Plans for a new office!

A consequence of the embarrassment caused by the road block on Thopumpady Bridge was that J Thomas & Co immediately applied for land on Willingdon Island to build our own office. Staying on in the picturesque Fort Cochin was no longer an option! 

As I said before land on this island belonged to the Government of India, the administration of which was handed over to the Indian Navy and the Port Trust. There could not be any private ownership of land on this island. Plots were generally leased out by the Port Trust for 36 years. The Lessee was at liberty to build but would not be compensated when they vacated the premises. As a result the buildings put up were not works of art but functional, even a bit boxy. 

We were allotted a nice plot next to the Lipton office. It within walkable distance to the Auction Room. We were not going to be caught up in the same situation that we found ourselves in not long ago!

By the first quarter of 1965 we had started building our very own Nilhat House!

The christening of a new grade!

The Dust Auctions on Thursdays were more lively and noisier than the Leaf Auctions. Kerala was a tea drinking State and a tumbler of steaming tea and the morning newspaper was something everyone enjoyed at the start of the day. Most of Kerala drank their morning cuppa at tea shops dotted along the length and breadth of the State. However, consumption was heavier in the Malabar region and in the Kayamkulam – Kollam belt.

People would gather at these tea shops and the teashop owner would make a decoction with Dust tea. He would put a few spoons of Dust Tea in a muslin cloth and tie it up. He would pour hot water into a saucepan and dip the ‘tea bag’ a few times depending on the required strength. He then added hot milk and sugar (plenty) and blended this by pouring it into another pan from some height. This process helped cool the liquid to the perfect drinking temperature and in the process the tea decoction mixed well with the milk and sugar to make a delicious beverage. Just the perfect accompaniment to the fresh morning news from the Malayalam dailies. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JnoSpYmn3g

Someone would read the newspaper loudly and a debate would ensue. Many Malayalee men are armchair politicians! 

There’s a story that when Neil Armstrong landed on the Moon, he was greeted by a Mallu (Malayalee man) tea shop owner who had a tumbler of piping hot tea ready for him! I have not done a Snopes check on this story though. 

After a few infusions the tea owner would add a few more spoons of tea dust into the muslin cloth without removing the spent tea. This ensured the complete infusing of the tea which was like squeezing out the last paisa!  

The number of cups a tea shop owner could extract from one kilo of tea played an important factor in the prices of various grades. The teashop owner stayed with the ‘marks’ (name of the estate) he was used to, and would not risk the displeasure of his tea drinkers by trying some other tea. Some would try out their own blends though.

They had intimate knowledge of their clients’ tastes. If a ‘regular’ complained about the tea, the teashop owner’s antenna would go up. If there were more complaints, he would ask his buying agent to find him a replacement for fear that he would lose his regulars. 

So, when we found something wrong with a particular batch, we would warn the regular buying agent not to buy that tea. We would have already alerted the Tea Factory to correct the problem and if it was serious, one of us would be despatched to the factory. 

For a Tea Broker consistency was more important than flashes of brilliance. We did not want a tea to fall between two stools!  

In the 60’s an Orthodox Dust grade called Kumbazha FD (Fine Dust from Kumbazha Estate) was the market leader. It had a jet-black leaf appearance with a sheen, was powdery but evenly graded.

This Estate was in the low country. The main demand for this tea came from the neibouring Kayamkulam – Kollam buyers. I toured that area stopping at each wholesale buyer, also interviewing some tea shop owners to find out the secret of the success of this tea. 

Apparently, Kumbazha FD gave a satisfactory number of cups per kilo. Also, it would produce a ring of foam on the top when the tea was poured Kerala style.

‘Bazaar Buyer’ was the name coined by the British for buying agents of tea within the country. This was to differentiate them from Brooke Bond, Lipton, Matheson, Harrison & Crosfield, and so on. But it was the Bazaar Buyer who gave us the premium on their favourite grades and we worked hard to get our teas included in the list of brands they consistently supported. 

I was keen to get Sholayar into the premium category to compete with Kumbazha FD. I had long discussions with Mr. Verghese of Azhikkal Brothers, a Bazaar Buyer operating on behalf of the Kayamkulam – Kollam buyers. I promised to find a replacement that would be consistent in quality and gave more cups per kilo. I promised him a head start if he backed us. With that assurance I drove to Sholayar Estate and told the Group Manager N C Kankani what I had in mind. He agreed to play ball! 

We extracted the tea dust through a finer mesh (size 40), and had it gap fired (re-fired before packing). The resultant grade was black and fine like the Kumbazha FD and the gap fire gave it a biscuity taste. Till then the smallest sized CTC grade was the Super Red Dust. I suggested that we christen this new grade, Super Fine Dust (SFD)!

This new grade took the market by storm and sold at a considerable premium. Of course, before too long other Estates followed suit and the SFD became the premium grade among all the CTC grades of tea.

JT had pioneered and established a new grade!