In April 2015, I will be escorting a group of people on one of 18ThirtyFours; North Eastern Indian Tea Tours. The tour will commence on Tuesday 14th April and will return on Monday 27th April. During our trip we will be visiting an array of tea related establishments, from the chai waller’s and tea shops of Kolkata, to Makaibari’s tea factory near Kurseong in Darjeeling; a visit to the tea brokers and gardens of Assam and the unique tea research facility at Tocklai. A real te

Back in April 2012, while working for The Tea Centre, I put out an article on their E-news letter to start some discussion around teabags and their use in cafes, restaurants and hotels. I asked people out there to comment on whether their local eatery used teabags or loose leaf tea. Even though I’d had this conversation over the counter, with many customers at The Tea Centre shops. It still shocked me when people started to engage and wanted to vent their spleen about the use

Maniram Dutta Barua, – know by many as Maniram Dewan, was born on the 17th April 1806. A man of foresight, entrepreneurship, with a love for his King and country, he was also a man who helped with those early steps when Indian tea was in its infancy. His family had migrated to Assam from Kanauj, Northern India in the 16th century. They were well- educated people who held high office in the courts of the Ahom Kings. His family were Kayasthas (or record-keepers) and with this c