Merkaba2

Origin: India.

This inexpensive, good consuming, quality tea is characterized by a medium sized whole black leaf with some golden tips. The medium
bodied cup shows a dark brown colored liquor and a light spicy malt like note on the palate with a lingering aftertaste reminiscent of a
full-bodied, dry red wine.

Assam, for most part, is a large valley of 21,900 square miles (56,700 square kilometers) that's surrounded by mountains and hills of the
Himalayan range on all sides. This large valley is called the Brahmaputra valley. The river Brahmaputra cuts through Assam. The entire
length of this river is 2,077 miles, making it one of the longest rivers in the world. Besides the Brahmaputra valley, Assam's other large
valley is called the Barak valley. This region also receives the highest rainfall in the world of up to 500 inches!

Assam is the largest tea growing region in the world. It has over 800 tea plantations that are of medium to large size. There are also over
200,000 small-scale farms, where tea is harvested. Most of the tea plantations in Assam are in the eastern section, called "Upper Assam".
The average elevation of Upper Assam is 180 meters (590 feet) over sea level. Lower Assam is 48 meters (157 feet) above sea level.

Assam has the most heterogeneous population of ethnic tribes in the world. Assam is also home to the world's largest population of single
horn rhinos, the largest concentration of Asian elephants, and a wide range of endemic flora and fauna.

There exists a 10th century CE Sanskrit text from Assam called Nidana that mentions leaves called shamapatra from which shamapani is
made. Historians are conflicted as to whether this is the first mention of tea in India.

Before the commercialization of tea began in Assam, the leaves of the tea plant were chewed by the local villagers with little processing.
This continues in certain inaccessible regions near Assam.

Robert Bruce is said to have discovered the tea plant growing wild in the region. According to another account, the Assamese nobleman,
Maniram Dewan, led Robert Bruce to the plant in 1823. Before his death in 1825, Bruce passed on his knowledge to his brother Charles,
who sent seeds of the plant to Calcutta in 1831. In 1833 the British lost the monopoly of the Tea trade with China and the Tea Committee
dispatched the secretary George Gordon to China to study the methods and begin tea plantation in Assam. He returned with the Chinese
variety and workers. Imported labor from Bihar and Orissa would later form a significant demographic group in Assam. It was found that
the local variety of plant was more suited to the local climate. Crossing with the Chinese tea plant led to Indian hybrid tea, which has great
variability and vigor. This has been called the most important evolution of the commercial tea plant.

On May 8, 1838 350 pounds (159 kg) of Assam tea were dispatched to London, and sold at India House, London on January 10, 1839.
Drinkers were impressed with the tea, and the tea industry in Assam was born. Charles Bruce and others, including Maniram Dewan,
began clearing the jungles and establishing tea estates.

Since the tea industry in Assam was established, most tea has been planted unselected by seed using the same practices as in the 19th
century. The industry continued to grow slowly but steadily during the 20th century.

In the 1970s small scale tea cultivators with farms smaller than one hectare began growing tea. Cultivation on small farms increased
during the 1990s and today accounts for over 10% of the tea produced in Assam. Tea cultivation remains a vital industry in the region
employing 17% of the workforce.

Today, Assam produces more than half the tea grown in India. On the international market, Assam Tea can be identified by the official
logo chosen by the Tea Board of India. Most Assam tea is sold through the Auction Center at Guwahati.