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Depending on the weather and the ultimate harvest of the crop
year, India and China alternate years wearing the
crown reserved for the world’s largest tea producer.
India produces an astonishing amount of tea from
diverse regions such as the lush and tropical Assam
Valley, the high Himalaya regions of Darjeeling and Sikkim, and the Nilgiri Blue Mountains region of Tamil
Nadu in southern India. The modern commercial tea
industry in India is relatively new – it was started
in the mid-1800’s by the English, who ruled India as a
colony at that time and who began to plant tea in an
attempt to break free from their dependence on China’s tea. Despite the fact that India gained
independence from the English in 1947, the style of
tea manufacture begun during colonial times still
influences tea production today. While India produces
a small amount of green and white tea, it is black tea
that India is famous for. Some Indian teas, due to
their exquisite flavors, are
self-drinking teas (teas that one does not add milk
and sugar to because they are so exquisite, such as
Darjeeling or a leafy, malty Assam). Other
Indian teas are standard teas,
produced in great quantity and used for providing
strength and backbone to everyday milk-tea blends.
Unlike the Han Chinese who never use milk or sugar in
their tea, tea is drunk in India with milk and sugar
by locals and visitors alike. In some states of India, chai (tea steeped with spices) is the favored
pick-me-up tea. |
