Peretti Tashkent

A strange blend, certainly, for the lack of Virginias, but you'd never notice. Delicious leathery flavor throughout the very cool burning smoke. No bite whatsoever, little drying time required, despite a cut that's chunkier than you'd expect. A nice subtle sweetness despite the lack of Virginia leaf. Milder than I prefer, but tasty enough that it still occupies a regular space in my rotation.

When I think of a Turkish blend, this is it. There is a sensation of dryness and the smell of leather. It is really delicious...IF you like the taste of Turkish tobacco with a base of Latakia. Personally, I think this blend is wonderful.

If you order 8 oz. of any Peretti blend, you get it in a sealed tin...great for cellaring.

12/15/2014 Tashkent has become one of my top five favorite blends of any kind. If you love orientals, this is the go-to blend IMO. It is a coarse cut which may turn off some folks, but it doesn't bother me a bit. The taste and the nose feel are perfectly on point. So many of the great oriental blends of the past have disappeared...this is one to get and enjoy now, as well as years from now.

Another gorgeous English blend from Peretti. If you are a fan of English blends then you really owe it to yourself to try this one. Like all of the Peretti blends I have smoked this is the perfect moisture level right from the package and high quality leaf indeed. Where do they find these perfect tobaccos to blend with in this day and age? Seems like they must have found a way to travel back in time. My personal tastes long for a little more sweetness (as in Royal Blend) or roundness (as in Omega), but this is an excellent and flavorful blend and just might be the perfect match for you as it is for my son Christopher. 3.5 stars.

Well if anything is going to pull me away from Cambridge Flake, it's Tashkent. No Virginia, seems to be mostly Oriental but with I'm guessing about a third Latakia.

This is tangy and sour and it's cheaper than Cambridge Flake, it burns cool and smokes great to the heel. Just enough Latakia to keep it from being one dimensional, and it's probably better than Cambridge Flake in this respect.

This and Omega make a killer one-two punch. What'll it be tonight, smoky Cyprian campfire or tangy Orientals? Omega's more meaty, Tashkent really pleases your taste buds with it's sour tang. Don't worry about picking one, they're both worth stocking up on.

What a unique totally satifying blend this is! A little bit different in character and most definitely less sweet than many "medium" English blends, most probably due to the fact there's no Virginia in this one, but it has a really beautiful, almost salty "tang" to it which I'm really enjoying. A great combination of Turkish and Latakia. Slight family resemblance to Omega, but less sweet and perhaps more Balkan- great with some strong black tea! Love it!

Finally got around to ordering some Peretti blends and have been test driving them this week. Several reviews will follow this one in the next couple of days.

I was so excited to open my can and see a beautiful blend that smells so balanced with Latakia and Turkish richness. I have never tried a blend of just these components and it is the reason for my order. Plain old curiosity to experience what I had not. And boy howdy! What a flavor profile this blend has!

The tobacco is a fairly even mix of Latakia and Turkish to the eye. Easy packing. Two false lights. Off to the races with a full Latakia smokiness and the immediate hit of astringency from the Turkish. That slight numbing sensation on the tongue. Only slightly. Just lets you know without a doubt that there is turkish here and high quality at that. The latakia is of the highest quality and melds with the Turkish to produce a creamy flavor with caramel, slightly burnt marshmallow, some coffee hints, and the spiciness of desert culture spices. Smokey in a good and reasonable way. Not a Latakia bomb by definition, but you won't worry about having enough.

The smoke is cool and rich. No sign of sweetness at all, even with the before mentioned flavors. They are all conveyed in such a way as to remain sec or brut in presentation. Just amazing to get those flavors in a satisfying way without a hint of sweetness. Just awesome.

Smokes clean and dry to the bottom of the bowl. If you keep an eye on your cadence this will not show bitterness in any way. Pushed, you will get a little. No bite at all. The less experienced may tend to confuse the astringency effect on the tongue as the beginnings of bite, but it is not.

I'm very pleased overall with this blend. I would recommend anyone at least try it. English smokers should give it a run particularly if they are partial to the drier tasting blends.

