Darjeeling / Assam Blend BOP Loose Leaf Black Tea — Our Brunch Tea

🍵 The Blend — BOP grade broken leaf from two of India's great tea regions, combining Assam's malty lowland character with the floral, muscatel notes of high-grown Darjeeling

🍵 The Colour — A deep, bright amber cup with warm copper tones, full in body and vivid in the glass whether you take it with milk or without

🍵 The Character — Bold and malty from the Assam, with Darjeeling lifting the finish into something lighter and more refined — strength and delicacy held in genuine balance

🍵 The Occasion — A versatile cup for late mornings or lazy weekend afternoons; equally rewarding alongside brunch as it is taken quietly on its own

India produces more tea than almost anywhere on earth, but even within its vast gardens, two regions stand apart. Assam, sprawling across the fertile lowland plains of the Brahmaputra River valley, has been producing some of the world's most powerful black teas since the East India Company first recognised its potential in the 1830s. Darjeeling, perched high in the Himalayan foothills of West Bengal, grows its tea on cool, mist-covered slopes at elevations of up to 6,000 feet, producing a cup of delicate muscatel complexity that has earned it the nickname the Champagne of teas. This Assam Darjeeling blend brings the two together in a BOP grade loose leaf — and the result is a black tea of real depth and character.

The BOP grade — Broken Orange Pekoe — means the leaf has been carefully processed to give a brisk, full-bodied infusion that brews evenly and reliably. The Assam provides the backbone: bold, malty, and warming, with the rich depth that has made it the cornerstone of classic British breakfast blends for generations. The Darjeeling does something quite different — it softens the edges, introduces a lighter, more floral quality, and allows a hint of that characteristic muscatel note to come through on the finish. Neither tea overwhelms the other. The Assam has the strength; the Darjeeling has the elegance.

This is a blend that works beautifully with milk, where the malty Assam comes forward with real warmth and body. Brew it black and the Darjeeling character becomes more apparent — brighter, more aromatic, with a gently astringent finish that is genuinely refreshing. It is an unusually versatile cup, and one that suits late mornings and unhurried weekend brunches particularly well.

Since 2008, High Teas London has been one of the country's leading independent tea specialists, building a collection of over 350 teas and infusions sourced from the world's finest gardens. Finding a blend that honours both of India's great tea-growing regions, and does justice to each, is exactly the kind of thing that has always driven what we do.

Ingredients: Assam tea, Darjeeling tea.

Brewing Note: Use freshly drawn water brought to a full rolling boil and pour over the leaves while still at 100°C — BOP grade leaf brews best in water that is fully boiling rather than merely hot. Use one heaped teaspoon per cup, or a generous two teaspoons per 500ml if brewing in a pot, and steep for three to four minutes. Shorter steeping times will bring out the Darjeeling character more clearly; a longer steep will push the malty Assam notes to the fore. Both approaches are worth trying. This blend takes milk particularly well, but a cup brewed on the lighter side and drunk black is a different, equally rewarding experience.