Batumi – Chaqvi – Anaseuli – Nagomari – Bakhvi – Batumi

Driving along the Black Sea coast to Chaqvi, a settlement where the Georgian tea history practically starts. Visiting to residence of the Lao Zeng Zhao. Lao was a Chinese tea master who created the first tea plantations in Georgia.
You will hear the stories about why, when and how the tea plantations came to Georgia

Continue driving to the tea region Guria. In the 1950s the famous Georgian tea Kolkhida was produced here and exported to the entire Soviet Union.
Visiting to Anaseuli Experimental Tea Factory, the ex-center of tea research and tea produce in all Soviet Union. The tea factory complex covers over 130 hectares and consists of several tea plantations, recreation park and buildings.
In the factory complex, we walk in the tea plantation and learn more about development of the Georgian tea Kolkhida. Furthermore,  on the field we look at the soviet pictures presenting people, machines and working process in this plantation. These pictures will help us to imaginary reconstruct everyday life in the tea plantations in the 1960s.
Next we walk towards the building of the Tea Factory. On the way we pass beautiful dendrological park, mosaics, Library, pension and residences of the factory staff. At the same time, you hear the exciting stories about the soviet students, researchers and various visitors of the factory complex. 
We explore interior of the tea factory. We observe machines processing black, green, white, yellow and red tea. At least, we visit to tea experimental laboratory, where tea qualities are tested.

At noon, drive to village of Nagomari, where we take picnic in the middle of the renewed organic tea plantations. Delicious black and green teas, as well as Homemade confitures, bread, cheese and vegetables are served.
After, we stroll through the tea plantations and take closer look at the tea plants. You get to know about modern methods of tea cultivation, and you learn how to identify and to pick tea leaves of premium quality.

In the evening, visit to a traditional Gurian farm in the village of Bakhvi. The farm presents an organic tea garden, vegetable fields and vineyards. After a guided walk in the farm tea tasting and workshop with local tea master await zou. You will learn more about Georgian tea culture and experience how to brew perfect Georgian black, green and white teas, finally you will taste them.  
As a finish of our impressive day the family welcome us to dinner from Gurian Grandma’s kitchen. The menu includes: Shetutuli Qatami, boiled chicken in an Gurian walnut pesto; Kirkvali Lobio, black bean soup with spiced hazel; Chakindzuli, veal in white spicy wine sauce; Gurian pkhali, chopped and minced spicy vegetables, eaten with Corn bread. For the best digestion we drink fresh picked herbal tea and drive back to Batumi.

Around 9 p.m. we reach our meeting point in Batumi again.

Meal plan: picnic and dinner