Whispering Pines Tea Company

Well this is a box I haven’t typed in in a while. :)

You know you have been away from Steepster for a while when you come back with all of your teas and find that half of them aren’t available. Though it might be a temporary thing in this tea’s case since Whispering Pines is on vacation at the moment.

Anyway, I haven’t had a lot of hot tea in months since a.) summer, and b.) my tea was kind of haphazardly packed away in a moving box that I kept with me but didn’t want to take the time or effort to rummage through (more on that, below).

But when I pulled this out of the box yesterday night I knew it would be the first thing I had this morning. This is the definition of a black tea to me. It is so complex and mercurial. It seems to change flavor profiles on a whim, but as all of it’s parts are delicious each cup is an adventure. So I was greeted this morning with malted sweetness, fresh baked honey wheat bread, and some slight raisin undertones as it cools down.

It’s taken a while, and it’s been a long road to get here, but this was the most perfect cup to finally make me feel like I’ve come home.

The last time I updated here I was 3 time zones and 2,500 miles away. I moved from Georgia to Oregon because I felt like I was becoming too complacent and spent the first few months in furnished housing because the rental market is TIGHT out here. But as of a few days ago we settled in a place we can finally call ours, with all of our own furniture and clothes and everything.

Last night was the first time I felt like I could spread out all of my teas in a cabinet because I was finally settled. Since May they’d all been in one box that was quite large and deep and very precariously packed, so I didn’t want to unpack it only to have everything not fit again. But I’m here now, and OMG if we move again we are getting movers because I am so tired of moving mattresses and TVs!

In short, Oregon is lovely, fall is here and I will hopefully be back posting tasting notes with regularity. Fingers crossed!

I had some of my fresh baked bread toasted with honey for breakfast this morning. The last time I had this tea, those were the flavors I picked out the most strongly so of course I had to pair this tea with the meal to see how it stacked up.

Well, with the addition of cocoa powder to a honey wheat loaf, yes, this is the same tea I had before, but I also know it’s not QUITE the same, as it is a chameleon tea and mercurial by its very nature. Fabulously rich, sweet, and complex. This is a definite restock, as it’s probably my favorite higher end black tea.

SO. GOOD.

Okay, what tea is this? I ask because I need ALL OF IT.

The dry leaf smell on this is pleasant enough, that earthy malt typical of a good black tea. But once it is steeped, it just turns AMAZING. Honey and baked bread, turning into an agave/raisin as it cools. There is so much going on. I gave the boyfriend this tea to take a sip and watched as he took a drink, paused, and pulled the cup back toward himself. “Wait…” he said.

Chameleon teas are the best. I really do need to know what specific varietal this is (maybe the Tan Yang that Angrboda loves so dearly?) because I’ve decided it’s my favorite black tea.

Yeah, unapologetic 100 here. This absolutely deserves it.

Happy almost new year, steepster!

This is actually a backlog entry from a few days ago – I had family in town so never really got around to making a note, but I do have a few impressions that stuck with me so I wanted to jot them down.

This was not as complex as the Jabberwocky, which I had a day or so before. I liked this but I just basically got the notes of raisin and a chewy, malty texture. I suppose there was a cocoa undertone but it was really faint. I think this is the tea that the Golden Orchid is based off of, right? I wasn’t overly enamored with that one either, so maybe this isn’t that surprising…

Not bad, obviously, but just not the ‘wow’ I was expecting. Maybe it will grow on me?

I purchased this as part of a box full of samples and such here on steepster within the year, though I do not remember when. I admit when I saw there were full on peppercorns in here I got nervous. I like spicy, but even I have my limits.

Luckily, it is actually super smooth. It offers a bit of a warmth and smokey flavor, which could also be from age. I’ve kept it in a cool, dark tin since receiving it but I really don’t know how it was stored previously. I don’t mind though, this is good.

Mastress Alita’s sipdown challenge – April Tea #2 :A tea paired to a book

additional notes: What a fitting prompt to finish this one with.  Speaking of Jabberwocky, I am a fan of most of Terry Gilliam’s movies!  Though I admit I might have been half asleep while I watched Jabberwocky.  Anyway, this was a solid tea until the end.  Still lucky I was able to grab it from a teabox.  It tastes like Keemun mixed with a Fujian black, maybe with a hint of Yunnan.  BUT the description says: Fujian Black Tea, Ailaoshan Black Tea, Wild Arbor Yunnan Black Tea, so I guess I’m a little right.  I could swear it is mostly Keemun though.  Otherwise, it’s smooth yet strong and never gets bitey… even though I steeped the third cup for seven minutes.  And that is with a LOT of leaf.  I think it also gave me a ton of Jabberwocky worthy energy.   I’m sad I won’t have this around in the tea museum but it was time to finish it.
2022 sipdowns: 47

Drinking the Jabberwocky all day. It sure does seem like a Fujian tea to me today. Hope all you Steepsterers are doing well! (I’m never caught up on tasting notes so…)

