Bufflehead Harlequin Duck

Bufflehead's Harlequin Duck is, as Dave Windsor there says with his trademark accuracy, a very nice "medium aromatic". Sounds boring but it isn't. Most pipers know finding an aromatic that actually tastes good, actually has good smoking properties and actually behaves well in the bowl is like finding a restuarant that advertises discounts for pipe smokers. Harlequin Duck is such a blend. Though not at all a fan of aromatics, my experience with Bufflehead's superb "Ruddy Duck" prompted me to try another Bufflehead aromatic and, since I like Hazelnuts, Harlequin Duck seemed the obvious choice. As with each of the 10 or 12 Bufflehead blends I've tried - Harlequin Duck demonstrates at first light it consists of better-than-average leaf, the Hazelnut topping notwithstanding. In three different medium-ish sized pipes (2 meerschaums) Harlequin's hazelnut topping is more present at first and then wanes quickly when about 2/3 of the bowl has been smoked and is replaced largely by the nice, but plainer, earthy, taste of Burley. Most importantly (to me) Harlequin is well-behaved, lacks about 99.9% of the legendary aromatic "sting", produces good smoke volume, and smokes surprisingly dry. Relighting is almost not a factor with Harlequin. Just as a matter of my subjective personal taste Ruddy Duck is the only aromatic I keep on hand. But there are surely legions of pipers out there who could easily develop a real soft spot for Bufflehead's Harlequin Duck. It is definitely a worthy example of how aromatics should be. If you like aromatics or are thinking maybe it would be politik to have a decent one around "for when company comes", Harelquin Duck is a short-odds candidate for the job.

Tiger