Astley's No.2 Virginia Mixture

There be just a smidgen of Perique in here, boys and girls. A nicely cut and easily lit tobacco that'll give you a blast of wonderfully sweetened Virginia flavor that'll tickle your nose and the back of your throat upon the initial lighting. The intensity settles down once the top quarter of the bowl is smoked. My major compliment is the fact that if one enjoys nicotine (and I do) but not Perique in large doses, (and I don't) then this blend hits the spot. If, on the other hand, you want a light blend with a substantial compliment of Perique, then you might want to look elsewhere.

The bready, sugary red Virginia is mildly tangy dark fruit sweet with a little vegetation as the lead component. The gold Virginia offers a very mild lemon/citrus tang, light grass, vegetation, sugar, floralness, and a touch of acidity as a secondary supporter. The spice and raisins from the earthy, woody perique is condimental as it adds a needed dimension. The strength is a couple of steps past the mild mark. The taste is in the center of mild to medium. The nic-hit is just past the mild level. Has a few small rough edges. Burns clean and a fast, so puff slowly or risk a little bite. Has a very consistent flavor all the way through. Leaves little moisture in the bowl, and requires an average number of relights. Has a lightly lingering, pleasant after taste. The room note is notch stronger. Can be an all day smoke.

-JimInks

I've tried alot of tobaccos in the past twenty years. Many clones - many funky - many good - many bad. This one, though, just doesn't fit in any of these categories other than "funky" perhaps...

In the "olden days" one of my absolute favourites had to be the Murray version of Dunhill's Light Flake. It had that somewhat obscure - and very pleasant - sweet and sour, honeydew, clove-like topping I haven't had the pleasure to stumble upon ever since.

I asked my rather extensive network for a tin of Light Flake - just for old times sake, but one of Denmark's most respected reviewers told me, that the topping disappeard with age. Same thing with Simmons Sixty-Three (which had somehow the same style).

"Try Astley's No 2." he told me. "it has the same topping".

He was right. Upon opening the tin, I was back - totally back as in synesthetically, scary back - a stupid kid, age sixteen standing outside the kiosk at the train station i my town of birth with a small blue and white tin of DLF. Boy was I in for a treat of what??

Pause

Yes this smells like DLF out of the tin, and the red an golden virginias look promising. But in a pipe and when lit; we're talking a whole new experience here! First of all. This stuff is loaded with peppery perique. Secondly and probably most important: No. 2 is a wicked, wicked clove-bomb! In DLF it was balanced and subdued during smoking, but in No 2, we're talking almost asian clove cigarettes.

Seriously folks: the clove topping, be it naturally og synthetically (eugenol), actually numbed my tongue and palate. Dentists use it as a mild anaesthetic, and apparantly so does Astley. This was a very, very weird experience in a pipe smoking perspective.

If you haven't tried it - do it. If you did - do it again. It's a hoot!

Numb tongue over and out.

-Jakob Kiilerich, Denmark-

Right off the bat, I'd like to admit that the Astley's range of tobacco has become one of my favorites. They have a line of tobaccos that, IMNSHO, is only matched by the "House of Pease" in consistency throughout it's entire line. Astley's # 2 is their Virginia/ Perique representative in the market place. Tin appearance: 50g gold colored tin a la Dunhill or Mac Baren, emerald green label with gold and white block lettering. Tobacco appearance, and fragrance: Fully rubbed ribbon, dappled dark blonde and light reddish brown tobacco, uniform cut. Scent has natural Va characteristics with unusual elements of mandarin. The Perique contributes a bit of fig, but not much. Unlike most of the other Astley offerings, this does have some acetic acid aspects, but comes off as a soft balsamic, not as catsup. Moisture content: Right out of the tin, a little moist. I let it dry for about a half an hour . Packs very well, it likes it a bit on the loose side. Stevie Ray Vaughn's "The Sky is Crying" on the noble Nakamichi....... let's rock! Flame touches weed releasing a very well balanced, smooth and interesting smoke. The upper olfactory registers tart elements of a lemon va (maybe about 10% of the overall note) spliced with mild pepper from the Perique. Anchoring the top notes, a solid, slightly nutty, slightly woody, and sweet center and bottom that I like in Red Va's. On a scale of 1-10, I'd say the strength would come in between 4-5. Mid bowl: Burns very well. Due to the cut and pack, the mid bowl came pretty quickly. The tartness of the lemon leaf has disappeared, leaving a subdued citrus dancing (no longer mandarin, more lime) on the top third, and the pepper slightly more dominant. In addition, there is a bit of a salty aspect that I find (and like) in the Schurch range. End bowl: Unlike some of the other Astleys, there is more fight in this one, at the end. The burn is still excellent, the fragrance and taste showing some earth to it. If you are the type of person who will just about attach a roach clip to the end of a cigar that you are really enjoying, or really get into a zone at the end of a bowl, you'll love it. Summary: Solid offering in the Va/ Perique category, with medium strength and great burning characteristics. Would recommend this one late in the day, before that gang buster bowl at evenings end. Highly recommended, 8 out of 10 Bearclaws.

Bear

Well, to be honest, I used to smoke this very regularly...I have only recently rediscovered a past love and been reminded of why I liked it so much. This used to be my everyday smoke until Haddo's Delight by Greg Pease won that top spot in my rotation. I've had an open tin for quite some time and recently started smoking it more frequently again. It is an ideal morning smoke, a little something to warm up the tastebuds before I start smoking heavier Va/Perique blends such as Haddo's and Escudo.

