American Haul - advice required

[alandadp]

Have arrived back in good old Blighty with my haul of American tobacco (see below) but now need a little advice.
Which can/should I smoke soon?
Which should I cellar for a while?
Which must I cellar?
Telling me I should cellar them all for 5 - 10 years ain't going to work, I don't have that much self control   
Here's the list:
A & C Petersen: Escudo Navy Deluxe 50g
Cornell & Diehl: Kajun Kake 2oz
G. L. Pease: Haddo's Delight 2oz
G. L. Pease: Cumberland 2oz
G. L. Pease: Telegraph Hill 2oz
G. L. Pease: Triple Play 2oz
McClelland: Blakeney Toasted: Acadian Ribbon 50g
McClelland: Collector: Tudor Castle 50g
Captain Earle's: Honor Blend 2oz
Hearth & Home: LJ Heart Virginia 1.5oz

I look forward to your thoughts.

Adam

 

[joshoowah]

Have arrived back in good old Blighty with my haul of American tobacco (see below) but now need a little advice.
Which can/should I smoke soon?
Which should I cellar for a while?
Which must I cellar?
Telling me I should cellar them all for 5 - 10 years ain't going to work, I don't have that much self control   
Here's the list:
A & C Petersen: Escudo Navy Deluxe 50g
Cornell & Diehl: Kajun Kake 2oz
G. L. Pease: Haddo's Delight 2oz
G. L. Pease: Cumberland 2oz
G. L. Pease: Telegraph Hill 2oz
G. L. Pease: Triple Play 2oz
McClelland: Blakeney Toasted: Acadian Ribbon 50g
McClelland: Collector: Tudor Castle 50g
Captain Earle's: Honor Blend 2oz
Hearth & Home: LJ Heart Virginia 1.5oz

I look forward to your thoughts.

Adam

Haddos is best after a few years to mellow it out.

That is the only blend listed I have experience with. If you are dying to open one or two, keep in mind that the McClellands already have at least two-three years of age on them. All McClelland blends are like that.

 

[DrumsAndBeer]

Very nice haul Adam.

I only have experience with a few of those blends, and based on that experience I would definitely put the Haddo's away for a spell, and pop that tin of Cumberland whenever. Triple Play and Tudor Castle also smoke well fresh.  

 

[Brewdude]

I agree that the Haddo's should rest for a couple years first, since it's a very strong 'baccy when fresh and age mellows it out a bit.

Cumberland is also good with a few yrs under it's belt.

Everything else should be ready to go IMHO.

Glad you made it bacK safely with everything, and happy puffing.


Cheers,

RR

 

[Stick]

Well done Shippers. Great haul. There's going to be smoke rings over Guz...

 

[monbla256]

Greg doesn't blend bacs that can be smoked right away, you have to cellar/age ALL of his blends AT LEAST 5 years !!  :twisted: :twisted: Go ahead and smoke the rest  :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: 

 

[Brewdude]

Greg doesn't blend bacs that can be smoked right away, you have to cellar/age ALL of his blends AT LEAST 5 years !!  :twisted: :twisted: Go ahead and smoke the rest  :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: 

Disagree on that. At least as far as a blanket claim.

Telegraph Hill and Triple Play are fine fresh, at least afaic. Of course age will add complexity, as will all of what Adam listed.

Personally I find that Haddo's will kick my arse when young, and I really don't get on well with high nic blends which this is for me.

And Cumberland seems to have muddled flavors when young, and age seems to bring these into focus. The nic factor isn't nearly as much of a factor as Haddo's.

As always, ymmv...........



Cheers,

RR

 

[deepbass9]

Well....if it was me....and I only had one tin of each blend....and I never tried any of them....why I'd do something most would say was crazy and open them all up, one-by-one.  No sense in trying to "cellar" it, right??  Sure it'll taste better....everything will taste better with some age on it.  But my logic would be that since I didn't know what "better" was being judged against, I might as well nominate myself as the barometer!

But really...for me, those are enough tins for 6 months plus, so they'd all be doing some aging after I jarred them up.  And some of it, for purpose or for whim, will end up with a good bit of age.

Now some may call me a madman, but I have so many blends open that when I try something fresh and think it needs sitting time...it' sits.  It's not my only representation of that style of tobacco; I'll have another 4-8 more of the same style in other jars.  I have OSG, PNF, Escudo, LBF, etc. etc., so I can space them, or stack them, or randomly choose at time of packing which particular slice of the pie I'm feeling.

But that's just me.  Lots of good comments on blends here to help make your decision easier   :lol!:

Best of all, you can't-go-wrong!  Enjoy.

 

[SpeedyPete]

Crack the tin of Escudo first. You will then order some more and yet some more and leave the rest of your haul for years to come (and maybe even smoke it).

 

[alandadp]

Crack the tin of Escudo first. You will then order some more and yet some more and leave the rest of your haul for years to come (and maybe even smoke it).

Can't get Escudo here in the UK. I have a couple of tins of DLNR on order so I can see for myself if it is the same as Escudo.
If it is, and it's as good as you say, then it'll be DLNR for me   . If not, and the Escudo is the better, then I'll just have to wait 'til my next sojourn in the US  

 

[SpeedyPete]

Crack the tin of Escudo first. You will then order some more and yet some more and leave the rest of your haul for years to come (and maybe even smoke it).

Can't get Escudo here in the UK. I have a couple of tins of DLNR on order so I can see for myself if it is the same as Escudo.
If it is, and it's as good as you say, then it'll be DLNR for me   . If not, and the Escudo is the better, then I'll just have to wait 'til my next sojourn in the US  

I've never smoked DLNR so I can't compare it with Escudo. According to the tobacco reviews, DLNR is equal to or even better than Escudo.

For me, living in South Africa and with our terrible exchance rate, I cannot afford the Dunhill products  

Escudo is good enough for me   

 

[Richard Burley]

Possibly not relevant to anyone else, but I love the way fresh Haddo's slams my skull. Never had it aged and may be missing something, I suppose, but mellowing it out isn't high on my list of things to do.   

 

[Northern Neil]

I just finished a tin of Cumberland with about 6 months on it. That is one I feel can be smoked fresh, but I can see where some age would improve it!