Mac Baren HH Acadian Perique

Perique may not be around in ten years time, and this is primarily why I would reccomend this fine tobacco for everyone.

Perique is the Champagne of tobaccos, and must/can only grow one single place on earth - St.James Parish in the state of Louisiana. As of today there are only two commercial farmers left in the world doing Perique, as it is very labour intensive, not very profitting and an extremely difficult leaf to handle/process.

Often when you smoke blends supposedly containing Perique, they are not. It's very likely that you are smoking Green River Burley instead - the processed leaf look very similar. If you are a Perique Connoisseur as myself, you will easily taste the diference, the normal pipesmoker will not. Green River Burley is sweeter yet harsher. Sorta like an peppered apple (if that makes any sense). Real Perique is dryer, way more pepperish and earthy (not that unlike Latakia).

This is the real deal!

I think they should have kept it more simple though, because throwing in sweet Cavendish and bright VA's makes it hard to dechifrate. Then there's the Burley and the Burley Kentucky in there as well, making this a very confusing and highly complex smoke. I've given up on analysing this blend, and primarily smoke it when in need for som strong nasal cleansing smoke. And the aftertaste is kinda weird. You have no urge for cigarettes for several hours after smoking this. It leaves your mouth with a taste that you've just eaten some eucalyptos/toothpaste with chili (?). You feel the freshsness in your throat and nose, like you've just cleansed your system.

No question this is not a tobacco for everyone, and no question this is high-end tobacco, with a fair amount of nicotine due to the acrid Burleys. But surely the Perique holds it share as well. The interesting thing is that this blend is full of the expensive Perique, not only the 2-5% that is the normal for Perique blends, but more like 10-15% or so. There is no doubt that Perique dominates throughout.

It smokes somewhat cool in the pipe, and you get it burning very easily. Burns to the end with no problem, though I always have a small moist dottle in the end. Maybe I could smoke it all, but it does get kinda sour in the very end.

I recommend you not to give up on this until you've smoked at least half a tin. Because of the complexity, it really deserves more than a few bowls. My first, second and third bowl was kind of disappointing - all I got out of it was tears in my eyes and burning nostrils. But I never pass judgement on a tobacco until I've at least gone through a whole 100 grams. Maybe I kinda know what I think of it after five bowls or so, but my experience tell me, that things can change suddenly in the world of bacco tasting. Also try out this in different pipes. I favour HH Acadian Perique in a Pot or Oom Paul.

I like my Perique blends a little more simple. But I recognise good tobacco, and I will be buying a dusin or two of these tins. But I do hord Perique in any shape or form, as the future of this "truffle of tobacco" is very unsecure. I for one, would gladly pay twice the price, if that be what it takes to keep farming it.

Nice mix of natural tobaccos, resisting any categorization attempt. A fair amount of Kentucky and Burley pulls it apart from VaPers, and for a Burley mixture, the Perique content is very high. I smoked the 100g tin in a few days and enjoyed every bowl, being a cool and noble tobacco, with no tongue bite and requiring very few relights. It's a bit bitter to me, and I think it would have benefited with a greater share of Virginias.

My next exploration from the HH line was Arcadian perique.from the description and the reviews it seemed very tempting.once i broke the tin a nice smell came out.ketchup notes,plums,coals and citruses combined this smell and promised a complex blend.the blend moisture was more than needed so some drying time is needed.lights with some effort and several relights are needed while smoking.while smoking from the first puffs i figured the complexity of this blend.the dominant compoment is the kentucky being ketchupy and spicy.the burleys give some florall notes and nuts.then the perique comes in second place being plummy spicy and sour.the virginias are mostly citrusy and sweet.latakia and orientals are in the backround offering coals,woods ,earthy notes and fire notes.generally the flavours are natural,complex but i found the kentucky burleys inhibiting the other compoments.burns slow and medium hot without moisture and dumpness to perfect ash.no chance of tongue bite.the room note is tolerable.generally it is a blend that has no simillarity to any other that is not an all day smoke for me.i give 3 stars only because i would prefer the kentucky more tonned down so the other compoments could reveal better their flavours.

One of the more intriguing blends in Mac Baren’s HH series. The tin note is sweet, briny and slightly sharp. The moisture level is just about perfect. However, I prefer giving it a minimum of 10 minutes dry time. This improves the burn rate and helps to decant some of the finer flavors that don't seem to want to show forth otherwise.

