Gunpowder Green Tea Bulk Supply For Uzbekista

     In Uzbekistan, the day starts with a pot of green tea. Not steeped-boiled. The leaves go into a kumgan, the pot sits on the fire, and the pour comes out bright yellow-green. Our tea-called pearl tea in China because the leaves are rolled into tight little pellets-has been the standard here since camel caravans carried it along the Silk Road. It survived the journey then because the dense rolling kept it fresh. It survives now because it stands up to hard boiling and delivers the toasted, mellow cup that Uzbeks expect. Buyers in Tashkent and the Fergana Valley know exactly what they want: uniform pearls, low dust, and a liquor that stays golden after the second and third pour. If the color drops, the tea doesn't sell. That's the bar every supplier has to clear.