
Location
Assam tea is named after the Assam region where it’s produced. The region straddles the southeast Himalayas, sharing borders with both Bhutan and Bangladesh.
Amazingly, the region itself is almost the size of Ireland – between 78,000 and 80,000 square kilometres – plenty of space for growing tea. Straight through the middle of the Assam region lies the roaring Brahmaputra river, creating fertile grounds, perfect for hash crops, particularly tea.
As a tea region, Assam is accredited as being developed by Robert Bruce, way back in 1823 when trading with China was going through a difficult time. The very first Assam teas bought to the UK from this region were pungent and a little overwhelming to the taste, which is why we use or talk about using milk and sugar with Assam tea.
In fact, you will often find Assam in your strong breakfast blends. These days, production methods are world class and yield fine quality teas; the Assam tea of today delivers a sweet caramel characteristic that we know and love it for.