Bird’s Eye Tea

The vivid green striations of tea plantations are a common sight in East Asia and, especially, China, where camellia sinensis and its cultivation originated. European taste for tea exploded in the 1700s and whilst war, trade and colonialism ensured supply, tea has always been oriental. The curious exception is Europe’s sole functioning tea plantation, Chá Gorreana, on the Azorean Island of São Miguel. The estate has been running since 1883 and produces organic green and black tea. These two drone photographs show the tea fields from different aerial perspectives.