My journey across the Georgian tea landscape took me through some of the most beautiful and historic tea-growing regions in the country. One of the highlights of my travel was the visit to the Renegade Tea Estate in the heart of Imereti, a 20-minute drive from Kutaisi. Renegade Tea Estate has become a beacon of hope for the revival of Georgian tea, a tradition that suffered greatly after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Luckily, after visiting the tea gardens on Wednesday, 18th September, I had the opportunity to talk with one of the founders, Hannes.
Here’s my conversation with Hannes where we discussed the challenges of running a tea estate in Georgia, their innovative approach to production, and the future of the Georgian tea industry.
Photo: Hannes Saarpuu, founder of Renegade Tea Estate
Interview with Hannes, Founder of Renegade Tea Estate, Georgia
Lorela: Thank you so much for having me today, at Renegade Tea Estate, Hannes. It’s been an amazing experience visiting the farm, seeing the production firsthand, and especially tasting the incredible teas, which are truly unique to the terroir of the Imereti region. Before we dive into the details, can you give us a bit of background on Renegade Tea Estate? How did it all start?
Hannes: Absolutely. We started this journey seven years ago intending to revive Georgia’s historic tea industry. My partner, Kristiina, and I rented the land with minimal initial investment when we moved from Estonia. What we didn’t fully realize at the time was just how challenging it would be! One of the biggest hurdles was dealing with the wild plants. After decades of neglect, the fields were overrun by ferns, wild blackberries, and other invasive species that crowded out the tea bushes. As we decided to do everything organically, we had to clear the plantations by hand and it took years of hard work until the situation started to gradually improve.
Photo: Kristiina Mehik, founder of Renegade Tea Estate
Lorela: That’s incredible. It sounds like a lot of work! I also noticed that your tea production is unique, from gathering to processing. Could you explain how you manage the production?
Hannes: We divide the tea fields into small plots and gather everything by hand on a rotation schedule. Tea buds grow daily, and timing is essential—if we miss the plucking timing, the leaves can’t be processed in the same way. Our main picking season starts in May and runs until early September when we hire local female workers who have the expertise to gather the tea with precision.
To help sustain the farm, we introduced the adoption of tea bushes and a pre-reservation system. This allows customers to adopt specific rows of tea bushes, supporting the farm directly. In return, they receive tea from their very own bushes. Most of our produce goes to our Renegade community—more than 2,000 families from around the world have adopted tea gardens on our estate. They follow the journey of their tea from cultivation to harvest, and each year they receive their batch of tea. The 2024 harvest is sold out, and we’re already accepting orders for the 2025 harvest!
Photo: One adopted & named tea bush in the tea plantation
Lorela: That’s a fantastic initiative, and it’s wonderful that so many people feel connected to the tea they drink. As someone who has also received tea from you, I can say the care you put into every detail shines through. I love how the packaging includes instructions on how the tea was made. Your experimentation with different varieties is fascinating.
Hannes: Yes, experimentation is at the core of what we do here. Back in 2019, we produced 36 different varieties of tea, experimenting with everything from white to black, green, and oolong. Each year, we fine-tune our processes to see what works best with Georgia’s unique terroir.
Photo: How a tea "plantation" is looking at Renegade Tea Estate
Lorela: During our visit, I had the chance to taste some of your teas, and I was impressed. The Green Velvet and Georgian Breakfast teas stood out to me. Their subtle differences were fascinating.
Photos: Teas brewed during my visit to the Renegade Tea Estate
Hannes: I’m glad you enjoyed them! Green Velvet has a smooth, rich, umami profile, while Georgian Breakfast is more robust, with coffee-like notes. It’s the perfect tea to start your day. Right now, we’re drinking two of our white teas, and it’s always interesting to showcase the nuanced differences between batches—small changes in processing or even weather conditions can create distinct flavours.
The Future of Renegade Tea Estate
Lorela: Let’s talk about this year’s production and what lies ahead for Renegade Tea Estate. What’s on the horizon for 2024 and beyond?
