About us

Rimpocha Tea is the latest creation from legendary tea producer and environmentalist Swaraj (Rajah) Banerjee, former owner and director of the Makaibari Tea Estate, one of the oldest and most prestigious tea estates in the Darjeeling region and the world.

The Legend of Rajah Banerjee


Rajah Banerjee is a tea-grower by tradition and a tree-planter by passion. He is known for his innovative, holistic and sustainable approach to tea production. As a pioneer of organic and biodynamic tea farming, he introduced a number of sustainable practices and social reforms to his tea plantations at a time when the focus in the tea industry was on maximizing profit and yield. 

Some of his achievements include:

  • 1988 - Makaibari becomes the first tea garden in India to be certified organic 
  • 1991 - The Makaibari Joint Body (MBJB) is formed by Rajah Banerjee to advocate for social reform, education, afforestation, fair trade and women's rights in Makaibari.
  • 1993 - Rajah Banerjee and his tea garden become the first tea garden in the world to receive the Demeter certification for biodynamic cultivation.
  • 2008 - TIME Magazine cover story: "The Best of Asia" recognizing Rajah Banerjee and Makaibari for quality and ethical labor practices.
  • 2014 - Rajah Banerjee sets the world record for the most expensive tea sold at $1850 per kg.
  • 2015 - Rajah's Makaibari tea is gifted to Queen Elizabeth II of England by India's Prime Minister Narenda Modi.

Rajah Banerjee and the history of Dajreeling tea are closely intertwined. His innovative and sustainable approach to tea production has helped preserve the traditions and reputation of Darjeeling tea while actively promoting environmental and social sustainability.

The Creation of RIMPOCHA

In 2018, Rajah's time in Makaibari ended after a devastating fire destroyed his ancestral home. As a pioneer and visionary, he took the incident as a sign of fate to move on and thus Rimpocha was born.

RIMPOCHE stands for reincarnated avatar. From that comes Rimpocha, a tea avatar that transforms the rarest teas and herbal blends that grow in the magical corners of the Himalayas, with holistic, sustainable practices and without any chemical additives, for you to enjoy these special teas with every cup. With his decades of experience, Rajah has established a number of plantations in Darjeeling where the tea is grown sustainably and to the highest organic standards under his guidance. By now, there are already 5 artisanal tea factories supporting 63 small tea growers.

 

The Team bringing Rimpocha to Europe

 

A Munich born Ecological Economics graduate and published academic author, Alex Svan (right) is our connection to India, having worked under the mentorship of Rajah Banerjee for 5 months in 2016. With his education in sustainable agriculture and economics, combined with his experience in Online Marketing, and unwavering enthusiasm for Tea, Alex is our link to India and responsible for the operative and marketing side of things.

A Georgian born Engineering graduate, Giorgi Khubua (left) launched his first start-up during his time at university and successfully had an exit a few years later. Coming from Europe’s oldest tea-growing region (Georgia), he is an avid tea-drinker that is combining both passion and experience to bring Rimpocha to Europe. Besides building his next start-up, he has multiple years of e-commerce experience and is heading up the business development.

Together Alex and Giorgi combine their passion for sustainable products, tea and multi-faceted experience to help Rajah Banerjee in realizing his vision for Rimpocha.

 

The Vision of Rimpocha

Rajah's goal for Rimpocha is to create a holistically sustainable agricultural economy for the marginalized small tea farmers in the north-eastern states of India. Its ultimate goal is to reintroduce green farming to the country and enable self-sufficiency, sustainability and equality for the small farmers who form the core of Rimpocha. With every cup of Rimpocha tea, you support this project and the local tea farmers so that we can enjoy tea of ​​the highest quality together.

At Rimpocha, we take great care to show exactly where our tea comes from and who grew it. We will continue to add the names, histories and current challenges of the tea makers and tea farmers to this website. We want to lead by example and make the supply chain as transparent as possible, while facilitating a personal connection with the people who grow and make the tea we all love and enjoy. This includes:

 

Reinvent farming with the 5 Treasures of Rimpocha

Our vision for a holistically sustainable agricultural economy is based on five principles of action (our treasures), which form the pillars of our company motto: 

 

Find out more on our Sustainability Page.

A cup Above the Rest: Our selection of Premium Darjeeling Teas

As the exclusive online store of Rajah Banerjee's Rimpocha Tea, we offer only the finest Darjeeling Tea that India has to offer. With its unique taste and rich history, Darjeeling tea is like the champagne of teas, of unmatched quality and taste. So if you are looking for the highest quality sustainably procuced tea that is helping to transform the Indian tea industry, then you have come to the right place.

As TIMES Magazine wrote in 2008, "If Darjeeling is the champagne of teas, then [Rajah Banerjee's] tea is the Krug or Henri Giraud".