Yahaladuwa

Yahaladuwa is a tea estate located in Sri Lanka's Southern Province, at an elevation of 806 metres above sea level. The estate produces black tea and is recorded as a supplier to Finlays, one of the major participants in the global tea supply chain. The operator of the estate has not been publicly documented in available trade records.

Terroir & Climate

At 806 metres, Yahaladuwa occupies the lower end of Sri Lanka's mid-elevation tea-growing band. Estates at this altitude typically experience warmer daytime temperatures and higher humidity than those in the high-grown districts, conditions that generally encourage faster leaf growth and a brisker fermentation during black tea manufacture. The Southern Province, lying outside the island's traditional central highlands, tends to receive a different monsoon pattern, with the southwest monsoon often delivering significant rainfall between May and September.

Mid-grown Ceylon teas from this elevation range are often characterised by a balance between the body found in low-grown leaf and the briskness associated with higher altitudes. The warmer mesoclimate typically supports a year-round growing cycle, though flush quality and character can vary with the intensity of the monsoon rains. Estates in the Southern Province generally produce leaf that processes into a darker liquor than the high-grown districts, with a profile shaped by both elevation and regional weather patterns.

Tea Produced

Yahaladuwa produces black tea. Mid-grown Ceylon blacks from estates at this elevation typically yield a cup with moderate body and a brisk, clean character. Teas from the Southern Province often present a darker infusion and a straightforward flavour profile, less delicate than high-grown teas but with greater strength than low-grown leaf. Such teas are generally well-suited to blending, where consistency of colour and body is valued, though specific cup character will vary with plucking standard, processing method, and seasonal conditions.

Supply Chain & Market Position

Yahaladuwa is recorded as supplying Finlays, a vertically integrated tea business with extensive sourcing, blending, and distribution operations across multiple continents. Finlays sources from a wide network of estates and is known to supply both retail brands and foodservice customers in Europe, North America, and beyond. The presence of Finlays as a buyer suggests that Yahaladuwa's output meets the quality and consistency standards required for inclusion in commercial blends destined for international markets.

• Recorded supplier to  Finlays

Location & Neighbouring Estates

Yahaladuwa lies at 7.1426, 80.6044 in Southern Province, Sri Lanka. Its 806 m elevation is the highest of 134 estates we map in Southern Province. The nearest estates in the TeaTrade directory, measured point-to-point from these coordinates, are:

• Zion Hill — under 1 km away · Central Province
• Dartry — 2.1 km away · Central Province
• Elpitiya Plantations, New Peacock Group — 2.6 km away · Central Province
• Lantern Hill Lotus Valley — 4.4 km away · Central Province
• Orange Field — 4.4 km away · Central Province

Estates at a Similar Altitude to Yahaladuwa

Elevation shapes how slowly leaf matures, so we match Yahaladuwa (806 m) with estates within 150 m of its height that are not its neighbours. Each is shown with its own 2025 climate. Yahaladuwa recorded 2,750 mm in 2025, within 5% of the 2,639 mm average across these estates, so altitude explains most of its rainfall.

Estate	Where	Elevation	Rain 2025	Mean high
Choke Chamroen Tea Co Ltd	Chiang Rai, Thailand	806 m	1,748 mm	26.0 °C
Moongalaar Tea Estate	Periyar, India	804 m	2,600 mm	25.8 °C
Balangoda Plantations, Cecilton	Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka	797 m	3,088 mm	25.7 °C
Wallardie Tea Estate	Vandiperiyar Idukki, India	817 m	2,600 mm	25.1 °C
Shin-Yu-Min Co., Ltd.	Yuchi Township, Taiwan	793 m	3,160 mm	24.1 °C

Yahaladuwa Compared with Southern Province

In Southern Province, Yahaladuwa is drier than 65% of the others by 2025 rainfall; the highest of the 134 estates by elevation; the coolest of the 134 estates by daytime temperature. The table sets Yahaladuwa against the 133 other estates we map in Southern Province, so you can see whether it is typical for its region or an outlier.

Measure	Yahaladuwa	Region median	Region range
Elevation	806 m	46 m	6 to 507 m
Annual rainfall (2025)	2,750 mm	3,022 mm	2,210 to 3,589 mm
Mean daily high	25.9 °C	29.8 °C	26.9 to 30.5 °C
Mean overnight low	18.2 °C	22.6 °C	20.7 to 24.1 °C

Observed Climate at Yahaladuwa (2025)

ERA5 reanalysis data modelled for Yahaladuwa’s coordinates recorded 2,750 mm of precipitation across calendar year 2025. The wettest month was November (859 mm) and the driest was February (9 mm). Daytime highs averaged 25.9 °C and overnight lows 18.2 °C over the year; May was the warmest month and February the coolest.

Metric	2025 value
Annual precipitation	2,750 mm
Wettest month	November (859 mm)
Driest month	February (9 mm)
Mean daily high	25.9 °C
Mean overnight low	18.2 °C

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Yahaladuwa located?

Yahaladuwa is in Southern Province, Sri Lanka, at coordinates 7.1426, 80.6044, at an elevation of about 806 metres.

What type of tea does Yahaladuwa produce?

Yahaladuwa is recorded as producing black tea.

Which buyers does Yahaladuwa supply?

Public supplier disclosures record Yahaladuwa as supplying Finlays.

How much rain does Yahaladuwa receive?

ERA5 reanalysis data for the estate's coordinates recorded 2,750 mm of precipitation in 2025, peaking in November (859 mm).

How does Yahaladuwa compare with estates at a similar elevation?

Estates at a similar elevation recorded about 2,639 mm of rain in 2025, close to the 2,750 mm at Yahaladuwa.

Data sources: public supply-chain disclosures (Ethical Tea Partnership member lists, Rainforest Alliance certificate holders and retailer supplier disclosures); climate figures are ERA5 reanalysis modelled for the estate’s coordinates via Open-Meteo (calendar year 2025); coordinates and elevations from geocoded records. Spotted an error? Email [email protected].