Ceylon Tea History - Chapter 03

Tea production in Ceylon increased dramatically in the 1880s and by 1888 the area under cultivation exceeded that of coffee, growing to nearly 400,000 acres in 1899. The only Ceylonese planter to venture in to tea production at the early stage was Charles Henry de Soysa. British figures such as Henry Randolph Trafford arrived in Ceylon and bought coffee estates in places such as Poyston, near Kandy, in 1880, which was the centre of the coffee culture of Ceylon at the time. Although Trafford knew little about coffee, he had considerable knowledge of tea cultivation and is considered one of the pioneer tea planters in Ceylon. By 1883, Trafford was the resident manager of numerous estates in the area that were switching over to tea production. By the late 1880s, almost all the coffee plantations in Ceylon had been converted to tea. Similarly, coffee stores rapidly converted to tea factories in order to meet increasing demand. Tea processing technology rapidly developed in the 1880s, following on from the manufacture of the first "Sirocco" tea drier by Samuel Cleland Davidson in 1877 and the manufacture of the first tea rolling machine by John Walker & Co in 1880—essential technologies that made realizing commercial tea production a reality. This realization was confirmed in 1884 with the construction of the Central Tea Factory on Fairyland Estate (Pedro) in Nuwara Eliya. As tea production in Ceylon progressed, new factories were constructed and innovative methods of mechanization introduced from England. Marshall, Sons & Co. of Gainsborough in Lincolnshire, the Tangyes Machine Company of Birmingham, and Davidson & Co. of Belfast supplied the new tea factories with machinery, a function they continue to perform to the present.

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KENYAN TEA MANUFACTURING PROCESS

👉Black Tea manufacture: Withering: The objective of withering is to reduce the moisture in the t ealeaf by up to 70% (varies from region to region). Tea is laid out on a wire mesh in troughs. Air is then passed through the tea removing the moisture in a uniform way. This process takes around 12 to 17 hours. At the end of this time the leaf is limp and pliable and so will roll well. Rolling: Tea is placed into a rolling machine, which rotates horizontally on the rolling table. This action creates the twisted wiry looking tealeaves. During the rolling process the leaves are also broken open, which starts the third process - oxidisation. Oxidisation: Once rolling is complete, the tea is either put into troughs or laid out on tables whereby the enzymes inside the tealeaf come in to contact with the air and start to oxidise. This creates the flavour, colour and strength of the tea. It is during this process that the tealeaf changes from green, through light ...

Blooming Tea

Blooming tea is also known as flowering tea. This is a combination of edible flowers and black tea or green tea leaves that is like a bulb. Tea leaves are plucked in early spring in the morning before the buds are opening. Then the leaves are sewn with cotton thread and tied to a flower like Jasmine, lily, lavender or chrysanthemum. Then the leaves are shaped into balls, cones, mushrooms or any other shapes. Then the shaped teas are withered, oxidized and fired. After forming the ball, the flowering tea is sealed to secure the freshness. This product is placed on a boiling water, and you will see that the ball will unfurl gradually and open all the floral petals which look like a blooming flower. Therefore this tea is named as blooming tea. Blooming tea comes in a variety of flavors such as Jasmine, Marigold, chrysanthemum, lily, and lavender. This blooming tea has enormous health benefits to the consumers. Being the fan of the blooming tea, it is important to know what health bene...

Four Seasons Oolong Tea from Taiwan

Four Seasons Oolong Tea from Taiwan 👉🍃🌍❤ This Four Seasons Oolong (Si Ji Chun) is a wonderfully aromatic lightly oxidised oolong grown around Mingjian Township in Nantou County, Taiwan. It is an expressive tea, yet it makes a very refreshing drink. This particular batch is from an autumn crop, plucked in March 2020. Four Seasons Oolong is named after the cultivar that is used to make this aromatic tea, Si Ji Chun , which started appearing in Taiwan in 1980’s. It is said that one farmer near Taipei noticed a tea bush in his garden growing much quicker than others. He planted that particular tea bush more systematically and could harvest leaves from it throughout the year, including during winter time when the bushes are normally dormant. Si Ji Chun has become very popular in Taiwan, as well as other countries, such as Thailand and Vietnam. It favours low altitude conditions but also provides farmers with a consistent crop throughout the whole year. The leaves that ...

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