Whispering Pines Tea Company

Yum. Yum, yum, yum. I love Whispering Pines’ Mint Chocolate Chip, and this tea has all of the great flavors of that tea combined with the amazing blend of spices they add to their chai. Then there is a malty, bready note that makes my eyes roll back in my head. Seriously good stuff. The only possible bad thing is that this is a sample. And I’m not supposed to buy tea until May. I’m not going to make it until May. :)

Brenden sent this as a sample in my order, which is rather uncanny, since I’d almost ordered it, but had to take it out for budget concerns. :) I was very happily surprised!

I ended up steeping this four times throughout the course of the day… and it really says something about a tea that I’m willing to go back to it that many times in one day. Usually at some point I say to myself, “Eh, I’ve had that already, let’s shake it up.” Not this time! It was very malty and bready and had some light hints of honey, just barely. Sadly, through all the steeps, I just wasn’t getting the chocolate notes. Maybe next time? I suppose I should try it once without sugar, too… I forgot to, in my hurry that morning.

Had this tea this morning, in a travel mug with milk and sugar. The smell is wonderfully light and fresh for a black tea, with some lovely toasty maltiness. It tastes like… rye bread, with honey, maybe some hints of maple syrup, and heavy cream… it’s making me think of bread pudding, minus the cinnamon. Highly delicious, a very good choice for breakfast! :)

my second tea from whispering pines! and i had no idea that breaking into it tonight would come along with another celebration as i sipped…..

i hate waiting for grades; classes are done- I WANT MY MARKS! …..please. but profs get busy, sadly it isn’t a immediate thing. i was just starting into this chocolatey assam-esque tea when the message came that the final grade for the class that had me working my butt off all semester had been posted.

i could see the grades, but the student numbers had been scrambled! i was supposed to write for a code…… was i getting extra marks for this? gimmethecodegimmethecodegimmethecode.

there was a lone 87.3. highest in the class by 6%. mine. Mine. MINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! there were two others that were close, just a hair under 1% off. my team was 3……. this was us, i was sure. that 87.3 was MINE. i took a real beating this semester….it’s a long story. short story? that number was MINE.

gimmethecode.

-check email…. wasn’t there yet. sip tea.
-rinse
-sip tea
-repeat
-the code was in…..

second time with this prof…. highest mark in the class. he isn’t easy. he poked fun at me this semester about having no life! but he sent me a beautiful letter of congratulations….

this is an excellent celebratory tea. not malty to me, which suits me fine. a dark chocolate assam. lovely and rich…. i used some turbinado sugar and a bit of cream. i don’t miss dessert! very nice.

just waiting for one more grade =0)

I can’t describe the individual flavor notes from this tea just yet, but overall, it’s very smooth and rich with deep flavors. It’s storming rain outside, and this tea seems like the perfect drink to counteract the weather. All I need is a good book and down blanket and this tea to cuddle up and avoid the rain.

I had the Campfire Blend with a little added maple syrup and it was omg so good.
I reminded me of the outdoors so much I had to step outside and to enjoy a cup.
I got so much cedar and piney notes with earthy sweet notes and of course wonderful smokey notes, the maple sweetness really enhanced the cedar and smokiness.
Oh this is so good :)
The only thing missing now is a campfire and some colder weather, still a great outdoor tea.

This is the latest Campfire Blend and I think it is wonderful :)
The earlier campfire blend was very good outdoor tea perfect for sitting by the fire, The new mix tho is even better I consider it a “wilderness” tea.
The smokey lapsang in here is very smooth yet full flavored, the cedar replacing the orange peel and the added chicory really turned this version around for me, it adds just the right touch and make for a really nice balance in the flavors.
Smoke and Cedar/Pine is the main notes I get from this one with minor sweet earthy almost mint like notes.
This is a great remake of Campfire Blend i hope the Cedar stay around for awhile.

