Jing has just added an exciting new exclusive black tea to its, already fantastic, range.

The tea is produced on the Coonoor Estate in the Nilgiri hills in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. To date Nilgiri tea has really only been known to connoisseurs actively seeking out teas from this particular region, but now it will be available to us all in small, whole leaf batches.  At its best when brewed with a tablespoon of tea for two and a half minutes and drunk without milk, it has a rich flavour with hints of malt, caramel and orange peel - it really is absolutely delicious.

Jing, founded by Edward Eisler in 2005, is the exclusive supplier of Nilgiri tea to the UK market, and meeting the team, you can really tell how passionately they feel about the products they produce.  They clearly take pride in ensuring their products are produced to an optimum quality and in a socially beneficial way.  The Jing website is a fountain of tea facts and knowledge informing readers on what tea is available, how to drink it, where it comes from and many more interesting nuggets of information.

It is important to note that tea plantations in the Nilgiri region have a constant battle to find good workers, as the young are moving towards the major cities in search of better-paid and more modern jobs.

David Hepburn, Jing comments on the situation; “Having to recruit from elsewhere brings additional problems; the estate has recently employed workers from the north of India who do not speak the local language, so language teachers have had to be employed to teach these workers. The rising cost of labour in developing countries is also making recruitment for tea industry jobs very tough.  However, the estate knows that in order to attract good workers they not only need to pay fair wages, they need to look after them properly.  A few thousand people live on the plantation estate, which includes hospitals and schools for workers and their families and no exploitation so everyone works and lives in harmony”.

Nilgiri tea pickers

Jing worked with a producer focused on making a top quality large whole leaf Nilgiri tea. The tea is produced in factories using machinery imported from China, where the long processing methods which produce really great tea are used more frequently than in other countries. The tea goes through four or five base drying sessions as opposed to only one for standard grades which is meant to keep the flavour for longer than traditional Indian methods.  David Hepburn adds; “Only the finest leaves from the 46 acre, organically certified area are used to produce this tea. No shortcuts are made in the production”.

Have a look at Jing’s website and order it for yourselves and see what you think – you won’t be disappointed! Don’t just try the Nilgiri though, they are all delicious, so get yourself a selection – I also have a box of Silver Needle white tea, considered the rarest and most famous Chinese white tea, on my desk which brings a ray of sunshine into the office!

You can also buy Jing in restaurants, hotels and airlines across the world including Harrods, Heston Fat Duck, Gordon Ramsay restaurants, Tate Galleries, The Lanesborough and Brown’s hotels, and Virgin Atlantic Upper Class Lounges.