Uva
Uva is Sri Lanka’s most remote province. Access to its provincial capital Badulla is over steep winding mountainous routes. The hills and winds of Uva impart a special unmistakable character and flavor to the tea that grows there, one that is highly-prized by trader and connoisseur alike.
The uniqueness of Uva tea is recognized all over the world and it was with this tea that the great Victorian magnate Sir Thomas Lipton persuaded Americans to take up tea drinking. Experts credit this unique character to the Uva climate which is exposed to both northeast and southwest monsoon system winds. The weather is relatively dry during the ‘quality season’and yet the climatic balance in each slope is governed by orientation and exposure; deep passes or gaps funnel the monsoon through.
Estates in the Uva region, mainly in the Idalgashinna area, also produce a substantial amount of green tea from Assamese stock.