Also, I’m not sure if it can be oversteeped but I know it can handle a pretty long hot steep and make a very bold exciting tea thats just all smokey sweet cedar goodness, try it really strong you may like it that way.

this is from my first whispering pines tea order… first tea from my first order! i held out trying this blend until today for A REASON!!!!!

the semester is OVER! insert soaring freedom music of your choice….. but only for three weeks, lol.

must admit, it was quite awesome- i changed my status on FB re the exam and who should inquire about how it went down? Brenden… the owner of whispering pines, lol.

saving this as my celebratory tea was a good call. dry it smells like vanilla chocolate ice cream. malt, but not the bitey kind. the base is a very deep chocolate- not a cacao, certainly not a milk. very smooth. vanilla is the first taste and surprisingly honey is the last!

superb. a gorgeous tea. brenden says it resteeps brilliantly…. i’m off to do that now =0)

Seriously amazing! This is beautiful green tea with the most gorgeous pine flavor, it seriously tastes like a winter hike in an alpine forest. I may have to hoard this stash as whispering pines tea company is currently out of stock and I don’t know if I could handle being out! In fact, Im busy steeping a second infusion as we speak :)

Best tea of the morning, by far. I oversteeped it though when the mailman showed up, so I expected it to be horribly bitter. Surprisingly, it’s only a touch bitter, and I’m getting primarily jasmine with a sweeter nut. Zero pine, which surprised me. Even with the oversteep though, this is an excellent tea.

I decided to have this as my evening wind-down tea. I steeped it according to the package directions and added 1.5 teaspoons of sugar. I probably should have tried it unsweetened first , but oh well. Next time!

This tea is REALLY sweet. Definitely should have tried it unsweetened. There’s a lovely harmony going on among all the flavors, similar to what happens in a baked good: the ingredients get real friendly with one another, until they just mush into each other and become a new flavor entirely. That, and the fact that it’s really very sweet, makes this tea taste like a Hubig’s apple pie. For those of you not familiar with Hubig’s, they make individual size fruit pies, kind of like a turnover except with pie crust instead of puff pastry, deep fry them, and douse them in glaze. You don’t really want to know how many calories are in one of those things. ;) Anyway, I’m completely captivated by the bakey apple flavors going on here, and the cinnamon plays a perfectly in tune second fiddle. The oolong adds some nice honey and nut notes. Delicious!

My hubby and I had “second breakfast” this morning, since first breakfast came at 7:30 and we were both hungry again by 10:00, and this tea was selected to go with our bacon and eggs. I think I sweetened mine a teensy bit too much, but truthfully, the rich sweetness was a rather perfect mesh with the heavy flavors of the peppery bacon. I fully intend to re-steep this one. Simply put, this chai is perfection. I will be restocking this one.

Went for this one out of my Whispering Pines box this morning. Feeling like I need a comforting tea. Morning just came too early… and I’m a morning person. But I could have easily slept another two hours, were it not for the 11-month-old climbing all over me.

Anyway, I’m so glad to get to try this one, because someone FINALLY did it: made a chai with a Yunnan Dian Hong, instead of Assam or Ceylon like you see most chais made with. (If there’s another company that’s done it before now, I haven’t found them.) This must be a new tea, because I had to add it to Steepster’s database. First review, what what?? XD #isadork

The loose leaf smells great! The first thing I smell is the cardamom, then the cloves, and then the cinnamon. Can’t quite smell the Dian Hong over those very strong spices, but hey, I like my spices to have some staying power.

Anyway, I made this the way I’ve been brewing chai nowadays, a little closer to the traditional way, but still pretty American—two parts water and one part milk. Basically, I steeped it for a while in less water than normal so it would be nice and strong, then filled the cup the rest of the way with milk. I will eventually try this the fully traditional way, but the husband currently has all our stock of paper tea bags, and he’s three hundred miles away. Might have to break down and use one of our tea balls. I digress.

Oh, man. This is soooo good. I might even venture to prematurely propose that this might be my new favorite chai. I don’t like chais with anise, and this one has none. It’s made with my favorite type of black tea. It ‘s spicy and rich and robust and not astringent. I kind of hope the cardamom mellows out a little with age, ’cause right now, it’s kind of taking over, but we’ll see. I’m still thoroughly enjoying it. Kudos, Brendan!

Edit: So, on a whim, I tried resteeping. I didn’t have high hopes, because resteeping chai hardly ever works, right?

