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Assam

This 1850 engraving shows the different stages in the process of making tea in Assam.
Type:	Black, Green, White
Other names:	NA
Origin:	Assam, India
Quick description:	Brisk and malty with a bright color and a touch of fruitiness.

Assam is a black tea named after the region of its production: Assam, India. This tea grown at sea level is known for its body, briskness, malty flavor, and strong, bright color. Assam teas, or blends containing Assam, are often sold as "breakfast" teas. English Breakfast tea, Irish Breakfast tea, and Scottish Breakfast Tea are common trade names.

Though "Assam" generally denotes the distinctive black teas from Assam, the region produces relatively smaller quantities of green and white teas as well with their own distinctive characteristics.

Historically, Assam is the second commercial tea production region after China. China and Assam are the only two regions in the world with native tea plants. Assam tea revolutionized tea drinking habits in the 19th century since the tea, produced from a different variety of the tea plant, yielded a different kind of tea.

Contents 1 Geography 2 History 2.1 Beginning 2.2 Modern developments in the tea industry 3 See also 4 Notes 5 References 6 External links

The tea plant (Camellia sinensis var assamica) is grown in the lowlands of Assam, unlike Darjeelings and Nilgiris which are grown in the highlands.

The tea bush originated in the area where India, China and Myanmar meet, in the hot wet mountainous regions of the Eastern Himalayas. It was originally eaten and drunk by tribal groups in this area. Over two thousand years ago it was used as a medicine and aid to concentration in China, being helped by the expansion of Buddhism from India.^[1]

There exists a 10th century CE Sanskrit medical 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 or no processing. This continues in certain inaccessible regions of southeastern Assam, as well as in neighboring regions of Myanmar.

Bodos (pronounced BO-ROs) were the earliest settlers of Assam. It is likely that Bodos may have brought tea and rice to Assam. However, Robert Bruce is said to have re-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, Robert 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 vigour. 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.

On February 26, 1858 Maniram Dewan, the sole native tea planter, was hanged on charges of conspiracy and participation in the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857 against the British on the basis of an intercepted letter.

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 Centre at Guwahati.

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.

Recently, India's tea industry has faced a crisis with prices dropping due to reduced exports and domestic consumption. However, Assam tea exports to the United States are expected to increase as more Americans are drinking tea and seeking tea of higher quality.

• Tea
• Nilgiri tea
• Darjeeling tea
• Assam

1. ^ Draft of article published in the Encyclopedia of World Environmental History, Berkshire/Routledge, 2003. Alan Macfarlane

• Tea in North East India Ministry of Development
• Tea History Plant Cultures
• Tea Board of India (business information)

• Tocklai Experimental Station The first tea research laboratory, established in 1911.
• Assam Tea Exchange
• Tea Auction: Tea Board of India