Esoterica Tobacciana Penzance

I bought a tin of Penzance ten years ago at the Tinder Box and my recollection of it is a very good, full-bodied tobacco, though I didn't find it any more remarkable than anything else I was smoking at the time. I smoked half the tin, and gave the rest to a friend of mine who wanted to try pipes instead of cigars. I don't recall anything specifically that I liked or disliked about the flavor. I do recall that I had a hard time keeping the stuff lit. Maybe I just didn't understand how to prepare it correctly. Like cube cuts and flakes, it probably requires the right shape and size of pipe to really get the most out of it. In any case, I was enjoying Nightcap and Old Ironsides and those were excellent blends that I didn't find fussy, so Penzance became a distant memory. But it recently sprang back into my mind during a discussion of different tobacco cuts, and I thought I'd try giving it another go. After a brief search for some, however, I reconsidered my position.

My conclusion of Penzance is that those beholden to it are just a little bit insane. At the time of this review, eight ounce bags of the stuff are selling for nearly $200 on eBay. I simply cannot commit to that level of devotion, nor do I recommend to anyone that they dent their bank account so significantly just to try the stuff. If you can get your hands on Penzance, it is good, perhaps excellent. If you like Oriental blends, you're certain not to be disappointed, but there are plenty of other wonderful, similarly composed blends out there that can be had easily and at a reasonable price.

Personally, I think Penzance is held in such high regard more to justify to one's self the time and considerable expense in acquiring any amount if it rather than its superiority to blends of similar quality. I'm reminded of those wine tastings where they put some cheap wine in an expensive bottle, and vice versa, and even the professional tasters are fooled.

Smoking a bowl of this now, the wife literally just said " I wanna Lysol you so bad, that smells terrible." So cheers to the room note fellas! Anyway, The one thing I guess I could say is that this has a uniqueness in the flavor profile that I haven't found in any other blend except maybe Germaine's special Latakia flake. I find this blend very hyped up. I'm mot going to get into the appearance, tin note, moistness or anything other than smoking it. I find it to be awfully monotone. It starts out super weak and lacking flavor. In a large bowl combined with French inhaling it's capable to get you a sub par nic hit but definateley not much here. Every time I get around to a bowl of this I keep thinking I should have went with a more fulfilling smoke. I'm glad I bought it and was able to obtain this because of its scarcity and fame and simply to be able to say I did it. But in all honesty I can't believe all the four stars here. Margate is better. King Charles mixture is better. Nightcap is better. Penzance half way through starts getting pretty good actually, but I really don't like having to smoke half a bowl to get there. I tend to like more Latakia in my pipes and maybe that's part of it. I prefer Presbyterian mix, and squadron leader over this also. I'm some place around the halfway point right now and my palate is telling me " okay we get the point , you done yet?" - ( the wife just glanced at me and did one of those sighs like she can't wait till it's done).... I'm not hating on good ol penny here, I'm just saying that this sort of hype is rediculous. The day I got my hands on a tin I was thinking i I hit the pipe lotto. But the experience is actually that of the time your brother buys you one of those fake winning lotto tickets. Buy some if it there but don't chase the shit. Trust me , it's not worth it.

Esoterica Penzance is a good pipe tobacco, no doubt; medium to strong, and smoky dark in flavor. There was no real bite or bitterness, but I found that after it burned down a bit, it seemed that the flavor became stale and a sourness lingered on the palate. Perhaps my expectations were set too high. I was expecting a luxuriously rich, opulent, and flavorful smoke - pleasing to the taste, nose, and sinuses. This just isn't it. Penzance is better than the other Esoterica blends I've tried - including Stonehaven, Dorchester, Margate and Dunbar - but not by much. I have a sneaking suspicion that the Esoterica blends begin with tobaccos that are not "top shelf". After that, no matter what the "secret blend recipe" or "aging method" is, no matter how mysteriously "unavailable" the blends are marketed to be, the end product will always be less than "top shelf". A river can never rise higher than its source.... Because of the much touted reputation of the blend, and the demand presumably fueled by its supposed unavailability, vendors charge a significant premium. In my mind, the cult-like demand and premium cost are not justified by the actual quality.

I decided after reading some discussion on Penzance yesterday I would have that for my daily pipe yesterday. It had been a bit since I had smoked it, as I have been trying samples of other blends. I opened up my jar, near full of 8oz and find it seems to have dried just a touch since I first placed it in.

