Centurian 803
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On a recent trip to my favorite B & M I picked up a 2 oz tin of Capt. Earles’s Ten Russians, a Hermit tobacco blended by Cornell and Diehl. It was the label that drew my attention. Ever since reading the Wreck of the Hesperus I’ve had a fascination with the image of a ship’s captain, clutching the wheel with his trusty briar clenched in his teeth. Perhaps not the best reason to buy a tobacco, but there you have it.
Ten Russians is a Krumble Kake comprised of Cavendish, Virginia, Latakia and Orientals. This was my first experience with a Krumble Kake and I was a bit unsure of the method for preparing it to smoke. I found that I could break off pieces, which then were easily rubbed out for loading into the bowl. I also found that about ten minutes or so of drying time cuts down on the number of relights required.
When I opened the tin I was immediately transported back to mid-November 1973 and the banks of Melton Hill Lake. Some buddies and I were canoeing down the Clinch River and had camped for the night. The aroma from that tin was so much like the campfire smell of that night that I could close my eyes, feel the breeze off the water and hear the crackling of the flames.
I must admit that I didn’t like this tobacco at all the first time I smoked it. I wanted to like it but it was terrible. As with so many other tobaccos, the smoking experience was nothing like the tin aroma suggested. So, I put it aside to try another day.
About a week later I decided to give it another try. It was early morning and I had a fresh pot of coffee made so I poured a cup, filled my GBD Bulldog, and repaired to the screened in porch. I was about half way through my coffee and maybe a third of the way down the bowl when I suddenly realized that I was thoroughly enjoying this smoke. No, let me rephrase that, I was enjoying this smoke enormously! It was like flipping a switch. One moment I was having another ho hum smoke and the next I was savoring a rich sensuous experience. Each puff on the pipe filled my mouth with prodigious clouds of creamy smoke that seemed to have texture and body. At first it tasted the way a campfire smells, slightly acidic and tangy. But then it developed a flavor that was earthy with a slightly buttery note.
If ever there was a perfect pairing of tobacco and coffee I believe this is it. I’ve smoked maybe ten bowls of Ten Russians by now, about half with coffee, and although it is superb by itself, it is even better while enjoying a robust cup of coffee.
One cautionary note, however. This is a tobacco that is best sipped slowly and savored. If puffed too vigorously it will kick your ass. At least it did mine. More than once I had to sit my pipe aside and come back to it after the queasiness passed. If treated with proper respect though there are no problems.
I heartily recommend this tobacco to you, my brothers, and look forward to trying some of the other Capt. Earle’s blends.
Ten Russians is a Krumble Kake comprised of Cavendish, Virginia, Latakia and Orientals. This was my first experience with a Krumble Kake and I was a bit unsure of the method for preparing it to smoke. I found that I could break off pieces, which then were easily rubbed out for loading into the bowl. I also found that about ten minutes or so of drying time cuts down on the number of relights required.
When I opened the tin I was immediately transported back to mid-November 1973 and the banks of Melton Hill Lake. Some buddies and I were canoeing down the Clinch River and had camped for the night. The aroma from that tin was so much like the campfire smell of that night that I could close my eyes, feel the breeze off the water and hear the crackling of the flames.
I must admit that I didn’t like this tobacco at all the first time I smoked it. I wanted to like it but it was terrible. As with so many other tobaccos, the smoking experience was nothing like the tin aroma suggested. So, I put it aside to try another day.
About a week later I decided to give it another try. It was early morning and I had a fresh pot of coffee made so I poured a cup, filled my GBD Bulldog, and repaired to the screened in porch. I was about half way through my coffee and maybe a third of the way down the bowl when I suddenly realized that I was thoroughly enjoying this smoke. No, let me rephrase that, I was enjoying this smoke enormously! It was like flipping a switch. One moment I was having another ho hum smoke and the next I was savoring a rich sensuous experience. Each puff on the pipe filled my mouth with prodigious clouds of creamy smoke that seemed to have texture and body. At first it tasted the way a campfire smells, slightly acidic and tangy. But then it developed a flavor that was earthy with a slightly buttery note.
If ever there was a perfect pairing of tobacco and coffee I believe this is it. I’ve smoked maybe ten bowls of Ten Russians by now, about half with coffee, and although it is superb by itself, it is even better while enjoying a robust cup of coffee.
One cautionary note, however. This is a tobacco that is best sipped slowly and savored. If puffed too vigorously it will kick your ass. At least it did mine. More than once I had to sit my pipe aside and come back to it after the queasiness passed. If treated with proper respect though there are no problems.
I heartily recommend this tobacco to you, my brothers, and look forward to trying some of the other Capt. Earle’s blends.
