The Umiam-based specialty brand offers 16 teas across four seasons and four styles, and lets visitors taste them at the garden.
At around 4:30 AM, before the sun clears the hills above Umiam Lake, pluckers at Slasha begin their day. The specialty tea brand says its Brahma Muhurta harvest is the world's first to be timed to the pre-dawn period that Indian tradition associates with stillness, clarity and new beginnings.
The claim is Slasha's own and was not independently verified. The brand says the practice brings an ancient tradition into contemporary tea production and reflects its commitment to honouring ancestral practices and the people who carry them forward.
The initiative is headed by Dr. S. K. Pathak, a former scientist at the Tocklai Tea Research Institute, who brings technical expertise to the estate's exploration of new harvesting practices.
Slasha grows, harvests and makes its tea at a young organic garden overlooking Umiam Lake. The garden was planted with some of the region's first tea clones and is small by design. Virgin grasslands, fertile soil, forest cover, seasonal rainfall and Meghalaya's changing climate shape the character of the teas, according to the brand.
Leaves are hand harvested and gently hand rolled in small batches. The brand says it aims to preserve the individuality of each harvest rather than pursue uniformity, since weather, rainfall, humidity and even the precise hour of picking can change how a leaf tastes. Nalin Modha, who has decades of experience in tea, oversees the development and character of the teas, paying particular attention to differences created by harvest, season and terroir.
Slasha treats time as central to its teas. The garden moves through Spring, Summer, Monsoon and Autumn, and shifts in temperature, rainfall, humidity and light can affect the leaf even within a single season. Instead of blending these variations away, the brand keeps them, so teas from the same garden and style can show different aromas, flavours and textures depending on when they were harvested.
Each of the four seasonal collections includes four styles. Bai Mu Dan is light and delicate, with soft floral notes and a refined finish. The green tea is fresh and vibrant, with clean, bright notes. The oolong is balanced and layered, with subtle complexity, while the black tea is rich and full-bodied, with depth, warmth and a lingering character.
Slasha also runs estate visits and guided tastings in Umiam. Guests can walk through the tea fields, watch the tea being made, meet the people behind it and taste the different varieties. The brand says its tea is hand harvested and processed by local hands, and that the garden remains closely tied to local communities.
Slasha is part of CPGE Hospitality, which was founded with Hotel Centre Point in Shillong and now runs hotels, restaurants and hospitality experiences across the North East. The brand describes tea as an extension of that connection to the region, taking the landscape and character of Meghalaya to audiences beyond the state.
