Whispering Pines Tea Company

It’s malty, bready, sweet-potatoish, honeyed, and amazing.
I keep thinking Ailoashan is like Laoshan Black, but this isn’t. They’re both exceellent and quite different. Buy both.

My final sample from Cameron B.! Thanks for all of these. This is another discontinued tea from WP, as the name so clearly indicates.

When this was first brewed and still really hot, there was definitely an overcooked spinach off note to it. Not really pleasant. I didn’t think I would be drinking any of it, but I left it to cool dramatically and came back for a tenative sip later and found that the off flavor had faded and instead there was a definitely creamy floral note to it. It still doesn’t have a great flavor blend, but it’s not as bad as initially feared. Not the best golden lily I’ve had but no one is in danger of buying it, so it’s not really an issue.

The last two teas I have to try from Whispering Pines (again, thanks to Cameron B.) are discontinued, and judging by their response whenever someone reviews them, I think WP would rather they just disappeared all together.

I agree with Tea Sipper who said this doesn’t taste like much. I mean, there was some flavor (mostly scent), and it was kind of nondescript, but it was also weak and completely inoffensive. It kind of reminded me of really weak tea bags I’ve had when there were no other options. Or even the base teas that some companies (not WP) use for flavored blends, that have no interest on their own, they are only there to be the vehicle for the flavor. Nevertheless, I drank the whole cup yesterday. Yup, inoffensive.

All da hong pao seems to have a roasted barley flavor to it. This one is no exception to that. This flavor is not too strong in it. There is a sweet flavor behind this that I don’t know how to describe. It is a good tea overall.

I brewed this once in an 18oz teapot with 190 degree water and 3 tsp leaf for 3 min.

My experience with this toucha was similar to AllanK’s. I got a couple tasty infusions and after 3 it was pretty weak. Tasty and worthy, I’ll pick this one up again to meet my random, impulsive, quick pu-erh fixes.

Used short steeps- 10s rinse, 15s, 20s, 30s,25s, and a final 2 min steep.

Goodbye for now, wee snail yums! This is another comfort tea for a straight black that I enjoyed quite a bit. Hoping to reorder soon as well.

Comforting is a word I would use to describe this tea. I made a 64oz pot of it and my husband and I have been sipping the lightly-honeyed cocoa maltiness for a few steeps now. I am totally hoping to order more now that I’ve found my groove with wee snail yums, but I really, really, really want to get Rivendell with my next order, too. I wanted to order it with both of my last two orders and its been out of stock forever. Since my favorite flavored green from Butiki is gone now, I need a vanilla or creamy replacement. Any suggestions?
For the Redditors-TL;DR: I like this tea. And I want Rivendell or something like it really bad.

Smooth, medium-bodied, pleasant, flavorful. There is nothing offensive about this tea and I think it would be a good starter straight black for someone to try. While it may not be my personal favorite, it is definitely worth consideration for those that tend to avoid the heavy-bodied CTC types in the morning.

I’ve been trying to post reviews for days now so I have a backlog of teas. Long story short, this one is malty with some bakery (think based bread, not pastries) notes. I am sure there is more complexity, but I have will do a more thorough review when I can actually post the day I am enjoying it. Happy Sunday!

Having an amazingly delicious cup of this tonight with milk and honey. So good and cozy in my mug. See previous notes on this tea!

Soooo good in my travel mug this morning. I was very chilly this morning as it’s a damp cold out here and it’s supposed to freezing rain later today, so I wanted something rich and cozy. This is hitting the spot :) vanilla and spice. Yum.

One more day until I leave for my vacation! Can’t wait to pick up some teas in Victoria when I’m there :) and more importantly, for 9 days of relaxation! Much needed.

Ahhh, I have had this tea before but I haven’t written a review yet, time to fix that! I was craving this at work yesterday but instead had my standard Cold 911 for my lungs/allergies lol, so on this dreary, gray Saturday morning, I am cozying up with my cup of this chai.

The dry smell is very spicy, lots of pepper, some cardamom, ginger, a very lovely spiced chai smell. It opens the sinuses and invigorates. I followed WP’s steeping directions, at around 205 degrees for 3 minutes. The resulting liquor is a reddish brown in color, and the vanilla that Brenden does so well is present in the aroma, along with the mingling of spices, smoothed by the vanilla and the base. I have never had the Golden Snails Yunnan by itself (or fondly known as Snaily Yums on here I think lol), but I should try it out, as I love Yunnan black teas.

As for the flavor…mmm, this is quite a good chai. The flavors meld seamlessly – The spices at the forefront, the honeyed/malty base in the middle blending into a rich vanilla aftertaste, with the spices still kicking around. I can’t really pick out specific spices, which I find to be the mark of a great chai, not one overpowers the other. They instead blend into a spicy and warming concoction. The vanilla really adds the final touch, with it’s sweetness, it just smooths out the sip and leaves you wanting to have another drink, and another…yeah, it’s pretty good. The flavor profile, if my memory serves me correctly, reminds me of Verdant’s Laoshan Village Chai, but instead of a chocolatey base, this one has a more honeyed flavor from the Snails, and the vanilla is richer and more prominent here I think.

