The Winter of Our Teas

In winter, all eyes are on the green ridges of the Nilgiris. The locals know that the season has begun when the temperature drops a few notches and the days are colder, when the annual visitors – the Kashmir flycatcher, the wagtails and warblers, and the droves of tourists from the plains – make their presence felt. Being lower south, the ranges occupy a unique tropical-subtropical condition. Temperatures easily cross the dew point score.

The specialty of winter in the Blue Mountains (as Nilgiris translates) is the wintry frost. And it’s this frost that aids the growth of the region’s best Nilgiri frost teas.

What happens to the plants here in winter is that the temperature drops, but not so much as to make the plants dormant. Instead, frost settles on plants, slowing down their growth, allowing the flavors to develop gradually.

Frost teas are known for their heady floral and spicy aromatics, likely from the flora around here – notably jasmine and eucalyptus. What’s also impressive about Nilgiri teas is that they don’t develop the cloudiness one would normally find in a cold tea, which makes them perfect for iced tea blends.

And if you are wondering about tea from the other regions, winters in Darjeeling, Assam and Kangra are harsh and the plantations undergo hibernation until it’s spring again. No harvest takes place until spring.

Illustration by Handmade by Radhika

Originally published on Still Steeping, the Teabox blog, on July 6, 2015. Lightly edited for clarity in October 2026. Taste a tea from the season in this story: Nilgiri Korakundah Winter Frost Black, or explore all our single-estate Nilgiri teas.