Darjeeling tea Darjeeling tea Darjeeling tea is a tea grown in the Darjeeling district in West Bengal, India, and widely exported and known. It is processed as black, green, white and oolong tea. When properly brewed, it yields a thin-bodied, light-coloured infusion with a floral aroma. The flavour can include a tinge of astringent tannic characteristics and a musky spiciness sometimes described as "muscatel". Unlike most Indian teas, Darjeeling tea is normally made from the small-leaved Chinese variety of "Camellia sinensis" var. "sinensis", rather than the large-leaved Assam plant ("C. sinensis" var. "assamica"). Traditionally, Darjeeling tea is made as black tea; however,
Camellia sinensis Tea plants will grow into a tree if left undisturbed, but cultivated plants are pruned to waist height for ease of plucking. Two principal varieties are used, the small-leaved Chinese variety plant ("C. sinensis sinensis") and the large-leaved Assamese plant ("C. sinensis assamica"), used mainly for black tea. The Chinese plant (sometimes called "C. sinensis" var. "sinensis") is a small-leafed bush with multiple stems that reaches a height of some 3 meters. It is native to southeast China. The first tea plant to be discovered, recorded and used to produce tea 3,000 years ago, it yields some of the most