Drucquer & Sons Levant Mixture

A delightful full English Blend. A complex blend that hits all the notes. Well balanced with a hint of sweetness. This is a great blend to have after dinner or nightcap. Glad to see this back in production. Highly Recommended!

Druker's Levant Mixture, as resurrected by master blender GL Pease, is a throwback to the old gentleman's smoking lounges scattered throughout the Empire from the turn of the century to the late thirties of the last century. There is a heavy choice Oriental component and a powerful Latakia presence. Reminds me a bit of Magnum Opus, White Knight, Quiet Nights, Westminster, Abingdon. A rough shag cut, it packs and lights easily. First draws yield a sweet campfire BBQ feel of salted leather, buttermilk sour, with a distinct hint of loam soil, after a rain. This flavor profile proceeds to the end of the bowl and does not vary. Complexities abound for the discerning palate. Highly recommended.

My tin is dated 6/28/21.

The tin note is wonderfully smokey and barbecue-like. It's really fragrant. There is a mustiness that makes me think I'm in for what I like about this kind of blend. The cut is nice, and a more consistent ribbon than many other C&D manufactured blends.

The flavors are cohesive with breadth and depth-- musty, salty, sour, tangy, earthy. You get the smoke, the barbecue, the old books, attic woodiness. There is also a range of sensations on the tongue which completes the tastes category for me. I love this stuff, and for me it has this completeness of flavor in the English/Balkan blend flavor profile that I think of with blends like Meridian and Quiet Nights.

This burns very well. It's full in strength and flavor. The nicotine is not noticeable for me.

I would highly recommend this to people that like Balkan/English blends. Four stars.

My favorite of the Pease Drucquer blends. A full Balkan/English with a plentiful helping of Latakia. It is, nonetheless, well balanced with interesting complexity and far from a Lat bomb. Smooth smoking with no bite or harshness. Highly recommended for all who enjoy this genre.

I got one of the very first tins, so it was super-fresh (just days old). It didn't really taste that great, so it went in a jar. While it was aging, something magical was happening inside its jar—actually just fermentation, but that sounded cooler. I opened the jar eighteen months later, and a wonderful cornucopia of aromas flooded my nostrils. Well-known artist, tobacco connoisseur, and all-around good guy JimInks mentioned an almost musty, incense-like quality in the tin note; I agree. That aroma is second only to the usual smokiness of Latakia, and a whisper of your usual Virginia aromas comes through as well.

In the pipe it behaves nicely and tastes great. It has all the hallmarks of a good, full-flavored English blend. While that smoky Latakia flavor is in every single puff, somehow it's not overwhelming. Usually I avoid blends with this much Latakia. The other components somehow shine through all of that smokiness. Most notably, I taste those wonderful—but so hard to describe—funky flavors of "small leaf Orientals". Virginia flavors are there, both gold and red, but they serve to tie everything together. Most of all, I taste their natural sweetness. There's plenty of Latakia here, but it's not a 'Lat. bomb'.

Levant Mixture needed a few relights, and burned to a pretty clean ash. The potential for 'Lat. tongue' is minimal, which I like. Won't bite unless pushed hard. Not an 'all-day' blend, and best savored slowly after a long day. Nicotine level is medium. As for room note, there are far more offensive blends, but it's not pleasant for non-smokers. It but borders on "divorce tobacco" — a term coined by Mac Baren's blender, Per Jensen. In a sentence, Levant Mixture is an enjoyable, full-flavored, and somewhat complex English blend that's worth the wait to age it to its full potential.

Lately I find myself in a phase reaching more for a full English than my usual Balkan. Contenders are many. Westminster, Kensington, Blackpoint, Lagonda, Meridian, Ashton Artisan, Mississippi River, Father Dempsey and Nightcap. Levant mixture is certainly a contender in that elite field. I would put it in the middle of the pack in strength. Smoky latakia and hints of sweet Virginias. Orientals in the background. I am not going to bother reviewing the SPC, Pease or Dunhill choices as they have been reviewed adequately by others.

Levant comes in narrow ribbons. Almost a shag. The narrowest ribbons of any mentioned before. I prefer to break them into shorter segments as to me that packs more consistently. I have always done that with ribbons.

In rotating among those lately there is no clear winner. Father Dempsey is the least full with more sweet Va and Artisan is the fullest. I will likely just keep a rotation going among those.

I typically smoke this kind of thing in one of my big and wide pipes. Mostly Savinelli Autographs. Huge ones. They are ok in smaller pipes, but in a small pipe do not have enough in the bowl to really build flavor and nicotine hit. I love a good nicotine hit.

I will not recommend any of these over the others. They are all way up there.

Raising this to 4 stars cuz I find myself going to this frequently.

I will use this opportunity to rant about so many of the reviews on this website. I routinely read somebody proclaiming their undying love for a blend based on one bowl or even less. Any experienced pipe smoker knows that a particular blend does not taste the same each time. Very often your taste buds and nose are affected by what you have eaten, smoked or drunk recently. I recently experimented with VaPers. They do not work for me. I found that they might well taint my taste buds such that the next several bowls of one of my usuals tastes differently than normal.

You need to really smoke something 10 times or so to really get used to it and catch the nuances. Many blends have a learning curve of how to smoke them. What kind of pipe. Width of the chamber. Packing. Pace of puffing. Etc.

I'm overwhelmed! Taste is mild but this mixture is strong... room note is fairly pleasant. The Cyprian Latakia in Levant is more pronounced initially but doesn't steal the show & this "mixture" is perfectly balanced & provides plenty of Vitamin N... plus a great flavor with a slight sweetness that increases as the bowl progresses & morphs into an indescribably delicious Balkan flavor... almost like a fine aromatic but this mixture is all natural.

Nearing mid-bowl where the interplay of tobaccos meld, more flavor develops, improves & gets a little sweeter & tastier as the smoking session progresses. My advice... spend a few extra $$ for a trip back in time & try this mixture & see for yourself. It's worth it. There's something magical & special in this Levant Mixture like you might experience with other quality, aged Balkans. "Magical" meaning the whole is equal to more than the sum of its parts... an incredible blending achievement. Levant becomes a little stronger toward the end but doesn't bite or get harsh. This stuff can sneak up on you due to its mild smoking nature.

It really does seem to possess characteristics from days gone by that will take you back in time. This is not an English blend... strictly & totally Balkan & I think it might possibly be the finest Balkan blend available in this time period. I predict Levant will rise to number one & will become legendary... hence the reason I purchased plenty for the cellar. I think it's wise to have extras in your tobacco "portfolio."

My favorite English. Full bodied endlessly complex. A bit like quiet nights without the in your face strength. The Latakia is fantastic. Masterfully blended for dark strong English that you can smoke all day (though it’s more nighttime vibes).

I got to try some of this about a week ago but unfortunately did not take good notes and my memory ain’t that good. All I know is I really like this one and gave it 4 stars. An outstanding mixture as are most of the tobaccos under this label. A must try. Maybe I can snag some more and provide my fans with an update. 🙂