Whispering Pines Tea Company

Finally reviewing this tea now that I finished it off.
The reviews for this tea are great so I saved it until I had time to really evaluate it. After three different sessions with this tea I found that I was rather disappointed. While this brews a nice cup, the Imperial Gold Bud Dian Hong was absolutely superior and I cannot forget how good it was so now all other golden teas have a higher bar to reach. This isn’t to say that this tea is bad, its just my standard is rather high now.

mmmm thanks for sending this my way kimquat (along with the grasshopper cheesecake and coffee & cigarettes, since i may forget to thank you for adding to my stash of those later.)

This one is not for me. something in the way that this one tastes is too reminescent of roasty oolongs. I went through a few steepings to see if it ever turned into something i’d enjoy and it never quite landed anywhere i was in love with. However, that’s all good, since that’s the point of swaps! not to mention that i likely would have picked this one up myself someday so now i don’t have to! woot woot!

Got this sample from Allan and have finally got to try this tea. It’s been out of stock for ages it seems.

I’ve been lazy lately when it comes to brewing my tea so no gongfu brewing. I just brewed up Western style. When I smelled this from the bag I could smell the cedar. It smelled so good!

It was really delicious brewed up. The floral from the oolong and the vanilla notes seemed to blend together to become a floral vanilla. Heavenly. Then there’s the buttery flavour of the oolong underneath followed by the very light cedar notes. Yep , I love it. Still out of stock I see on the website. I’ll just have to snap some up when it becomes available.

This is the first time that I have ever tried a Whispering Pines sample….I know…I’ve been missing out. Although my tea journey is taking me down a different path (away from blacks) I still want to try the snails and the orchid.

I am not one of those people that can easily pick out/name particular flavours and notes that a tea is giving, but I have found that it is becoming easier. I found with this tea, a few notes were easily noticeable.

First infusion I found strong fruit notes and bread. The floral came out as the cup cooled.

Infusion two I found that salty baguette!!! I am impressed that I found it!! That was followed up strong notes of honey and then floral again as the cup cooled.

It was a nice intro to Whispering Pines, and I have TheLastDodo to thank for the sample…so Thank You!!! :)

Today this is the tea that is being sipped for many hours while I am in my field placement. I’m not sure if this tea is suppose to have a smoked woodsy taste but it does. The dryness of this tea is acceptable because it has notes of wood that accompany it. I would enjoy the notes in this tea much more in something that was milder such as an oolong or green tea (though green tea with woodsy is a tricky combination). Overall it provides nice warm cups of good tasting tea.

So yummy! I cant get enough!

Warm cup of a mild black tea with notes of malt and bread. This is not as strong as the Jabberwocky so I wouldn’t drink it as a morning tea but it is a relaxing cup of tea. I still don’t like black teas but this is quality and I can appreciate that.

I love black teas. This is so original in my book. So crisp and refreshing. It goes down very smooth, almost creamy. Its not overpowering like other black teas, definitely sippable to the last drop!

Love, love, love…
love, love…
love, love…
LOVE!!!!!!

Watching Willow, Sipping Willow :)
anybody remember that movie? nothing to do with the tea really but i thought it would be cool to watch again while sipping this tea And it is, its cool man.

astonishing

Received a hefty sample of this from Dexter… normally I am not a chai person, I rarely crave it. But I was interested in trying this, because I know I love the base tea.

I ended up really impressed, I think this is actually the first chai I would buy! (Except a few fandom blends from Adagio which I surprisingly ended up enjoying)

The natural chocolate notes in the tea really work well with the natural spices used. It just struck me as really fresh and tasty, and pure tasting, if that makes any sense. Nothing fake about this one!

Thank you for sharing, Dexter.

One I never would have ordered, but ended up truly enjoying!

Backlog

I got like a tsp of this tea from Terri, which I’m not sure is the amount you’re supposed to use, but I’d rather have a weak tea than have to pay full price to try it! So works for me!
I tasted a lot of cherry and wood. There were notes of vanilla too. Was not bad. Pretty good actually-I’d totally drink it again.
But it’s not something that I would buy. Which is fine. Happy to sample!

