Description

GezruliTea in Gezruli village near Chiatura in Georgia's Imereti region is an organic, family-run tea estate founded around 2016–2018 by Tournike (“Toko”) Shekiladze. Situated at an elevation of about 630–700m in a century-old mixed forest, the plantation benefits from exceptionally clean air—no pollution within a 20km radius—creating ideal conditions for cultivating high-quality wild and plantation teas.

 

Educational trips to China in 2018–and winning first prize at a Yunnan Tea University competition—have helped refine his production techniques and enhance Gezruli’s offerings . Here you will taste black tea, cultivated white, green, and black teas, and a caffeine‑free blueberry‑leaf tisane sourced from native Vaccinium arctostaphylos. The estate comprises around 7 hectares of rehabilitated plots and an additional forest area where wild tea bushes grow, and employs up to 15 seasonal pickers.

 

Toko has expanded the venture beyond tea production by opening a guesthouse and offering immersive tea‑tourism experiences. Visitors can explore the tea fields, pick leaves, participate in masterclasses, enjoy traditional Imeretian meals and tea ceremonies, stay overnight, and even take a “tea bath.” Additional activities include mushroom foraging, forest hikes with waterfall views, karst‑cave adventures, and wine tastings (Tsitska, Kakhetian Green, and Saperavi) in a traditional cellar with centuries‑old qvevri.

 

🌱 What the Tour Includes:

 

🍵 Tea Garden Walk: The tour typically starts with a stroll through the organic tea garden, where visitors learn about local tea cultivation, the varieties grown here (including green, white, black, and wild blueberry teas), and what makes the Imeretian mountain climate so special for tea production.

 

🌿 Hands-On Tea Picking & Processing Masterclasses: Participants often get to pick tea leaves themselves and take part in masterclasses that explain the traditional and modern techniques used to turn fresh leaves into finished tea — covering black, green, white, and even wild forest teas.

Booking.com

 

🍵 Tea Ceremony & Tasting: After learning about the process, visitors sit down for a tea ceremony and tasting session, sampling several of Gezruli’s handcrafted teas and experiencing their distinct aromas and flavors right where they’re made.

 

📖 Tea History & Culture: Guides provide background on the history of Georgian tea, how tea culture developed in Georgia, and the estate’s own story of revival and sustainable organic farming.

Places Georgia Travel

 

🍃 Why Visit - The Gezruli tea tour offers a deep dive into Georgian tea culture away from larger tourist hubs. Its setting amid forests and highlands makes it ideal for nature lovers, tea enthusiasts, and anyone curious about sustainable organic farming. You’ll leave not just with a better appreciation for Georgian tea, but also with vivid memories of mountain landscapes and authentic local hospitality.

 

🏡 Beyond the Tea Tour - At Eco-friendly Guesthouse Tea Gezruli, which operates alongside the tea estate, visitors can often stay in rustic, nature-immersed accommodations and join in other activities such as: Forest walks and mushroom foraging with guides — the surrounding century-old mixed forest is rich in wild mushrooms; Ethnographic wine tastings, tasting local wines, honey, and even tea-infused chacha; Gastronomy tours and traditional cooking experiences, using produce harvested right on site.

 

Recommendation: A short journey of around 10–15km brings you to the Katskhi Pillar, a 40m natural limestone monolith hosting the medieval Katskhi Monastery atop its summit, home to a solitary monk. As you wander, hidden gems emerge: the railway depot where ageing locomotives shuffle manganese wagons by the Qvirila River, a football stadium scarred by earthquakes yet still in use, and an old swimming pool with Soviet‑era mosaics depicting mythical Jason and the Argonauts. Don’t miss the Chiatura Mining Museum in a reclaimed mine building, where dusty machinery and interactive exhibits tell the story of the valley’s manganese-rich roots.

 

Temple architecture continues with the Darkveti Church of St George on a mountaintop above Mghvimevi, a single-nave 10th–11th-century basilica with carved masonry that marks medieval Georgian sacred design. For those drawn to nature, a brief drive west brings you to Karst regions like Sataplia, with its dinosaur footprints and caves, but that’s venturing a bit further out.

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  • Gezruli Tea Company

Gezruli tea cultural tour

    Gezruli Tea in Gezruli village near Chiatura in Georgia's Imereti region is an organic, family-run tea estate founded around 2016–2018 by...

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      Description

      GezruliTea in Gezruli village near Chiatura in Georgia's Imereti region is an organic, family-run tea estate founded around 2016–2018 by Tournike (“Toko”) Shekiladze. Situated at an elevation of about 630–700m in a century-old mixed forest, the plantation benefits from exceptionally clean air—no pollution within a 20km radius—creating ideal conditions for cultivating high-quality wild and plantation teas.

       

      Educational trips to China in 2018–and winning first prize at a Yunnan Tea University competition—have helped refine his production techniques and enhance Gezruli’s offerings . Here you will taste black tea, cultivated white, green, and black teas, and a caffeine‑free blueberry‑leaf tisane sourced from native Vaccinium arctostaphylos. The estate comprises around 7 hectares of rehabilitated plots and an additional forest area where wild tea bushes grow, and employs up to 15 seasonal pickers.

       

      Toko has expanded the venture beyond tea production by opening a guesthouse and offering immersive tea‑tourism experiences. Visitors can explore the tea fields, pick leaves, participate in masterclasses, enjoy traditional Imeretian meals and tea ceremonies, stay overnight, and even take a “tea bath.” Additional activities include mushroom foraging, forest hikes with waterfall views, karst‑cave adventures, and wine tastings (Tsitska, Kakhetian Green, and Saperavi) in a traditional cellar with centuries‑old qvevri.

