View source for Nilgiri tea

{{Short description|Black tea from Nilgiris district in Tamil Nadu, India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox geographical indication
| name   = Nilgiri tea 
| image  = Nilgiritea.jpg
| image_size = 
| alt    = 
| caption = Nilgiri black tea leaves
| description = 
| type = [[Black tea]]
| area = [[Nilgiris district|Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India]] 
| country = India
| registered = 2008
| official website =
}}

{{Infobox tea 
|  Tea_name      = Nilgiri 
|  Tea_type      = [[Black tea]] 
|  Tea_origin    = [[Nilgiris district|Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India]] 
|  Tea_names     = Blue Mountain tea
|  Tea_quick      = Brisk and fragrant
| Tea_temperature  = {{convert|90|C|F}} to {{convert|95|C|F}}
| Tea_time        = 3 to 4&nbsp;minutes
}}

'''Nilgiri tea''' is a [[drink]] made by [[infusion|infusing]] leaves of ''[[Camellia sinensis]]'' that is grown and [[tea processing|processed]] in the [[Nilgiris district]] in [[Tamil Nadu]], [[India]]. The leaves are processed as [[black tea]], though some estates have expanded their product offerings to include leaves suitable for making [[Green tea|green]], [[White tea|white]] and [[oolong]] teas. It is generally described as being a brisk, fragrant and full-bodied [[tea]]. The region produces both rolled and [[crush, tear, curl]] tea and it is predominantly used for blending. Nilgiri tea is also used for making [[iced tea]] and [[instant tea]].

''Camellia sinensis var. sinensis'' was introduced to [[Nilgiri Mountains]] by the British in 1835 from seeds shipped from China. Commercial production commenced in the 1860s, where the industry would evolve to include a mixture of many small growers with a few large corporate estates and the government-owned Tamil Nadu Tea Plantation established for the purpose of assisting in repatriating [[Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka|Indian Tamils from Sri Lanka]]. Its fertile soils located on well-drained slopes with geography that brings two monsoons per year with periods of fog and humid, cold weather, allow the sinensis variety to thrive. The tea is of sufficient quality and uniqueness to warrant being a [[List of geographical indications in India|registered]] [[geographical indication]].

==History==
{{further|History of tea in India}}
''Camellia sinensis'' was first planted in the [[Nilgiris district|Nilgiri area]] in 1835. The British had been using the area as a [[hill station]] and, as they had been seeking to create a source of tea outside of China, shipped seeds there, as well as various locations across southern India, for [[Trial garden|experimental plantings]]. Botanist [[George Samuel Perrottet]] planted the seeds in the governor's garden in [[Ketti]]. Though they were not well-cared for, they did survive to be later propagated.<ref name="Driem">{{cite book |title=The Tale of Tea A Comprehensive History of Tea from Prehistoric Times to the Present Day |first=George |last=van Driem |year=2019 |publisher=Brill |isbn=9789004386259}}</ref> The Thiashola estate, established in 1859,<ref name="Heiss"/> was one of the first tea estates in the region though commercial tea production began in 1862, and by 1904 there was over {{convert|3,200|ha|acres}} of tea under cultivation (second only to [[Coffea|coffee]] which had three times as much land under cultivation). However, the plantations were largely operated by retired European military and civil servants, with labour from the native tribal people, all with little knowledge of tea production. Many early plantations failed but with the assistance of Chinese tea-makers brought in by the British, the industry was able to develop. European planters (of both coffee and tea) formed the Nilgiri Planters' Association which joined the United Planters Association of South India (UPASI) in 1894 to advocate for foreign interests in land and financing. In what would become one of the largest holdings in Nilgiri tea, [[Robert Stanes]] founded the United Nilgiri Tea Estates Company in 1922 from the Allada Valley estate, with the Chamraj and Rockland estates added in 1923, Devabetta in 1926, and Kodery in 1928.

Following [[Indian Independence Act 1947|Indian independence]] in 1947, the British began to sell their interests in tea gardens to Indian owners and the 1953 ''Tea Act'' put the tea industry under the regulatory jurisdiction of the [[Tea Board of India]]. While a tea auction was established in [[Coonoor]] in 1963,<ref name="Driem"/> the Soviet bloc countries became the primary customers of tea from the region, taking about 80% of Nilgiri tea from the 1970s to 1990s. To accommodate Soviet preferences for mass-produced lower-cost teas, processing methods shifted to production of [[Crush, Tear, Curl]] and [[instant tea]].<ref>{{cite book |title=The Tea Industry |first=Nick |last=Hall |publisher= Woodhead Publishing |year=2000 |isbn= 9781855733732 |chapter=4. Value added tea |page=28}}</ref> More processing factories were built and cooperative agreements, such as Indcoserve, were made to accommodate small holders.<ref name="Heiss"/>

