Sunday, January 15, 2012

Sunday's Black Tea -- Ambangalu

Ambangulu

A lively, coppery infusion that is full-bodied with rich, thick mellowness, tending a bit malty. A CTC manufactured tea from Tanzania, the leaves have been cut to a more uniform size, as is typical with many African teas.

What's does CTC mean?
CTC is a process used Tea manufacturing is normally carried out in two ways, 1) CTC and 2) orthodox. CTC refers to the Crush, Tear & Curl process where the withered green leaves are passed in-between two rollers rotating in opposite directions. There is complete maceration of the leaves and the resulting powdery material is referred to as "cut dhool". Enzymatic action is maximum in the CTC type of manufacture. In orthodox type of manufacturer, the withered leaves are rolled on specially designed orthodox rollers which twists and crushes the leaves thereby rupturing the cells. This process results in teas with a bolder flavor.


And a little about the estate ...
Ambangulu Tea Estate is in the northern part of Tanzania close to the Kenyan border and Ngorongo Crater, a prime wildlife reserve.
Ambangulu is a fairly small estate in terms of tea plantations but extremely well managed. This has resulted in high demand for this tea on the world tea trading scene by specialty tea wholesalers as well as the bazaar in Pakistan.

The owners and managers of Ambangulu have been reinvesting in the estate quite heavily providing jobs and security for approximately 1500 workers and their families. In addition to this they now ship their produce in locally made - but to strict specifications - 5 ply kraft paper sacks. In the addition to saving trees and habitat for local fauna the gross shipping weight has been reduced by 3000 pounds saving wear and tear on roads and vehicles. From time to time due to hazardous road conditions and floods, the estate is cut off for periods up to 2 weeks, accessible only by aircraft.

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