Peterson Balkan Delight

“Balkan Blend”. The majority of pipe smokers, reading this, think of tobacco with a good portion of oriental, generously flavored with latakia and a little support from Virginia... Well, and maybe a little perique. But there are no orientals in this blend. In fact, Balkan Delight looks more like an English blend consisting of several varieties of Virginia, a fair amount of latakia and a pinch of perique. So, we are faced with an "impostor"? Let's see. By the way, Europe mercilessly erased the word "Delight" from the name of the blend a few years ago, and now it's just called “Balkan Mixture”. The composition, however, has not changed.

Appearance: the tin I got in my hands had a "Q1 2014" excise stamp, but the design of the label indicated that the tin had been packed somewhat earlier. Based on this, I would venture to say it was released in late 2013. A relatively small amount of light Virginia has taken on the color of very light roasted coffee. Overall, however, the blend color was closer to the color of bitter chocolate. The cut was a very neat short ribbon. The tobacco has dried out just a little over almost ten years in the tin, but didn't need to be moistened.

Flavor: tan leather and a fair amount of sour barley mash was the first thing I smelled from the tin. Almost immediately, unobtrusive notes of tar, wood, and baked fruit appeared in the overall aroma, but the first two notes didn't let up easily, holding somewhat apart. The allspice and fig notes of perique are in the background, being more of a sause for the base. When the tobacco had a little air, the leather and sour notes almost merged with the other notes, but were still clearly distinguishable.

Taste: soft and smooth, with no prominent notes. Initially, the dried fruit and spicy perique notes are barely perceptible, and it feels like there's only Virginia and latakia in the mix - the taste is dominated by woody tones with a slight sweetness, some smoke, a slight earthiness and a fair amount of grilled meat. But this feeling quickly passes, although the small amount of perique does not allow you to get a real spicy note, and the fruit notes mixed with Virginia are not so pronounced in the flavor. Interestingly, the perique notes are much more noticeable on the retrohale than on the inhale. Gradually, towards the middle of the pipe, the taste becomes even flatter, the notes of tobacco weave into one bouquet. Unlike Gregory Pease's Piccadilly with a similar composition, where the emphasis is on Virginia, here, no doubt, the latakia plays first fiddle, but does not stand out too much. Surprisingly, there is also a bit of sourness in the taste, as if a bit of oriental tobaccos had been added to the blend. The strength of the blend I would remark as medium, in a extra large pipe, it is probably capable of a slight nicotine hit. The tobacco slowly, evenly and coolly burns into a light gray ash of medium fraction, but no lumps, leaves no moisture in the pipe and is smoked whole. The tobacco flavor is the same in straight pipes and in bentas. The aftertaste is woody, slightly sweet, not persistent.

The smoke from tobacco has a distinct woody smell with a slight tang of tar. It's not very persistent, though it's quite plentiful.

What's the result? To me, the name "Irish Stout Mixture" would suit this recipe better. Overall, like most Peterson blends, the tobacco is quite ordinary. I can't say I'm particularly impressed with it, but it's pretty solid. It's easy to smoke, forgives the novice for overheating, sets off the whiskey flavor nicely, and is quite capable as an everyday tobacco. Two and half, I suppose.