Our invitation to India for cups of the magical and refreshing yet inexpensive drink - `Chai'. Legend suggests that tea originated in India. In the early 19th century The East India Company started tea plantations in Assam using wild Chai plants found growing in the area and later introduced it in the Darjeeling area in the northeast and the Nilgiri in the South. Today there are many varieties of tea, which grow at much lower altitudes. India is the largest producer of tea in the world. Assam grows over half and Darjeeling about a quarter of the nation's output. Once drunk by tribal people, tea is now India's national drink and its taste developing around the globe.

The Happy Valley Tea Estate claims to use the old orthodox method of tea production. Fresh leaves are dried by fans on withering troughs to reduce the moisture content and then rolled and pressed to express the juices, which coat the leaves. These are left to ferment in a controlled humid environment in order to produce the desired aroma. Finally the leaves re dried by passing them through a heated drying chamber and then graded - the unbroken being the best quality down to the fannings and dust. Be our guest!!