AV2 vs TV1
The clonal cultivars that mark the shift from seed-grown gardens to propagated ones in India’s two most famous regions. TV1 is where that shift starts in Assam; AV2 is what it produced in Darjeeling two generations later.
cultivar
What is being compared
Point by point
| Aspect | AV2 | TV1 |
|---|---|---|
| Region | Darjeeling. | Assam. |
| Variety group | sinensis. | assamica. |
| Released by | Selection at Ambari. | The Tocklai Tea Research Institute — the first clonal cultivar it released. |
| Selected for | Aroma in the first flush. | Vigour and heavy cropping. |
| Historical significance | Reshaped what Darjeeling first flush tastes like. | The beginning of systematic clonal planting in India. |
| Consequence for buyers | A district-wide flavour shift within living memory. | Single-estate consistency became possible at all. |
The short answer
Clonal planting is what made estate-level consistency achievable, and it is also what makes a garden’s tea change when it replants. Both effects come from the same decision and only one of them is usually mentioned.
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