Whispering Pines Tea Company

In a word, delicious! Makes a smooth, easy-to-drink cup. Not too weak, not too strong, just right! The re-steep was just as good as the initial cup. Really enjoyed this one. Offered my Mom a cup of this as well and she also loved it so it’s double approved!

This tea was super interesting! Smelled very strongly of stone fruits out of the pouch, but I didn’t get a hint of that in the flavor. The initial flavor is very charcoal-forward, but became much more chocolatey as it cooled.

Extremely charcoal, roasty flavors. Strong minerality and wet rock notes.

Just finished up my first 1oz bag of this beauty, and I can’t get enough. The fresh vegetal flavor has developed into this insanely gorgeous floral bouquet. I have to agree with previous reviewer, Linda, this tea smells like lilacs. I too have never experienced this flavor in tea form before, but it’s magnificent. I can’t get enough of this.

I was watching some tea vlogs this morning, and one talked about using tea leaves in cooking. I haven’t really experimented with using tea in savory dishes (outside of tea eggs and Busmese tea salad), and was suddenly very struck with the urge to experiment. Having already enjoyed a pot of this Spring Jade Tieguanyin from Whispering Pines and finding it very vegetal and savory, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to experiment. I cooked up some garlic rice, made a quick sauce, poached an egg, and flash fried the tea leaves in some sesame oil. Turned out delicious! A super quick meal that I’d be happy to eat more often. I love being able to use the remaining tea leaves, rather than just tossing them. Next time, I’ll be adding some fresh veggies as well.

I was excited about the prospect of a really dark tea with some chocolatey notes from the cocoa nibs, but I’m just getting musty/fishiness. I did 2 rinses, but I’m still getting a mustiness, and no chocolate notes at all. I’ll have to revisit this at another time.

This time around is much, much better. 200F, 2min. Tastes like crystallized sugar and sweet potatoes

Summer 2019. Just received this in my Whispering Pines order, and I’m not really getting any of the natural sweetness and honey flavor that I was anticipating. I’m getting more of a savory, rye bread note. It’s not bad by any means, just not what I was expecting. I’ll have to try this again in the next few days with a different brewing method to see if that makes a difference.

No bitterness or astringency to be found. Smooth, creamy, malty goodness. Has a distinctly raisin flavor. Almost like a chocolate raisin bread (is that a thing people eat?).

Deep, dark, mysterious. Like sipping trimmings of an old tree growing in the middle of a damp forest.

Upon drinking this again, I’m boosting up the rating. It was nice and smooth, and had an interesting artichoke note on top of the dried fruits.

Thanks to Kawaii433 for this! Very glad I got to try this one. I’m primarily getting deep prune and raisin notes. There’s a bit of spice that balances the dried fruit flavor out very nicely. I enjoyed this one, but I’m finding I like more chocolate/malt leaning black teas.

Wow. Another extraordinary offering from Whispering Pines. A huge thanks to Kawaii433 for this one as well. This is absolutely decadent. Pure chocolate and malt. Rich, creamy mouthfeel. It holds up to multiple steeps, but I found the first steep to be my favorite.

I drank this all day at work today. It’s just perfect. I left it to steep for too long (got distracted and forgot about it). It still tasted excellent. Added a bit of honey, also excellent. This tea is just so good. I’ve never gravitated back toward a singular tea so frequently, but I have to control myself, as the price does not allow for daily drinking.

I already made another pot of this. I can’t get enough. absolutely decadent.

Wow, this tea is pretty extraordinary. A huge thanks to Kawaii433 for sharing their stash of Whispering Pines with me. The jasmine is incredibly fragrant, and pairs perfectly with the cherry and stone fruit notes of the black tea. This is one of those teas that made my jaw drop.

A bit of a dry mouthfeel, that I’m not particularly fond of. Definitely cherry and chocolate at first, and I’m getting a bit of the vanilla as the cup cools. There’s something almost stevia-like in the aftertaste.

Received this as a sample in a previous Whispering Pines order. I’ve fallen in love with so many WP teas, so I was excited to try something new. Very nice and malty, full of chocolate and baked-good flavors. I did steep at 212F for 4 minutes rather than the recommended 5min and I’m glad I did so. It has begun to develop a mild bitter bite in the back of the throat, and I believe the longer steep time would’ve ruined it. Overall, an incredibly tasty, satisfying cup.