Dealers split over ‘sip, spit tea tasting’ at Mombasa auction

During a National Assembly Committee on Agriculture and Livestock’s visit to the East Africa Tea Trade Association (EATTA), where the auction is conducted, the debate on whether to adopt laboratory tea testing over the physical method emerged, with dealers maintaining that no machine can match the sip-and-spit method.

"During our visit to different tea factories, the issue of how an individual can determine different tea tastes emerged. Why has the industry never adopted any modern technology to replace sip and spitting traditional method?" asked committee chairperson John Mutunga.

Peter Kimanga, a seasoned tea taster, said no machine has ever been invented to match human beings, saying the process involves human senses. According to him, what you see, smell, and taste is done with the consumer in mind.

Mr Kimanga said laboratory tests can only detect certain qualities, but ageing of the tea, harshness, and market targets cannot be felt.

"People ask how few people can taste more than 500 cups of tea and get the right quality? The process resembles that of dog training which can pick narcotics even after sniffing hundreds of bags," said Mr Kimanga.

Read: Why tea traders mull ditching Mombasa as an operations hub

Mr Kimanga said a tea taster always has the target market in mind depending on factors including whether the consumer prefers raw or processed tea, if tea is served in glass, steel, or melamine cups, or if it’s taken with sugar or milk.

EATTA managing director George Omuga said there are a number of aspects determined in tea tasting, including leaf appearance, colour/brightness, briskness, aroma, flavour or strength, and infusion.

"We are asking tea dealers not to politicise tea pricing since there has never been favoritism in tea price tagging and tea prices from the West of Rift Valley compared to that of East of Rift Valley is as a result of climate, soil, and processing of the tea," said Mr Omuga.

On the issue of introducing blind tasting, Mr Omuga said teas being given codes and not the company of origin will disadvantage those with credible histories, as they are always in demand.

Every week at the Mombasa tea tasting offices, about 10 people are lined up days before the auction on Mondays and Tuesdays to determine tea quality using their tongues.

In the process, different tea types and categories are lined up in small cups where a taster sips each brew, gives it a quick swirl around the mouth, and spits into a giant steel spittoon.

John Waki, another taster, said it’s a process he uses to prepare for scheduled weekly tea auctions.

“One has to test all the packages presented prior to auction day to determine the quality of the tea which will ultimately determine the price of the beverage,” said Mr Waki.

In the tongue-tasting procedure, tasters said good tea is bright, each leaf has a different flavour, and a good taster is able to pick the difference between each cup.

The debate on whether the Tea Board of Kenya should establish a tea quality laboratory to serve as a scientific testing centre, replacing the old system as tea volumes increase, has intensified.

“The laboratory will use technology to determine the quality and flavour of tea being sold to end the tiresome process of tongue tea tasting. Numbers of tea volumes are increasing and quality tea determination will have to change with time,” said Agriculture Permanent Secretary Dr Kipronoh Ronoh.

Debate on adoption of a new tea-testing method comes a year after the Mombasa Tea Auction abandoned the decades-old open-outcry system that had seen it rise to the top of the international tea scene, replacing it with an entirely electronic auction in 2013.

The online tea auction is meant to increase efficiency and boost Mombasa’s already high profile in the tea world. But the change swept away decades of tradition, and some fear the city isn’t ready for such a dramatic shift.

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