[[File:Coonoor tea plantation.jpg|thumb|left|Laborers plucking tea leaves in Coonoor, Nilgiris]]
There was an increase in production during the 1970s as the [[Sirima–Shastri Pact]] brought in many repatriated [[Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka]] to the region and the Tamil Nadu Tea Plantation Corporation was established as a government-operated tea garden to provide for their transition.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/fifty-years-on-new-fears-for-repatriates/article30646111.ece |title=Fifty years on, Citizenship Amendment Act brings new fears to Tamils repatriated from Sri Lanka |work=The Hindu |date=January 25, 2020}}</ref> Of the small farm growers, the majority belong to the [[Badagas]] community.<ref name=Neilson>Neilson, J. and Pritchard, B. (2008) ''Value Chain Struggles: Institutions and Governance in the Plantation Districts of South India'', Blackwell, Oxford.</ref> A crop diversification program initiated in the 1980s by the UPASI and the Tea Board saw many small holders move into the tea industry, resulting in nearly doubling the amount of land under tea cultivation by 2000.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Implementing Quality and Traceability Initiatives among Smallholder Tea Producers in Southern India |author1=J. Neilson |author2=B. Pritchard |author3=J. Spriggs |series=[[Acta Horticulturae]] |journal=I International Symposium on Improving the Performance of Supply Chains in the Transitional Economies |issue=699 |date=2005 |pages=327–334}}</ref> As the economies of the Soviet countries began to waver later in the 1980s, the Nilgiri Planters' Association led efforts to encourage estates and small growers to reform cultivation and processing practices to accommodate the preferences of the Western market.<ref name=Hall/> They tested new clonal varieties, moved to produce orthodox-rolled teas and white teas, began marketing single-origin estate teas, and encouraged maintaining certification of social and environmental practices.<ref name="Heiss"/> The Tea Board of India created a trademark for use on tea that is produced solely in Nilgiri and attained [[List of geographical indications in India|geographical indication]] status in 2008.

==Geography, cultivation and processing==
[[File:Glendale Tea Fields Kattery Jul25 A7CR 06095.jpg|thumb|Tea estate below Coonoor, Nilgiris]]
While ''Camellia sinensis'' is cultivated in areas across the southern tip of India in the states of [[Tamil Nadu]], [[Kerala]] and [[Karnataka]], Nilgiri tea, and is defined as that which is cultivated and processed in [[Nilgiris district|District of Nilgiris]], constitutes about half this area's total production.<ref name=Gaylard>{{ cite book | pages = 84–85 | title = The Tea Book: Experience the World s Finest Teas, Qualities, Infusions, Rituals, Recipes |last=Gaylard |first=Linda  | publisher = [[DK (publisher)|DK]] | year = 2015 | isbn = 978-1465436061}}</ref> The Nilgiri Mountains form the border between the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka, but are predominantly within the District of Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu. Located within the [[Western Ghats]] mountain range and the [[Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve]], the Nilgiri tea growing areas range between 1,000 and 2,500 metres in elevation and are exposed to the Southwest Monsoon weather from the [[Malabar Coast]] from June to September, followed by the Northeast Monsoon in October to November. The resulting alternating periods of fog and direct sunlight, as well as the [[South Western Ghats montane rain forests]] soils, described as [[Laterite|lateritic loam]],<ref name=Hall>{{cite book |title=The Tea Industry |first=Nick |last=Hall |publisher= Woodhead Publishing |year=2000 |isbn= 9781855733732 |chapter=5. World production|pages=66–67}}</ref> on the hillsides provides the high elevation drainage and conditions needed for ''Camellia sinensis var. sinensis'' to thrive.

Cultivation of tea in the Nilgiri region is conducted on few large corporate holdings, many small farms and the government-owned Tamil Nadu Tea Plantation Corporation. The small holders, typically under 1 hectare, vary widely in their practices, such as [[soil management]], use of shade trees, ground cover, fertilizers and pesticides, plant age, etc.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Tea Acreage Estimation and Condition Assessment using Satellite Data in Nilgiri District, Tamiinadu |author1=Rajeev Sharma|author2=M Jayaraman |author3=S R Oza|author4=A Ravindran |journal =Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing |volume= 21 |issue=4 |date=1993}}</ref> However, common to the region, plucking can occur approximately every 10 days almost all year round, typically 32 annual pluckings per plant.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Tea Industry |first=Nick |last=Hall |publisher= Woodhead Publishing |year=2000 |isbn= 9781855733732 |chapter=2. Cultivation|page=49}}</ref> As opposed to the ''assamica'' variety,  the ''sinensis'' variety requires a period of dormancy; in Nilgiris there is a short dormancy period during the cold temperatures of December–January. The first leaves after the dormancy are some of the plant's most flavourful as they contain a higher concentration of defensive compounds secreted during the cold weather. This first harvest, plucked from January to March, is referred to as "frost tea" since it is collected in relatively cold but humid weather.<ref name="Heiss"/>

