India Darjeeling 1st Flush Gopaldhara 'Nectar' Black Tea

I liked every single Darjeeling I tried. This stands as a close to number one in terms of my favorites from that order. It has the dry florals you’d expect, but the flavor balance was unique for me. It often tasted more like a white tea than a black because of its sweet corn, hay, lemon, and honeydew notes amidst it’s more worn background of grain, brown leaves, and something… I’m not sure. There is a bittersweet edge that is not overpowering, and really not that bitter even amidst a grandpa style brew from one time. Think the elusive cocoa note….but it’s barely there. Cayenne popped up barely, but it is not nearly that spicy. Those notes match the sweet ones in a compliment, making it balanced overall.

Considering the price point, it is a snobs tea, though the sweetness makes it a little more approachable. White tea lovers might be intrigued by this one, and oolong lovers might be slightly curious since the notes do match a few that belong to a higher oxidation….although the aftertaste let’s you know it is a black. It can stand up to sugar, but I wouldn’t risk cream until someone says otherwise. It was expensive after all.

What-Cha seems to have gone heavy on the first flush black teas from Gopaldhara this year, as this is the fourth one I have tried. In my opinion, there hasn’t been a bad tea in the bunch. This one seems to have been the consensus favorite with the folks at What-Cha, and though it was not quite my favorite (the AV2 Clonal Wonder just barely edged this one and the China Special out for me), it was an excellent tea.

I prepared this tea in the Western style. I steeped 3 grams of loose leaf material in approximately 8 ounces of 194 F water for 5 minutes. I did not attempt any additional infusions.

Prior to infusion, the dry leaf material produced aromas that strongly reminded me of a combination of chili leaf and straw. After infusion, I noted emerging aromas of grass, almond, Muscatel, apricot, orange blossom, and something like corn husk. In the mouth, the liquor offered notes of chili leaf, malt, grass, straw, almond, and orange blossom that were smoother and somewhat softer than expected. When I began to seriously dig, I noted subtler notes of corn husk, smoke, apricot, Muscatel, and cream lurking around the fringes. The finish was smooth and slightly creamy in texture, offering lingering notes of cream, grass, malt, orange blossom, and almond.

Though it arguably was not quite as complex as some of the other Gopaldhara first flush teas What-Cha has made available in the past year, this tea more than made up for it with an interesting and surprisingly harmonious combination of aromas and flavors and a wonderfully textured liquor in the mouth. Like the other teas, this was a quality offering, and I could see why some people would absolutely fall in love with it. If you are a fan of first flush Darjeeling black teas, this one is definitely worth a shot.