Anamalai tea
Tea from the Anamalai range south of the Nilgiris, an area that has shifted noticeably toward orthodox and speciality production. Its frost-free high elevation produces a rounder South Indian cup than the Nilgiris, with more body and less of the sharp brightness.
Character
Softer and fruitier than Nilgiri, with enough body to drink plain. It is the clearest evidence that South India can make more than blending tea.
- Flavour
- Fruity, Sweet, Woody
- Aroma
- Malty, Stone fruit
- Mouthfeel
- Medium, Smooth
- Complexity
- Straightforward
- Notes
- ripe fruit, light malt, wood
- Aftertaste
- Soft and rounded.
Moderate intensity: noticeable weight or grip, but neither dominates the cup.
Provenance and production
- Origin
- India
- Region
- Anamalai
- Oxidation
- Fully oxidised
- Harvest
- Year round
- Processing
- Withering → Orthodox processing → Oxidation → Drying
Brewing
Western brewing (teapot or mug)
1–1.5 g/100 ml · 95–100 °C · 1 authored infusion
Gongfu brewing (gaiwan)
4–5 g/100 ml · 90–95 °C · 5 authored infusions
No caffeine estimate is authored for this tea. TeaHQ does not infer one from its category, because category predicts caffeine poorly — matcha and gyokuro carry more than many black teas.
If you like this
Grouped by why they were suggested, strongest reason first. Nothing here is a blended score — a suggestion appears under the best reason that exists for it, and never under a weaker one as well.
Editorially linked
Someone wrote down why these two belong together. The note below is theirs.
- Wayanad tea
Two South Indian districts a range apart, both increasingly making orthodox tea. Anamalai is the higher and brisker; Wayanad is fuller and softer.
Similar sensory profile
Shares controlled flavour, aroma and mouthfeel descriptors. A looser match — two teas can share descriptors and still taste nothing alike.
- Darjeeling muscatel
Shares 6 descriptors with Anamalai tea: fruity, sweet, woody, medium, smooth and stone fruit.
- Tanyang Gongfu
Shares 6 descriptors with Anamalai tea: sweet, fruity, woody, smooth, medium and malty.
- Balhyocha
Shares 5 descriptors with Anamalai tea: fruity, sweet, woody, smooth and medium.
- Darjeeling second flush
Shares 5 descriptors with Anamalai tea: fruity, woody, medium, smooth and stone fruit.
- Lychee black tea
Shares 5 descriptors with Anamalai tea: fruity, sweet, medium, smooth and stone fruit.
- Moonlight White
Shares 5 descriptors with Anamalai tea: fruity, sweet, woody, smooth and stone fruit.
- Myanmar black tea
Shares 5 descriptors with Anamalai tea: sweet, woody, fruity, smooth and malty.