The larger estates own and operate their own [[Tea processing|processing]] facilities for drying, rolling, oxidizing and sorting the leaves. There are numerous independent or cooperatively-owned processing facilities ("bought leaf factories") that buy green leaves from the small farms, with price and quality levels prescribed by the [[Tea Board of India]].<ref name=Neilson/><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/agri-business/trouble-brewing-between-nilgiris-bought-leaf-factories-growers/article32802816.ece |title=Trouble brewing between Nilgiris' bought leaf factories, growers |date=October 8, 2020 |publisher=[[Business Line]]}}</ref> The processed leaves ("made tea"), that are not otherwise purchased on a contract basis, are sold at tea auctions in [[Coonoor]], [[Coimbatore]] and [[Kochi (India)|Kochi]]. These factories predominantly produce [[black tea]], but some also produce limited quantities of specialty [[white tea|white]], [[green tea|green]] and [[oolong tea]]s.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Tea Book: All Things Tea |last1=Cheadle|first1=Louise |last2=Kilby|first2=Nick |year=2015 |publisher=Jacqui Small LLP |isbn=978-1909342842}}</ref> Of the black tea produced, most use the [[crush, tear, curl]] (CTC) method though since the 2000s, as Argentina and Vietnam took more CTC market share, orthodox (e.g. rolled) teas have also been produced.<ref name="Heiss"/>

==Flavour and blends==
Nilgiri tea is known for its briskness, referring to lively fragrant flavours, a quality attributed to its climatic growing conditions.<ref name=analysis>{{cite journal |title=A UHPLC-MS/SRM method for analysis of phenolics from Camellia sinensis leaves from Nilgiri hills |author1=Padma Ramakrishnan |author2=Kannan Rangiah |journal =[[Analytical Methods (journal)|Analytical Methods]] |issue=45|doi=10.1039/c6ay02329k |year=2016|volume=8 |pages=8033–8041 }}</ref> Nilgiri tea is variously described as being light but full-bodied or well-rounded in flavour,<ref name=Hall/><ref name=Gaylard/><ref name=Saberi>{{cite book |title=Tea: A Global History |first=Helen |last=Saberi |publisher=Reaktion Books |isbn=9781861897763 |year=2010 |page=139}}</ref> with fruit, like citrus, and floral notes.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Harney & Sons Guide to Tea |first=Michael |last=Harney |publisher=Penguin Press |year=2008 |isbn=9781440642036}}</ref> Its orthodox tea is compared to [[Tea production in Sri Lanka|Ceylon teas]] which grow under similar conditions, such as two monsoons.<ref name="Heiss"/> Its light but fragrant liquor makes it useful for blending<ref name=Hall/><ref name=Saberi/> and it can be found in brands of [[tea bag|bagged tea]]<ref name=Neilson/><ref name=Hall/> and blended with [[Assam tea]] in [[masala chai]].<ref name="Heiss"/> Chemically, Nilgiri tea has been shown to be higher in [[quinic acid]] and lower in tannins than other black teas.<ref name=analysis/><ref name=Gaylard/>
 
Nilgiri tea is particularly useful for making [[iced tea]] since it retains its clarity as it cools, whereas other black teas will often become cloudy.<ref name="Heiss">{{cite book |title=The Story of Tea: A Cultural History and Drinking Guide |first1=Mary Lou|last1=Heiss |first2=Robert J.|last2=Heiss|year=2007 |publisher=[[Ten Speed Press]]|isbn=9781607741725 |pages=199–203}}</ref> Global commercial brands, such as [[Nestea]], utilize Nilgiri tea in their iced tea products that use real tea.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://worldteanews.com/market-trends-data-and-insights/nestea-instant-returns-as-a-reformulated-natural-tea |title=Nestea Instant Returns as a Reformulated Natural Tea |last=Bolton |first=Dan |date=December 9, 2019 |publisher=World Tea News |access-date=7 November 2020 |archive-date=17 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201017035834/https://worldteanews.com/market-trends-data-and-insights/nestea-instant-returns-as-a-reformulated-natural-tea |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Assam tea]]
* [[Darjeeling tea]]
* [[Indian Tea Association]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

{{Teas}}
{{Geographical indications in Tamil Nadu}}
{{Indian beverages}}
{{Kongu Nadu}}

[[Category:Black tea]]
[[Category:Indian tea]]
[[Category:Nilgiris district]]
[[Category:Tea industry in Tamil Nadu]]
[[Category:Geographical indications in Tamil Nadu]]