- very limited quantity available - 

Tasting Notes: mineral, stone-fruit, honey, citrus, grassy

Description:  Harvested in the Nilgiri Mountains of South India, also known as the Blue Mountains of India, this rare tea is harvested during the coldest nights of winter. The cold temperatures and frost are what impart the unique character upon this medium-bodied tea. This black tea is unlike any other tea produced in India or elsewhere in the world. 

The tea leaves and buds are harvested early in the morning, while still frozen, and the controlled defrosting of the leaves allows skilled farmers to create an exceptional tea that is full of complex notes often lost in other teas. The result is a stunning tea that is  reminiscent of an outstanding First Flush Darjeeling or an exquisite oolong.

A complex tea with balanced layers of astringency, minerality, sweetness, and aromatic floral notes. Each sip reveals honey sweetness that envelops notes of grass, citrus, stone-fruit, and tropical fruit. A lingering floral finish with pleasant astringency and minerality completes a very satisfying tea experience.

Frost is usually a thorn in the side of most tea growers, but for this specialty tea it is precisely what is needed to create this exquisite taste. At the end of November, tea bushes are pruned so freshly sprouted shoots can be harvested for the next season. When a frost sets in during the first weeks of the new year, the conditions are ideal to create this unique tea; cold temperatures and frost are what make this tea possible. Nilgiri Frost Tea is the first tea of the year to be harvested in the mountains of South India.

This particular Nilgiri Frost Tea is grown in the Blue Mountains at an altitude greater than 6,000 feet.  It is harvested and produced in the Coonoor area by a small boutique tea farm that is committed to sustainable cultivation and payment of fair wages. This tea farm focus on the production of high-quality specialty Indian tea unlike other teas produced in Nilgiri, a location that focuses on mass-production for the commodity tea bag market.  We're grateful to have a small limited amount of this tea available from this special tea producer. 

We have only a limited quantity of this seasonal tea, it won’t last long!

Ingredients: Nilgiri Frost (winter harvest) black tea from India

Steep Directions: steep 1 heaping teaspoon of tea per 8 oz boiling water, 205-212°F, for 3-4 minutes