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VaPer mixtures are the one i´ve had less contact. I only buy a bulk of Brazilian mixture to keep in hand and that is everything i tasted with Perique as main player. I feel like that is not my cup of tea but i know i cannot talk properly with only one tobacco mixture experience.
The first time opening the tin i was surprised by the funky smell, not totally bad but different from everything i had before. Not a really good smell to be honest. When i smoked, the taste profile i could get also seems different from what i read here from most of you guys.
So i´m here to ask some advises.
1- What is the flavor profile i should expect from mixtures that has the Perique as main player?
2- What are the blends you guys believe everyone should try and why?
Please, a long-winded answer is welcome!
I’ve been smoking a lot of Perique lately so I’m primed to give my perspective. To me there are three main different ways Perique can present as the primary flavors, along with what I can only describe as a sharpness.
1. Fruity/berry/raisin/etc. traits. The Birds of a Feather, Pipe Force and Cringle Flake I’ve been smoking are wonderfully in that category. Really nice.
2. Musty, old used gym socks, etc. This is how the Perique in blends like Haunted Bookshop, etc. shows up.
3. Peppery. I notice this to appear more often in British and German Perique blends. I get that from Gawith Hoggarth Louisiana Flake for example and others.
Not hard and fast rules in my experience, many times the Perique can have all of these attributes in varying degrees, but I find one of these three will be the main driving flavor depending on where it’s from or made. It doesn’t all come from Louisiana.
As far as blends to try, I’m not sure what is available to you in Brazil. A more gentle and fun one and possibly a great starter would be G L Pease Windjammer for the more fruity side, but that is topped to enhance that effect. Musty would be Haunted Bookshop, Old Joe Krantz. As I stated, Louisiana Flake from GH is nice for the peppery side.
There are lots of Perique blends out there right now with a lot of variation in the Perique and how it presents, so this is not a comprehensive answer on my part, just some starting points. I’m sure there will be many excellent blend suggestions posted.
I have a tin of St.James I cellared in 2021, sometimes I'm tempted to open it, but I resist, thinking that the most time the tobacco rests the best it will be (though it's not a certitude).
I don't know for how much I could restrain myself 🤣
It’s got a lot of Perique, (or at least the Perique used is strong in flavour). I’d save it until your palate has grown to appreciate this unique varietal.
When talking about SG and GH i'm sure there is everything in the correct spot. But this one i'll have to make a huge effort to put my hands on it. It will be enough time to learn til i buy but for sure i'll get one of this. 🤠
Great question from @nach0, great answer from you! I would add that Perique does have a kind of “sweetness” at times. Perhaps that’s the wrong description. But, I get a fermented tanginess, at least, that I think is sweet! 😄
I agree it is a great question. Exploring various Periques and how they play with other tobaccos is fun and something that doesn’t get boring.
I also agree with you on the fermented tangy aspect, it does often have a gentle sweetness to it. I notice that the least in the most peppery ones.
In other post I explained that long time ago, in my childhood as a pipe smoker, I purchased two tins of Estate Express Roundels. In my ignorance as a novice smoker, I thought that blend would be similar to Estate Express London Mixture which was one of the very best latakia blends I have ever smoked.
The harsh reality was that tin contained something very different. Some estrange discs of tobacco that smelled like the perfume of my girlfriend's grandmother at the time. That was the most overwhelming, opulent and cloying tasting blend I have smoked in my life. The tin said it was a blend of Virginia and exotic Perique, so since then I associated Perique with cloying flavor, and avoided it. I have smoked some blends containing Perique as a condiment, like GL Pease Blackpoint, Robusto, and others, but I didn´t noticed nothing that I didn´t like. In fact I buy them whenever I find one.
Escudo Navy Deluxe is a staple Vaper. I enjoy it from time to time. I also smoke a bit of Old Joe Krantz. Cornell and Diehl King Cake has become one of my favorites- it is a gentle vaper with a great rum topping. It bridges the gap between aromatics and vapers.
I adore Perique! Can’t get enough. It frequently sends me into “the zone”! There’s something about that sometimes peppery, sometimes sweet, sometimes fruity, tanginess, that scratches my itch.
My advice is, don’t dismiss it based on one or two unfortunate encounters. Try some more blends first. Tastes differ, so perhaps you’ll never like it. But, let experience be your guide.
Pass me the Perique!! 😄
I think the blend i'm used to buy lays in the "Musty, old used gym socks, etc" self that @Ted said. For sure i´ll get note from what you guys are recommending and give a try in everything i can put my finger on.
I’ve never tried (nor want to) any blends where Perique is the main player. It’s always been a trace condiment in the English blends I enjoy - and to my taste - that’s where it belongs. …well aged and integrated, of course. 🤠👍
Sorry if i´m been annoying but could you enlarge the idea about why Perique is not good for you as main player?? What is its character that makes you think in this way? I get your point but i want to know more about.
Its pungent properties include something I taste as a pleasant herbal incense spice when in tiny integrated doses, but which overwhelms and ruins my enjoyment when a main player. I experience a tingling, numbing sensation in both my mouth and sinuses. Not enjoyable for me.
I'll give to perique another chance ordering the Exhausted Hooster. Let see how it gonna work for me. 😎
Maybe you already tried it, but Three Nuns could be also a good starter! It's Brazilian leaf, Virginia and Perique, and in coins like Escudo: fun to smoke and to prepare 😉
Not yet. I'll put it in my wishlist so i can remember. Thanks for your advice mate!
Understanding the differences between all of our palates, it's always intriguing to read these suggestions. I try to make a point of trying out most of them, as well. An example of the style and level of Perique that appeals to my taste is Viprati from Hearth and Home. I enjoy many other Va/Pers, but find myself always coming back to it.
To my mind, the best use of Perique in the blends I’ve tried so far, is Germain’s Royal Jersey Perique Mixture. Uses the perfect quantity and is blended to perfection with Virginia and a touch of Cavendish (to smooth it out). Absolutely divine! But, expensive 😏
Perique sometimes literally smells like a cow arse, but as a great musician said: "from diamonds nothing is born, from shit flowers grow" 😉
Personally I love Virginia-Perique, I prefer always in flake than mixture.
I'd say my favourite is St. James Flake from Samuel Gawith, a complex tobacco, for long moments of deep thinking, I suggest to smoke slowly and with patience...
Revisiting this thread made me want to open this pound of whole leaf Perique I’ve had sitting back for a while. I’ve got other jars of other productions/ages, but I’m curious what this is like.
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