Overall, this is a delicious cup of yuminess, and I like that it is different from the other chais I have in my cupboard (enter Yu Lu Yan Chai haha). It is a more mellow chai, for cozy fall days, and I might keep it in my cupboard to contrast with the bold Yu Lu Yan Chai, which still might hold my heart for favorite chai, but we will see, this one is not too far behind! Another wonderful tea blend from Whispering Pines! Lol, under the flavors tab, I wish there was one for ‘awesome’, as that’s the best way I can describe this tea lol.

Light cocoa and bread. Yum. I think this is one I could easily drink every morning :) Thanks for the sample, Ost!

Drinking this iced today and it is really good. Definitely get the notes of malt and chocolate. Not sure if I’m tasting the cherry that was in this hot. Although there is a fruity note in there. Still this is really good.

Brewed this overnight in the fridge in a 32oz Lupica Handy Cooler with 4 tsp leaf.

While this tea probably deserves to be brewed gongfu today it got brewed Western style. I think the only thing added to this tea is vanilla beans. But it works. It is a very chocolaty base to the tea. And somehow there seem to be notes of cherry as well as vanilla. I rarely buy from Whispering Pines because his prices are so high. But with the recent sale I just couldn’t resist. His quality is as high as his prices I’ll give him that. This is one good tea.

I brewed this one time in a 16oz Teavana Glass Perfect Tea Maker/Gravity Steeper with 3 tsp leaf and 200 degree water for 3 min.

This was an excellent tea that I will have to order more of eventually. I have way too much tea. This one didn’t even make it into my cupboard as I only bought an ounce. This was good. It had a lot of complex notes. The cocoa and chocolate were prominent. I almost thought they added chocolate, but it is not listed as such. The vanilla flavor is there too, that they added. There are also notes of almonds and sweet notes such as blackberry or black currant. This is already one of my favorite black teas and I have only had it once. I would resteep it but unfortunately, I have to watch my caffeine intake.

I steeped this once in an 18oz teapot with 200 degree water and 3 tsp leaf for 3 min.

Sipdown! I received this tea as a generous sample in my first Whispering Pines order. The description on their website intrigued me, so I was excited to give it a try. I had enough to make two cups, as per the steeping directions. I just wish I had more experience with describing straight black teas… I do find Chinese black teas delicious as a rule, and this one was no exception. I was able to detect the “fruity” notes for the first time, the kind that more experienced tea drinkers describe in certain black teas. It really did remind me of plum, just like the site description says! Similarly, I detected a roasted cocoa note in the scent, and I found a certain savoriness in the taste, which I enjoyed. No real astringency that I noticed, and a smooth yet slightly powdery mouthfeel (though that may have been due to the smaller bits of leaf that fell out of the pouch with my second cup, whoops!).

This tea also resteeped very well. I’m so glad I got to try it! I’m definitely considering purchasing more for my next order.

Lewis & Clark Traveling Teabox – Tea #10
I’ve tried a couple 58s from other tea shops. Maybe it’s just the harvest but there are DEFINITE differences in the 58s. This one seems a little flavorless. It’s so light and what is there tastes mildly like cardboard, albeit a sweet cardboard. A little bit of a sweet fruit flavor. It’s so shocking that even something like the same “recipe” or whatever you call it would be so different! Whispering Pines can’t have ALL magic teas!
Steep #1 // 1 1/4 tsp // few min after boiling // 3-4 min steep

Lewis & Clark Traveling Teabox – Tea #9
This isn’t the highest rated oolong… maybe it doesn’t deliver what it promises. It isn’t so much a milk oolong to me as it is very savory: kind of salty and a bit tough. Kind of seaweed/marine like. It’s so brothy and buttery it could be used as a soup. Again it could be a problem with too many leaves/steep time. But the instructions did say to use boiling water for this one. I’m glad I didn’t. I didn’t even use a rinse this time for some reason. Savory oolongs are very nice on their own and I can appreciate the different flavors once in a while but they don’t seem to be for me.
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 tsps. // 12 min after boiling // 2 1/2 min
Steep #2 // 12 min after boiling // 3 min

Oh my this is tasty. Thank you Kayla for the swap! I’ve been wanting to try a whispering pines tea before I made an order. This tea did not disappoint. It isn’t a s’more flavor such as it’s not graham cracker and gooey chocolate. But it is a roasted marshmallow on a campfire on a cool fall night. If I close my eyes I truly feel, taste and smell like I’m at a bonfire with friends. This may not be an everyday tea but it’s definitely a must have for me.

Another black tea from the Cameron B. pile!

I’m kind of really tired and braindead today so I’m afraid this review won’t be super detailed. In short, this was a tasty golden yunnan and I definitely enjoyed my cup of it, although it didn’t really stand out to me very strongly. A little bit of cocoa powder, some breadiness, and a hint of sweet potato. Smooth and slightly sweet. I will definitely have to compare this one more closely with the Golden Snail since they are both golden yunnans.