Additional notes: I tried this one with three teaspoons at the suggestion of WP – it didn’t seem to change the flavor profile at all, just made it stronger flavored – more chocolate, more caramel. HOWEVER, this one does not get bitter or astringent even with a ten minute steep. The steeps end up being very flavorful for three steeps if I can get it right, but it’s hard to ruin this one and you definitely end up with some flavor. Note to self though: I think two teaspoons is good for this one in the future, after trying with 1 1/2 tsps. and 3 tsps. Like I said though, this is a nice Jabberwocky — it’s tough to make it mad (ruin). Raising the rating from an 86 for the consistency in the flavor and the resteepablity.
Steep #1 // few min after boiling // 3-4 min steep
Steep #2 // couple min a.b. // 5-7 min
Steep #3 // just boiled // 10 min

This is from the Lewis & Clark teabox a while back. Why… this is too light and sweet to be The Jabberwocky! This is a mix of three black teas: I’ve tried the Ailaoshan on its own a while back and I know I have a little bit of the Fujian around (not tried yet). The Wild Arbor Yunnan sounds nice. Primarily the flavor reminds me of a lighter, sweeter Laoshan, but somehow I think I like it better than Laoshan (though the flavor in general I’m beginning to like more and more.) I can’t really pinpoint what the other teas would taste like without the Fujian, though if they are all Chinese black teas, they probably have a similar flavor profile anyway. Somehow I was able to make all three steeps fairly similar – such a light cup but very smooth and caramel delicious. I’ll try the Fujian alone soon. Again, doesn’t bring to mind the Jabberwocky but I love the name!
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 tsp // 10 min after boiling // 3 min steep
Steep #2 // 7 min after boiling // 4-5 min
Steep #3 // just boiled // 7 min

I haven’t yet reviewed this, though I’ve had it a couple of times. It is a really great tea. For a tea only flavored with vanilla beans, it tastes remarkably like cherry, almond, vanilla and cocoa. I like it without any additions, as it is quite rich. Reminds me of a European pastry! Yesterday, I shared a pot with my mom and little bro. They both liked it, as expected, and my bro said he liked it because it was subtle-ly flavored! Quite the palate on that one!

I’ve loved the concept of this tea since the first time I set eyes on it. I guess that’s no surprise… I’ve felt like a kid staring into a toy shop and Second Breakfast was that special toy that I wanted for Christmas, but I never actually bought it for myself. Shame on me. But luckily I received several samples of Whispering Pines tea from the best people ever, and I got this tea. I was super excited. Best. Day. Ever. So, I actually waited to try this. I drank it Christmas Day. Happy Christmas to me.

This is another Chinese Black tea. I don’t know much about them, but I have noticed that there is a huge difference between Chinese teas and the traditional Indian teas that we drink every day. Something almost mysterious that I can’t ever describe. But anyway, I would say this was similar to the Mountain Nectar that I tried previously, yet milder. I don’t know if I used enough tea, but I steeped it twice. It’s very mild and not very bitter – but I might need to drink some more, because it hasn’t left much of an impression on me… I was very distracted yesterday, though. That might have been the problem. I could… drink the last of the sample that NayLinn sent me… I do think my favorite so far out of the three teas that I’ve tried is the Jabberwocky. That kind of surprised me.

It takes me back to that primary school apple experiment where we stated which of the three generic apples were our favorite than picked after a blind taste test. Just so you know, I knew exactly which apple was my favorite. Granny Smith outshines Golden and Red every time for it’s tart flesh and tangy skin. Red always has a bitter skin and Golden Delicious is more like overly sweet wood pulp. Sorry, that was quite a tangent… But the point was that I was certain that Second Breakfast would be my favorite, and it wasn’t. It was the Jabberwocky tea! So I’ll have to buy this one too.

P.S. I drink Whispering Pines tea now. Whispering Pines tea is cool.
P. P. S. Even though I think fandom teas at Adagio are super cool, I could never see Second Breakfast as anything other than a Whispering Pines tea. Second Breakfast and Whispering Pines is my OTP (Original Tea Pairing). I need to stop.

I’ve become a little too lackadaisical in my tea preparation lately, so I went back to basics with this one. I carefully measured the amount of tea leaves, double checked that the water temperature was correct, and set a timer. Most importantly I watched the timer rather than waking away and forgetting it for 10 minutes.

Lo and behold, I was gifted an ever so lovely cup of tea for my efforts. Really, this tea is dang tasty. Lots of fruit, honey, and chocolate flavors that blend nicely into each other.

So, it turns out that following the directions can be a good thing. Go figure. But the resteep.. all bets are off there, and I can play forgetful mad scientist again. :)

Tea of the morning. I have really been enjoying this tea lately. In fact, I’ve been enjoying it so much that my bag is almost empty. There are notes of chocolate, stone fruit, bread, caramel, and honey. There’s a light floral note as well that becomes more apparent as the tea cools. Really, really nice for a Saturday when it’s after noon and I’m still in my pj’s. :)

This is a very nice breakfast tea. There is a strong crusty bread note that is so good. I can also taste chocolate, and, although I expected it to be stronger, I’m glad it’s not the dominating note because it seems more breakfast-y to me this way. There’s also notes of stone fruit and honey as well as a light floral note at the end of the sip. I was on the fence before about whether there was a dried or stone fruit note.Today it’s stone fruit… something between apricot and cherry. It’s a juicy, fresh taste that weaves around the honey and floral flavors. It all blends together into a lovely medium bodied tea that is nice to wake up to (even if it is a Monday).

