Esoterica Tobacciana Dunbar

I'm smoking a bowl given to a friend of mine and stored for five years. The maturity of the leaf is obvious and I can't speak to how it smokes new. But compared to a Briar Fox which was also aged 5 years I notice a lot of similarity. The Virginias in this override the perique (hence my comparison to BF) substantially but the perique is not hidden.

Bite free (which should be able to go unsaid but unfortunately doesn't always). Full of depth of flavor.

In my opinion a great smoke. But for my money, and for availability reasons I would probably be equally happy with other VaPers. I do not agree with the comparison to Orlik. But again, maybe because mine was not new (though I have smoked very old Orlik and it ages very differently). I would say for a vaper it's more comparable to Capstan blue. But the perique is much more muted (probably due to the time stored).

The pleasure starts before opening the nice ET tin. On opening, I was taken aback by the aroma. Fresh, natural, wood, honey - can VaPers really smell this good? The cut is rough, shaggy, thick strips, broken flake a bit of ribbon - packs very easily despite being relatively moist. Within seconds of first getting Dunbar going I realised I was in for a treat. A light, naturally sweet Va with a fresh chilli Perique edge, velvety yet spicy, sweet but not artificially so. Lighter, fresher than FVF, fuller, smoother than DNR, cleaner, more natural than Three Nuns or Navy Flake, this is an outstanding VaPer that I have started to crave. Excellent!

Update: I have been smoking this almost exclusively over the summer, it's a great warm weather tobacco: its citrus cleanness and light tobacco touch is just great when other darker tobacco would be like Guiness in the desert. This, along with Tilbury, are my standard mixes now, I no longer feel the need to experiment with other VAs - more than happy with these all day every day.

Not very sweet, at times even sour... At the beginning of the bowl it may remind of Cairo, then it becomes tastier, fuller. At the bottom of the bowl, it has become VERY tasty. Think of Tribute, but more on the sour side and not toasted at all. A nice tobacco, but I find it a bit too heavy for my taste. Not nicotine-heavy (though not light at all!), just heavy as impact on the palate and on the senses: probably due to the high amount of Perique, which I don't consider myself a fan of.

As usual with Esoterica, the moisture level when fresh is too high, and when you open the tin you have to beware for rust and internal corrosion because it will happen soon.

A good tobacco if you like this kind of thick and heavy stuff, but not elegant enough for me.

You probably have your own "WTF?" blends -- tobaccos that others seem to love but which for some reason do nothing for you -- and this is one of mine. Sure, the telltale crystals indicate it's nicely aged ("in the British Isles," the label says -- what, does tobacco age better over there?), and sure, it tastes vaguely like a pipe-tobacco when you smoke it, but it's so bland and undistinguished that in bowl after bowl, I kept asking myself "What is the point?" There is a thin line between "subtle" and "boring," and for me Dunbar crosses it. Even the Perique doesn't add much spice. The best thing I can say about this stuff is that it's smooth. Dull, but smooth. Dorcester, Esoterica's other VA/Perique blend, is a hundred times tastier and more interesting.

In one of the reviews above, someone complains about Latin problems with the phrase "Esoterica Tobacciana" on the label. Far more troublesome to me is the fact that they misspelled *Virginia*! Maybe that's the problem with this stuff.

Here we have another Virginia/Perique blend with wonderful smoking properties. I don't find this as flavorful as Dorchester; it's more on a par with Escudo for me, though it doesn't taste exactly the same. The sample bag smell is close to Dorchester: a mild, medium tobacco smell with little or no sweetness. It appears to be a mostly rubbed out flake, with about 10% still unrubbed. The color of the leaf is mainly medium brown, with some darker browns thrown in as well. It is on the dry side, has a medium to long cut, packs well and lights easily, puffing up as the flame hits it. It also burns well, requiring less than the average number of mid-bowl relights. In the first third, the flavor is very ordinary, just an average, medium Virginia flavor without the normal Virginia sweetness. There are several layers of this medium flavor, though, and I notice a bare hint of spice in the background. In the second third, I'm noticing an element of sweetness, and a slightly stronger spice note. The Virginia flavor has also changed, becoming more mature and complex. The multilayered effect is nice, and the tobacco is thus far free of tongue bite. The taste is somewhat delicate, not exactly full but flavorful nonetheless. In the final third of the bowl, the flavors mature and merge, though the spice remains a fairly minor part of the blend compared to its role in Dorchester. This part is especially good if you leave the pipe overnight and go back to it (DGT-style). It is by no means full or highly complex, but it is a nice, tasty smoke that has only minor bite problems and no moisture build-up at all. Overall, a very nice but not overly special blend. I much prefer Dorchester to this one, even though it bites more for me. For best effect, use a deep bowl and smoke slowly. Virginia/Perique fans should enjoy this one, and I should have no problems finishing my sample.

