Mah Jongg

Mah Jongg has a long history going back to 1905 when it was first registered in Adelaide, South Australia.

During the first half of the 20th Century Mah Jongg enjoyed a prominent position in the South Australian market being the favourite tea for many Adelaidians and country folk.

The brand was sold to various new owners but eventually ending up in the hands of David (Tiger) Wright a member of a prominent tea growing family in Ceylon.

Pine Tea and Coffee have given this brand a new life. Currently one tea the Mah Jongg Black Label first grade China blend is packed in 100g, 250g, 500g and 1 kilo packs.

The tea is an old favourite characterised by the inclusion of an ancient tea Kooloo or Gulao as it is better known in China. Gulao gained popularity through Macau, Hong Kong and Australia. Gulao is said to have been drunk for over 1500 years and is today more prominently consumed in Gulao town on the Pearl River Delta southwest of Guangzhou. The area is warm and misty all year round and perfect for fine tea growing. The tea is black with a greenish tinge, the brew is a bright brownish red colour and has a slightly toasty flavour with a sweet aftertaste of jasmine.

The Mah Jongg Black Label tea blend has a more pronounced brownish coppery/red liquor, and the jasmine sweet toasty flavour of Gulao is combined with other teas of brisk peppery/malt persuasion. The resultant tea is delightfully spicy with a pronounced aroma.

This flavoursome tea was popular in the mines around Australia in the late 19th Century and early 20th Century. It was often characterised in poems and other literature by swagmen sitting around the campfires drinking tea made in a billycan.

Thomas Jackson, Clayton’s Grandfather was famous for drinking such tea from his billy whilst on his many prospecting adventures walking from Adelaide to Cooper Pedy (for Opals) in South Australia and up to Tennant Creek (for gold) in the Northern Territory in the 1920’s and 1930’s.