The Hindu Business Line : Sip it slowly

At Infinitea, Bangalore, the message is clear: If you're up for just a spot of quick chai, you've definitely got the wrong address. With over 50 tea recipes on its menu, the `tea bar' promises an experience that you need to savour at le isure.

In a city dotted with ritzy coffee shops and baristas, Gaurav Saria is definitely plucky to start a `tea bar'. But he's looking at the other side of the coin. "In fact, these coffee shops have made our job easier," he says. "They have set a trend of beverage drinking among Bangaloreans and we are the reaping the benefits."

Saria's mission is clear: To educate people on the rich culture associated with the `tea drinking' ritual. And the message is equally transparent: With about 50 recipes on its menu card, Infinitea is definitely not the place to head to when you are in a mood for a `quick-fix chai'. Instead, it's better to lounge in the bar, drink in its atmosphere (done up in true Darjeeling style) and decide on what to sip first. This is when it strikes you that India's first tea bar is strikingly different from the noisy coffee pubs that the city is used to. "Infinitea is meant for the sophisticated and intelligent people in Bangalore," he smiles. But why did he pick on Bangalore to kick off his business interest? "The people here are adventurous and willing to try anything new," is his instantaneous reply.

Saria's family has been in the tea business for over 100 years now. From 1901 to 1953, they were handymen for the British community. "When they left the country we bought a garden from them and have been in the business of manufacturing tea since then."

In 1999, faced with a major slump in the tea industry, the Sarias decided to diversify into related business. "Packaging and marketing our tea would have been tough because there are hundreds of brands on the supermarket shelves already. So we decided to let people enjoy the taste of our fine teas directly though Infinitea." Thus Liquid Gold Pvt Ltd, the company that owns the `Infinitea' brand, was launched early this year. Liquid Gold retails Darjeeling tea from its estates. "We outsource the Assam and the South teas," says Saria.

At this tea bar, all the recipes are conceived and first brewed by the Saria family. Even the brewers in Bangalore have been trained in Darjeeling, who, in turn, train the local staff. "That's because each flavour is unique to our family," says Saria.

Take `Enigma on the rocks,' for instance. Its genesis is interesting: An outcome of his father's attempts to give up alcohol. The result: An iced tea brewed in the refrigerator for 8 to 10 hours. "Enigma on the rocks is a very adult kind of taste because it has a mild flavour of whisky," says Saria. Then there's the Setting Saffron, which is a blend of Indian home made syrup with traditional ingredients and fine teas from Darjeeling.

Among the hot teas, a must-have is the Avongrove Stupa, which is a flower tea. The tea leaves are delicately woven into a rosette. Brewing this tea is easy: Just add hot water to the rosette and watch it unfold and release its unique aroma to at least four cups of tea. The bar also serves Kahwa, the Kashmiri tea with a rich almond flavour.

For the taste of the exotica, Infinitea has the floral and the herbal varieties: Gold Osmanthus, Tanwan Rose, Pearl Kudin Tea, Wild Balsam Pear, Chinese green teas, Nilgiri Organic teas, Lemon grass teas and Mint tea.

For the strong hearted, there's the Chilled Chilli Chai, the Masala tea and the Nimbu Cha. But Saria requests his customers to savour all the teas without milk or sugar. "They are best enjoyed pure. Milk and sugar tend to mask the delicate flavour of tea," says the tea expert.

And for customers who want to carry home these flavours and relish them later, all the teas are available, freshly packed at the bar. In a few weeks' time, the Infinitea brand of packaged tea will also be on the shelves of supermarkets in Bangalore, says Saria.

After Bangalore, he plans to take his tea bars to Pune, Jaipur and Delhi. Having invested about Rs 70 lakh in his maiden project, he wants to wait for the day `to stop making losses' before venturing into other cities. "In my opinion, Bangalore itself can take four to five such Infiniteas," he says confidently. In fact, Saria is all set to launch his second bar cum store in Koramangala, a suburb in Bangalore. "As this is mainly targeted at the younger crowd, we do not plan to sell all the teas here." Obviously the pricing strategy also will be different, he says.

And just like the gentle taste of tea, Saria is going slow on the promotion for his bar too. "We want our customers to spread the word around. We are also doing it through tea-tasting sessions for small groups of people." In his view, Indians should realise that for long they have been cheated of a fine tea flavour when it's actually growing right here in their gardens.

"Darjeeling is to the teas what Champagne is to the wines. And how many of us know that?" he questions.

Picture by G.R.N. Somashekar

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