Chai pe Charcha

 

Subhashis: Sankalpa! Got this now:

Sankalpa: I am holding my breath. Make a light liquor and try it on its own. Then drink the stronger milk variety (I discourage it), only after you get a feel for it. Keep it sealed in an airtight jar, I will get it from you if you don't like it. I am very excited.

Subhashis: First cup was a disaster (thanks to the excitement). The water got boiled. But the woody taste was distinct. Second cup was nice. Switched off just before it could boil. Taste was better.

Sankalpa: You can boil it if you want to drink with milk.  When the lock-down gets over, think of buying something like this.

Subhashis: No milk and sugar for me

Sid: He may become a tea-totaller but I bet he can't be a teetotaller.

Sankalpa: Subhasis has a fondness for the good things in life. That I think we can agree on.

Siddhu: This fascination for tea of a particular bagaan (garden/estate in Bengali) I saw in the Durgapur Bongs. I never saw tea shops like those elsewhere except in WB. They would have tins and well-sealed tins of tea lined up all over the walls and floor. Every Bong was partial to his own bagaan and had his unique mix of dust, leaf, granules which the shopkeeper had no problem understanding. There could be 5 combinations of bagaans and leaf type in a 200gm order and the shopkeeper would happily comply. Customers actually lined up for tea like they line up for booze now.

Sandeep: Anyone remembers Ruby Dust? There is another important criteria: 1st flush: spring harvest and 2nd flush: autumn harvest; the former being much better. Age too matters a lot – a good first flush will lose 50% of its value by the time the autumn harvest is ready, that is six months. 

    Trivia: The Brits took a lot of tea pickers from Orissa to Upper Assam, the language spoken in that region is called Bagania and has a lot of Oriya words.

    This variety is Orange Pekoe, Lopchu is the garden. One can have Orange Pekoe variety from different gardens/ bagaans. It is a popular variety. Not variety but grade; that’s the highest grade and dust is the lowest.

Sid: Mukharuchi style.

Siddhu: Exactly. More sophisticated version

Sandeep: There was this bengali guy named Kesto between Pen Hospital and Swosti Hotel who used to sell mixed tea loose tea

Sankalpa: Arun Tea Co.

Biswaranjan: My father used to get tea from there. Later on, it operated from the Swosti building. Finally, he retired and went back to his native place

Sankalpa: Yes, my father was very sad when he went. He was the only person in Bhubaneswar who could make a good blend.

Sandeep: Yes, he last operated from Swosti hotel building. I had my office in Master Canteen, knew him personally, a lovable chap. He didn't go away, one fine day he dropped from the face of the earth (disappeared). His wife tried to run the shop but couldn't manage, she had to close shop.

Minakshi: I remember. 'Was in front of our home.

Sipra: There was one in Bapuji Nagar too. In the first gali. A little bigger than a paana shop. Stacked with tins wall to wall. Dash Tea, I think. Sad that these are not there anymore.

Sid: There was one in Tulsipur, Cuttack, where the signboard said - Cha in Odia followed by T in English, repeated over and over. Gave the impression of ChaaT. But disappointingly, stocking tea.

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It is interesting how the simplest of things, like a cup of tea, can trigger a lengthy conversation. This time the conversation was on tea. Some facts, some trivia, and some memories!

Disclaimer: A conversation transferred from the class' WhatsApp group. There was some conversation in between that I took the liberty of removing because it wasn't relevant.