Dec. 10: There is an Assam connection to this year's Nobel Prize ceremony here with a special tea served at the grand banquet coming from the northeastern state.

For the first time, the Nobel Museum Tea Blend, created in honour of the scientist and Nobel creator Alfred Nobel, formed a part of the Nobel Banquet.

The blend is made of Assam and Chinese Keemun tea.

'In honour of Alfred Nobel, we have composed a special tea blend. The blend is based on a Chinese Keemun tea produced in Qimen country situated in Anhui Province. Blended with Assam tea, this tea attains a gorgeous colour and lovely scent,' the Nobel Museum here said about the unique tea.

'The tea is flavoured with the finest bergamot from Italy, complemented with the sweetness of Swedish raspberries and the fresh taste of orange. A true cosmopolitan blend,' it said.

The Nobel Museum Tea Blend was created in collaboration with tea specialist Vernon Mauris and is also sold exclusively at the Nobel Museum here.

The Indian tea industry is delighted that Assam tea was being used as a blend at the museum.

'It is very rare to hear that an Assam tea blend is being recognised internationally as it generally gets lost. This is an amazing thing to happen for Assam tea blend and will improve its global standing,' C.S. Bedi, managing director of Rossel Tea told The Telegraph.

Chairman and managing director of J. Thomas, Krishan Katyal, who is one of India's topmost tea tasters, said the tea blend was a true acknowledgement of Assam tea.

'Keemun from China is a black orthodox tea, produced in Qimen, a county in Anhui province. Its characteristics are a 'toasty' aroma with a delicately nuanced sweetness. Assam tea contributes the bright colour and textured mouth feel with rich malty notes. The combination of these two world-renowned teas can result in a beautifully rounded and balanced self-drinking liquor, smooth and mellow to the palate with complex and layered aromatic flavours,' he said.

Attributes like rich malty flavour, fuller body, bright colour, briskness and sweet aroma have made Assam tea a hot favourite among tea enthusiasts all over the world.

Managing director of Heritage tea garden in Dibrugarh district, Rajen Baruah, said the gorgeous colour of the blend was definitely owing to Assam tea, which is known all over the world for its strong liquor characteristics.

Raj Barooah, director of Aideobari Tea Estates (Private) Ltd said this speaks volumes about the quality of Assam tea in the black tea segment.

'This is an honour for Assam tea. It is a global recognition since it is being used as a blend internationally,' Amit Daga, managing director of Calcutta-based Amarawati Tea Company Ltd, which owns the Duliabam tea estate apart from the Halmari garden in Assam, told The Telegraph.

Halmari in Dibrugarh district of Upper Assam is known for making high-quality teas and for getting consistently good prices.

Assam produces about 620 million kg of tea annually, which is around 52 per cent of India's total tea output.

The special Nobel blend comes at a time when Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi is seeking national drink status for tea from the Centre to provide an impetus to the consumption and promotion of Assam tea.