Bufflehead King Eider

Ok. Not much more to add than what previously has been said. This is a wonderful, dark, rich, earthy tobacco that burns long, lights and stays lit well, and is very satisfying. I have an 8 oz. tin stashed for the future so I bought a 4 oz. tin at the Chicago show. Unfortunately, the price at the show was as much as the 8 oz. I thought Bufflehead was going to sell again, but their updated website lists the companies who will now stock the tobacco. If the prices are the same as the Chicago show, this will not be bought much by this reviewer, just too pricey, and too bad for incredible tobacco.

King Eider is highly recommended for thos who like Virginia Perique blends. It come as dark brown broken flake that can be smoked as is in a larger bowl or rubbed out for smaller bowls. It packs firmly so some care should be taken in that area and lights easily with minimal relights. The flavor starts as a full sweet Virginia with the peppery Perique providing a top note to the smoke.The zesty spice of Perique stays with you througout the bowl providing a nice balance to the sweetness of the Virginias. This is one of my everyday smokes. A fine offering from Dave at the Bufflehead shop. A company that has and continues to provide excellant service and is pure enjoyment to deal with. Highly recommended.

King Eider is a broken flake that just begs comparison with McC. #2015- similar color, texture and composition. And like #2015, it is a smokin' deal for the $$$ (pun intended).

I find KE to be just a tad bit mellower yet a bit brighter tasting than a somewhat aged #2015. In contrast to #2015, my sample also required no drying-out time, being ready to go right out of the tin. My guess is that KE has a bit less perique than its McC. counterpart. I prefer the darker and richer #2015 by a small margin, but this may be a somewhat biased comparison given that the KE had not been aged (by me) nearly as long as the #2015 sample.

This is clearly a must-try product for the Va/P aficionado. Oh, yeah, and a much better deal than Escudo, both in $$ and quality.

Upon receiving my package from Bufflehead, I opened my 8 oz. bag of King Eider and inhaled the scent of this lovely tobacco. It has some of the mouth watering tang of McClelland 2015, as well as some of the deep, rich gingerbread/molasses aroma of P.S. Luxury Navy Flake.

I found no shards of stem, as I did in my last order of 2015. The moisture content was just about right. It rubs out nicely. Like 2015 and P.S. Navy Flake I had to be careful not to pack the bowl too tight. It takes a couple matches to get burning well, but then burns nicely. I had no trouble with tongue bite, as long as I took my time and didn't rush. I enjoyed the taste of fine Virginia and Perique, and as with 2015, I relished the odor of my own second hand smoke.

I highly recommend this to any navy flake, Virginia/Perique lover. McClelland 2015 is still my personal benchmark for this genre, but King Eider measures up very nicely.

Finally, the people at Bufflehead are great to work with. My order came quickly and they sent me 2 oz. of an as yet unnamed addition to their Decoy series for my testing and comment. It by the way is a marvelous straight Virginia that I hope they roll out. Based on my initial transaction, they work hard to serve the needs and interests of the pipe smoker.

Give King Eider a try. I think you will enjoy it.

King Eider is strikingly similar to McClelland 2015. It's a wonderful blend of Virginias with a healthy dose of perique in a beautiful broken flake. I'm smoking King Eider in a Ser Jacopo full bent as I write this review. It's sweet, tangy, and complex. Highly recommended for VA/perique lovers!

This is a very pleasing full-bodied VA/perique, rather reminiscent of St. James Woods but a bit fuller and richer IMHO. The perique hits the nose as the bag is opened. The broken flake rubs out and packs easily, but is just a tad moist so don't overpack. If visuals are any indication, this has a hefty perique content, lots of dark brown with the red-orange VA. I favor a large bowl with this blend. This stuff crowns very nicely if you enjoy that effect as I do. Light it up in the dark and watch that cherry flare like a cobra. The first thing to hit the palate is that Bufflehead knack for clean-tasting zesty VAs. The perique is there, but the first part of the bowl is a VA experience, with the perique dancing high in the nose. Like most tobaccos, this stuff hates to be hurried, but is actually pretty game compared to most VAs. It burns evenly and completely in the right pipe to a very pale grey ash. I struggle generally with complete smoking, but this gives me less fight than most. As the bowl progresses, the perique comes through more assertively, keeping things cool with a tangy spiciness. This is a satisfying smoke but won't give you the spins unless you really chug it. It inhales smoothly if you inhale as I do, but gives good nicotine satisfaction without inhaling. It does fill the room with its weighty dense smoke, and blows good if not great smoke rings. Comparisons are hard to avoid. It is sweeter and a bit less "periquey" than Escudo, has much more sweetness and complexity than Elizabethan Mixture, a bit fuller and spicier than St. James Woods. If you like those blends you should like this.