The sample came as mostly crumbled cake, broken into many different fragment sizes, and the moisture level was rather low. Even the presentation is superior! Hard to get but so is anything that is rated with this quality..The feeling of this smoke on your palate can only be described as Heavenly Great Smoke. Hard to say anything much better about this tobacco that has already been posted. The Rolls Royce of tobacco. Werner Heisenberg could have offered Penzance as proof of his uncertainty principle- just LOOKING at this stuff makes it fall apart. A wife pleaser it ain't, but that doesn't matter that much because I only smoke in my den. Afterward smell the ouside of the still warm bowl for a delicious hit of spicyness - ahhh isn't that what pipe smoking is all about? If you don't fall in love then contact me and I'll buy it from you. Nicely balanced flavors--everything plays a great role, so it never gets boring. Add to Wish List SKU: 100-8955 UPC: 781755017634 Availability: *Limit* Only 2 per order / person per day. Why? I gravity fed larger chunks first and then topped these off with finer crumbs with one very light tamp. This is obviously delicious stuff. This blend is an old companion that can always be relied upon to brighten an otherwise dreary day. I used to brew beer, at home, and my sanitizer was Iodine. This is a must try for anyone who enjoys English blends. It's latakia is slightly understated, as compared to some of the other English blends, but it comes through nicely anyway. Flavor is great, a good flake. How good is it? Before I begin, a little about me as a tobacco taster. While I won't be smoking a lot of it, I will keep a small sample around for those cold winter days when this type of blend just calls to me. With the waiting lists that some of these retailers have these days, I figured I would save myself a lot of time and trouble by just laying low. It produced lots of smoke. Upon first starting to puff, I was surprised at the sweet nuances to be found from the Orientals. If you can find the stuff give er a whirl, ya might like it but try not to harbor any unrealistic expectations of it, its just a very nice, expertly blended crumble cake. That is when you give the tobacco the opportunity to really shine. I like to handle tobacco, and this one is delightful. In my opinion Ten to Midnight and Quiet Nights are not at all similar to each other. I probably have more of it squirled away than I could ever smoke, but perhaps my tastes of changed? The tin aroma indicates a heavy latakia content, and can seem a bit musty as well. It is recommendable for beginners as well or experienced smokers. Other smells and tastes are reminiscent of creosote, leather, and rubber. There's no mistaking that this is an English, but there's some flavor there that's just out of reach. It is fantastic, it's in a class by itself. The taste was very dominantly that of Latakia, and the aroma was the same. I compared new with freshly opened 2005 and threw the old out. Oh wait! I can think of several blends I would reach for before this but it is absolutely worthy of a four star rating. Not heavy strength. Penzance does not seem to expand much upon lighting. But - and it's a mighty big but: scarcity virtually amounting to non-availability - not just in the UK - has created a ridiculous situation. 1. Decent stuff , but not memorable . Absolutely, but it sure does make smoking that much more enjoyable. Hard to say as I smoke outdoors by myself, but I think it is better than most English lat-bombs. I received an email notification, I go in minutes later to place the order and it is already sold out. none. Esoterica. It's very complex, full flavored and very well blended. Rich, heady, redolent, and creamy smoke. I hope this helps someone to enjoy this great blend. I also tasted an aftertaste that I could not place untill a number of pipes later: salty licorice (a candy in Holland)! Peaceable puffing. I enjoy with Westminster, Odyssey, Piccadilly and other english mixtures. I prefer as a summer smoke, letting the smooth creaminess, fill my taste buds. There's good reason. I had forgot about this. Surely this was the Penzance which at first earned it's reputation. Ladies and GentlemenI'd like to introduce you to Mrs. Penzance Beaupipe. I lit a pipe at the beginning of a soccer match. Rubs out easily, packs neatly and lights well. The lid on the container was bulging I know its been in there a long time and once I opened it and smelled it I was like holy smokes! The after taste will stay with you most of the day, so forget kissing the wife. And if you don't like it,please post it to me! Love the crumble-able flakes and the small efficient tin easily pocketable. The taste is obviously not due to some secret sauce, but rather a mixture of amazing tobaccos. I want to enjoy this tobacco as many people have.I am not there yet. This is an update, aging won't