Whispering Pines Tea Company

GCTTB

This tea has such fantastic reviews but for me it’s just not working. I had this tea this morning and did a 2nd infusion; but each time all I got was a dark roast. I couldn’t pick up much of anything else. So back in the box this goes for someone who will appreciate it more than me. It’s just personal tastes but I’m really glad I got to try it out.

Mmm fudgey, chocolate, vanilla and malt. A very tasty, smooth way to start my morning.

Thank you so much for sharing, Lindsay! I can see buying some of this someday, when the Canadian dollar is stronger, but I can definitely live without it for now, especially since I have Tippy’s Not So Vanilla.

I’m so pleased to be finally trying out some Whispering Pines teas, thank you to Lindsay.

This definitely does not disappoint. Lots of chocolate and a distinct vanilla that’s nice and creamy.

The chocolate notes are very similar to the base of Underground Pumpkin that I was drinking earlier, quite rich and distinct. Great for my chocolate mood today.

Happy New Year!

GCTTB

Brewed this one gong fu. It was a good solid black tea. I enjoyed it but there’s nothing there to draw me back to it again. It became even better tasting at the end of the cup when it got cold and I could taste honey and malt.

GCTTB

I am pretty picky about my black teas. Greens, light oolongs, whites, & shengs are my first love but I’ve come to love a few blacks. I think my favourites are one with malt and chocolate notes. This one is pretty amazing with great chocolate notes. Thanks Dex for throwing this one in. So glad I got to try it.

GCTTB

This is delicious. Love the chocolate notes. I don’t think I could tell this one apart from my Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong of Wu Yi Fujian Black Tea Spring 2014 from Yunnan Sourcing. Both are excellent teas!

If you think there’s no need to try North Winds cause you’ve already tried Golden Orchid and have it all figured out, well think again!

Yes North Winds is Golden Orchid’s base…but…they are two completely different teas.

And this is the new NW version…Yes, new and improved!

Smooth, rich and malty with no astringency.

When Yunnan meets Fujian, creating the perfect fusion. Pure symbiosis!

This is the tea I want in my cup on a lazy and cozy Sunday afternoon, in front of the fireplace.

Dark chocolate, dried fruits and toasty notes. It’s so warming!

It deserves a lot of love, it is after all Whispering Pines House black tea!

A real “maltfull” of happiness :-)

Pics of the session:

http://instagram.com/p/xP0ZQzQh82/

http://instagram.com/p/xP1HFgQh-G/

http://instagram.com/p/xP10Sgwh_X/

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.

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!