Despite the even ribbon cut I found this to be a fairly complex smoke. The Virginias are dark tasting, the perique is mellow and never sets much of an edge. Overall the flavor is anchored by the smoky, bittersweet taste of dark fired Kentucky which becomes fairly intense as the bowl progresses. At a slow sip I taste a cast of subtle flavors, most notably the light honey influence of the Cavendish, the dark fruit quality of the perique and the fragrant scent of the Turkish leaf.

If there were any surprises, it is how exceptionally smooth this blend is. The tin that I am smoking from is a little over two years old, but already the tobacco tastes well matured and quite refined. For what it’s worth, I had the most pleasant experiences smoking this in my wider, shallow-bowled pot & prince shaped pieces. In my smaller pipes the flavor was more intense and at my normal pace the bowl wanted to overheat.

Without a doubt Acadian Perique is a far departure for Mac Baren. Intriguing? I’d say so. Worth trying? Most definitely. Altogether an enjoyable medium strength mixture with good flavor and a crisp delightful finish.

Summary: A Virginia-Perique flavor balanced with earthier tobaccos so the Perique can shine, this blend is flavorful but dominated by that condiment.

This take on the venerable Virginia-Perique mixture adds Orientals, Cavendish and Burley to warm up and balance the resulting flavor, which owing to a strong Perique presence tilts toward that flavor. It lights easily and smokes consistently, with the spicier and sweeter sides of the Perique flavor coming out in turn. While this is an admirable concoction, the Perique dominates other flavors, and so it recommended only for those who desire getting closer to that condimental tobacco. The end result has a distinctive sweet but Burley-forward flavor, tasting not so much spicy but like wine and a cigar; this is, consequently, the blend I would recommend for cigar smokers to try first.

Mac baren pulled off something very interesting here.. so many components! And they all can be noticed during the smoke.. but it isn't a mess at all.. the perique, which is the namesake, isn't terribly strong.. yet somehow it lingers.. as if it is sitting on a pedestal behind the other components.. very smooth and spicy blend.. with that smoky Kentucky and touch of Turkish florals also demanding your attention.. a kind of dry and quick burning fine cut makes it an easy every day kinda smoke.. yet.. it is more flavorful than most flakes on the market.. it's distinct character also can put it in the 'mood smoke' category.. aging potential most definitely.. and another interesting smoke in the HH line..

This was the first tobacco that I've ever ordered and had out of a tin so I wasn't sure what to expect. When I popped the lid for the first time I was greeted with a wonderfully balanced aroma. Starting off just a little sweet, maybe just a slight hint of chocolate and finishing off with a very pleasant tobacco scent. There is nothing that stands out clearly from the rest yet it does not have a "muddy blended" scent to it.

I read a lot of people age their tins before really digging into them, however the smell of the Acadian blend completely did not allow me to wait longer than 2 days after receiving my tin.

Pulling some of the tobacco out and fluffing it to try and dry it a bit before packing it, I was probably a little anxious and moved too soon. The smoke was a mix for me. The flavor was everything promised, balanced, full flavored with no strong front runner in the medley of different tobaccos - just balanced. However with it being so fresh, it was a little too moist to keep lit without a consistent pull making a conversation near impossible. Even so, after multiple relights the flavor stayed fairly constant, adding some spicier notes as it burned hotter.

The end of the bowl reveled white-grey ash that burned all the way down.

All I can say about this blend is sit on it for awhile. About a year ago I received 4 oz. as a tip. Being from Acadia parish I was very excited to try a blend with the name in it's title. Ive smoked other tobaccos with Perique but HH seemed strong and harsh to me. I didn't really care for it much. But never one to throw out tobacco I put it in Mason jars and left it under my bed. Tried some the other day after having it since March, and lo and behold, either I've changed or the stuff mellowed in a very good way. Guess you never know...

Mac Baren - HH Acadian Perique

My tin is from April of 2020 and this blend fooled me honestly, I thought this would be a straight forward VA/PER. However after reading the tin note I was surprised to find that it was not just that but a culmination of the various leaf varietals.

The tin note is raisins, some light floral scents and some hay, this blend has some moisture in the tin, however this lit right up after my first match.

I was confused upon the first few puffs as I didn't get much flavor, however as the bowl progressed I was pleased with the wonderful peppery perique that melded easily with the Virginias giving me a wonderful peppery toast flavor.

This blend is interesting and I as much as I was hoping it would be a strict VAPER it will most likely remain in my rotation. I have not been disappointed in any of the HH line tobaccos thus far.