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“A perfect Darjeeling – slightly acidic, very fragrant and flavourful, yet delicate. Citrusy and muscatel notes, with a fantastic aroma. Be careful not to overbrew – it grows bitter very quickly” Read full tasting note
“Sipdown January Sipdown Prompt – a tea you plan to buy again This is Ashman’s favorite tea in the whole Fortnum advent every year. When I saw how much he loved it, I drank other teas and saved it...” Read full tasting note
In tea as in wine – challenging growing conditions often yield the most highly-prized specimens. This Darjeeling from the spectacular foothills of the Himalayas is one the highest-grown, from bushes over a century old that still produce tea of unrivalled quality.
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January Sipdown Prompt – a tea you plan to buy again
This is Ashman’s favorite tea in the whole Fortnum advent every year. When I saw how much he loved it, I drank other teas and saved it for him because there are only a few teas that elicit such a response from him.
For this reason, I plan to add a whole tin to my next Fortnum order and I am considering getting the wooden caddy of special Darjeeling as well.
The special one seems to change occasionally over the years and the current offering is Badamtam First Flush FTGFOP1. Does anyone have experience with these two teas or something similar enough to give an opinion as to whether he is likely to love the more expensive one? It is possible that the very characteristics that make it unique and desirable to some people will have the opposite effect. They speak of it being high grown and having notes of minerality, whereas they describe the one we have here as smooth and drinkable.
More expensive, finer, more nuanced, more layers – may not translate into “preferred by every individual.” For instance, I prefer middle to low elevation teas from Sri Lanka because the highly desirable (to some) high elevation teas like Uva Highlands and Lover’s Leap are a bit too sharp for me. That could be the case with this tea for Ashman. Decisions, decisions.
I guess if I buy it and he doesn’t like it, at least we have a cool wooden caddy.
It’s weird to me that they don’t tell you which flush this tea is. Later flushes tend to be smoother in my experience, and first flush is generally more floral but also a bit sharper. I don’t generally love first flush Darjeeling, but I do enjoy the later flushes. Also the price on the Badamtam seems ludicrous to me, but obviously that’s very subjective ha ha.
I agree, it would help to know which flush this tea is. I can’t check the price of the Badamtam FF without dealing with their cookies, but you might consider buying Darjeelings from What-Cha or even Rare Tea Company if you plan to order from them again.
This one that he likes is almost certainly not First Flush. It is priced like a daily drinker and if you click “shop first flush” on their website from the blog article on the expensive tea, you only get the Badamtam as a result.
As for the price of the Badamtam, I bet you are paying dearly for the wooden caddy. The square ones in the past were expensive and I have never purchased one, and I was going to dive a bit deeper even with this one to see if it has an exceptionally good seal as opposed to just looking cool.
I think you are both right and I will stick to buying just the one I already know he likes.
This sounds wonderful — I am adding this to my wish list to try someday!
eastkyteaguy and I have both tried this Badamtam first flush:
https://steepster.com/teas/what-cha/93424-india-darjeeling-2020-1st-flush-badamtam-ftgfop1-black-tea
derk: Thank you for pointing those out. After reading them, I am convinced that first flush is probably not something Ashman would enjoy as much.
