Why is CTC Tea so Popular in India?
Among the various types of tea available in India, CTC tea is undoubtedly the most popular. It falls under the mid-level market segment as is used as a household staple in almost all parts of the country.
In this post, explore some of the primary reasons for the popularity of CTC tea.
Understanding CTC Tea First
What exactly is CTC tea? CTC tea’s full form is Crush, Tear, and Curl which is also the method by which it gets manufactured. Compared to leaf teas that have whole or broken leaf appearances, CTC tea are granules and look ball-shaped.
Reasons For CTC Tea’s Popularity in India
Check out some of the main reasons why CTC tea is popular all over India:
- Affordability and Quality
The first reason for the popularity of CTC tea is affordability. Many types of CTC tea grades, such as BP, BOP, BOPSM, etc, are made from the lower leaves of the tea plant, including pekoe leaves and orange pekoes while premium leaf teas are made from the upper section leaves, including flowery organe pekoes and tippy golden. Since each tea plant shrub has more middle and lower section leaves than the buds, tea manufacturing companies and brands get more leaves for CTC tea than for premium teas.
Although affordable, CTC tea varieties have considerably good quality, and new-age tea brands, such as Naturolled Tea, offer natural CTC tea prdocuts of the freshest plucking batches. Direct sourcing from the tea gardens of Dooars helps the brand maintain a high level of freshness and overall quality.
- Consistency in Flavour and Aroma
CTC tea has a consistent robust flavour that makes it easy for even novice tea lovers to prepare their favourite cup without the hassle of any complex process. The balanced flavour profiles of CTC teas make them easier to prepare as compared to whole leaf exquisite teas that require a careful play of water temperature and brewing/steeping time.
Also, the consistent and balanced flavour of CTC teas make them pair well with various types of snacks, such as biscuits, toasts, rusks, pakoras, namkeen bhujias, and more. And as it is obvious, some of the tea and snack combinations, such as chai and biscuits, have been a go-to choice for tea lovers in India for centuries.
- Fulfilling Experience
The traditional chai, prepared with CTC tea, has a unique fulfilling experience that is unmatched by any other non-alcoholic beverage. Apart from the stimulating flavour of the CTC tea itself, the filling experience that milk lends and the mood uplifting feeling that sugar lends makes the overall chai a satisfying beverage.
The satisfying experience that many tea lovers enjoy is more promiment when drinking chai after long hours of work during tiredness and also during stress. Similarly, the fulfilling experience of chai becomes more pronounced during cold weather and winter months.
- Wide Availability and Strong Recall
Chai made from CTC tea undoubtedly has one of strongest recall caompred other types of FMCG/household products. This is mainly because a fresh cup of chai is available almost everywhere in India, in any local shop of any local gully. And there is no magic to preparing strong tea apart from using CTC tea and pure milk.
Similar to staple household essentials, such as salt, sugar, oil, flour, rice, and others, CTC tea has become an integral part of the daily lives of a significant percent of the population in India. What’s more interesting is that the tea market in India, despite being one of the oldest categories, is growing consistently as the demand for CTC tea rises every year.