do any good, once it dies a little, it's not so good any more. This tobacco made a full-time pipe smoker out of me. The room note gets different reviews depending on the company I'm keeping at the time. I had just finished a tin of SG Bracken Flake and thought I would try the Penzance. Esoterica Penzance is a good pipe tobacco, no doubt; medium to strong, and smoky dark in flavor. Penzance is one of my favourite English tobaccos.English blend from Esoterica. GL Pease Quiet Nights comes close, but just does not quite get there. I became excited and quickly replied to the ad demanding that I be sold/given penzance immediately and that I would do anything for the chance. It's a pity it's gotten so hard to come by, but I suppose that is the way it goes when the supply of something so good is limited. But I don't consider this an overdoing of flavours. After three days there was no difference in the intensity , when you walked into the room, you were hit by a scent from eight feet away. VLVL. Esoterica has a harem of these ladies, and Penzance and Margate are the most favored women among them. To my fellow pipers who have never tried this please don't get drawn in to overpaying for this tobacco. Bengal Slices White is in the same ballpark. Where to Buy
Actually I am smoking this blend from a 2 year?s old jarred pound; it tastes truly fantastic, very mellow and tasty. It sings at the first half of the bowl. Basically, my whole reason for chiming in here is just to say that occasionally, you have to stop trying to analyze the technique and just sit back and allow yourself to be awed by the execution. So, like I said, I feel guilty; it seems a little rude to say, Hey, you know that tobacco you cant get right now? . I like to flip their stock on eBay whenever possible, but I go slow so they don't realize that an 8 oz bag is reselling for $150. Not much to add that someone hasn't already said. How disappointing. The smoking flavor is on the medium to full side. Definitely separates the men from the boys. I would describe it as nutty/smoky/ tobacco flavor. An occasional treat, it is brought out of the hanger on special occasions. So "fruity" is the nose that it works its way into the taste, like apricots, figs, and vague pineapple, citrus, etc. It's buttery smooth and delicious, with no bite. Because of its cool and even burning properties, I broke in most of these pipes using Penzance. At the time, I really didnt care about the cost I rationalized that it was only money and in the end, I finally had Penzance in my possession. The Latakia is just right, and you can taste the Virginia. I do agree with some other reviews that while this is a very good blend, it is IMHO not worth paying the internet auction price. Never opened since. It's easy to load, fairly dry out of the tin, and much less finicky and easier to keep lit compared to Margate and its other sister blends. It is definitely a Latakia blend and has a spicy side to it as well but not very pronounced. Its a shame this rich , mellow and creamy fine molted English flake is out of stock all the time pretty much everywhere. I'd heard of this blend and figured I'd try it someday, but there it was sitting upright in front of about 60 or 70 other blends. A hint of spice and incense. The smell is so good that I enjoy nosing the trails of smoke from the bowl for a very gentle inhale. This is a great tobacco. Anyway, I took it as a loss and traded it off. I thought; perhaps the bulk version is different from the tinned or I'd gotten 'And So to Bed' in a quality control gaffe. A nice latakia blend with camp fire smells . There are not many alternatives if you want a Latakia-laden pressed blend, the main ones being Old Ironsides and Pirate Kake. A little sweet, a little smoky, but it goes well as a mix of the two. It surely won?t impress non-smokers and I only recommend this if you are by yourself?..almost the feeling of eating garlic?..tastes great but be prepared for the strong aftermath! The ensuing increase in surface area only serves to accelerate the decline. This is a big picture vs incredible attribute thing. I was gifted some of this from a forum member. Fairly one dimensional but not bad at all. An added note to this review is that, since I posted it, I have continued to search for an English blend that might surpass Penzance, but have failed, even though I have come across some very fine near-equivalents, like Krumble Kake. The sticker with the price had a date from 2002 on it. Packs and lights easily, and burns to the bottom of the bowl to a light grey ash. In particular, the Virginias used here appear aged or pressed or otherwise reduced in acidity, and the Latakia has been restrained from its pine-smoke extremes. Penzance packs and lights easily, and unleashes a lovely smooth English taste. Nicotine: mild to medium, closer to medium. It seems to leave a slight oily feeling in the back of my throat. Published review content of this website is considered the
