Peterson Elizabethan Mixture

The last time I smoked this mixture was back before the internet so it was the old Dunhill blend. So I thought I would retry it in today's version.

First impressions are pretty strong when opening the tin and smelling the tin aroma. Upon opening this fresh tin I immediately smelled the fresh scent of fresh cut hay that good Virginias have with the ever so slight tang of perique in the background. The cut is a thin ribbon in various shades of brown and khaki. The moisture was dead on perfect to just load in the pipe and not wait for it to dry for a day or so. I loaded it in a pipe that I use mostly for Virginias and is a good smoker. I did the light, tamp and then light method and my first impression was velvety smooth. I immediately sat back a and relaxed and slowly savored the smoke. It has the sweetness one expects from a Virginia and smoked slow this really came out and every now and then I would catch a faint whiff of the perique with it's spicy flavor. It was easy to light and stayed lit pretty well all the way down to the bottom of the pipe. It smokes at a good rate, not too fast and not too slow and very dry all the way down. Towards the bottom of the bowl I tasted the perique come out more and the strength of the flavor grew stronger. It leaves a dark gray ash at the bottom of the bowl and just a little dottle. The room note to me smelled wonderful, to my wife it smells like cigarettes. I don't see it as I don't like the smell of cigarettes but I like the note of this one. Oh well, to each his own I guess. I went on to smoke this blend in a variety of pipes, briars, meers, and cobs. Great in all.

In summary, for a Virginia smoker this is an excellent blend. The perique is subtle. For a VaPer smoker this might leave them lacking as the perique is so much in the background. But it is an exceptional blend, very smooth, tasty, does not bite if smoked properly, and I highly recommend it.

The last thing that is probably needed here is another review of Elizabethan. However, as I have now had both of the latest iterations (Dunhill and Peterson's) side-by-side in very similar pipes, that is what you are going to get!

First of all, and no real surprise, the Peterson's version is (in my opinion) unchanged from the STG Dunhill version. The tins are shallower and the branding is updated but the contents are identical.

All the Dunhill-Peterson's consist of a wonderfully easy to pack fine ribbon which is important as this makes for an assuredly consistent experience. The tin aroma is of rich fig and dried fruit base with complex Virginias and is wonderful. What you end up with when lit is a mild but rich dark Virginia flavour with a little sweetness and some grassy notes throughout, all enhanced by the perfect quantity of deep and peppery Perique.

The new Peterson's has, I notice, a lot more of the bright notes in comparison to the Dunhill that have been smoothed out over time, maturing in my Mason jar. This is the way I remember Dunhill Elizabethan smelling and tasting and I like it fresh. The taste is complex but consistent to the bottom no matter the pipe or indeed bowl size but I find it a little better in narrower, tallish Peterson. (But then I find almost all Virginia-based blends test best in this pipe.)

Both fresh and mature versions, if smoked gently, produce a cool smoke with no bite and remain fairly dry to the bottom with very little dottle. There is still however, a LOT of nicotine in this blend which is another thing that has remained the same and we are left with a light but distinct Virginia room note; pleasant if you like that sort of thing (and I do!).

So, Elizabethan Mixture is back and I no longer need to hoard all of those Dunhill tins. Anyone disagree?

