Gottatea Blog

While being a very popular drink all over India, Indian black tea is known throughout the world and adored by millions for its refreshing taste and aroma. Do you know that while being the largest producer and exporter of tea in the world, India consumes more tea than any other country? "Chai", the best known name for traditional Indian tea, has become an essential part of daily life of Indian people (actually, "chai" is a Hindi word for the English word "tea").

The cultivation of Indian tea has a long history that dates back to over 500 years ago. The consumption of tea in India was first clearly documented in the ancient epic of the Ramayana. In the early 1820's the British East India Company began large-scale production of Indian black tea as well as Indian green tea expanding the tea industry dramatically. Today there are lots of foreign tea enterprises among Indian tea companies such as Brooke Bond, Lipton, Tetley, etc.

Traditional India tea types are defined by the regions, where they are grown. In fact, India has three main tea growing regions (Assam, Darjeeling and Nilgiri), which are geographically separated producing entirely different teas both in style and in taste. Assam tea that comes from the North Eastern region of the country is strong and well rounded with rich aroma and flavor. Indian black tea from the Darjeeling section is exquisite and delicately flavored while considered to be the best in the world due to its perfect growing conditions: this region is cool and wet and tucked in the foothills of the Himalayans. Nilgiri is the Southern Indian region and the flavors of Nilgiri tea are subtle and rather gentle being similar to Ceylon tea.

Indian black tea is not the only type that is produced. As a rule, Indian tea comes in a multiple varieties: white and green tea, oolong tea is made here as well. Indian green tea made from more mature tea leaves is one of the most prominent drinks of India. Another type of traditional Indian tea is Oolong tea - a half way between green and black teas. It undergoes a short fermentation process and so is often known as semi-fermented teas. Besides the different kinds of tea that comes from India, there are lots of recipes to make traditional Indian tea with milk, sugar and spices as the basic ingredients.

Well, you can obtain many health benefits just by drinking a few cups of Indian black tea or Indian green tea a day! Traditional Indian tea has many powerful antioxidants, polyphenols, and catechins and contains less caffeine than coffee. While reducing blood pressure levels and enhancing the immune system, Indian tea is considered to be a refreshing beverage providing relaxation every time you drink.