Gezruli Tea 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 630–700 m in a century-old mixed forest, the plantation benefits from exceptionally clean air—no pollution within a 20 km 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.
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🍵 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.
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🍃 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 10–15 km brings you to the Katskhi Pillar, a 40 m 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.