Parlons aujourd’hui de l’Elisabethan Mixture de la maison Dunhill. J’ai découvert le Périque avec ce tabac et qui me donne aujourd’hui l’opportunité autant que le plaisir de vous écrire ces quelques mots. A l’ouverture ; la couleur du mélange est plutôt homogène avec une belle couleur marron rehaussée de quelques brins un peu plus foncés. L’odeur est agréable, aucun arôme particulier ne s’en dégage si ce n’est une odeur de Virginia subtilement poivrée. La coupe très fine pour un tabac à pipe nous rappelle celui du Scaferlati, rendant le bourrage aisé même dans les petits foyers que j’affectionne pour ma part plus particulièrement. Les brins de tabacs ne sont pas très humides à l’ouverture, et nécessitent qu’un faible temps d’aération pour pouvoir être fumés. L’allumage ne pose, lui non plus aucun problème, et quant à la linéarité de la combustion, bien qu’un petit peu rapide par rapport à des tabacs dont la coupe est plus grosse, celle ci reste homogène et donne une cendre très fine et très blanche. Dès les premières bouffées les arômes du Virginia sont très présents et gouteux, que le Périque vient « assaisonner ». Je ne saurais pas dire quel pourcentage le mélange contient de Périque, cependant celui-ci me semble correctement dosé afin de venir renforcer le Virginia tout en lui donnant une petite touche poivrée qui me rappelle le poivre Sichuan. La fumée est généreuse, son goût tout en finesse. Loin du côté plat que je reproche le plus souvent aux 100% Virginia faiblement maturés, cette adjonction de Périque lui donne à mon sens à la fois du corps, et de l’esprit. Du corps pour ceux qui, comme moi, affectionnent un tabac un petit peu costaud dans la rondeur en bouche autant que dans sa force. De l’esprit parce que le Périque vient subtilement relever le Virginia et ainsi lui faire développer la totalité de son arôme tout en conservant sa principale caractéristique qu’est sa légèreté. Le fumage est régulier, et comme beaucoup de tabacs, le dernier tiers du bol se corse un peu où le côté poivré s’accentue nettement. Je trouve ce tabac très intéressant à plusieurs niveaux. En premier lieu, il n’est pas aromatique ce qui permet de bien sentir le Périque et donc de se faire une réelle opinion dessus, car un sauçage ou une aromatisation cache parfois les subtilités d’un tabac. Ensuite sa coupe fine facilite le bourrage, surtout pour un débutant, ou dans des foyers de faibles diamètres, ce qui est non négligeable tout en assurant une combustion parfaitement régulière. De plus c’est un tabac de force relativement moyenne qui se prête volontiers à un fumage de tous les instants de la journée. Enfin le Périque se faisant rare dans les mélanges que nous pouvons nous procurer ici en France, je trouve non seulement que cela peut être une belle découverte mais aussi une alternative à un full Virginia classique, pour ceux qui pensent que ces derniers manquent un petit peu de tonus. Le bémol, bien entendu, reste le tarif prohibitif de cette boite (Et c’est un peu mon cheval de bataille) qui ne permet pas à tous les fumeurs d’avoir l’opportunité d’en fumer tous les jours.

I pity this blend. It get's such a bad reputation because diehard VaPer fans don't get enough from it. And rightfully so it's not an Escudo or Limerick level blend. But, this could be a great introductions to VaPers for a person looking to expand their palette.

The tin is a mixture of light, beige and brown leaves. Shag cut is easy to pack and it might be a good idea to pack it a little tighter so it doesn't burn as fast and heat up your pipe.

At the beginning of the bowl I got a light sweetness that probably comes from a casing of the Virginias. There are also some cedar notes earlier on. The Perique tends to come on later on in the blend and rounds off the flavor of baked honey breads and a slight flavor reminiscent of raisins.

I think the problems with this blend is that the VAs aren't anything to write home about and the Perique very toned down. So you're left with a VaPer that doesn't appeal to a VA fan nor a Perique one.

A friend of mine told me some advice and he was right. This blend really shines in a cob. I smoked the latter half of my tin in my MM Patriot and it felt like it got better with every bowl.

This blend is a perfect start for someone wanting to try VaPers, especially if they're weak when it comes to Vitamin N. Can't fully recommend this as you can get more complex and enjoyable VaPers for less money.

As this is my 50th review, I wanted to pick a toby that I found special, with some history, reborn after a period of time-thereby lending credence to the boom that pipe smoking is enjoying. There have been several from which to choose, but I pulled out my tin of EM as Dunhill has given me many a good puff to date. Not so much with this VaPer though, I am sorry to report.

The initial tin note had a date-apricot bready note, with strong Va tones, without any hayish grassy scents I have come to appreciate in VaPers. Quality ribbon cut, but a tad dryer than I am used to from Dunny. That dryness resulted in easy lights, minimal relights.

