Whole-leaf black tea with a sweet, floral aroma, and a pungent taste. an excellent everyday darjeeling. darjeeling is renowned for producing the finest teas in india, but it also produces the widest variety of flavor of any single growing area. the hills were planted during the 19th century with both imported china plants and with the indigenous assam plants, and many hybrids populate the gardens today. the elevation of a single estate may sweep from 2,000 feet up to 6,000 feet, with the temperature and cloud cover varying widely. the best are the high-grown teas, where the cool weather slows the growth of the leaves and concentrates the flavor. add to this the three distinct plucking seasons of first flush, second flush, and autumnals, and the range of quality from even a single estate can vary enormously. "second flush" refers to the high-quality growing period of late may through june, and is by no means "second rate." darjeeling fancy is a leaf grade second flush tea with noticeably puckery quality and a rich, flowery bouquet.
