Assam-Made Pu’er Tea Fetches ₹12,000 Per Kg At Guwahati Tea Auction Centre

An Assam-made Pu’er tea cake has fetched ₹12,000 per kg at the Guwahati Tea Auction Centre, highlighting the growing interest in speciality teas from the state. Five kg of the tea, produced by Gauripur Tea Industry in Golaghat, was sold at that price during an auction on Friday. Scroll down to know more.

What Is Pu’er Tea?

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma also shared the development on X, describing it as a significant moment for the state’s evolving tea industry. He said Assam tea was finding new ways to command a premium. The tea was sold through broker J Thomas. Gauripur Tea Industry, owned by Aparaj Saikia, began producing Pu’er tea commercially in 2023.

Pu’er, also known as Pu-erh, is a fermented tea traditionally associated with Yunnan province in China. It is generally made from large tea leaves and is commonly compressed into cakes or bricks. The Assam-made version uses Camellia sinensis var. assamica, a tea variety widely found in the region. However, the Gauripur Tea Industry follows a different production process, using only the tea bud rather than the more common combination of one bud and two leaves.

Also Read: Partial Solar Eclipse, 2025: Date, Where To See & Other Details About This Celestial Phenomenon

The speciality tea is made entirely by hand and takes between three and 10 days to prepare. According to Saikia, the tea is produced in carefully crafted, small batches as part of an effort to explore and promote Assam’s speciality tea varieties beyond conventional black and green teas.

Other Signature Teas From Assam

The growing focus on speciality teas could also bring other traditional varieties to the Guwahati auction market. North Eastern Tea Association adviser Bidyananda Barkakoty said Phalap tea could be the next speciality tea to be sold through the auction centre.

Phalap is traditionally produced by the Singpho community in parts of Tinsukia and Margherita. It is made using large Assamica tea leaves, which are traditionally packed in bamboo and aged. The process gives the tea an earthy, woody and smoky character that has similarities to Pu’er. The Assam government has also increased its subsidy for orthodox and other speciality teas from Rs 10 to Rs 15 per kg from the 2026-27 financial year.

Also Read: Thai Pongal 2026: Date, Significance, Traditions & Meaning Behind The Overflowing Pot

Barkakoty said the higher subsidy could encourage greater production of non-CTC teas while helping address the demand-supply imbalance caused by excess production of the CTC variety.

Have you ever tried Pu’er tea?

Cover Image Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons