Good morning, dear tea friends! Today we’ll talk about the northeast of India, the Assam region to be precise, and a rich, dark cup from the Nahorhabi Estate. I have read that this tea estate, one of several owned by Jay Shree Tea, got its name because it used to be the site of a forest of “Nahor” trees, a tree native to that area of the world. The tea leaf is quite tippy, as you can see from my photo.

The Assam tea growing region lies on either side of the Brahmaputra river, one of the major rivers of Asia. That area of the world has a monsoon period when they can receive up to 10-12 inches of rain per day. Wow, that’s a lot of water.

Speaking of water, I used boiling point (212F) water to steep this tea for 4 minutes.

If you’re going to add milk or cream to this tea, I recommend steeping for 5 minutes. We’ve been enjoying this tea with half and half at work the past several days. What a treat!

The aroma is rich and toasty, malty. The flavor is quite stout but with a smoothness I didn’t expect. So flavorful and complex, I am already on my second cup!

The day outside is cold and gray with about 6 inches of snow expected to fall in our area later on. It’s one of those forecasts that change every time I watch the news – will it be rain or snow and when? Well, I’m all cozy and warm here with my pot of tea and the farthest I’m going to travel is into my studio to work on a new necklace design.

Have a lovely week!

“Being with people who warm us, who endorse and exhault our creativity, is essential to the flow of the creative life. Otherwise we freeze…When women are out in the cold, they tend to live on fantasies instead of action.”

~Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Jungian Analyst and Writer