Esoterica Tobacciana Penzance

This has been one of my favorites for years and is regularly in my rotation. I like everything about it - the smell both in the tin and lit, the way it crumbles and packs, the lack of bite, the way it rubs out and packs, the cool dry smoke; oh, and most of all, the flavor. Is there any way to improve it? Well, not the tobacco but perhaps if it could sell for $20 a pound ....

I purchased an 8 oz. package in March of '06, and I sneek a bowl-full ever ten or twelve days. One of the recurring themes in all the previous reviews is that Penzance is complex and exotic. Penzance is woodsy, has a musty floral dimension, subtly soapy with a very delicate (nearly undetectable) sweetness coming from (I suspect) the Virginians in the mix. Is that complex enough for you? Definitely not a hot summer day interactive smoke, best enjoyed during season changes or on a cool relaxed evening on the porch.

IMHO, Penzance tries to be too comprehensive of a smoke. Your senses are slapped with wave after wave of the aforementioned complexities. This is normally a good thing, but the problem I have with Penzance is that it drenches the lining of my mouth with an unpleasant essence that remains there long after I finish the smoke, possibly due to a casing. I wouldn?t call this a morning smoke, for me it works better after a grilled porterhouse steak and a baked potato topped with sour cream and chive, with plenty of Napa Valley Cabernet.

It may be evident that my review is biased by my fondness of VAPER. However, I do sprinkle in latakia and other exotics throughout the week. I hope this critique does not sound too harsh on Penzance. I wouldn?t discourage anyone from testing this blend. I intend to keep a small amount around for that occasion when nothing else fits the mood. Having said all this, I can only give Penzance 3 of 4 stars.

Penzance is a fine flake blend. It's latakia is slightly understated, as compared to some of the other English blends, but it comes through nicely anyway. The Virginias are delicious.

No bite. Burns well.

I ordered a 2 oz. tin and was extremely excited when it came in the mail. I enjoyed it's pretty, simple looking tin. I opened it up and took a whiff. Oh my goodness this stuff smelled terrible. I could compare it to rotting leaves, pencil shavings, Sharpie markers and tar, all blended together and hard pressed and cut into thick flakes. I crumbled a bit into my Peterson and lit this dark mass of rotting filth. First I was quickly hit with the scent, something I will never forget. Immediate images of the forest, beautiful peacful fields and nature in general came to mind. The taste was so pleasing, that I forgot to blow out and inhaled it by accident. It tastes and smells so earthy, and pure. I smoked aromatics when I began pipe smoking a year ago, but this is what I smoke. Pipe smoking didn't appeal to me until I tried this absolutely amazing blend. Now I'm hooked.

This should read: room note: Pleasant, not mild. . . . I give this'un 3.5 stars, but that doesn't really show up wth the current system. Ok. I don't know what Cepecol(sp) tastes like, and I haven't tasted anything but the best tobaccos in this blend. But. . . When I opened my first 8oz of Penzance, what I smelled was very familliar, and it wasn't just tobacco. It took me a couple of days to place the smell, since it had been a while. I smoked a few bowls and loved it. It actually reminds me of smoking Sobranie. It doesn't taste like it, but it puts me in the same mood. Anyway, that smell. My mind was churning(it always is) and I kept thinking of roasted barely, but that wasn't it. Then it hit me. I used to brew beer, at home, and my sanitizer was Iodine. That's what it was. Didn't bother me, brought back good memories, and it went away after a couple of days. So, anyway. There's lots of good latakia here. And it's one of the smoothest smokes around. Moral of story: with this stuff, if at first it smells a little funny, put it in your pipe and smoke it.

Great stuff. The -.5 star is for the format. Even though I love to play with crumble cake, I'm usually to busy working to worry about the tobacco density in my bowl- enjoy

When I first tried this a few months ago I thought it was OK. It was rather moist and much milder than the other reviewers had led me to expect. A few months later my tin had dried out significantly. The tobacco crumbled to a powder. I packed the pipe and lit the bowl. BIG MISTAKE! This stuff was putrid. It tasted like Cepacol sore throat spray and even had the same numbing effect on my mouth! I almost gagged. I tried to persevere figuring it would settle down a bit, but I was wrong. After a third of a bowl I had to stop. What's more, it flavored my pipe like Cepacol. The next day I tried smoking some Solani Silver Flake in it but all I could taste was the putrid Penzance. I had to take immediate action to rid my pipe of the resididual effects left by Penzance. For you guys who love this stuff, "Seek professional help before you hurt yourselves or someone you love."

Penzance is probably the finest krumblecake on the market today! High quality ingredients are used and I just love pressed tobacco. Very easy to prepare for smoking though one needs not pack to firmly and I found a group 2 or 3 works best. Initially on light up, you can taste the different varieties of tobacco used but, after that it does settle a bit and the tobaccos seem to work well with each other. Not overpowering, the richness of the blend makes it very satisfying to smoke as the taste comes across creamy if smoked methodically and not too hurried! An occasional treat, it is brought out of the hanger on special occasions. It demands your attention! So "Sit Up" and "Fly Straight". Will always have on hand.

OK, at the risk of being burned at the stake for heresy, I have to admit I'm not very fond of it as a regular smoke. Or maybe I'm just burned out on it.

I bought an ounce from a bulk container at my local B&M. I liked it so much that I went back and bought a 2-oz tin. Still enjoyed it. Then I bought an 8-oz pack. Big mistake.

No, there's absolutely nothing wrong with it. But it's no longer part of my regular rotation. I don't know, maybe I've just smoked too much of it. I'll wait a few more weeks and give it another try. As I said, maybe I'm just burned out.

I had such high hopes for it, too, after reading the reviews here. As far as the room note, it was hard for me to put it into words until I smoked it at work and a couple of people told me it smelled like "incense at high mass." That's exactly it.

After finishing a pound of it, I rushed to ordered two pounds! Latakia lover should not try it... 'cos it may run out of stock...then you are in trouble! Please read all details by other 4 stars reviewers. If you're new to Latakia leaf, try it, I am warning you, this crumble thing is addictive!!!