Margaret’s Hope Hand Rolled Special Grade 2009, Darjeeling 2nd Flush from Thunderbolt Tea

Categories: Tea reviews, White tea
Tags: Darjeeling, Darjeeling 2nd flush, Darjeeling white tea, Margaret's Hope Estate, Thunderbolt Tea
Post date: March 23, 2010
Comments: 3 comments

Margaret’s Hope Special Grade 2009, 2nd Flush White Tea from Thunderbolt Tea

Most of the time, I try to review teas that you can buy, should you feel so inclined. Today’s tea, unfortunately, is already sold out. But I’m going to taunt you with my review anyway.

Margaret’s Hope is a tea estate in Darjeeling, India. This is their hand-rolled, special grade 2nd flush tea, a spectacular white tea boasting huge, lush leaves. And I mean seriously huge. Some of the leaves stretch for about two inches. No broken leaves here.

Can you tell I’m impressed?

Besides boasting a magnificent size, the leaves are an attractive mixture of rustic brown and downy white. Dry, they have a wonderfully fruity aroma, reminding me of mango.

The tea infuses into a golden liquor. On the first infusion, I find the tea quite savoury, with a drying mouthfeel (something I note with many Darjeelings) and a mild hint of something sweeter (again, mango comes to mind). It is the second infusion that really impresses me: it’s balanced more delicately between sweet and savoury, as if to gather the best of both worlds. A lovely little hint of dark chocolate emerges. Pleasant drinking, to put it mildly.

As mentioned, this tea isn’t available anymore. Still, if you’re in the mood for some high quality Darjeeling tea, head on over to Thunderbolt Tea and tempt yourself with their excellent collection of Darjeelings. You can also check out the collection of Darjeeling teas listed in the Tea Marketplace.

ps. Lest anyone accuse me of heinous crimes, let me clarify that this tea was a free sample sent to me by Thunderbolt Tea.