Handmade Glenworth BOP (Glenworth Estate Limited)

In Las Vegas at the World Tea Expo you meet a lot of people. All of them are involved or want to be involved with the tea industry in some form or another. A good section of the exhibitors are actual tea growers and manufacturers. In 2009 I met the fine people behind this Handmade Glenworth Pekoe from Chennai a city in southern India. 

You cannot purchase this tea directly from the growers. This company sells to importers and tea brands, not to us consumers. It’s understandable. The cost to ship the few ounces you or I might want is substantial compared to shipping crates and crates of it to importer/exporter companies.

I was lucky enough to score some of this company’s teas. Both are black teas, but this one in particular caught my eye.

The leaves are very reminiscent of Darjeelings in their hue, a beautiful Autumnal combination of browns and light and dark greens. They’re about 3/4 inch to 1 1/4 inch in length and emit a light dry leaf smell you might find as the trees lose their leaves in the Autumn.

Once brewed the leaf aroma turns more vegetal, like boiled cabbage or bok choy but remains light. The liquor is a splendid golden color and effuses a light aroma with notes of hay, dry grass and Autumn leaves.

The flavor is smooth, but does have a dryness in the finish which lingers on the tongue. A woody, but not fired taste hangs in the flavor with an invigorating hint of earthiness. There is some astringency, but not enough to note.

I would recommend this tea for fans of Darjeelings, Orthodox Assams, Ceylon (Sri Lankan) teas and lighter Chinese green teas.