Assam clonal
Assam grown from a single vegetatively propagated cultivar rather than from a mixed seed-grown garden. Clonal planting gives far more consistency batch to batch and a cleaner, brighter cup, at the cost of the unpredictable depth that old seed gardens sometimes produce.
Character
Recognisably Assam but tidier — less of the rough malty depth, more clarity and a sweeter top note.
- Flavour
- Sweet, Fruity, Nutty
- Aroma
- Malty, Honeyed
- Mouthfeel
- Full bodied, Smooth
- Complexity
- Moderate
- Notes
- malt, honey, stewed apple
- Aftertaste
- Cleaner and shorter than seed-grown Assam.
Bold intensity: full-bodied, astringent or bitter enough to lead the cup.
Provenance and production
- Origin
- India
- Region
- Assam
- Cultivar
- TV1
- Oxidation
- Fully oxidised
- Harvest
- Second flush
- Processing
- Withering → Rolling and shaping → Oxidation → Drying
Brewing
Western brewing (teapot or mug)
1–1.5 g/100 ml · 95–100 °C · 1 authored infusion
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.
- Dooars and Terai
Both North Indian plains teas from assamica stock, and Dooars and Terai leaf routinely goes into blends labelled Assam. The distinction is administrative more than botanical.
Similar sensory profile
Shares controlled flavour, aroma and mouthfeel descriptors. A looser match — two teas can share descriptors and still taste nothing alike.
- Assam orthodox tippy
Shares 7 descriptors with Assam clonal: sweet, fruity, nutty, full bodied, smooth, honeyed and malty.
- Assam golden tips
Shares 6 descriptors with Assam clonal: fruity, sweet, full bodied, smooth, malty and honeyed.
- Thai black tea
Shares 6 descriptors with Assam clonal: sweet, nutty, full bodied, smooth, honeyed and malty.
- Yunnan Bai Hao black
Shares 6 descriptors with Assam clonal: sweet, fruity, nutty, full bodied, honeyed and malty.
- Aged Shou Mei
Shares 5 descriptors with Assam clonal: sweet, fruity, full bodied, smooth and honeyed.
- Aged white tea cake
Shares 5 descriptors with Assam clonal: sweet, fruity, full bodied, smooth and honeyed.
- Bailin Jin Hao
Shares 5 descriptors with Assam clonal: sweet, fruity, nutty, smooth and honeyed.