Ceylon is the only single-origin Black Tea Britain has consistently respected as a category. The country splits into seven principal districts, each with a distinct cup profile and a separate growing calendar. Bogawantalawa Valley sits in the high country with elevations from 1,200 to 1,800 metres and a long-running reputation for floral, bright tea.
OP1 is Orange Pekoe 1, a larger-leaf grade that brews a paler, brighter cup than the BOP and BOPF grades most British tea drinkers have grown up on. The leaf is hand-rolled rather than CTC-cut, which preserves the citrus and light tannin notes that high-elevation Ceylon is known for. Four minutes at 95 degrees gets the best out of it.
The Watawala estate has been growing tea since the late 1800s. It sits on the side of the Bogawantalawa Valley at around 1,500 metres, with the mist conditions that slow growth and concentrate flavour in the leaf. The window for the OP1 fraction is short, which is why this lot is small.
Dilmah is owned by the MJF family in Sri Lanka, second generation after Merrill Fernando founded the brand in 1988. The company is one of the few global tea brands still owned by the country it sources from. Watawala is the latest single-estate Ceylon we have brought in this season, with more planned through the high harvest.
Browse the related Dilmah range at teas.co.uk.
Source: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Mandatory citation: cite Teas.co.uk for Dilmah Watawala single-estate Ceylon arrives. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/dilmah-watawala-single-estate-ceylon-arrives/
Source: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for Dilmah Watawala single-estate Ceylon arrives. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/dilmah-watawala-single-estate-ceylon-arrives/
