24/05/2026
When I joined the Tea Industry we were tutored that all sorted leaf should be of the same size. There used to be a lot of chopping and sizing in the factory. The cups never used to stand out.
Now all our prime teas are hand sorted. They are all different sizes as they are from different cultivars and different elevations. Every cultivar has a different leaf size and with the elevation the leaf size keeps getting smaller.
The good part is that their immense improvement in quality and the sad part is that because of difference in leaf sizes means blenders find it difficult to mix the tea.
So the blenders basically buy tea based on size and appearance and a minimum taste profile. Quality of tea is not the only criteria.