Hannes: In 2024, we’re focusing on the production of Oolong and Green teas. These varieties have gained popularity with our European customers, and we’re excited to continue experimenting. At the same time, quality remains our top priority. We’ve recently gained some larger customers, but the majority of our business still comes from direct sales. About 70% of our orders are from returning customers, which shows the strength of our B2C model.
We’re sticking to this model because we simply don’t have the production capacity to fully supply both B2B and B2C. Maintaining quality requires focus, and we believe our direct customers appreciate the craftsmanship in every batch.
Lorela: That’s a smart approach, especially in a niche market like this. I also heard you’re starting to collaborate with hotels by providing private-label tea bags.
Hannes: Yes! We’ve recently started a partnership with Hotel Maria in Helsinki, where we’re providing compostable tea bags sealed using ultrasound technology. This ensures the bags are sustainable and eco-friendly. We’re also exploring packaging options made from plant-based fibres to make the entire process as environmentally conscious as possible. If we expand production, partnerships like this could allow us to supply hotels without compromising our quality.
Challenges of the Georgian Tea Industry
Lorela: You’ve put a lot of thought into sustainability. How does that tie into your organic certification?
Hannes: We’re organically certified, but maintaining that certification requires some financial investment that can lead the small farms in Georgia to give up and not renew it after a few years. The process of certification costs around 2,000 to 2,500 EUR annually, but we believe it’s essential for upholding our standards and ensuring customers know they’re getting a clean, responsibly produced product. However, this is a challenge for Georgian tea producers, particularly since the majority of tea produced in Georgia isn’t of the same quality.
Lorela: How much tea are you producing now?
Hannes: Currently, we produce around 3,000 kg of tea annually. We’ve considered increasing production, but we’re cautious—we don’t want to lose the personal touch and quality we’re known for. We’re looking into more sustainable methods, like shaded tree planting, to increase productivity slowly without compromising quality.
Lorela: Do you see opportunities for future growth?
Hannes: We’re always exploring new opportunities. Expanding partnerships with hotels could help us scale up, but it’s crucial to find the right partners who align with our values. We also face challenges with consistency—each batch of tea reflects the conditions of the season, so standardization is difficult. We’ve looked into partnering with other producers, but ensuring the same level of care throughout the process is a challenge.
Lorela: Do you collaborate with any other local producers in Georgia?
Hannes: Not many. Green Gold Tea Company in Guria shares a similar philosophy, producing around ten different tea varieties. While we’ve engaged in conversations with other producers and tea associations, these discussions often didn’t result in concrete outcomes for now. For the Georgian tea industry to truly thrive, more collaboration and a sense of cohesion are essential. It’s only through working together that we can make a lasting impact.
Lorela: It sounds like the tea industry in Georgia faces significant challenges. What do you think the future holds for Georgian tea production?
Hannes: It’s a complicated picture. Georgia produces around 2-300 tons of tea annually, but 80% of it is low quality. A few companies, like ours, focus on high-quality, niche markets, but the overall production volume is decreasing. The tea industry here isn’t competitive on the international market due to higher production costs and lower quantity compared to countries like Kenya or Sri Lanka. We believe the future lies in small-batch, high-quality production for niche markets, but it’s a long road ahead.
Conclusion: Reviving Georgian Tea
As I wrapped up my visit to Renegade Tea Estate, the conversation with Hannes underscored the challenges facing Georgia’s tea industry. Once a thriving sector during the Soviet era, Georgia’s tea production collapsed in the 1990s. The focus on quantity over quality, combined with the abandonment of plantations and decaying infrastructure, left the industry in disarray.
Producers like Renegade Tea Estate and others are leading the charge to revive this historic tradition, but their approach is different. With a focus on small-scale, high-quality production, innovation, and sustainability, they aim to redefine Georgian tea for a new generation of tea lovers.
As I continue exploring the tea route in Guria and other regions, I’m excited to witness that some Georgia tea producers are paving the way to high-quality tea in the Georgian tea industry—an industry rich in history, resilience, and potential.
All pictures are credited by Renegade Tea Estate. Some were taken personally by Lorela Lohan.
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