Esoterica Tobacciana And So To Bed

The Virginias are very fermented tart and tangy citrus sweet with minor grass, earth and wood notes as the star components. The Cyprian Latakia is smoky, woody, earthy, musty sweet as the second star, and is very obvious in every puff without disrupting the cause of the Virginias. The Greek Oriental is woody, earthy, floral, herbal, vegetative, mildly sweet with a slight spice and sour hit in a supporting role. The Maryland acts as a connector blend component. There’s a fruity apricot topping that is evident from the smell out of the bag and in the taste of the tobacco. I also detect raisins in the topping. The strength is almost medium, while the taste is medium. The nic-hit is a step behind the strength level. No chance of bite or harshness, and has no rough edges. A well balanced blend where the tobaccos meld together to create a very consistent flavor from first puff to last. The tobacco may need a little dry time, but being shag cut, burns at a decent pace whether dried or not. Requires more relights in the last third of the bowl than the first two thirds. If not dried, you’ll have a little trouble smoking it to ash. Leaves a little dampness in the bowl. Has a pleasant, lightly lingering after taste and room note. While the taste is right at being medium, it somehow seems more filling than that, so I would not quite classify this as an all day smoke.

-JimInks

I am updating my review of And So To Bed originally composed about a year ago - tastes change and mine certainly has with this blend which I found to be too overwhelmingly Oriental back then.

Perhaps the composition of the leaf was somehow different this second go round. Perhaps I tried it in better quality pipes. Perhaps my tastes have changed. Bottom line, I smoked a tin over the past week and dadgumit, I like this stuff now!

This blend is stout, yet in an elegant way. It had a subtle sweetness from the Orientals that complimented the Cyprian Latakia marvelously. There does not appear to be any sort of topping or casing and I think the sweetness is a natural by-product of the exquisite Virginia leaf interlaced with the Orientals and Latakia. Although not mild and certainly containing a healthy enough dose of nicotine, And So To Bed refreshes the palate without slapping your tongue around.

Try letting the leaf dry out a bit and give it a quick chop with your knife or blender for best packing and smoking results.

If you are a fan of a classy Oriental/Latakia mixture that doesn't scream "LATAKIA,", then take this stuff to bed and relax, you'll be in pipe puffers heaven!

This was a tasty tobacco a friend gave me in a sample pack. I liked the taste of latakia with the sweet virginia. There is a subtle spiciness here. There is some depth to the flavors, and it may be the Maryland giving it some body. Overall this is a great tobacco. I suggest you try it. It is not a lat-bomb, but it is a good solid smoke...

[EDIT] I have figured out what it was that made this an oddly compelling flavor profile for me. It is the orientals, and I think I like them. This blend has grown on me as I have smoked through the bag. If it were in stock anywhere, I would buy a pound or so have some around.

[Edit 2 - 11/17/15] I have now purchased a pound of this and think really this tobacco merits a 4 on the scale. You should try this if you can.

Esoterica - And So To Bed.

The name of some blends carry a certain charm, e.g. Haunted Bookshop just makes me want to fill up and light. This is one of those; And So To Bed, just has, in my mind, a charming character! It's the name that led me to ask my American Pipe buddy Gentleman Zombie to do me a trade and he said "no problem, I'll send a sample"; I couldn't believe my good fortune when the 'sample' he sent transpired to be three jars of different Esoterica blends! A huge thanks Franck!!

Aside from the name, I didn't know too much about this, but I can now say, happily, it's something special. The flavour from the smoke is inimitable compared to other blends. It doesn't seem 'aromatic', but it has a pleasing sweetness to it that's more so than the kind to normally come from Virginia's. The Latakia also seems a little different; it can be identified, but to do so it has to be purposely looked for and when found it isn't too formidable in it's flavour style; more of a relaxed cedar/woodiness than a direct smokiness.

The burn from And So To Bed is a very good one; even and consistent. The only issue with it is because it's quite a fine shag, if it's puffed hard it can become a little warm and that will also cause it to burn too quickly.

This is a superb/tasty blend; highly recommended.

Four stars.

Thank the blenders' imaginations rather than time or chance for this exotic tobacco. The term "kaleidoscopic" comes immediately to mind, from the minute the tin is popped, with swirling scents and textures of English tobacco, stewed prunes, rotten apples, raisins and apricots. It packs, lights and burns OK, and there is plenty of "exotic" smoke. The lot is smoky, sweet, sour and fruity all at once, augmented by sandalwood, cedar incense and more. Simply put, there's a lot going on here. And, amazingly enough, ASTB actually pulls it off. But do take note of the "native" moisture content, because, as it turns out, this tale hangs thereon, and when ASTB gets dry, the curtain falls on the magic theater.