I recommend that anyone who likes English mixtures should try this at some point in their lives. Thats the real star of this blend! No tongue bite and cool burning. I found Penzance to lack flavor, depth, complexity, strength just about everything I look for in a tobacco. There's also a little stoved Virginia that offers some stewed, sugary dark fruit, earth and wood. It gives me that almost indefinable quality of smoking 'satisfaction' - that fulfillment feeling - right from the start. It's incredibly smokey and lush, and completely unique in the world of pipe tobacco. This is just fine with me since drying is not a problem and overly wet is better than overly dry. This IS my idea of what a quality English blend should taste like. A big disappointment. Just can't understand why it's so difficult to get, Germain could make a fortune if they could supply the demand, now It's the retailer who are making a fortune on us selling the tin twice the price. As the description reads, a typical English on the surface as far as the contents are concern, but like most tobaccos, the secret is in the blending. A delicious chewy smoke. I have no idea what today's Penzance is like and with the fact that it is unobtainable, I may never know. It was a triumph, and I was so full of expectations and excitement, having lost from my earlier trial. A good peaty scotch is a winner as well. Kudos to those who like this & have $$ to waste on denicotined tobacco. This just isn't it. This blend seems to find a great happy medium by having great latikia and oriental flavors but without being overly smoky tasting from excessive latikia. I cannot for the life of me understand the demand for this blend. This blend seems to have turned into a "class warfare" type of blend. I lack some of the vocabulary necessary to properly describe it, not because I'm that enamored with this tobacco (which I am) but because I simply am unable to make the words happenit tastes earthy compared to some other similar blends that I have tried. I opened the tin and, like many others here, was not optimistic. Notify me when this product becomes available! It's got a lot of good qualities including the high quality leaf it's composed of. It sets it apart in flavor from other blends in the genre. I now prefer Astley's #99 for an all-day, any day latakia (and ease of use cut), but I can't imagine being without a tin of Penzance stashed somewhere for those evenings when I want some quality time with myself! The second funny was when I got a call from my local tobacconist at Mission Pipe in downtown San Jose. That said, it's a brilliant tobacco and is hard to find for a reason. The Orientals are what I cant quite figure like the VA, its fermented and smooth as well, lacking any spice and don't posses the floral and herbal qualities we expect. If you can get this for cost, do so immediately here at SP. Older vintages: Hall of Fame nominee IMHO. I can't add much more to what's been said, it's a fine medium English, I didn't bother to try and rub the slices, I just pinched what I wanted from the top with a thumb and forefinger and that worked just fine. The burn is very good and rarely needs relights. Although that is not true and there is no evidence for it. One only needs to open the Tin to see and smell Quilty! Personally, I like Balkan Sobranie much better. Nothing can or should detract from that. Treat it like all flake types (go slow) and you will be rewarded. Overall: For some odd reason, I'd reminded of Squadron leader, which is much better. On the plus side, this tobacco does not have any off-notes. My exhaustive search for the perfect smoke still continues, but it is no longer as intense thanks to the placating qualities of Penzance. If you don't love Virginia and Latakia, then don't try it - leave it for me. My Mixture was also a stonger scent in the tin. I traded some cigars for this (and other baccy). Very easy to prepare for smoking though one needs not pack to firmly and I found a group 2 or 3 works best. My friend claimed he had an allergic reaction to this stuff, and he is allergic to different sorts of plants. If I were to pair this with a good Scotch whisky, I'd have to choose a strongly peated Islay like Laphroaig. This is a great tobacco and I think it fitting of its demand. I inherited about 50 cans of this wonderful tobacco. I almost gagged. Oh, and thank you reviewer "Kokinhenik" for your homework on the other reviews calling out Iodine, I did not know that. The First is Skiff Mixture with which I find that it shares the deep smoky but smooth and mellow Latakia flavor, although Penzance is fleshier due to the type of Virginias used. One word of caution: when you open a tin, try to either smoke it all within a few days or transfer it to a glass jar, as it loses some of its character soon after opening.