The Perique most definitely does not overwhelm the Virginias; complementing rather than predominating, the Perique holds the blend together rather than imparting considerable flavor (though it is very much detectable). The lighter Virginias offer a distinctly citrusy note-- really more tart than sweet. This combines nicely with the slight sweetness imparted by the darker Virginias. The blend ostensibly contains "red and gold Virginias", but really the golden Virginias seem lighter than that, moving in the lemon Virginia or Carolina belt ribbon classes (of course, I'm disagreeing with the label based on subjective taste: your mileage may vary).

All in all, a superb morning smoke or a fantastic biteless all day smoke for the lover of lighter Va/Perique blends.

Astleys: "No.2 Mixture - Blend of Virginias" is an interesting blend of virginia and perique tobaccos .

Red and golden virginias finally cut in ribbon form with addition of perique. The scent when I opened the tin was the gentle aroma of raisins, figs and straw, typical natural aromas in blends in which virginia has the main role.

The ideal humidity level makes easy to light and to maintain lit the tobacco for a long smoke in the pipe .

By lighting the tobacco, the sovereignty of virginia tobacco takes the lead, light and nice aromatic. The flavors and aromas little by little are beginning to emerge. I felt "light-hearted" tasting notes of citrus, lemon, straw, and a sense of wood, always also feeling a slight sweetness, a result of the good quality virginia tobaccos in the blend. The perique appears also as the second "player", to make a successful and tasty contrast in virginia with its characteristic peppery taste.

It is light to medium in nicotine strength and it is soft and gentle to the tongue, oral and nasal cavity. It is a tobacco that can be smoked comfortable throughout the day, from the first morning coffee until after supper dinner. It leaves the bowl of the pipe without any wet or liquids and it does not dirt very much the pipe filter. The fragrance that leaves in close areas is pleasing.

I smoked the specific tobacco in many kinds of pipes filtered and unfiltered, made ​​of briar, corn cob, olive wood, pear wood and lined meerschaum. A pleasant smoking in all pipes and by smoking it in corn cobs it made it even more delicious and delightful!

I consider it a very good choice as an introduction to the Va / Per blends.

In conclusion, a remarkable and great Va / Per smoke, who does not tire and does not trouble the pipe smoker, but instead can be a companion to a relaxing and delicious pipe smoking enjoyment.

Highly Recommended!

Nice mixture of very light to moderately dark VA's - tastes like a fair amount of lemon and orange with perhaps a pinch or red, and just a touch of perique for spice. The perique saves this one from having too heavy of a leaning towards high notes for me. This is a pleasant smoking, very delicately top-noted natural VaPer with the emphasis on the Va. Ribbon cut for easy loading and cool smoking with a minimum of relights.

This misses a 4th star due to its mildness (I typically like a bit of oomph to my blends) and it's somewhat mild tendency toward tongue sizzle. I didn't find it too bitey but it was definitely headed in that direction and I had to slow down my puffing cadence to less-than-normal levels for me. Slow puffers who like a light, mild, natural VaPer should definitely check this one out. I'm not sure what to make of the reviewers that found this too heavily flavored, as I found this to be true to the spirit of the VaPer recipe... but I would recommend you try it to see where it lands for you. I'm going to pick up a few more tins for summer smoking, as it strikes me as a nice one for warmer weather.

I really like this one. The first thing I notice on lighting is a touch of anise in the casing. Stays throughout the smoke. The Virginias lead with nice sweet and tangy notes of citrus, grass and darker fruits. The Perique has nearly a medium presence providing more dark fruit and just enough spice to give a good tingle on the retrohale. There is a nice sweet and sour thing going on between the two components. Gets just a little spicier with a touch of earth in the second half providing some evolution. A very pleasant smoke.

Medium in body and taste. Flavoring is extremely mild. Burn is near perfect.

Astley's - No.2 Virginia Mixture.

It makes a change, a VaPer where the Perique doesn't kick your teeth in!

When I cracked this open, I wasn't aware it were a VaPer. Call me an idiot, but from reading the label, No.2 Blend of Virginia's, I thought it would be a blend of Virginia's! But, like I said, the Perique doesn't give me a thrashing of spice: what we have here is a smoke that's predominately Virginia sweetness with a subtle character brought by the Perique. This slight piquancy doesn't have much depth, it's not plummy, or really sharp, it's just a slight amelioration. The higher proportion of the flavour belongs to the Virginia: now, this is fruity, lively, and ultimately of a very high quality. Due to the ribbons being quite coarse, it burns fairly slow and gives off a cool smoke. Another thing that differs for a VaPer is the nicotine. Normally, this type of blend can carry a large punch of N, but this struggles to get much above medium.

This is a great VaPer: a little unusual, but spectacular nevertheless.

Highly recommended.

Astley's, No.2: A Slightly Sweet VaPer with a Hint of a Baking-Spice

The tin note smells of fermented fruit. The Virginia varietals are a mixture of darker and bright leafs. They are quite sweet and a little grassy, with not much body. The perique is not really spicy but leans towards the plummy side of the spectrum. There is a hint of a baking spice, but I cannot figure out which one. All together, the smoke is quite pleasant. It reminds me of a slightly drabber version of Esoterica Dunbar.