Behind the brew: Sophia Bird explores Jersey's tea fields
It is not just the green shoots of Jersey royals that are starting to show across our island.
Jersey Fine Tea is beginning the process of picking the leaves and buds of their crop which are dotted around on the slopes of Gorey and Bouley Bay.
Although they are only at the start of the season, I've been allowed a behind the scenes to see the intricate and intensive labour that goes into this unusual crop.
Covering six acres of land in Jersey, the company has one of the largest tea fields in Europe.
The manual process to make the tea begins by taking the buds off the bushes by hand.
After picking the shoots gently, they are withered for up to 24 hours and then depending on the type of tea being produced (black, white or green), further processes follow.
For green tea, the leaves are put in a wok and gently tossed to release oils, before then being hand rolled in a cloth.
The labour intensive work produces a smooth quality of tea, which is taste far different to the dust we find in tea bags.