HAZELNUT

The lowly hazelnut, (Latin: Corylus avellana,) may not be as lowly as you might first think. In fact, throughout the small round nut's 4500 years of existence it has made quite an impact on our world. For example, according to the Bible, Adam and Eve harnessed the power of a Hazelnut branch given to them by God to create all the animals of the Earth. And it doesn't stop there. A manuscript found in China dating to 2838 BC describes Hazelnuts as one of the "five sacred nourishments" given to humanity by the Gods. From China to ancient Rome where, not wishing to be outdone by his foreign counterparts, the god Mercury apparently decided to carry a staff made from the branch of a variety of Hazelnut tree. The hazelnut, quite clearly, is nothing to shake a stick at. Which is odd considering that the traditional method for harvesting the nuts is to spread sheets around a tree and shake it, causing them to fall. This method is still employed widely in Turkey, one of the preeminent Hazelnut growing countries in the world. The Turkish hold the nut in such high regard that each September, in a town called Ordu, they celebrate them with a festival - the Golden Hazelnut Festival. Our Master Taster felt we should do our part to honor this little nut by giving it its own tea blend. We're glad he did. This tea imparts a pleasing astringency combined with buttery hazelnutty goodness - it almost deserves a festival of its own!

What type of tea do we use, how do we flavor the tea and why do we use natural flavors?

Firstly... we only use high grown teas from the top 3 tea growing regions of Sri Lanka - Nuwara Eliya, Dimbula and Uva. These three high-grown districts produce flavorful teas that have classic Ceylon tea character which is noted by floral bouquet and flavor notes, touches of mild astringency, bright coppery color and, most importantly - perfect for use as the base tea of our flavored teas. (We have tested teas from various other origins around the world as base stock for our flavored teas, but none of these teas made the grade.) Dimbula and the western estates of Nuwara Eliya have a major quality peak during Jan/Feb, whereas Uva and the eastern estates of Nuwara Eliya have their peak in July/Aug. This dual peak period allow us to buy the best for our flavored tea blends several times during the year, ensuring top quality and freshness.

Secondly... we use flavoring oils not crystals to give the tea drinker an olfactory holiday before indulging in a liquid tea treat.

Thirdly... we specify natural flavors. High quality tea tastes good and natural flavors do not mask the natural taste of the high grown Ceylon tea. (The norm for many making flavored tea is to use overpowering artificial flavors, which can be used to hide lower quality tea). Natural flavors do not leave an aftertaste giving the tea a clean and true character. It should be noted that natural flavors tend to be somewhat soft and the flavors slightly muted, but for many this is a refreshing change and one of the desired attributes of our naturally flavored teas.