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Whispering Pines recently had a BOGO ounce of tea sale, and I ordered a few teas, and this one I had to try. I actually got one ounce of the light level smoke and one ounce of the medium-light smoke.

This review is for the light smoke. Check future tasting notes for a review of the medium-light level.

I normally do not like smokey teas. It’s not that I hate them, they are just VERY smokey to me and it’s hard to taste anything. So why this tea? Well it really jumped out at me for two reasons:
1) You could choose the level of smoke you want. Since I’m sensitive to smoke, I knew I had to go with the light.
2) Unlike hojicha, which is heavily roasted, this tea was still green, so it was hopefully something that wouldn’t be too intense.

And the verdict? Not bad. Even with the light there’s still a definite smokiness there, but I bet someone used to drinking smokey teas will think it’s too light. There’s no bitterness here and I can definitely still taste the green tea. The smokiness is not overpowering. Not a bad tea, and I’m definitely glad I went with the light version. I’ll have to see how the medium-light stacks up.

By the way – don’t google “smoked green tea” if you’re looking for varieties of green teas smoked over a fire. You’ll instead get a bunch of articles about smoking green tea a la marijuana ;)

Edit: The one bummer about this tea? It doesn’t seem to hold up to resteepings. The second steeping had a bit of smell of smoke, but I didn’t taste it like I did in the first. It was just generic green tea.

Finn88

Totally random, but the name whispering pines reminds me of a locked down psychiatric hospital or something lol. Probably because I live near a Bergen Pines, which is one.

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Finn88

Totally random, but the name whispering pines reminds me of a locked down psychiatric hospital or something lol. Probably because I live near a Bergen Pines, which is one.

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So the short story is, a few years ago I was VERY MUCH into tea. And then a lot of things happened, and I got out of tea for a while. And now, I’m back.ⁿ

To me, tea is the missing puzzle piece for my healthy lifestyle. When I drink tea I am encouraged to eat healthy and be active. I drink tea because I simply enjoy the taste, but the health aspects are just an added bonus.

I love all types of teas, although greens and oolongs tend to be my favorite. I’ll drink herbals if I’m feeling a little under the weather. And recently I’ve been getting more into young shengs (also chasing that elusive “cha qi”).

Unless otherwise stated, I drink my teas straight. I’ve been doing gongfu mostly these days, so I use a ceramic gaiwan with an electric kettle. For greens and some oolongs, I’ll do a western style with a glass mug or regular infuser. I try to specify if my brewing parameters are outside the norm.

I’m kinda strict when rating my teas. I rarely give a tea above a 95. Teas that I really like I keep in the 95-85 category. I’ve yet to give a tea 100 yet. So, if you see a tea about 95, that means I thought it was an amazing tea!

ⁿ – Note: I did step away from tea for a while.. again. But now I’m back for REALZ. Usually I have to put this interest on hold when real life takes over, so I’m hoping for no major life events these days.

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Florida, United States

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