Peter Heinrichs Curly Special

In the tin it has a faint chocolatey aroma which does not come through in the smoke. A light sweetener has been added. This starts out a little nippy, but quickly settles down. The problem for me is that this tobacco does not have the depth of Virginia flavor I am looking for. There are some sweet tobacco notes here and there, but all in all, it is bland. I find no similarities whatsoever to Three Nuns, past or present. It is not that it is a bad smoke; it is just not a very good smoke. Paddy.

April 2003

I worked my way through a 200g tin of this, and have finally laid hand to a tin of Bell's 3 Nuns as well, but a side by side comparison is for another forum.

Pipe: Sasieni 4-Dot straight billiard, group 3 Tin Aroma: Sweet, smooth (not tart), and delicate. Cut: Coins, sliced rope or twist. Lighter leaf around darker inner leaf. Pack: Rubbed out a small ball of about two coins and dropped into the bottom, overlay with stacked coins to the top 1/4 of the bowl, finished with two rubbed out coins as tinder. Springy on top, firm underneath. Char: Takes a flame easily, and expands quickly. Tamp and rest, as is my wont. Initial flavors are a caramelly, pecan-like taste riding over a robust VA smoky sweetness. A little tart/tangy, but not sharp.

Main event: Takes second light easily, also, and the inital flavors are reinforced, though mellower. This tobacco is not a flavor hammer for the tongue. It rewards considered smoking not because of any tendency to bite, but because it seems to reveal deeper, smoother flavor when smoked cooler. Once the ember reaches the stacked coins, this stuff really tastes great. As a bonus, it holds up well outdoors. Burn is cool, easily controlled, and nips only when vigorously overdrawn. The flavor, especially the sweetness, deepens further through the bowl, rewarding the tongue with a very full flavor. There is a distant sweet, sharp tanginess to it like there might be some perique.

Smokes clean to the heel, leaves a medium gray ash. Take your time and enjoy this one, as it rewards concentration.

Great stuff, IMO

As others have noted, Heinrichs' Curly Cut has a passing similarity to Three Nuns. I find Three Nuns superior for the quality and consistency of cut, and the deeper, richer flavor. Heinrichs is sharp and thinly sweet, smoothing out in the latter half of the bowl, when it develops an almost caramel-like undertaste. Overall, I find it bland and too sharp, and at the price, seriously outdone by a number of other tobaccos.

This is very similar to Bell?s Three Nuns, but I, quite frankly, find it superior.

The cut is similar, in round disks approximately the size of a dime, with more of the blend rubbed out. Packing can either be accomplished by rubbing out fully, partially, or stacking disks, at you option. With flakes, I have generally moved toward rubbing out, but this responds well toward packing the disks directly, I find.

The overall burning character is good, with little moisture production and minimal relights. My most recent bowl was smoked down to a small dottle with a single re-light. The strength is lower, in my experience, than Three Nuns. I consider this to be a positive.

The flavor is smooth and natural, with no spiciness, nor with any excessive sugar characteristics. There is a somewhat fruity sense to it, no smokiness, and no nuttiness. I have started to appreciate these types of blends, with no oriental or latakia components as a somewhat relaxing smoke that requires little attention. Flavor is very consistent, almost too consistent, in a somewhat bland nature.

Overall, I find this a quality tobacco with good smoking characteristics, and very representative of its type. Consistency throughout the bowl is nice from the position that there is no bitterness or like flavors, but somewhat monotonous. A reasonable, non-adventurous smoke that is very comfortable.

November 2002.

Really enjoy PH blends,but my tin looked s if the coins were already rubbed out. Very difficult to find any coins in tact. That being said,the blend was excellent. Lights,packs and burns well.

I thought this blend sounded quite interesting so I split a 200g tin with a forum cohort. He'd sampled it before, I had not. I've been on a very Virginia kick recently and this sounded absolutely lovely.

The pleasant, lightly fruity aroma was quite nice when I popped my baggie open. The coins are perfectly sized for easy packing. That said, I found I like to rub this out a little bit. My first bowl packed with folded up coins and it ran a little hot. The flavor was almost entirely lost. I had a few good puffs in the bowl, though, and could tell there was potential. The next time I rubbed out several and loosely filled the bowl with that, then squished up a couple coins at the top of the bowl. That smoked much more nicely for me. The flavor was consistent through much of the bowl -- nothing out of this world, but very enjoyable.

I was nervous after reading the review about a horrendous room note, but I actually received a compliment while I was smoking my bowl. I certainly thought it was fine from what I could tell.

The presentation in the tin is very nice. Small tight spun coins, cut quite thin, almost fluffy in the packing, reddish virginias in long strands when rubbed out. Quite elegant, with a pleasant light tin note of light raisin and what I associate with red virgians. Tin had perfect moisture and needed perhaps just a minimal time to air before smoking. The coins seem to hold their moisture level in a pouch or set out in a dish in any event.

As a smoker who favours sweeter and lighter virginias, I found the dominant virginia notes to be slightly too bitter and astringent to my tastes - overwhelming the sweet-spicy bite of perique one finds in a spun flake such as Escudo. After trying several bowls in differing pipes that had been satisfying flake and va/per smokers I just couldn't find the kind of enjoyment or balance I look for in a va/per. Too bitter by a touch. It is quality tobacco however, very consistent to rub out, burns evenly, does not bite.

I ended up finishing my tin by mixing in some FVF and a pinch of quality cased burley, and that seemed to round out into a more satisfying blend for me.

Given the price, and a comparison to say a bulk such as MacLellands 5100 Red Virginia with a pinch of St. James Perique blended in, I'd skip the novelty of the stylish little coins.

For those that like less-sweet Va/pers a high quality coin, without doubt, just not to my tastes as I have found the bright peppery spice of perique best offset by a little more sweetness.

Recommended to try - won't be in my regular rotation or cellar, but a classic that is worth a taste and can always be used to make up a very good blend.

My tin from smoking pipes is called special curly.It has a label at the bottom stating that it contains Virginia and Perique.Broken disks covered in sugar crystals.Sharp,tangy taste,very high quality.Burns well after drying in the tin for a couple of months.Very nice and good for blending to add sharpness to a blend.Perique in the background but noticable.burns slowly recommended for VA/PER fans.

Any fan of pure Virginias must try this blend. Although it contains some Perique, its presence is not very noticeable. Remember Perique is a spice tobacco, and a good spice like salt is intended primarily to bring out the flavors of the main dish. And this dish is delicious, obviously comprising some very high quality Virginia leaf.

The little curls in the tin are quite beautiful actually, smelling of fresh hay and grass. There is no smokiness, no topping that I can detect, and the Perique is not evident in the aroma. Just fresh sweet tobacco goodness.

No problems lighting or keeping it lit. As the bowl warms up the flavors develop into some of the richest pure Virginia flavors I have experienced. The taste is rich and pure, and - for lack of a better word - clean. There's no cloying sweetness, there's no ashy aftertaste, just flavor, and lots of it. The flavor stays quite consistent through the whole bowl, and even gets a little toastier near the bottom.

This one must be nursed very gently. If you use your best Virginia technique, sipping gently and keeping the briar cool, then you will be rewarded with what may be one of your best VA smoking experiences. It was for me anyway. Is it worth the higher cost? Of course! It's like ordering steak instead of pasta. Both are good, but once in a while you want to splurge. Problem is, this is good enough to be a desert island smoke, as in, an all day all week smoke. I need to stock up!