Golden Needle Tea - A Rarity

Arunachal Pradesh is outright one of the most beautiful states of India. Add to it the sprawling tea gardens, the spectacle it makes is one to behold.  I have personally been to a place called Pasighat a couple of years back. It a region in the East Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh. A petite town with the mighty Siang flowing right through the middle of it, it is a visit I shall forever cherish. The one thing I carried back from Pasighat along with, of course, so many others, is the sumptuousness of the tea I tasted back there. The ‘doodh-chai’ I had there in the tourist guest house is one I can never forget. 
So sometime back, when I heard the name of Pasighat mentioned in the news in this context, I could not help following it up. A very rare brew reared in the  Donyi Polo estate of Pasighat fetched a record price of a whopping forty thousand rupees a kilogram when sold at the Guwahati Tea Auction Centre (GTAC). It was the highest price ever fetched by a tea variety at any tea auction across India. 
The rare variety I am talking about is the ‘Golden Needle’. The Golden Needle gets its name from the fine, needle-shaped leaves coated with soft, velvety golden hair obtained after fermentation and production. This rare variety is obtained from a special clone that is reared with utmost care and skill. The brew that is obtained is finally is mild and sweet giving off a sweet aroma that reminds one of sugarcane pulp.
 Donyi Polo Tea Estate is known for the production of “Golden Needle” tea leaves. Donyi Polo is the largest tea estate in Arunachal Pradesh which was established back in the late eighties (1987, to be precise). It has an area of 421 hectares dedicated exclusively for the production of Golden Needle. But a right combination of rainfall and apt weather condition is required to produce the best quality of Golden Needle tea. Also, the fact that the estate is situated by the Siang is conducive to the production. Golden Needle is otherwise inherently produced in China. Other than the Golden Needle, the estate is known for producing the best varieties of silver needle and oolong tea. 
The last time I did not have a chance to visit the Donyi Polo tea estate in Pasighat. But I had returned with a promise to visit the heavenly place again. And this time I will be sure to tarry through the tiny lanes flanking the tea shrubs of the estate. Who knows, I might even have the good fortune of sipping through one of the rarest varieties of tea ever brewed while I watch the sun sinking by the hills by the Siang.