Orchids’ as this valley produces some high quality WHITE ORCHIDS.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Wow! Just wow! This is a white tea?
When someone says “white tea,” thoughts of a pale, delicately flavored tea come to mind. Even now, even after all the tea that I’ve tried, even after trying some intensely flavored, pure white teas … the majority of the white teas tend to have a very “light” overall characteristic, and therefore evoke the thoughts of a very soft taste.
But this white tea simply shatters those thoughts immediately, with the very first sip. Yes, it does have a delicate quality to it, but, that certainly isn’t the first thing that comes to my attention. I first note a sharp floral note that tells me exactly why this tea is called “White Orchid.” This flowery note is not at all delicate! It is there … and it is quite bold.
It isn’t until the tea cools just slightly that the delicate qualities of this tea come into focus. Beneath the bold flavor of the orchid (which, I guess it could be argued is a rather delicate flower and perhaps the term delicate applies), there is a light, crisp note. Here is where the real “delicate” quality that I mentioned previously comes in. The flavor goes from a very powerful floral note to a much softer set of flavors … and while the presentation is on the delicate side, it is incredibly complex. I taste layers of fruit (white grape, hints of peach, and even a honey-like tone that evokes thoughts of Honeycrisp apples), whispers of an airy quality, and sweet notes of vegetation.
This is one of the most amazing white teas I’ve yet to taste. It is deliciously sweet, floral and possesses such an intriguing complexity. It is refreshingly full-flavored. This is a white tea for those who seek to challenge their previous thoughts about white tea. This is unlike any white tea I’ve tried before, and I love it!