Darjeeling Tea Gorkha Rai Lepcha Mountain Culture

Darjeeling district's tea gardens produce the world's most expensive mass-market tea — Darjeeling First Flush and Second Flush orthodox leaf tea — on steep mountain slopes between 600 and 2,000 metres where the combination of altitude, temperature fluctuation, soil acidity, and cloudiness creates the "muscatel" flavour unique to Darjeeling teas. Darjeeling tea has Geographical Indication status, and the Darjeeling Tea logo managed by the Tea Board of India protects its name from imitation by teas grown in other areas. The district's predominantly Gorkha (Nepali-origin), Rai, Lepcha, and Bhutia communities have maintained a distinct Himalayan cultural identity including Dashain-Tihar festivals, Losar (Buddhist New Year), and the Limboo and Tamang shamanic tradition.