Golden Orchid

Today our order from Whispering pine arrived. So we stopped everything we were doing because we just had to try those teas immediately. We originally discovered this company when we came up with what we at the time thought was the original idea of chopping vanilla beans into chocolatey flavoured Chinese black tea. We wanted to see if anyone else had done this. How naive we were. Anyway, as soon as I open the bag I’m struck by the sweet sweet smell of milk chocolate. Delicious, delicious chocolate. The scent of chocolate is very strong, and the vanilla is very heady. You can really tell that WP has used very good quality materials to build this tea. I followed the instructions stamped upon the front of the package. The smell was strongly chocolate, the taste was chocolate and vanilla. This tea does not disappoint at all. It has lived up to its hype. Cocoa amore is even better. I’ll review that one tomorrow. But this tea, I’m currently drinking gong-fu style, is good for multiple infusions, with little degradation in the flavour.

Hm. I am not as in love with this one as everyone else seems to be. When I slurped it, there was a scent of smoke though not the taste. I get a creamy feel overall, but this isn’t my kind of vanilla. It certainly smells strongly of vanilla and the taste is there, though not as strong as the scent. It’s a pleasant enough cup but it doesn’t send me over the moon. Thanks for sharing, Ost!

Finally gave in and used my one-cup sample of this last night. I’ve been holding out for the sake of my wallet, but the temptation finally got too much! I followed the recommended parameters and gave 1/2 tbsp of leaf 3 minutes in water just cooled from boiling. While brewing, it smells amazing, like vanilla ice cream and warm chocolate sauce. I know already that it’s going to be a treat to drink.

It is, of course. From the very first sip, this is almost like drinking a cup of high quality melted chocolate (only less thick, obviously). It tastes wonderfully of dark chocolate, and is almost a little drying in its intensity, like cocoa powder. It’s saved from becoming too dry by the vanilla, which hangs around in the background and contributes a wonderful, rich, creamy-tasting depth of flavour. I wouldn’t say I get fudge, exactly, but definitely chocolate and vanilla, and enough of both to go a long way. After the initial hit of flavour wears off, I can taste a mild fruitiness that could well be the North Winds. It’s cherry, pretty much, and almost syrupy. It’s the perfect end to the perfect sip!

For a blend of black teas only flavoured with vanilla, this is exceptional. Definitely one I’d like to keep around, although for very special days only. If I drank this regularly, I’d probably drink nothing else. Utterly gorgeous stuff.

Picked some of this up recently because I just had to know how it tasted. Turns out, it’s pretty good, but not worth the steep price (to me). Don’t get me wrong – it’s absolutely delicious. Wonderful malty, chocolatey base tea, and an excellent vanilla aroma and flavour (although it’s a little different that I was expecting; I think I have an altered perception of how vanilla is supposed to taste). It’s just a little too pricey for me, and I am happy enough with straight blacks. I will certainly enjoy this bag of it though.

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.

A smooth chocolatey mouthfeel with strong notes of cocoa and hints of vanilla interwoven throughout from start to finish – for anyone searching for a premium flavoured black tea :)

Alright – my first Whispering Pines order, which I got during the Cyber Monday deal.

I love a good black tea. A good, malty black tea and some vanilla notes is even more up my alley, and the smell of the steeped leaf (mostly malty, potatoey yunnan notes) and steeped tea (mostly vanilla, but so much vanilla it’s almost chocolate…has this happened to anyone before?) is really promising.

I followed the parameters recommended on the bag, so 1.5 tsp., 3 minutes and 200 degree water. The first tasting impressions I’m getting are a very creamy vanilla/chocolate combination. Not so much black tea at this point, but I have the rest of the cup to go to find that. :)

As it cools the malty notes peek out in the scent of the steeped tea, but I still mostly pick up chocolate and vanilla in the flavor. I may try some milk just to see if I can tease out a little something different…and, no. This cup is just meant to be those two flavors for me.

I agree that this is a lovely winter sipping tea – and I definitely prefer it without anything added, after trying it both ways. I’m not as wowed as others seem to be though. I’ll enjoy what I have, for sure, and I like it fine, but as of right now it doesn’t rank as a must-have.

This is a very tasty tea and just the sort of tea I needed after the passing of my cat. I hope my apartment complex management lets me get another cat. They allowed Pandora fifteen years ago. In this tea I get the notes of chocolate and stonefruits and of course the vanilla. Also in the steepster description are caramel, graham cracker, and toasted rice. These also seem to be there but less so. There is also a bit of malt. Malt can be a flavor that I don’t like in tea but here it is mild.

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

My Whispering Pines order came in! YAAAAAY. :)
This is the first one I tried, because it sounded so good and smelled SO amazing. Oh man, it tastes amazing too. Chocolatey, creamy, malty deliciousness in a cup. YUM.

Very rich. Absolutely perfect to curl up with on a cold day.