The Rhythm of Nature – A Tribute To The Most Experienced Teamaker 5 Min 12 Sec

This transcript was created automatically from the audio and checked for names. Minor errors may remain.

Welcome to Tea Inspiration. They are the line of three teas that were designed and made as a tribute to none other than to a man who devoted his life to tea. When my father turned 90 on May 6th this year, we presented him these three teas which symbolize his commitment of 70 years in tea. Now that commitment is very special because it echoes something that we are going to do today. It echoes his love for tea to spend a lifetime devoted to this beautiful herb. There has to be something special about his tribute. Now, I have here with me an artist of a slightly different art but still no less echoing nature and he's going to show you a little hint of his art before he shows us much more. Maybe we can get a hint of what we are going to see, Ravi, or you're going to. Yes, okay.

As you have a range of teas here, it's all tea but different teas of different nature. Here is one drum that can produce sounds of different natures. And we are going to see more of that. So hold on to your seats, get ready for an experience that is unique. Ravibandu is an artist that Sri Lanka celebrates. His understanding and his respect for percussion mirrors exactly my father's love for tea. And where two passions meet, you know there's going to be something fantastic. So we have an artist with passion and we are going to challenge him. You know, they say that when you make tea, you have to produce fine tea by using the traditional method. And the traditional method involves taking the leaf, rolling it, and you roll it to bring out the juices. And that's what we're going to do with Ravi.

And this is a challenge that has never been put before to a musician of his calibre and with this Sri Lankan heritage. I'm going to ask you Ravi, or challenge you, to produce a melody that might incorporate all of this. Because when we design these teas for my father, we produce them specially. They were produced in January. We harvested, we produced the teas, and we had on Craighead Estate this celebration Pekoe. It is a spectacular tea and it expresses the lightness of a black tea. So it has that oakiness, it has that beautiful woody character that is appreciated in tea, a very regal tea. And maybe I can offer you this, which is also a black tea and which is our sapphire Pekoe from Endane Estate.

It is a little different. And then finally, also from Emerald Hills, we have this spectacular green tea, Ceylon Green. So you have three very different teas, but all very regal teas. So from on Craighead Estate in Navalapitiya, you have in that valley a particularly unique terroir. And that is what you are seeing here. It's bright, it's soft, it's a little floral. Endane, sandy soils, it's hot, it's short range. And so you have finally that softness of a beautiful loose leaf Ceylon Green tea from Emerald Hills. Now I'm going to ask you to express that in a tribute, which I would like you to present to my father.

I'm going to play a glorious section from Magul Bera, the ceremonial drums, as a tribute to a great son of Sri Lanka.

Magnificent. I couldn't think of a better way of paying tribute to my father's lifetime in tea. Thank you, Ravi. We are honoured. And what a beautiful expression, acoustic expression of the beauty of nature in these teas. Thank you very much, Ravi. Thank you.