Though it might hold its own as a medium English, the toppings pretty well preclude this, and I prefer to smoke ASTB like "dessert", or something like that. I would give it 4 stars, because I think "everyone should try it", but I guess I just don't like it that well, myself. Though it is unique, and it smokes far better than most aromatics I am aware of, over time the novelty simply wears a little thin, though still thick enough for 3 stars. So far, cellaring hasn't helped it much, and I hereby remind hoarders to keep tabs on the moisture.

I am a fan of Esoterica blends. Sadly, this isn't one of them. When I first began smoking it I enjoyed it, but after several tins, my taste for it diminished. I like the light fruity smell to the tin and although somewhat scented, I would not call it an aromatic. Some of the scent I believe comes from the treatment of the tobacco. My distaste grew because it lacks complexity even though there are a lot of different tobaccos in the blend. I sometimes enjoy light English mixtures with small amounts of latakia, this one seemed to lack latakia and really need it because nothing else stood out. I decided to jar some of my remaining stash and after 2 1/2 years, the blend still remains flat. ASTB is not a horrible tobacco, it's just not interesting.

I understand the confusion with this blend. It's remarkably sweet for a non-aromatic, but it does not have any topping at all. ASTB is a testament to the skill and traditions of true master craftsmen who understand how to bring flavors out of tobacco.

The tin smell is sweet and fruity. In the bowl, there is again a lot of sweetness from the Virginias combined with smokey latakia and orientals, which make for an amazingly complex and interesting flavor profile. It also changes as you move down the bowl, hitting more peppery orientals at one moment, smokey leather the next, and a buttery sweetness I could only compare with a sugar cookie after that. None of these flavors overpowers the others, though. They harmonize and trade the top spot as the mood hits them.

As the tin says, "put on your smoking jacket, pour a glass of vintage port, let your Golden Retriever settle at your feet and enjoy this superlative mixture while you chronicle the day's events in your diary." This is a true gentleman's tobacco, meant to be savored and sipped.

I really love the flavors in this blend. The Virginias lead with a hay and citrus note. The Lat is light but evident. The Orientals add a nice mildly sour spice that goes very well with the light apricot topping. Can't say I can taste the Maryland. It's truly delicious. I have to be careful with my pace though or the flavor can go off the rails. If I behave myself this is an easy 4 star smoke.

Mild to medium in body. Taste is medium. Added flavoring is mild. Burns perfectly with a little drying time. Same in briar, cob, or clay.

I was only able to get my hands on one tin of this fine tobacco before it was perpetually out of stock. My experience differs from most of the reviewers here. I do not remember detecting any topping. There was definitely some fermented sweetness but I wouldn't call it a topping. This is an oily tobacco of mostly dark leaf. I would call it more of a Balkan, with some sour notes and a subtle sweetness. It reminded me a little of durbar.

Update 30-09-2014: I recently got a bag of this stuff and was extremely disappointed. The stuff smells of Bananas, or as my friend Virginia Lover best describes it, Juicy Fruit chewing gum. What have they done to this blend! Shame that the description on the packaging is so misleading. This in my books qualifies as an aromatic tobacco.

I thought I reviewed this, but I guess I didn't or perhaps it dropped off. In either case, I first tried this blend about a year ago & wasn't impressed. I don't like the taste of anise in tobacco or liquor, though I enjoy it in biscotti or a little in coffee. This blend was always too briny & left an unpleasant aftertaste. Though I never liked it, I respected it for what it was: a unique tobacco creation of Esoterica by master blender JF Germain. Well, once again, outsourcing or tobacco crop failure or recipe changes are afoot here. Previously, I might have given this two stars, but now I'd give it less than one. The anise is not a flavoring, but a sensory overdose. The latakia is hot & one dimensional. Room note is billows of thick, unmemorable smoke. I don't know what's going on, but the last three tins of stuff I've bought or tried have been woefully disappointing. Now I'm hearing rumors that the marvelous Penzance is not being produced or about to undergo some serious changes. Wither pipesmoking? I hope not, as it's one of the few pleasures some of us have left. Yeah, right, I know, get a life, right? I'd be glad to, provided, of course modern times offered a life worth getting.

1/2 of five stars