My host family just put Big Hero 6 on last night so I grabbed a bag of tea and brewed it up without thinking about it.
I don’t enjoy black teas but I really didn’t think about what I was brewing (which was some sort of golden fuzz). This is a very smooth tasting tea and I really enjoyed it- enough so that I drank some more this morning. The leaf is very quality; easily identified by looking before and after brewing. I look forward to continuing my experimenting with temperature and grams of tea used as this is wonderful tea.

So my lastest order which included this tea took 18 days to get to me from order to arrival on my doorstep (and shipping was only 5 days of this timeframe!) which seems like a VERY LONG time, I mean, a box from Taiwan which was ordered on the same day as this arrived a week ago and it had a much longer journey to make!! I understand this tea is hand blended in small batches but I’m seriously impatient for tasty tea.

Unsurprisingly the wait was worth it! In the bag, this tea smells and looks like many of the other WP blends and it’s not until you take your first sips that you realize the difference… This has some powerful maple notes! The maltiness is very present as is a touch of cocoa and vanilla and it almost reminds me of Golden Orchid except for that intense woody maple flavor that really hits me front and center. It won’t replace Golden Orchid or Cocoa Amore in my cupboard (two of my favorite teas ever) but it has a welcome place as something I can grab when I feel something comforting but a little different.

Thank you Blodeuyn for this surprise tea present!

This is another win from this company! I open this small package and reveal small delicate ebony shards. These little sticks carry a strong roasted dark cacao scent. I imagine WuYi as a granite rocky cliff with silver and black peaks. This mysterious place is shrouded with mist and overcast causing a gray scale effect. I picture wind blowing massive trees clinging to the rocky cliff faces causing them to sway from side to side like a sailboat caught in a storm. I view the WuYi region like this because their teas are a hurricane of a brew. They consist of dark, mineral, roast, cold, and sharp tones. These teas always have a bold brew that is alike the earths crust. The small black twigs I recieved followed suit, except, they gave me a small surprise. This maroon liquor had a decadent dark chocolate palette. This dessert flavor followed me throughout my steeping. I washed these small leaves once and brewed gong fu. I acquired a deep chocolate tone every steep and the background of black grapes creeped up on me. This is a wonderful tea, and I’m so happy to be able to experience it.

https://instagram.com/p/0vzbPqzGWq/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel

i had this on earlier today. I think it’s a little beyond me. No matter what i seemed to do with it, i just wasn’t feeling it. so the rest is off to terri or cavo…or someone haha.

Another tea from the lovely Dexter! :))))

I had not read anything about this tea, so when I opened the bag and smelled smoke, I was surprised. The dry leaf was very smoky and spicy, and I stood there thinking, “hmmm…not sure I’m going to like this…”…
But then I steeped it… and I’m sitting around a campfire right now, smelling graham, creamy marshmallow, chocolate (yes, I DO smell chocolate), and pine…. and it’s not just a tea, but an experience. I like what this is doing more than if it were just a sweet, s’mores tea…
I needed to be transported, as slushy snow is falling outside and I just want spring….
Sitting around a night fire is much more lovely meditation. :)
Thank you, Dexter!

This is my first Whispering Pines blended tea. It’s a very well balanced blend of two black teas from notable Chinese regions: Fujian Xiao Zhong and Yunnan Dian Hong. Instead of writing a review about my first tasting, I’ve waited until after enjoying all 4 oz. of my initial C.M. order. So this initial review is also a sipdown and is thus based on many cups of this excellent tea.

I brewed it using the following Western brewing parameters:

2g / 3 min / 205F / 8 oz: A little lighter-bodied for my taste.

3g / 3 min / 205F / 8 oz: These parameters are how I brewed the majority of my 4 oz. stash. Amber colored. Definite Chocolate aroma that’s strong enough to be appreciated when standing at the kitchen counter! A smooth medium-bodied (but fuller-bodied than Laoshan Black) blended black tea. Flavor: chocolate, toasted rustic bread, honey, malt. There’s a definite fruity note (apricot?) with a marvelous creamy finish. Near the bottom of the now cooler cup, the malty flavor is a more pronounced and there is a cocoa aftertaste.