The problem I experienced was in the taste, as well as the bite. There was no Va sweetness, negligible interaction with Perique, and a generally harshness to it that I could not shake. It utterly failed to alter in taste in multiple cobs, as well as varying sizes of dedicated briars...all I tasted was harshness.

And the bite was always hovering on my palate. This despite my concentrating on slow methodical sipping, so much so that I fatigued from the experience bowl after fatiguing bowl. Packing it in loosely have the least offensive results, if only because it took less time to sip through.

Not a total loss though, it'll go into my 24 oz. decanter where I keep my ever-changing "amnesia blend", where many lesser baccys have come together for some remarkable smoke.

With all the great reviews, don't let this deter you, but I have other Vapers cellaring that far exceed this blend-according to my taste (Escudo & La. Flake).

Still love my Dunhill moments though, just not with Elizabeth it seems.

After smoking the heck out of Early Morning Pipe, having Nightcap as a regular go-to smoke and falling head over heals for 965, I thought I'd give this one a try. Still scratching my head on this one; 965 is one of my most regular smokes and I get more each time I make an order.

However, I'm thinking that this is my new Number Juan. The perique really stands out and I think that's why. I love the right amount of perique. Flavour in every drag.

Burns very cool. Packs well and lights easy and requires little attention. (I've just received a Stanwell which will be this VaPer's only partner). As the tin ages, it just keeps getting better. And when I pack it and leave it for a while, it is a fantastic pipe tobacco experience, especially when paired with a strong, dark roast coffee.

Amazing!

Peterson- Elizabethan Mixture

They have returned, now under the Peterson name, I unfortunately never tried the Dunhill version, but can surmise from others that minus age they are largely the same blend.

I am ecstatic that I finally tried this blend, since I opened the tin a few days ago I’ve only smoked this blend, just like the snake from jungle book I am hypnotized by this blend.

Elizabeth would be proud, the Virginia’s aren’t overly bright but deliciously bready, the darker Virginia’s add a nice layer of depth without overshadowing the brighter Virginia’s. The Perique in this one begins with a figgy smell, once lit it’s all spice, with a nice peppery tingle that on occasion will give me a sneeze or coughing fit.

The spice on the Perique is more pepper with a wasabi tingle. All components play well, the nicotine isn’t anything over the ordinary and it’s ready to smoke right out of the tin.

This tin was date 8/8/19, with age I can see the flavors melding more and sweetening.

4/4 stars

After all the positive reviews and video logs I really wanted to like this one esp being a big Dunhill fan...

As usual with most Dunhill tobaccos the Ribbon/shag cut? tobacco comes out of the tin with the perfect amount of moisture, packs and lights with minimum effort and stays lit beautifully but here's the but!

To quote the film 'Big' I didn't really get it? The perique never really tickled my senses the Virginia never took much to the party and it all came out a bit 'Cavendish-esque'...On top of this a very Ashy taste developed for the majority of the 2nd half of the bowl. The variables in this review are...it was smoked fresh out of the tin (even though the tin had been cellared for 3 yrs). The majority of the tin was smoked during the biggest heatwave in the UK in 30 yrs. And also I had been smoking a few different blends over the past few days so maybe my palate wasn't the sharpest.

So the tin has been decanted into a jar and I'll try again on a clean palate on a cooler day...An update will follow but as stands Its by no means a bad tobacco but is also a long way from being a great one.

Solid VaPer blend. Tin note for some reason reminds me of Benson and Hedge's cigarettes my dad used to smoke. The pack smell of those cigarettes comes to mind as soon as I put my nose to the tin. Grassy Virginia's slight, very slight notes of fig/prune from the perique. The flavor is that of a medium strength VA/Per: Bready Virginia's with toasty notes. The VA's are grassy and citrus and the perique is mildly applied which works well with this blend of VA's. There is some fig/prune like flavors that blend well with the sweetness from the Virginia's and a nice peppery note. The perique in this blend seems to let itself be known more in the peppery sense than in the stewed fig sense. Nice all day tobacco, it knows who it is and it has a great flavor, as with any VA it can bite if pushed and to me is best in a meershaum but closely seconded in the cob.