Not something that will make my regular lineup, but I will always keep a supply for the occasional three or four bowls. Just for that reason, I can give only 3 stars. Although I totally agree with the 4 star reviewers, it just didn't hit that mark for me. Missed by just a tad.

Cheers!

UPDATE : 01/29/10

The thing that I like best about tobacco shop blends is you can have them tweaked just to your liking. I called the Peretti folks, visited a bit and one week later I had a 1# can of Tashkent "made my way" sitting safely in my smoke locker. Sure, it's not exactly the same but boy it hits the sweet spot for me. Four stars. Thank you Peretti. I miss the old days of pipeshops on many street corners.

Ok, so beat me for not giving this 4 stars. I'm betting it is 4 stars but I haven't found the correct pipe to puff this in as of yet. It is very good, it is a smooth fullfilling smoke, it leaves a great after taste and my angel of of wife tells me she likes the "leathery" room note. So what is my problem anyway? Perhaps I just like Orential #40 a bit more, who knows? If this type of tobacco blend is something you lean towards you will want to order a pound.

Rich in the mouth, full of flavor from the orientals and latakia, spicy hit on the tongue and the back of the mouth. Gets more concentrated as you get to the bottom of the bowl. Love it.

UPDATED April 2020: Now that I have had more time with this I think I am going from 3-4 stars. I will start by saying that the blend hasn't changed, I have. I have noticed that pipe smoking is an evolution. What you enjoyed when you started doesn't seem to stay the same over time. Some is maturity and experience, some is taste changing and frankly, it appears that some blends appeal to certain seasons. For me, the appreciation of Burley and Oriental forward blends came with experience. I now LOVE Oriental forward blends and they are my first smoke of the day almost everyday I have a pipe. Tashkent and Coffee in the morning is a winner every time., The subtle, more subdued flavors of the Turkish/Orientals along with their spice are easy on the palate and although a "dry" smoke there is sweetness to it. I cannot pin down the source, I would normally say a Virginia like sweetness, but there is no Virginia and it really isn't quite that type of sweetness. Cyprian Latakia also has a sweetness, but this doesn't quite seem like that either, but that is what it must be. Fantastic complex blend. Top to bottom consistent, burns extremely well. 1st class.

ORIGINAL: Have you ever run into a blend and after smoking the equivalent of a tin still not know what to make of it? Well for me that is Tashkent. Let me start by saying that like all Peretti blends this is a true work of seasoned, master tobacco blenders. The tough part for me is that this has no equal (at least in my smoking experience) in flavor profile. At the risk of making a bad comparison, this to me is like the LaCroix (sparkling soda with essence) of the tobacco world. The flavor is bright, even effervescent, with woody, spicy flavors with hints of smoke and hints of cream without the creaminess. It is both complex and flavorful. Where I struggle is that it feels like a great sauce with no pasta. The lack of a Virginia or Burley base, well, basically confuses the sh*t out of me. I keep getting these great flavors of the Orient but they seem to beg for something else...except when they don't. Let me try it another way...do you know how after mowing the lawn on a hot day how even a PBR tastes like the best beer you ever had? Well Tashkent hits the spot when you are "in that kind of mood", when I am not I am finding myself enjoying the flavors but wondering where the rest of it is. I have never smoked this and not enjoyed it, I want to be very clear there, but it seems that this could be a transcendental smoke if it had a bit of Virginia...or Burley...or both.

The flavors are really fresh and this to me defines "spicy" in the tobacco sense. It has both an element of pepper spice but also spices yet unnamed (like a hybrid of sage, tarragon, paprika and rosemary). The Oriental/Turkish also bring a woody and vegetal quality to the smoke. The Latakia is a minor supporting element and does add some smoke and cream to the experience. If you are a hardcore Oriental/Turkish lover, this is a must try. I am glad I bought the 8 oz paint can of this as I am guessing that 2 oz was not quite enough for me....I also see some Orlik Golden Slices or Dunhill Flake finding it's way into this on my alchemy days (maybe even Uhle's Precision Plug Burley). I will add that if you puff too fast past the mid bowl point this has a tendency to get a tad harsh, the spice becomes overbearing, so keep to a moderate cadence. Bravo Peretti