5-min. resteep: Still enjoyable but lighter-bodied than the original steep with a similar flavor profile. However, the chocolate is not as pronounced and the creamy finish is diminished. Some of the twice-brewed leaves are now fully open.

8-min. resteep: Light-amber color with minimal aroma. Light-bodied. I let it steep another two minutes.

10-min. resteep: Light to medium-amber with minimal aroma. Light to medium-bodied with a similar flavor profile to the 1st resteep. This cup is enjoyable but definitely not as much as the original steep. The 3x-brewed leaves are now fully open.

3g / 5 min / 205F / 8 oz: More full-bodied and very enjoyable. My cup was empty before I knew it. However, with a 5-min. steep, the malty flavor overwhelms the subtle fruity nuances, thus they’re not as apparent. There is a definite unsweetened cocoa aftertaste.

5-min. resteep: Light-bodied.

10-min. resteep: Light to medium-bodied. With a 5-min first steep, there is not too much left for a resteep.

2.6g (All the N.W. that was left!) / 5 min / 205F / 8 oz: Full-bodied and very enjoyable with a marvelous creamy finish to the sip. None of the flavors were overshadowed by a dominant flavor. My cup was empty before I knew it! I wish I had discovered these parameters sooner. To my taste buds, this is the full-bodied version of 3g / 3 min. There’s a less pronounced unsweetened cocoa aftertaste that persists on the tongue. There was zero bitterness or astringency. The once brewed leaves were now fully open.

I especially enjoy teas with a natural rich chocolate flavor as opposed to natural unsweetened cocoa profile. Given my preferences, my two favorite Western brewing parameters to date were:
- 3g / 3 min / 205F / 8 oz.: Fuller-bodied than 2g and the fruity note (apricot?) was more apparent.
- 2.6g / 5 min / 205F / 8 oz.: Full-bodied with a less obvious cocoa aftertaste.

Impression: An excellent unflavored blended Chinese black tea especially for those who enjoy a wonderful chocolate aroma and flavor with a cocoa aftertaste. And who doesn’t like chocolate? : – ) !

Well done Brenden! Thanks also for your superb customer service!

Method:
RO water re-mineralized with an Aptera filter http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/39532-puregen-aptera-alkamag-water-filter
http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/37731-my-weigh-durascale-d2-660-digital-scale
Brewed western-style conveniently using a digital variable-temp electric kettle in a tempered tea mug with a brew basket:
http://steepster.com/teaware/bonavita/39130-1-liter-variable-temperature-digital-electric-gooseneck-kettle
http://steepster.com/teaware/royal-albert/45581-old-country-roses-afternoontea-mugs
http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/29177-finum-brewing-basket
http://steepster.com/teaware/teavana/39312-perfect-preset-tea-timer

Of course when I’m sick I want to drink all the tea that I can’t even taste. This is my favorite go too. And I’m almost out!

I can’t comment on taste too much. Medicinal but in a comforting way? A bit fruity? I remember having it when not so congested and liking it. It’s defnitly better than the majority of cold/flu type teas on the market. It’s immensely soothing, especially with some honey and I really feel like my breathing is better.

Long steeps are best with this tea. The instructions say 5 for first steep but I go way over that.

The Cookie Lady included a generous sample of this tea in her HUGE swap package last week. I’ve loved the other things I’ve tried from Whispering Pines and I’m a huge Tolkien fan, so I was really excited to sample this one. However, I didn’t love it as much as I was expecting to. It’s certainly a high quality black tea blend with beautiful large twisted leaves and it’s good for multiple re-steeps, but it isn’t my favorite flavor profile for a black tea. I found it to be quite light and fruity with a touch of floral in the aftertaste. I’d certainly drink it again, but I don’t feel like I need this one in my cupboard.