Two Friends Bed & Breakfast

This is probably one of the most difficult reviews I've tried, as this blend is extremely complex and -- like the other Two Friends mixtures -- singularly offbeat. It's also one of the biggest disappointments I've ever had, but I'll explain that in detail in a moment ...

B&B seems to be a sweet American/Oriental mixture, for lack of a better term. I don't consider it an American/English hybrid like Epiphany or Bald Headed Teacher -- the latakia component is more muted and the intensity of the yellow VA and orientals is quite prominent. If you can imagine, say, GL Pease's Cairo artfully blended with one of the above mentioned blends (with VAs taking the place of burley), you'd at least be on the right track. Like I said, this one is hard to describe. As in other Two Friends mixtures, the cavendish seems to be a key player in holding the components together and supplying a soothing sweetness. This mixture is complex, subtle, and quite unlike anything else I've tried.

This blend has one of the most delightful flavors (and THE most appealing tin note) of any tobacco I've ever tried. So why not four stars?

Tragically, this blend is apparently a really bad mix with my body chemistry. Every time I smoke it I get horrible tongue bite -- as in tiny spots of blood welling up on my tongue. This isn't a heat burn, it's a chemical reaction of some kind. I've had this reaction to only a very small number of blends (Westminster and Cairo are two) and I suspect it's some kind of reaction a particular oriental or strain of VA. If it weren't for that, it would almost certainly be my "all day" blend.

Very nice oriental forward smoke. If you are looking for a very light Latakia, Oriental/Turkish forward smoke this may be it. Very nice woody and sour oriental smell coming out of the tin. Sweetness with a hint of smoke from the Latakia (very faint). Flavor is dry, woody Orientals. Earthy with a hint of leather. Very faint hint of smokey sweetness here and there from the Lat and VA's. Cavendish is not really noticeable in the flavor but does seem to add to the mouth feel in the smoke. A nice mild smoke, not a lot of nuance but a nice easy, mindless smoke.

Two friends tobacco is probably the most underrated pipe tobacco company on the market. These blends are just sublime. Bed and Breakfast has long been one of my all time favorite blends. I reach for this one quite a bit.

To me this blend is the perfect example of a perfectly balanced pipe tobacco. All of the components are easily discernible and they come together in an amalgamation that is far and above greater than the sum of its parts. Just excellent.

This is so perfectly named. This can be a morning or evening smoke, and no matter when you enjoy it it hits the spot perfectly. The moisture is perfect. It ages well, and is such high quality leaf. wholeheartedly recommended.

Original review 12/05/08:

Bed & Breakfast (bulk): picture Tarler & Pease cackling like witches bent over a cauldron.

Double, double, toil and trouble Tobacco burn and saliva bubble. Start out with a red VA, Add some yellow - smells like hay. Desperate for a taste that's new, add some Cavendish. Oriental too! Use Latakia -- but just a dash, to make it burn to a fine grey ash. A mix concocted late at night, like a hell-broth, fume and bite!

[Fade out as witches laugh with high-pitched, insidious delight.]

Well, maybe that's an overly harsh portrayal -- Tarler and Pease really don't cackle over a cauldron ...or do they? B&B strikes me as an amateurish experiment where five different tobaccos were somewhat capriciously tossed together to see what happens. There is no balance, no synergy, no polish. I guess my sense of taste doesn't admit mixing sweet, grassy Vas with Cavendish; or Cavendish with Latakia; or whatever else they did.

This is a somewhat sweet, bite-prone, and flavor-laden smoke that quickly fatigues the palate. Impoverished by abundance, it is a mix of five tobaccos lacking unity and competing for attention. It's rather like five musicians playing at the same time, but not "together". The Vas take the grassy lead while the Cavendish and Latakia obstinately bang against each other - taking this olio first to the sweet and earthy, then to the savory side and back, with no integration, no balance. For me, the Oriental gets lost in the cacophony of flavor. Maybe it's at work taming the somewhat hot Va without calling attention to itself (staying out of the fray, as it were.) I believe the only thought put into this blend was at day's end, when they decided from which side of the blending room floor they'd begin sweeping.

