Fribourg & Treyer Wingate Mixture

Looks in the tin like every English blend I've ever seen with it's tan to black ribbons. On first opening it had a similar aroma to some of the old Dunhill blends but it receded quickly. Easy to load and keep lit.

This tasted like exactly what it contained - Virginia, latakia and perique. It began with a mild burst of latakia but the perique quickly overtook the latakia. The Virginias were of an easy sweetness and tang, and didn't fight with the two condiments. This blend retained a sizzling spiciness throughout the bowl, but an obvious lack of any real depth. Except for the various tobacco tastes moving around in prominence, this had no complexity to speak of. For the most part (there are some exceptions) a blend where the existence of latakia isn't an afterthought, the lack of orientals makes for a very shallow blend, lacking in any jump factor and becoming quickly monotonous. Such was the case here. Not a bad blend, just nothing to get excited over. I did enjoy it's spicy character but there was little backbone to it. I'm going to experiment with blending in some choice orientals to my second tin and see what magic that produces.

This review is only based on a four bowl sample for take it for what it's worth. As others have pointed out, this is a sweet and spicy blend. The spice coming from the perique, and the sweet coming from some manually added sweetness as I suspect it isn't coming from the Virginia's alone. There is definitely some strength to this blend, but I wouldn't call it overwhelming. Like all F&T tobaccos, it is of high quality leaf. I am not suggesting that this is in the genre of scented Lakeland tobaccos. But similar to scented blends, assuming the quality underlying tobacco is good, it comes down to whether or not you're a fan of the topping. I don't dislike it, but it isn't interesting enough to buy any tins.

Fifteen years ago I used to enjoy the then complex Wingate mixture's generous dash of havana tobacco. After changing from cigar to pipe smoking recently, I was disappointed to find the tobacco changed beyond recognition by the new blenders. Now it's a harmless "english" blend strengthened a bit by perique but in no way the original, much more powerful and interesting Wingate of Fribourg & Treyer!

I'm no Latakia expert, and not yet a big fan, either, but this one felt quite, quite, quite nice. It was the Perique that brought me to this mixture but it was the Latakia that kept me interested. To a novice, latakia tastes wonderfully cool, entirely different from others. There probably isn't that much of it, but plenty enough for me to get my attention.

Smokes coolly, taste varies interestingly (though I couldn't detect too much of Perique, probably because I kept an eye, err, a tongue on the new Lat taste). This has that desiccating feel on the throat / back of the back of the mouth, and that feels irritating by mid-bowl. A small detraction - and likely to pass when you've adjusted to the mixture.

Overall this is strong, and a "full" smoke, make no mistake about that. It is decidedly masculine. Not so big a smoke as to be bruising but a full-force one nonetheless. If it were stronger, it'd be overpowering. Now it is just a tad below that, and keeps you happily smoking the bowl, enjoying the "English mixture" nuances.

I was left mesmerized by it. Immediately I got an image of smoking this on an African ranch, watching the sun rise, a new day of hunting ahead of me. It could be the smoke, but then again, it could just be the English knit I wore that got my mind wandering. I could also well see this being smoked on a chilly, foggy september morning breeze in the woods, enjoying the camp life, or a break in military exercises. Hmmm, many, many, many images. This is an intriguing mixture, and if you're into Latakia, don't pass it by. That perique is there, too, though I didn't get to that part too much.

Wife rating: "Incense-like, orthodox church."

Overall, it's a good quality smoke. I would definitely need to smoke more before committing to a definite review. Alas, I only have a small sample.