Tea Tip from In Pursuit of Tea:

'Ceylon, "the most beautiful island in the world," according to Marco Polo, produces one of the most full-bodied Indian teas. The beginnings of Sri Lankan tea, while often recounted, do not constitute a fable: tea was simply a means of bringing back into cultivation an island devastated in 1869 by hemileia vastatrix, coffee rust. An attempt to diversify, by the addition of a third crop, an intensive agriculture based on coffee and the accompaniment to both drinks, sugar cane. Before his compatriot Lipton, it was the Scotsman James Taylor who, in 1866, was sent to test the possibilities of tea cultivation in Ceylon. This was the first step towards the industrialization of production. The hard facts speak for themselves; 12 kilos in 1872 and 22,900 tons in 1890. The British plantations, first nationalized in 1971 were offered anew to private investors, while Sri Lanka fell from first to eighth as a world producer, and the CTC was considered as a last resort. The violent political clashes that continue to threaten the island result largely, as in Darjeeling and Assam, from the English strategy of moving tribal peoples to obtain skilled workers at lower cost. Ceylon tea, cloned from Assam tea, remains, in its finest vintages – those from the high mountains of Nuwara Eliya – a strong, astringent, highly colored tea, falling perfectly into the British mold as a vehicle for milk and sugar.'

Past Tea Tips:
Tieguanyin Oolong Tea
Why Pair Tea with Food?
Tea Classification
White Teas
Display Teas
For more information on drinks and beverages, read Charmaine Solomon's article on well-known drinks you may encounter in Asian travels or upon inspection of the refrigerator section of your local Asian grocer.