Guwahati, May 17: Specialty teas are creating a flutter at the Guwahati Tea Auction Centre.
Oolong tea produced at the Doomni tea estate in Baksa district today set a new record of Rs 1,151 per kg at the auction, breaking its earlier record of Rs 1,103 in 2015.
The 29.5kg Doomni Grand Oolong tea was bought by Manash Chakraborty of Golden Tea House here. He had earlier bought Halmari estate tea at record prices. It was sold by J. Thomas, the largest tea auctioneers in the world.
Oolong tea made its debut at GTAC in 2015. The highest price fetched by Oolong variety in Calcutta auctions was Rs 2,860 per kg from Darjeeling's Thurbo garden in 2014.
Oolong (black dragon tea), sometimes written as wulong, wu long or wooloong, originated in China. It has been partially oxidised and roasted. Oolong is a variety between green and black tea because the leaves are partially oxidised during processing.
"Doomni Grand Oolong is a perfection of semi-fermented tea manufacturing. The beautiful silver-tipped leaf is more black than green. The leaves are long and well-rolled. After being infused, it gives an orange cup. Its dried fruit, chestnut and apricot taste come to the fore slowly. The very light tea can be partaken at any time. It is likely to be favoured by those who prefer mildness and delicacy," said Gaurav Jalan, director of Sublime Agro Ltd, which owns Doomni garden.
He hoped the customers would be delighted with the tea drinking experience. "The awareness on Oolong is lacking unfortunately and it is sold in limited quantities," he said.
Chakraborty said it is a speciality tea and consumers all over the world should get benefit. "It is my job to help this tea reach the world. The credit goes to J. Thomas as they have made it possible to place the product before buyers like us to determine its real worth. This is why e-auction is the best platform to showcase one's product," he said.
According to Chakraborty, Oolong tea is an excellent cup with flowery aroma and tastes superb even with milk. "My overseas buyers prefer this taste. I expect Doomni and other producers to manufacture Oolong during second flush in small quantities."
Sources said the bidding for the Assam oolong tea was quite competitive as there were quite a few people who bid for this variety. The bidding started at 10.30 am.
Though Oolong tea is sold in limited quantities in the auctions, there has been an increasing trend that is being witnessed in recent times.
Doomni garden is spread over 1,040 hectares. According to tea experts, the steeping time for the Oolong tea is four minutes and the water has to be boiled till 90 degrees Celsius to acquire the correct flavour.
An industry official said the fact that Oolong tea has been selling for a decent price in the auctions is a good trend as this will encourage more producers to venture into making of this variety.
The first flush has already witnessed good prices from the top gardens in both the Calcutta and Guwahati tea auctions.
