Sri Lanka's tea industry can seem like one vast outdoor factory, with workers toiling endlessly for little money to produce a product that's been stripped of any cachet. That's not the case at the Hundungoda Tea Estate, an exquisite tea plantation in the hills above Koggala, 6km inland via Kathaluwa Rd from the Galle–Matara Rd near the 131km marker.
Here tea isn't a commodity to be off-loaded in bulk to the highest bidder, rather it is a simple indulgence to be savoured. Presiding over this small plantation is Herman Gunaratne, one of the legends of the island's tea industry. On a free one-hour tour you'll sample and learn how they produce over 25 varieties of tea. Of these the most coveted is Virgin White tea, a delicate brew made from the tiniest and newest leaves. Where the average large plantation worker will pick 23kg of black tea in a day, the workers here manage but 150 grams of the virgin white leaves. Be sure to pick up a copy of Gunaratne's autobiography, The Suicide Club: A Virgin Tea Planter's Journey , which is a remarkably entertaining and insightful read about his life, tea and Sri Lanka, from the waning days of the British Raj to today.