Well, this one works! :D

Mmmm, spicy, fruity, yum! I am not quite certain exactly what elderberries taste like, so I can’t really identify if I’m tasting it now or not, but there is definitely a berry-ish quality to this tea that could possibly be them. Regardless, it has a deliciously thick mouthfeel and a wonderful spicy bite from the cinnamon and chicory. Well worth the money! I will be going to this one in the evening, especially when it’s cold.

I got home last night from going visit my husband (sooo needed that, I miss him so much), and my order from Whispering Pines was waiting for me! So, naturally, I busted it open first thing this morning, and this one was calling my name.

I thought I would break from my usual steeping method and do what it says on the package (although I used more water than it said to). The brew smells VERY nutty, with a slight hint of charcoal, like the nuts were just a teensy bit scorched.

Mmm, I’m getting a heavy hit of that roasted nut flavor that I love in dark oolongs. This is warming me to my toes on this rather chilly morning. After sipping a while, it doesn’t get astringent or too dry in the mouth. It’s not what I would call “juicy,” but it definitely is not drying, so I appreciate that. I’m enjoying it very much. It’s not something that I will go for very often, probably, knowing the type of teas that I tend to gravitate toward , but when I am in the mood for it, I will be very glad I have it. :)

Edit: The second steep was just as good as the first, and I even got some hints of chocolate, which combined with the nuttiness made it taste like almond bark or Nutella. :) Yum !

I was very surprised to pop open this pouch to find that this tea smelled like roasted seaweed. It’s not fishy, but is definitely reminiscent of dried seaweed pieces. The leaves are tightly curled and very dark. So pretty! After the tea has steeped, I’m smelling much more of a roasted note with a bit of bread and seaweed in the background. There is also a touch of smoke, but it’s quite subtle.

Sipping… this is a very smooth tea. I suppose in my experience, the roasted oolongs I’ve had have been a bit more astringent and sharp. This one is quite nice. The flavor reminds me of toast that has been almost burned mixed with a heavy earthy note, minerals and salt water. The finish is smooth with just a tiny bit of grassy sweetness. I can see why this was called “Dark Chocolate Oolong,” but I think the new name is much more fitting as I personally don’t taste much dark chocolate. This was a very interesting cup for this afternoon, but not one that I will repurchase.

mmmm… blissful sigh

This is my first tea from Whispering Pines kindly sent by Dexter3657.
I didn’t find it in the database.
It is a classic Taiwanese Oolong, not bad but not unforgettable neither.
There is an aftertaste I cannot really describe and which is just absolutely weird for an Oolong, a mix of fruits notes and ? something else, the X element…mystery.

Sipdown!
I love how the subtle pine blends in beautifully with the buttery green tea base and scent of jasmine. I think I’ve mentioned before that I generally dislike jasmine because I often find it overwhelming for me, but I’m really glad I gave this a try because everything is wonderfully blended.

Another one from Dexter3657! thanks so much! I think I liked this one more than others if the Steepster rating says anything, even though I probably shouldn’t have, since this is usually the sort of tea I don’t really like. One teaspoon, a few minutes after boiling, for two minutes. It tastes like a hojicha mixed with a Fujian tea, with the charcoal flavors, also a tiny bit like Laoshan Black. (I really shouldn’t be comparing it to that one all the time, as I realize not everyone has tried that one. And even different harvests would make a difference.) So it is certainly an odd mix of flavors here. I don’t need a ton of teas like this in my collection, but I will certainly enjoy the remainder of this sample whenever I would like a tea like this.

au revoir tea! having a couple warm cups this evening while i wait for dinner to finish up in the slower cooker. Really enjoy this herbal from WP.

last tea of the evening. Rather enjoyed having this one last night while reading before bed and figured i’d make it a repeat. :)

Final Count: 124

Evening tea after a long day or work. Someone mentioned this tea as a good tea for being sick so i pulled it out, not so much for the sick factor but because i really enjoy this one. Time to curl up and do a little reading before hopefully, an earlier bed time.

Final Count: 129

Tea from this evening, my other half has been sick and I think he shared it with me so i wanted something to help relax before bed tonight. this one does the trick nicely! and then tomorrow..we tackle the tea box! and some other samples :)

Just wish my smaller bags had arrived :(

Final Count: 136