Rosyth Estate House – Our Tea Story
Sri Lanka has a unique tropical climate that allows for continual, year-round harvesting of tea. The island features striking microclimates ideal for tea production at every altitude. Tea in Sri Lanka is classified by elevation: low, medium or high grown. Each is distinct, creating remarkable variety for a country which produces predominantly black tea. Rosyth Estate tea is low grown. Pahata Rata “Low Country” are low grown between sea level & 2,000 ft. Teas grown in the plains and foothills of Sri Lanka produce full bodied, colourful and hearty cups of tea, The leaves are often larger, fuller and wirier in appearance. The stronger flavour is particularly popular in the Middle Eastern and Russian markets and is sold at some of the highest prices at auction in Colombo.
For decades our Rosyth Estate single origin tea has been processed at the local factory at the top our hill, which had been in operation since 1930. At 1,000 feet above sea level, our handpicked tea is used to produce orange pekoe in different grades and fannings, with the highest grade referred to as OP. Top quality pekoe grades consist mainly of buds and grading is based on the size of the individual leaves sorted in the finishing process. The size and the wholeness of the leaves has the greatest influence on the taste, clarity, and brewing time of the tea.
At Rosyth Estate House we only serve the finest grade which include young tea leaves and buds. The tea has a rich forest-like scent with a hint of bitterness and a sweet finish. It is best drunk with no additions. 2 tablespoons of Rosyth Estate tea is brewed for 2 minutes to make 2 cups of perfectly brewed tea. If you prefer your tea a little lighter, we suggest adding a title water.
The Rosyth Tea Factory was not owned by the Rosyth Estate House and has been independently operated for generations. Unfortunately, following a tragic fire that took place in April 2022, the majority of the factory was destroy leaving many in the local community without employment.
Rosyth Artisanal Tea – our journey
At Rosyth, we are determined to move away from the traditional methods of producing tea that have remained the same since the colonial era & we have begun our journey to become an organic, artisanal producer of Sri Lankan tea. Removing much of the mechanisation from our processes we have started to produce hand crafted teas. The leaves are carefully crafted, by rolling or pounding on the estate by our local artisans. Our micro factory was constructed in the first quarter of 2023 and we have moved into production in the second quarter of 2023.
This project is wholeheartedly community focused, as we look to improve the economic sustainability of our valley. Each and every person connected to production of our tea is now a partner of ours with a stake in our future success. Our partners will now receive a guarantee of 10% of our estate tea revenues as a dividend payment on top of their wages. In the coming years, we hope our initiative will vastly increase the prosperity of our local community with the skills and investment to help it flourish.
Our process follows the classic steps of tea production but with an all together more personal and hands on approach:
Step one – Plucking: the fresh leaves are plucked by hand by our skilled tea pickers. For our highest quality hand rolled artisanal teas we delicately pick just one leaf and a young bud, carefully separating the slightly larger leaf which is hand processed separately. On arrival in the factory, the leaf is further inspected & any storks removed.
Step two – Withering: the leaves are carefully laid out on withering trays, locally know at “Tats”. Tea leaves, even fresh tender ones are not pliable and would shatter when rolled and shaped. Drying gently on the tats, the leaf is left for up to 20 hours to gently wither, loosing up to 35% of its moisture content. As it withers, the leaf is gently turned to allow an even exposure to the air.
Step three – Hand Rolling: the withered leaves are now gently rolled by hand in wicker baskets by our artisans to gently break the cell structure of the leaf and to release the enzymes & natural oils within the leaf. Natural juices are slowly released, and the leaf becomes slightly stickly went felt. Taking up to two hours to complete care is taken to maintain the structure of the leaf.
Step four – Oxidation: after completing the rolling, the leaf is left for up to two and half hours to allow oxidation to take place. This is the critical part of the process where the air interacts with the now exposed enzymes, heat is produced, and the flavour of the tea fully develops. The leaf turns a reddish-brown colour as the chemical composition changes & the wonderfully complex flavours of our tea develop. The time taken for oxidation varies, depending on a number of factors including the air temperature and the humidity levels, but as the chemical reactions develop and temperatures around 43c are reached, it is time to stop the oxidation and dry the tea.
Step five – Firing: time is now the essence, the tea needs to be dried, the oxidation process stopped, and leaves dried to perfection. In our artisan factory the leaf is spread onto the trays and placed into a drying over at temperatures between 85-110c. Good even drying, with low residual moisture levels, is essential to being able to store the tea, typically reached in one & a half hours.
Step six – Grading and sorting: once dried, the clock stops ticking and we can be more relaxed with final sorting and grading of the tea. Our highest quality OP grades are carefully sorted, before all the teas are packed into airtight foil bags to maintain the optimum freshness. Nothing is wasted, the small leaf particles carefully separated and blended to produce lower grade teas – in large commercial factories this would often end up in tea bags!
We have already received positive feedback on the quality of our artisan tea samples, from tea brokers in Colombo and we plan to make small wholesale shipments during the second half of 2023.
The future of Artisanal Tea at Rosyth
The Rosyth artisan tea project is at an early stage of development, but we believe will be at the heart of helping to sustain the future of the estate and enhance the wellbeing and prosperity of our colleagues who work with us. Traditional methods of tea cultivation and processing, broadly unchanged since the British colonial times, struggle to provide the economic model to allow for investment and development in smaller tea estates. Our vision is to reverse the decline and to improve the outlook for the estate over the coming years.
In addition to the new boutique factory, we are undertaking extensive replanting & infilling of the existing tea fields and plan to add several acres of new fields in the coming years.
We are also working on developing our own packaging and brand for Rosyth teas. Initially for sale within the hotel, we will be exploring opportunities for supplying our teas to specialist outlets outside of Sri Lanka.
Creating your perfect cup of tea
Taste is a very personal thing …… but we suggest for the perfect cup of artisinal tea, you take 2 grams of tea per cup and brew for just two to three minutes with water at 80 degrees celcius. Once brewed strain the tea and serve immediately. Leaving the tea leaves in the pot over-brews the tea, impacting on the delicate taste, aroma and appearance of our fine teas.