Burley Suggestions?

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idbowman

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Ok, so I've been through the usual evolution a lot of us seem to have gone through.

Aromatics lead to latakia.  Latakia leads to Va and VaPer.  Va often leads to Burley.  I'm still very much a VaPer guy, still enjoy a nice latakia blend, and only rare reach for an aromatic.

I've been playing around with burleys for a while and wasn't impressed early on - I didn't dislike some of the C&Ds I'd had (OJK was the best of the bunch), and I've always had a thing for McC's Grey Havens, but it just wasn't "great" for me.  

In the Christmas exchange, my Secret Santa included a tin of Wessex flake - this was a game changer.  I get burley now, and I want more of it.  VaPers will still be my go-to, but I could see myself working a burley blend into the rotation at least as often as Latakia.


So that's a really long lead in to a pretty simple question:

For the burley smokers, what should I be looking to try?  It seems that Solani is pretty much a given, but besides that what are some of the more reputable options out there?

Anything that incorporates perique would be a big bonus.

Oh, and I know it's very much en vogue these days, but the "dark fired" thing hasn't really resonated with me.  It's not a turn-off, but it doesn't really spin my wheels, either.
 
Wessex Slices, Aged Burley Flake, Uhle's Perfection Plug Burley, Watch City Deluxe Crumb Cut, Watch City Slices, Match Edgeworth Ready Rubbed, and the under rated Moe's Confetti immediately come to mind.
 
In addition to the excellent above suggestions, you might checkout J.M. Boswell's Premium Burley, Macbaren's Golden Extra, and, believe it or not, good ol' Prince Albert & Carter Hall. This from another "Lathead" who "rediscovered" Burley about six years ago!! :cheers: FTRPLT
 
Two of my favorites are Stormfront and Weybridge which has perique.
 
I highly recommend P&W Nut Brown Burley. Also, pretty much all of the Uhle's blends are burley forward and worth checking out.

I particularly favor C&D Night Train, and Three Friars. And while they both have many other components the burley is a prominent character. Their Big and Burley is also highly rated but I found it to be one dimensional.

For a good honest no-nonsense burley I find PA to be a great reliable codger blend.

HTH


Cheers,

RR
 
+1 for Solani ABF

Some others -
C&D - Pegasus
Peretti - 333, Blend DD and Thanksgiving Day
House of Calabash - Grandfather's Own, For Meerschaums Only Select (which is an American style English)
Mac Baren - Golden Extra
Uhles - Blend 00 (I loved the flavor of this one, but it bit me like the Dickens. Superb flavor though. Perhaps you'd have better results).
 
This is another vote for Pegasus.

I prefer Prince Andrew to Prince Albert. PS Pressed Burley comes at a good price point and is quite good.

I know BD did not like the Big-n-Burley, but it punches my buttons.
 
Thanks for the ideas, all.

Solani was already on my list based on how many times I've seen in mentioned in the past; Stormfront is excellent and something I pick up every now and again, so that's it too. I generally keep CH and a little PA on hand also.


So, I guess that "I'm not a burley guy but getting into burley" is really "I don't THINK I'm a burley guy, but I'm already smoking Stormfront, Carter Hall, Prince Albert, Old Joe Krantz, and Grey Havens on a regular bases, but seriously I swear I'm not a burley guy!!!"


I took a look at Pegasus and that sounds like something to try, as well.

Where does one purchase Uhles? I don't see it at P&C, S.P, or 4N - is it available only through the store's on website?
 
Now the Somerset Slice isn't available, I'd say Uhles is the place to look. Also, if you can still find it,  Erlich's DPE was an amazing Burley blend. I believe one of the Boston concerns has conitnued to blend it, even if Erlich's is gone.

+1 on ABF and Wessex.

For an OTC, Carter Hall ain't half bad either...
 
So I picked a few of these up (well..."picked them up" from internet-land, anyway). Pegasus is enjoyable enough, not bad at all, but not mind-blowing. Not yet, that is - only two bowls in, so probably too early to form a real opinion.

ABF completely justifies the hype. I'm pretty sure I could live off of this and Wessex where burley is concerned...why I've avoided burley blends for so long I don't know.


I'm planning another order next month - very likely I'll forgo my usual order from [vendor who everyone around here seems to dislike, but me], and take a look at Uhle's.


Thanks again for the advice, guys.
 
idbowman":p02vwwjp said:
ABF completely justifies the hype.  I'm pretty sure I could live off of this and Wessex where burley is concerned...
Ian, That seems to be the general consensus with folks who really love burley and understand just how good it can be. I found Solani ABF really early on in my return to pipe smoking. I didn't understand how ridiculously good it was until I had been around the block a few times, sampling dozens of other burley blends along the way.

After returning to Aged Burley Flake, everything else but perhaps the Wessex flake pretty much pales in comparison. Just like their two Virginia flakes (660 & 633), ABF is worth every penny.
 
Good and timely thread.  Because my enjoyment of C&D's Night Train has gotten even greater this winter, I've been wondering about burley-forward blends myself.
 
Anyone that likes OJK should try c&d's Burley Flake #3 imho. Really great stuff. My favorite of the four. I also enjoy the other two sans Latakia. One of the four has Latakia but I can't remember which. Personally, I'm only an occasional latakia guy but that one might be quite good too. Haven't tried it.
 
ANY L.J. Peretti burley blend IMO. Especially BPC, 333, 9575.

Any of Uhle's burley blends as well. :D
 
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