Penzance appearance/aroma/preparation

Penzance is a very unique flake tobacco. It has a quite dark appearance, most likely due to the high latakia content. This renowned ingredient also imbues this tobacco with a deep smoky aroma, not so much campfire as other english blends but something much deeper and darker. One thing that makes this tobacco incredibly unique is its consistency, not as defined by conformity with previous attitudes, behaviour, practice, etc., but as defined as the state or quality of holding or sticking together and retaining shape. This tobacco flake nearly falls apart upon handling. It has a soft delicateness that is pleasant to handle. It also makes the preparation quite simple. I select my Charatan Special 211, my english dedicated pipe for this smoke. I grab a few pinches from the jar and allow light pressure from my fingers to break the tobacco apart as it drops directly into my bowl, and give it a light tamp along the way.

Smoking Penzance

It took a few re-lights to get this bowl going, mostly due to my packing method. Penzance does not seem to expand much upon lighting. The smokiness of the latakia hits you promptly in this lat-forward blend. During the smoke you will notice the uncanny cool-smoking quality of this tobacco. I do find a slower smoke produces more flavor so mind your puffs, although it will never bite you. I find the flavor profile throughout the smoke to be very consistent, although it changes depending on how you smoke it. I found very light puffs to taste leathery and musky, similar to the smell of a tack shop with a wood fire burning inside. Puff a bit harder and the taste actually reminds me of dirt, not in a bad way. You may appreciate that if you are a gardener, it is like the smell of fresh loamy garden soil, perhaps with a bit of mulch. When you exhale through the nose, the taste again changes, although I am lacking an analogous description. It seems to have a bit more flowery character, perhaps the orientals coming through moreso during the nasal exhale.

Overall

I find the taste profile of Penzance to be quite distinctive. It is a pleasure to pack and it stays lit very well. It smokes cool and dry with no bite. It does have a decent nicotine kick, which I started to feel about 1/2 to 2/3 through the bowl. It is something I would smoke on occasion I wish to have something entirely different. I would say it is worth acquiring some, I enjoyed the search for this as much as smoking it. Certainly not a every day tobacco for this pipe smoker.

Update - Moved to two stars, I got rid of all of my Penzance. This blend made me believe latakia is not for me, but I am learning to enjoy it in other blends again. Penzance is an experience but, for me, not one that needs or wants to be repeated.

my personal favorite right now.

i had some fun and mixed penzance 50/50 with anniversary kake and it was pretty damned good.

[edit] 2011 batch is crap. smells like beef jerky in the tin. smokes terrible and the note is that of burning trash. they really screwed up.

Disappointed. Only recently has Penzance and Esoterica had traffic jams and hiccups in production and distribution. As mentioned by other reviewers over the last few years there is a problem with quality control. There shouldn't be such a huge disparity in flavor between bulk and tin. I have since my first tin purchase bought in 8oz bulk and have never been disappointed until now. The base tobaccos are fine but there is a top note missing that I crave that was something like anise and it has left the room. For me that was the activating ingredient, the magic that balanced the blend. Not what I paid for.

Having seen many people highly rate this tobacco I grabbed a tin when I saw it sitting on the shelf at my local tobacconist. It certainly has a potent tin aroma, and complex taste, but perhaps a little much for my palette at this time. For an English I much prefer some Old Dublin, or even some And So To Bed also by Esoterica.

I want to enjoy this tobacco as many people have.I am not there yet. The tin smells smoky with a strong hint of BBQ sauce. I have only smoked about three bowls. Will review later when done with the tin.

WOW - To say that this blend is overrated and overhyped would be the biggest understatement of the century. No, it is not a bad smoke, but the quality does not merit the 20 dollars per tin this stuff is currently demanding.

Penzance is a good English/Balkan with a good flavor, though I would not call it full. Complexity? none. I smoked this stuff and moved on, never got it again because it was forgettable.

To each his own. If you like it enough to pay 10 dollars per ounce, go ahead. If you are lucky enough to find it in stock and have never tried it and want to know if it's worth all that money, you are the only judge of that. If you want a full bodied smoke, this isn't it.

The tobaccos used are obviously of quality but the blend lacks climax. I'd recommend this to someone fairly new to English blends who might be afraid of too strong a flavor, only if it was available and priced properly. For what it is, it's way over priced.