Fribourg & Treyer Waterloo No. 2 Mixture

First off, I have NO idea how old the tin is. It could very well be in excess of 10 years old. It seems I am the only guy in town who is buying anything in tins.

That being said, I rather like this blend. It is very interesting to look at. A medium sort of cut with lots of bright golden strands, medium brown ribbons, and black flakey bits. Advertised as a blend of VAs and latakia it never really defines it self with flavor. It keeps moving the target around, which can either be of great interest, or rather frustrating. When you open, fluff, and pack it, the aroma is smoke latakia, but the smell that sticks to your fingers is VA. On the false light it is 100% latakia for the first puff, maybe two. Then it is gone. It just lingers in the back poking its head in the door from time to time to see if you are still smoking. I kind of like that, rather than the HEY! YOU'RE SMOKING A LATAKIA BLEND! punch that frequently leaves my with a cold, yet burnt over dry sensation in the back of my mouth. The VAs never get sweet and lemony, but are mellow and have a nice sort of harmonious flow back and forth with a soft and creamy mouthfeel. I occasionally noticed some cocoa flavors, and something floral, and once, something slightly like fresh clean linens. I know that is dumb, but it was there. Haven't smoked it in a big bowl yet, but in a smaller billiard it was very well behaved, didn't require but a few minutes of drying time before lighting, and stayed lit. No bite, no steam, no mess. I did have one little gurgle in each bowl, but I didn't find it to be a problem which couldn't be solved by the quick swipe of a pipe cleaner.

All in all I rather like this mixture. There is nothing gimmicky, or overly exciting about it. The vitamin N is rather moderate, but is enough to take your edge off. Room note.....not so sure. It left my truck smelling of old smoke. But hey, I smoke 4-6 bowls in there every day. Sometimes the truck just smells like old smoke.

It wasn't terribly expensive, and was a comforting kind of mellow smoke, so I say give it a try!

My review is based on about a half ounce sample of some with quite a bit of age on it. So take it for what it's worth. The amount of Latakia here would be consistent with that of a light/medium to medium English mixture. Surprisingly, the Virginia's don't seem to have gained much sweetness from the aging process. I am going to toss my hat in with Sir Pipestud and the leaf seems OK but not top shelf. The burn and pack are both with ease and it burns cleanly. It didn't bite me but it can be “warm” if not careful. There isn't much complexity here either, but the softening of the small amount of Latakia in the blend may have contributed to the result. Waterloo isn't bad a bad blend, but just not interesting enough to lay out a few bucks for more. Two and a half stars.

Bought some accessories from Iwan Ries out of Chicago and noticed the name more than anything. Saw it was Virginia and Latkia and billed as a mild Va./Latakia mix so bought a fresh tin. Had a nice lunch and had some extra time so to add to the quiet time I loaded 3/4's bowl of the Waterloo in one of my favorite Nachwalter's hand made. I found it to be a pleasant and interesting taste. It surprised me because it tastes to me more like a rich Virginia. There's a subtle hint of the Latakia but if I didn't know it was in the blend I'd be guessing. A favorite of mine is Stokkebye's Balkan Supreme. Robust latakia with super mildness. The Waterloo to me is nice and mild and a robust rich Virginia taste with a very subtle Latakia lurking in the background. Nice smoke, quality tobacco. Smooth and relaxing. The room note is much more tolerable for those around me than the heavy latakia blends. No doubt they will complain about this mix (they even complain on those rare moments when I'm in the mood for an aromatic blend) so if your house is like mine you're likely to get less flak with this even when you smoke outside only like me. I'd give it a sold 3.5 to 4.

Upon lighting my first bowl of Waterloo No 2 mixture I was tempted to dismiss it as an insipid non-entity. What an error of judgement that would have been! After a couple of days of breathing in the tin the mixture acquired a redolence of something like Royalty and a taste of something like Early Morning Pipe. Not quite as rich as Royalty and not quite as manly as EMP, Waterloo nevertheless combines the elegance and charm of both in a muted way.

I think there is a definite graceful oriental presence, and the latakia is gently applied. Excellent as the first pipe of the day, by the afternoon one wants something a bit heavier. I suspect that as with age the appetite for strong sensations wanes, this could well become an all-day smoke.