Sri Lanka's Dimbula district sits between two high plateaus in Central Province, and this broken-leaf black tea comes from Campion Estate there, part of the wider Bogawantalawa growing area. Broken Orange Pekoe grading means the leaves have been cut into smaller pieces rather than left whole, and that break is what gives the cup its bolder, stronger pull compared with a whole-leaf Flowery Orange Pekoe from the same district. In the cup it runs coppery and light in colour, medium in strength, with the lemon, orange, honey and milk notes that tend to define a good Dimbula.
Ceylon as a name predates the country's independence — Sri Lanka was known as Ceylon under British rule, and the tea industry kept the term after independence because of how well established it already was internationally. Sri Lanka remains one of the world's largest tea producers, and Dimbula is one of its classic growing regions, prized for producing some of the island's better loose-leaf teas. The valley the district is named for also supports plenty of wildlife, from elephants to sambhur deer.
To brew it, use freshly boiled water and steep for three to five minutes (five minutes gets you the fuller, bolder end of that range). It holds up on its own, but takes milk, sugar, honey or lemon well if you want to soften the edges. Like other black teas it contains caffeine, and has long been drunk partly for that lift.