       

      🌱 What the Tour Includes:

       

      🍵 Tea Garden Walk: The tour typically starts with a stroll through the organic tea garden, where visitors learn about local tea cultivation, the varieties grown here (including green, white, black, and wild blueberry teas), and what makes the Imeretian mountain climate so special for tea production.

       

      🌿 Hands-On Tea Picking & Processing Masterclasses: Participants often get to pick tea leaves themselves and take part in masterclasses that explain the traditional and modern techniques used to turn fresh leaves into finished tea — covering black, green, white, and even wild forest teas.

      Booking.com

       

      🍵 Tea Ceremony & Tasting: After learning about the process, visitors sit down for a tea ceremony and tasting session, sampling several of Gezruli’s handcrafted teas and experiencing their distinct aromas and flavors right where they’re made.

       

      📖 Tea History & Culture: Guides provide background on the history of Georgian tea, how tea culture developed in Georgia, and the estate’s own story of revival and sustainable organic farming.

      Places Georgia Travel

       

      🍃 Why Visit - The Gezruli tea tour offers a deep dive into Georgian tea culture away from larger tourist hubs. Its setting amid forests and highlands makes it ideal for nature lovers, tea enthusiasts, and anyone curious about sustainable organic farming. You’ll leave not just with a better appreciation for Georgian tea, but also with vivid memories of mountain landscapes and authentic local hospitality.

       

      🏡 Beyond the Tea Tour - At Eco-friendly Guesthouse Tea Gezruli, which operates alongside the tea estate, visitors can often stay in rustic, nature-immersed accommodations and join in other activities such as: Forest walks and mushroom foraging with guides — the surrounding century-old mixed forest is rich in wild mushrooms; Ethnographic wine tastings, tasting local wines, honey, and even tea-infused chacha; Gastronomy tours and traditional cooking experiences, using produce harvested right on site.

       

      Recommendation: A short journey of around 10–15km brings you to the Katskhi Pillar, a 40m natural limestone monolith hosting the medieval Katskhi Monastery atop its summit, home to a solitary monk. As you wander, hidden gems emerge: the railway depot where ageing locomotives shuffle manganese wagons by the Qvirila River, a football stadium scarred by earthquakes yet still in use, and an old swimming pool with Soviet‑era mosaics depicting mythical Jason and the Argonauts. Don’t miss the Chiatura Mining Museum in a reclaimed mine building, where dusty machinery and interactive exhibits tell the story of the valley’s manganese-rich roots.

       

      Temple architecture continues with the Darkveti Church of St George on a mountaintop above Mghvimevi, a single-nave 10th–11th-century basilica with carved masonry that marks medieval Georgian sacred design. For those drawn to nature, a brief drive west brings you to Karst regions like Sataplia, with its dinosaur footprints and caves, but that’s venturing a bit further out.

      Additional information about product and company

      General overview of our tea cultural route

      The term European Cultural Route refers to a project that crosses one or more countries or regions organized around a community whose historical, artistic or social interests are clearly European. Our tea cultural route covers all Georgian tea regions: Guria, Samegrelo, Imereti regions, Adjara and Tbilisi. The route tells the history of the development of tea culture in Georgia and its importance in both local and international markets.

      The participants of the route are: Georgian bio tea companies, associations, tea houses, museums, cafe-bars and so on that will tell their stories and offer a variety of services to the visitors: tasting of several types of tea, historical excursion, getting acquainted with the picking, processing process and so on.

      Requirements for beneficiaries: First of all, they must have a story that sets them apart from others (Make your story, sell your story), "Farm to table" concept, interested persons will be able to visit tea companies and taste on the spot, with the help of our web-site. They also need to implement appropriate standards, take asocial responsibility, have a adequate infrastructure for visitors and so on.

      Information about company, address and contact

      Gezruli Tea is a small organic tea producer based in the Georgian village of Gezruli in the Imereti region. Established in 2018, the company revived old tea plantations that had grown wild for decades and turned them into a sustainable source of high-quality teas. Working in a clean, forested environment at high altitude, Gezruli specializes in hand-picked white, green, and black teas, along with wild forest varieties and local herbal blends.

      Its focus is on artisanal production, preserving the natural character of the leaves, and maintaining organic certification. Beyond production, the company also promotes tea culture through tourism, offering guest stays, plantation tours, and masterclasses. Though still modest in scale, Gezruli has begun exporting to European markets, positioning itself as a boutique brand that highlights both the heritage and unique flavor of Georgian tea.

      Address of Gezruli tea - Village Gezruli, Chiatura Municipality, Imereti, Georgia

      Location link on Google map - https://maps.app.goo.gl/TPEcCxEHx7YhyRYN6

      Mobile phone +995 551 23 37 23

      Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/TeaGezruli/?locale=ka_GE

      Email - torshekiladze@gmail.com

      Whats app number +995 551 23 37 23

      We invite you to visit Gezruli Tea, a place where Georgian tradition and nature come together to create truly unique teas. Nestled in the green hills of Imereti, our estate offers more than just tea—it offers an experience. Guests can walk through our organic plantations, join in harvesting leaves, and discover the art of tea making during guided tours, masterclasses, and ceremonies. The peaceful surroundings and our welcoming guesthouse make it the perfect escape for anyone who loves nature, culture, and of course, tea.

      Along with your visit, we welcome you to take the taste of Gezruli home. Our carefully hand-crafted white, green, black, and wild forest teas reflect the purity of the land and the care we put into every step of production. By buying Gezruli Tea, you support sustainable farming and enjoy flavors that cannot be found anywhere else. Come share a cup with us in Gezruli and let our tea become part of your story.

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