Chiabari: The Tea Retreat - Chamong Country

A litle information about some of our tea gardens:

Chamong

Our flagship garden, Chamong was also one of the first tea estates to be acquired by the Lohia Group and as such, holds a very special place in all our hearts. One of the very prettiest of our gardens, Chamong's special charm stems from the presence of the little whistling birds that the Lepchas call "Chamoo," who gather here in the summer. The estate is comfortably high in the hills and only a little above a third of its 332 hectares is devoted to the organic tea plantation; the rest is virgin forest land that promises thrills and quiet alike to the sensitive visitor.

Pussimbing

This 120 year-old, heritage tea estate – one of the earliest to commit to 100% organic cultivation – is a rather spectacular sight with its two mountain rivers with their many streams and waterfalls, and its tall and dense natural forests inhabited by a variety of mountain wildlife. The use of hydroelectric power, the lack of pollution and the carefully organic practices of cultivation have all helped create a Himalayan paradise for its mainly Nepali residents who are almost all connected with the plantation one way or another.

 

Tumsong

Tumsong, the first of the Chiabari Tea Retreats to be open to the public, started out as a tea garden back in 1867 when the German Wernicke brothers, who had just started on the nearby Lingia garden (now a part of the Chamong Group) planted the estate around a temple to Tamsa Devi, a local deity. The temple stands on a steep slope that rises sharply from 2700 ft to 5500 ft and offers fantastic views of the majestic Kanchenjunga and the Golden Valley of Darjeeling. The locals believe that the goddess Tamsa presides over this serene landscape and in fact, they refer to Tumsong as the Garden of Happy Hearts.

Lingia

One of the Chamong Group's smaller heritage gardens, Lingia stands in altitudes ranging from 2800 ft to 6000 ft and faces the snow-clad Kanchenjunga. The garden only covers 220 hectares and is planted mainly with the tea that is genetically the closest to the rose bush. The estate is also internationally certified as 100% bio-organic. Always aware of its societal responsibilities, the Chamong Group provides this busy estate's 5000 odd residents free primary education as well as free medical facilities and housing.

 

Soom

The Chamong Group took over this dying historical estate in 2001. Now, as the garden approaches its 150th birthday, it's well on its way to marking the occasion by turning fully bio-organic and its workers are regularly given instruction on the latest techniques on improving quality, production and productivity while maintaining SQF and IMO norms. At 535 hectares, Soom is also one of the Group's larger estates and houses about 7000 people, most of whom are Nepalese or Tibetans.