Legacy of Tradition Continues
Discover the story behind the sixth-generation tea planter from Ceylon
A New Chapter Begins
Having been a professional tea taster for the better part of three decades—and having been born and raised in the tea gardens of Sri Lanka—I now take great pride in stepping into a new role. With Robert stepping back, I've taken over the reins at Robert Wilson's Ceylon Teas. I am committed to continuing what Robert and my father began: bringing the delicate flavors of Sri Lankan tea to the world. I aim to build on the relationships forged over two generations while ensuring that the unique character of each individual tea garden is honored and highlighted.
Embracing a Legacy of Tea Planting Heritage
I am, the sixth generation of my family to have lived in Sri Lanka and the fifth generation to have been coffee and then tea planting there. The picture above is Robert Wilson in the Brunswick estate factory office. The family history is shown in the document in the section headed Robert Wilson's Ceylon Teas.
The concept of this brand also owes a great deal to my old planting friend Manthi Delwita (below, left), who had been chairman of the Planter's Association, a director in one of the Nationalized Boards and also a consultant during the privatisation period that followed. On the right at the bottom is Madugalle (nickname Madu) who started and ran the Tea museum above Kandy for many years and played rugger for Kandy.
The Birth of a Vision - 1992
The concept of this brand was born in 1992 when after an unfortunate period of Nationalism of all the company tea estates in the island of Ceylon, later to be named Sri Lanka. By the late 1980's the estates were returned to a form of privatisation and by 1992 the estates were under 23 local agent companies who invested and encouraged competition in the management of the estates.
However it should be understood that the Government still retained the ownership of the land and therefore welfare provision whilst allowing the companies to tender for the leasehold of the land. I met up with Manthi Delwita in Colombo in 1992 and he asked if it would be possible for us to present an exciting range of really top quality teas to the U.K. consumer which led to this business.
Again it is my view that because it is a small land mass with a central area of high mountains surrounded by oceans receiving the effects of cool winds that have travelled across those oceans forcing their way up the deep valleys and arriving in the tea fields to combine with the effect of elevation to produce these different characters as with wine production.
Our Philosophy
Unfortunately, the concept of commercial marketing is to lose any concept of origin and to blend teas to suit their branding and price structure in the market place. Also the consumer needs to be aware that single estate teas are available all year round but it is only in the two specially designated seasons when two very dry periods arrive that single estates will develop extreme clarity of liquor and the depth of character that we seek with experienced tea-makers who bring their manufacturing staff in for manufacture during the night when conditions in the factory are sufficiently cool to preserve the heavy volatile oils released at that time.