What Happens When An Indian Cocktail Bar Joins Forces With A Tea Estate? Let’s Find Out On A Spring Tea Trail To Darjeeling

In a time when coffee is in the limelight, tea seems to be lost in the shadows. Not for me, though. As an avid tea lover who is committed to her two cups a day, I was happy to pack my bags and head to Darjeeling’s 1600-acre tea estate for a spring tea trail at AMPM’s invitation. AMPM is a cocktail bar in Kolkata founded by Rajan and Deepika Sethi. Deepika, Grace Muivah (AMPM’s brand lead) and OMO’s (a Gurugram-based vegetarian cafe also owned by the Sethis) Executive Chef Vanshika Bhatia, took us to the foothills of Darjeeling to explore the possibilities of tea beyond a cup, plus the local ingredients of the Eastern Himalayas.

 

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Following a three-and-a-half-hour drive from Bagdogra airport, which included stops to savour our first cup of first-flush Darjeeling tea with a view of the mountains, we finally reached our destination: Glenburn Tea Estate, nestled within a tea plantation established in 1859. On our way, we also watched the narrow gauge railway tracks of the UNESCO World Heritage Darjeeling Hill Railway. Husna-Tara Prakash, the owner, welcomed us with her infectious smile and Glenburn Iced Tea.

After resting in my spacious Kanchenjunga suite (named after the mountain range it overlooks) with cosy, Victorian-style interiors, we mingled with guests over cocktails made with Bombay Sapphire gin (did I mention their team accompanied us too?), followed by a hillside-foraged dinner prepared by Glenburn’s Nepali chef, Sabin. We relished the region’s seasonal produce—rye saag and fresh churpi (yak cheese), momos with timbur aachar (wild pepper chutney), gundruk jholl (fermented spinach soup) and assorted vegetables including nettle, fiddlehead ferns, forest yam and taro root.

Tea Worth Sipping, Not Spilling

The following morning began with a visit to the Glenburn tea factory with Tara Prakash, who took us through the sprawling plantation, where we witnessed local women singing sweet melodies while tea-picking, and the manufacturing process of tea. The distinct flavours of Darjeeling tea come from its geographical origin and is protected by a GI (Geographical Indications) tag, with only 87 estates worldwide producing the authentic version. You’ll find varied flavours throughout the year—the fresh, green first flush in March (which we savoured throughout our trip), the grapey, earthy second flush in mid-to-late May, and the stronger, richer tea during the monsoon, and the ‘Autumn Crescendo,’ unique to Glenburn.

Concocting Creations

Descendents of Nepali families who came to Darjeeling to grow tea during the British era still reside at Glenburn, which is why it’s common to see Nepali ingredients in local cuisine. We tasted a vibrant Nepali thali featuring Sal Roti, Pork Curry and Masyang Dal over G&Tea, a drink that featured gin infused with tea, setting the tone for our next activity. Heading back to the estate, we were ready for a cocktail-making workshop by Bombay Sapphire, where we foraged leaves from the garden to bottle our gin infusions. I made a spiced mix with mint, star anise and cinnamon, tea & rosemary, and thyme & basil gin infusions. The next day, we used these infusions in our cocktails. While the flavours of the last infusion didn’t work at all, the first two turned out surprisingly good.

Flavours Of Tea & Bengal

I was treated to two dinners executed by UK-born Kolkata-based Chef Shaun Kenworthy and Chef Vanshika over an eight- and six-course meal, respectively. Chef Kenworthy brought periwinkle snails from the fresh waters of Bengal. I missed trying escargots in France, but thanks to the chef, I completed my French experience at Glenburn with lip-smackingly good snails in butter garlic sauce. Other highlights from his dinner included Crumb-fried Bengal-farmed soft-shell crab (from the pukurs of Bengal) and Glenburn Second Flush Tea Granita. At Chef Vanshika’s vegetarian meal, my favourites were the brioche served with Kalimpong cheese butter and grilled local mushroom with Glenburn glaze, Gundruk fried rice, and the nostalgic dessert Tea & Chocolate that reminded me of chai and biscuit.

The Culmination

All that sampling of tea varieties was then translated into delectable cocktails and a new brunch menu at AMPM Kolkata. Chef Vanshika curated a menu centred around locally sourced ingredients, plating the Glenburn experience into a scrumptious journey of the senses, whereas AMPM’s head mixologist Pankaj Gusain curated the Spring Tea Trail menu with four cocktails: Garden Breakfast Smash, Tea House Tales, Plantation Afterhours, and Berries in the Bungalow. Heading back home, I had a new-found perspective on tea, where I didn’t just look at it as a drink but as an ingredient that can be paired with a cocktail or dish. But, of course, my morning chai continues to occupy its revered position.

Photographs courtesy: AMPM