Toward the end of the bowl B&B seems to be much better: the Latakia fades and starts to work with the toasty Vas and Cavendish. It is actually a fairly good smoke for the last few minutes; but you will have to endure a mediocre bowlful just to enjoy the tasty heel.

To me B&B is an ill-conceived mix -- a witches' brew of discord that ends up being less than the sum of its parts. Not worthy of the Tarler and Pease name. I'll cellar the remainder of my supply for a few years to see what happens. I don't hold out much hope.

Update 12/19/08: I didn't really have enough B&B left to justify cellaring, but I did make an interesting discovery that could influence some smokers to give this a try. I used a small old meer that I had since the late '60s. It has a conical bowl that tapers down from 15mm at the top; and it has a really thick side wall (it's a freehand called a "Caveman" that resembles a crudely fashioned club. Remember those?) In this, B&B's flavors begin to integrate much quicker. After about 10 minutes it settles down nicely and remains a pretty good smoke right to the bottom. I'll upgrade my review a smidgen; but since I won't buy this again, how can I recommend it to you?

I have to admit to being a victim of Peer pressure. I hadn't tried this because I heard it was flavored- that generally means burn. Then I was given some in a pipe trade. Thank You Bladerunner!!!! This stuff is the Grail of tobaccos. It has a wonderful smell, Taste...I'm surprised there is latakia in it Cause I sure didn't see any. This smokes like what one would expect an Old timer in a Library would smoke in his pipe. Smooth, clean, Tastful and rich. Acts best for me in Billiard bowls, can be nippy in a narrow Virginia type pipe. Small price to pay! I love walking out of the room and coming back in just to smell the room note. Highly Recommended....

What a great tobacco! I bought some of this in bulk and I'm amazed at the complexity of flavor for a tobacco that is so mild. Generally one has to scorch the mouth with scraping Balkans to reel in this amount of taste.

You know that amazingly delicious taste when you're on the last five puffs of a Virginia bowl? This tobacco manages to keep that toasted VA taste, to a lesser extent, all the way through the bowl. There's also a distinct buttery flavor that goes well with coffee. Want some latakia flavor but want the wife not to bitch? Fire up some B&B.

Images evoked: a horde of baby pit pulls toppling over a child and licking his face playfully.

Of all the Two Friends blends I have tried (to date I have tried all but Valle Crucis) this one I like the least. Perhaps that is because I haven't quite developed a taste for Latakia yet. After sampling the other blends in this line I expected a bit more from this one. It's not bad, but nothing special either. I prefer Heritage or Redwood.

Appearance: Very small cut, almost granulated. All colors are present, but the lighter shades are dominant.

Aroma: Smells like mostly Virginia, with traces of Latakia and Orientals. The Va. seems to be of the lightest persuasion, and has a ?grassy? aroma.

Packing: Packs easily into any size pipe.

Lighting: Lights easily, sometimes with one match.

Initial flavor: I can?t tell if this burns hot, or if my tongue is sensitive to some component of the blend. In most pipes, this tobacco starts poorly for me, then subsides into a more tolerable condition of smoothness. Not that it ever gets smooth, just a bit less harsh.

Mid-bowl: Seems to burn wetter than most blends, but maybe that?s my reaction to it. The blend never develops enough flavor to get me interested. I find this so poor a blend, that I mixed it with Stokkeby Proper English.

Finish: Due to the harshness noted, I can rarely finish a bowl of this stuff.

Summary: Simply doesn?t work for me as an ?eye-opener?. It left me with enough negative feeling, that I may never try any of the other blends in the line.

On first light B&B gives you a good dose of smoky Latakia taste. Good if you like Latakia, not if you don't. Smoke down a little and B&B becomes essentially a Virginia blend with just the hint of exoticism of Latakia and Orientals. Really a fabulous mellow taste. Very round, slightly sweet (from the Virginias I suppose) and very satisfying.

If you demand Latakia in all you smoke then B&B may or may not satisfy. I smoke about 75% Virginia/Perique blends and 25% English myself and am very fond of Nightcap to give you an idea where my tastes lie. I love B&B.

If you don't like Latakia much or at all, B&B can change your mind because it uses Latakia purely as a condiment and smokes like a complex somewhat exotic Virginia/Oriental blend.

Everyone should at least try this.