Tea Cultivar · Camellia sinensis var. assamica
TRFK 6/8
- Origin
- Kenya - Kericho
- Registered
- 1964
- Primary use
- CTC black tea
Overview
TRFK 6/8 is a vegetatively propagated clonal cultivar released by the Tea Research Foundation of Kenya (now the Tea Research Institute, a KALRO institute) at its Timbilil research station in Kericho. For decades it has been the single most widely planted clone in Kenya - the world's largest exporter of black tea - and consequently one of the most widely planted tea cultivars on Earth. The clone was selected from open-pollinated seedlings of Assam-type stock originally imported from India in the early 20th century and adapted to the high-elevation equatorial conditions of the Kenyan highlands.
Characteristics
TRFK 6/8 shows hybrid vigor with a semi-erect bushy growth habit, dark green medium-large leaves, and high yield potential (often above 3,500 kg of made tea per hectare per year under good husbandry). It is well-suited to mechanical or shear plucking, recovers rapidly after harvest, and produces a strong, briskly-fermenting leaf ideal for CTC (crush-tear-curl) processing. It tolerates Kenya's bimodal rainfall and the equatorial day-length but is susceptible to certain leaf diseases and drought stress on shallow soils.
Flavor profile
The resulting black tea is the classic 'Kenyan brisk' - a bright copper-red liquor with strong body, high astringency, an unmistakable citrus-and-malt brightness, and excellent color development with milk. It is the workhorse cultivar behind the East African Tea Trade Association's Mombasa auctions and the backbone of countless international breakfast blends.
Where it grows
Kenya - Kericho · Kenya - Nandi · Kenya - Kisii · Uganda · Rwanda · Tanzania