I second the choices of BB Supreme and Lipton Green Label Connoisseur (or
even plain Green Label). These are sold as 100% pure Darjeeling teas
(although blended from different gardens and flushes, for sure).

Still, these are great values compared to the single garden teas from Upton
etc. Definitely worth a try.

I wonder if any "insider" here has information on the gardens used by Lipton
and Brooke Bond for their blended Darjeelings ...
--
Aloke
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"Rob" > wrote in message
ups.com...
> Thank you. I've been finding the brands that I want but I've been
> paying an inflated price for them. It never occurred to me to look in
> the Asian or Arabic markets. Even if I had thought of it, I probably
> would have assumed that they'd be equally expensive.
>
> It's a pity that we can't get this quality of tea in our own
> supermarkets. Even a brand like Red Rose, which I consider decent, is
> not as strong as I would like, since American teabags are smaller and
> contain less tea than British ones.
>
> I really wonder sometimes if Americans aren't tea drinkers because the
> quality of tea available in supermarkets is so poor, or if the quality
> is so poor because Americans aren't interested in good tea. A
> Catch-22, I suppose.
>
> I am also beginning to think that the Lipton sold in the USA is
> primarily meant to be used for iced tea, rather than hot. I can't
> imagine why they'd deliberately blend such a weak, pale and astringent
> tea otherwise, especially when the company has proved it can produce
> better teas in foreign markets.
>
> Anyway, thanks again for the leads.