The altitude alone sets this one apart: Guranse Tea Estate sits between 3,300 and 7,300 metres in Nepal's Dhankuta district, and some say it's the highest tea garden anywhere in the world. That elevation and the local climate are credited with the tea's muscatel character, which comes through alongside lemon, tropical fruit, honey, grass and earthy notes in the cup. The liquor pours pale yellow and light.
Nepal produces a small fraction of the world's tea, about 0.1% of global output, and the industry has a rocky history. Tea growing began in the country in 1863, struggled through decades of political upheaval, and only became commercially viable in the 1950s. The first factory built for mass production opened in Ilam district in 1978, roughly a century after those first plantings. Production remains modest, which makes teas like this one harder to come by.
Guranse grows its leaf under controlled organic cultivation, without synthetic fertilisers, herbicides or pesticides, a practice that benefits both the tea and the people who pick it. Tea & Coffee packs it fresh to order at its factory in Kent.
Brew it with water cooled to around 80°C and steep for one to three minutes. It holds a moderate amount of caffeine, roughly 30mg per 8-ounce cup. Drink it plain to taste the grassy-earthy fusion at its clearest, though a little honey or lemon suits it if you prefer. The leaf carries vitamins and antioxidants, including beta-carotene, calcium, folic acid, phosphorus, potassium, saponins and vitamin C, and green tea has long been drunk with the belief that these compounds help the body counter oxidative stress.
