The Mohokutie Estate sits in East Assam, near Sibsagar, on land owned by The Assam Company, the oldest commercial tea company in India. The company was established not long after the 1823 discovery of Assam tea, credited to the Scottish explorer Robert Bruce, and that long history sits behind everything the garden grows. Mohokutie has built its own name within the region too, with a longstanding reputation for producing some of the best teas in India, distinct from the many other Assam gardens sold under similar names. The estate works in both CTC and orthodox styles, and both are known for brightness and a bold flavour rather than anything delicate or restrained.
This TGFOP1 grade is orthodox leaf, and it shows that boldness clearly. The liquor pours a dark, coppery colour, and the cup itself carries malty, sharp, woody notes with real thickness, plus a depth that edges toward coffee. It is a hearty style of black tea, built for milk, sugar, honey or a squeeze of lemon — though it holds up served plain black as well, without needing anything added to round it out. Tea & Coffee packs it fresh to order at its factory in Kent, which keeps the leaf consistent batch to batch rather than sitting in a warehouse for months before it reaches a cup.
Steep with freshly boiled water for three to five minutes; the longer end of that range draws out the full malt and body more than a quick three-minute infusion would. Like other black teas it carries a fair amount of caffeine, roughly 40mg in an 8-ounce cup, which makes it a better fit for a morning pot than a late-evening one, and a reasonable pick for anyone who wants a brisk start to the day.
