Peretti Tashkent

The appearance: A two ounce bag, not worth talking about its age (because of the freshness of the tobacco), contained about a quarter of the mix, and the rest was orientals, dominated by turkish ismir. That was it. No Virginia. A roughly chopped sliver of three shades of brown, from slightly yellowish to dark coffee. The tobacco was a little dry, but quite acceptable for pipe filling.

Flavor: fairly dense notes of suede, spices (turmeric, allspice, the lightest note of cloves), sandalwood and musk dominate the peaty note of latakia, pushing it to the background. Along with it, also at a distance from the main notes, there was a light acidity inherent in Izmir. Herbal, floral, bread notes were completely absent. The overall bouquet is quite atypical, but pleasant.

Taste: The lack of Virginia had an impact on the flavor as a whole, and on the sweetness of the tobacco. Apart from the latakia, there was virtually no sweetness in the taste. But the subtle creamy sweetness of the latakia and its light smokiness was perfectly balanced with the spicy, woody notes of the oriental. A slight spiciness was also present, but it was different from the spiciness of the perique, having a support of spicy woody rather than fruity notes. To top it all off, I felt a slight slightly astringent taste on my tongue with a sourness, like biting into a leaf petiole. Gradually, the smoky notes of the latakia began to come in force, but the oriental flavor did not weaken, and the blend gained density and volume, being further unchanged in flavor. The latakia seems a little more noticeable in bentas than in straight pipes, but in both cases the blend smokes harmoniously, cool, slow and even, without any roughness or distortion of flavor. I would classify the strength as medium or slightly higher, in a very large pipe nicotine kick is possible. Oddly enough, the tobacco has a light and unstable rye aftertaste.

The smoke is spicy, dense, and quite plentiful. It has the scent of spice, cedar and sandalwood, and takes its time to weed out of the room.

What's the bottom line? As one Soviet famous song sings - "shine Tashkent, Star of the East!" A strikingly beautiful blend, created by a master of his craft, specifically for evening coffee. Even the fact that I prefer sweet blends, does not detract from its merits - a deep, dense, mild flavor with a relatively simple composition. Not much chance to try it, but if someone you know happens to be in Boston, Massachusetts, near 2 1/2 Park Plaza, ask them to stop by the Peretti store and get you Tashkent and a couple or three other blends to try. It's worth it.