Oh, this taste like bread… good, baked, crusty bread. Nice. There is also a fruity note, but I can’t decide if it’s stone fruit or dried fruit. The fruit flavor can be strong at times which pairs well with the bready flavor. The end of the sip is slightly floral with a honey like sweetness.

I’m really glad I added this to my cart with my last WP order. This is all kinds of tasty.

This was just odd. There were nice fruity notes but then a smoke smell to it that killed it for me. This was woody and dusty, which I usually like, but then that smoke… not so much a smoke taste as a smoke smell. As it cooled I also picked up what I think were spice notes. Thanks for the sample, Ost!

This is a very nicely balanced tea and so very different from the Wuyi Mountain version from Verdant. These leaves, which are a lovely mosaic of dark and green, smell somewhat of toasted marshmallows. The first steep is candy sweet (not honey sweet) and a bit dry, the second steep brings in some grassiness and something woody going on underneath. That wet wood is more pronounced in the third steep, but altogether, it’s even sweeter. It was about tapped out after five steeps, but I’ll try it again with slightly hotter water for later steeps. Definitely a keeper.

A smooth chocolatey mouthfeel with strong notes of cocoa and hints of vanilla interwoven throughout from start to finish – for anyone searching for a premium flavoured black tea :)

I received this tea as a sample from Ost. It’s a good black tea, though now that I’ve found out that it is discontinued, it makes me a bit sad. For a plain black tea, I do think I prefer Whispering Pines’ Jabberwocky, just because it seems to have more flavor. This tea smells sweet – like raisins and spices – but when I brewed it, the sweetness of the dry tea didn’t transfer. It smells a bit smoky, but not overwhelmingly so. It’s more mild than I would like, but still enjoyable.

Awesome!

Just finished my sample of this one today. It’s been remarkable and consistently enjoyable from start to finish. The smooth blend of jasmine and pine notes inspires a feeling of tranquility, and a warm cup of this isn’t too much on a hot day—it even seems cooling and refreshing. Thanks again to beelicious for the sample!

Thanks to beelicious for the wonderful gift of this sample and many others!

This is a fantastic green blend. Visually, it’s an interesting blend of pine needles and tea leaves. The leaves are so dark that it’s hard to believe they are green tea, particularly next to the contrast of the pine needles. The aroma is light and refreshing, a mix of floral and pine. The brewed tea is, first and foremost, an excellent jasmine green. It’s delicate and lightly sweet, with a fruitiness in the background, and a touch more of that refreshing quality imparted by the pine needles. There’s no vegetal quality, nothing too heavy, nor is the pine too strong. It really does remind me of the fresh air out in a forest. I don’t often get excited about green teas (they’re usually in the range of “okay” to “pretty good”), but this one is well worth trying!

Edit: I wasn’t sure what other reviewers meant by “buttery” at first, but on the second infusion, there is definitely a smooth, buttery note. The tea remains light and almost airy in spite of this!

Super long digression ahead – sorry in advance!

What a WEEK, you guys.

Since the boyfriend and I want to move out Oregon way we took a week and flew from ATL to Portland, and explored everything. I mean, EVERYTHING. We did the Columbia River Gorge, drove to Salem/Eugene/Corvallis and out to Newport to see the coast. It is so beautiful, and I do feel good about the move we’ll make soon.

While we were out there (we went in January on purpose, btw, since we needed to gauge what the peak of winter was like) on the cold rainy days we had a lot of bagged Bigelow teas, which I really enjoyed just because it was serious tea drinking weather. But now I’m back with MY teas, and even though its not too cold or rainy here, I wanted something warm and cosy to drink.

And I’m trying really hard not to think about how awesome it would be to have one of these snazzy mugs (http://www.madeinoregon.com/Mystic-Water-Right-Handed-Hand-Warmer-Mug.html) to drink said tea out of. I have enough mugs, self. REALLY. I do.

Okay, tea review time

Last time I had this the scent was kind of a fake vanilla. And it did the same thing this time – it was so very vanilla that it turned into chocolate scent wise. While I love vanilla very much and in teas think it is generally awesome, I do not feel the same way about chocolate. So, this could be why last time it didn’t seem to leave much of an impression.

The first sip of this is quite good: malty black tea with a buttery vanilla finish. No chocolate notes, yay! Maybe the vanilla addition needed to settle for a week or two?

Yes, overall this cup is much better than the first one. I’ll bump up the rating on it and then its off to read some Milan Kundera before hitting the sack. It’s so nice to be in my own space again…