Lots of tangy, floral and slightly spicy notes to get things started. Small sips of lemon grass and bread. Rich and complex with little nic hit. Flavors mesh mid bowl into delicious and complex flavor. Retro really makes this blend shine. Going into my morning lineup with Telegraph Hill. -Spiral Out

Upon opening the tin, I was greeted with a beautiful fruity smell. The broken flake was the perfect moisture to immediately pack and smoke. As I burned through the bowl I got hints of hay, a bit of citrus, some fig/raisin type fruitiness, and an ever so small amount of spice I can only assume was from the perique. This blend is mild, cool smoking and wont bite unless you really puff it hard. As a regular Va/Per smoker I would highly recommend this blend and it will become a staple in my cellar when it can be found.

I was a bit worried to try this due to the perique but I have been pleasantly surprised. Only tobacco I’ve liked with perique has been bullseye. But in fairness I’ve not given them much of a chance due to my father in law’s opinion about perique being too spicy. I am absolutely loving this blend as I am everything I try from esoterica and Germains! Exquisite Tobacco’s!!!! This bend has easy become on of my favorites and can be smoked all day long!!!

For anyone who has smoked any of the Esoterica blends you will know that they are the kings of subtlety. They don’t try to overwhelm any blend with one component or another. It takes a few bowls (or many bowls in some cases) to start to figure out the blend. Dunbar is no exception. I smoked through one tin and I still feel that I do not 100% get it. But I will try and put it into words that make sense.

Pre-Light Aroma: Straight out of the bag you can immediately pick up the woodland scents of the Virginias, grass/hay/mother earth…..it’s all there. I can only detect Bright Va’s in here. I don’t smell anything that may be stoved or dark. The perique in this blend is more of a fruity aroma rather than the usual spicy/peppery aroma that is apparent in most blends.

Appearance: Long pieces of ready rubbed tobacco is what I see. Tans and browns mostly but there are some darker pieces in there which I am assuming is the Perique. Easy to dry, easy to load, easy to pack. Thank goodness!! I’ve been dealing with McClelland’s Ready Rubbed chunks lately so this is a very welcomed departure.

First ½ of Bowl: When I first lit up this blend I was greeted with tons of smoke and a great Va aroma. Slightly sweet but definitely not overly sweet. It took this blend a little bit to settle down and incorporate all of the Va tastes and aromas and then the Perique slowly snuck in and out. Very pleasant, definitely not overpowering in any sense.

Second ½ of Bowl: The flavors in the second half of the bowl seem to be more pronounced. Different Va flavors are mingling with the Perique flavor dancing in and then moving out. It is a very, very pleasant experience. I can only imagine that with more time spent with this blend it will only get better.

Summary: When I first started smoking this I thought that it was a pretty straight forward blend. Va’s and Perique…..easy peasy. After a few bowls of this I realized that there were a lot of subtle things going on in the background. I think that there are several different Va’s that are represented here and it adds a depth to the blend that I was not expecting.

As I stated above, there are several things going on in every Esoterica blend. It’s like a Seinfeld episode actually.

This is an excellent blend. Esoterica seems to put a ton of thought into their blends and they take their time. That is why they are so rare and hard to find. I understand this and agree with their approach. Create a blend, make it awesome, and never ever compromise on it just to feed the masses. If you are lucky enough to get ahold of this blend (or any of their blends) you will not be sorry.