first latakia bowl

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the rev

the rev

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had some Samuel Galwaith's balkan flake

not sure about it. Had a perfumy flavor to me. Is this normal? Also had a bit of tongue bite, could this be from smoking two bowls back to back and not the tobacco?

rev
 
I've never noticed a perfumy note the the Balkan Flake. That's more a G&H hallmark. Even the G&H unscented versions have a little soap in there. 8)

SG Balkan Flake comes very, very moist right out of the tin. Trying to keep that lit could account for a little of the tongue burn. I like to cube that one up. It's easier to smoke and seems to bring out everything it's got to offer.
 
I rubbed it out and let it dry very well. It kept lit as well as anything else I smoke.

rev
 
Balkan Flake isn't a bad place to start with Latakia mixtures, it's fairly straight forward but I would definitely give it a some more tries before writing it off. I find that BF is missing the nuances that you'd get from mixtures that have other component tobaccos involved. For a simple VA/Lat blend I prefer Lancer's Slices over Balkan Flake, it seems to have more synergy to me.

For a starting Latakia blend GLP's Samarra is really great, if you can find a tin with 3-4 years on it, it's night and day compared to a fresh one. B&B's Beck's Ol' Limey Bastard is fantastic too. :D
 
I just have some samples that Natch sent me, I do have some Ole Limey bastard. I am at a weird place. I want to learn more, and have more tobaccos, but right now all the money I make on my pipes is being put back into materials or saving for a lathe. I have no disposable income for pipes or tobacco. So I am just trying to figure out what I like. I have really enjoyed the Navy Flake Tyler sent me, and I really like the Full Virgina Flake which I purchased from some Christmas gift. I have enough of that to last for a few months at least. Hopefully I can steady my finances to get a few tins of stuff I like. I will try the bastard, my favorite beer is arrogant bastard ale so maybe that is a match made in heaven... or the other place :)

rev
 
Rev, I find that the perfuminess of some tobaccos comes from the oriental leaf in thr blends. This is fairly typical in several samples of english or balkan blends that I have tried,but most of the fellows on here reserve that term for a specific "soap" flavor that is known as lakeland essence. The sweet and sour descriptor leads me down a similar pathway, where the actual flavors that are present are often used as the components of popular perfumes, but describing them as perfumy is inaccurate for a specific but subtle reason: While your tastebuds are in the right category, the terminology that you chose can be misleading to those who already have "agreed" (not formally, just a group psychology thing) on some flavor profile terminology.

This is part of my growing theory about the "ketchup dicussion" as well.
 
MMMMMMMM KETCHUP :cheers: That said, If you want to give Latakia a good try, I'd stay away from ANYTHING from the folks in the Lakeland district. Get a tin of some Dunhill 965, a classic "English" by which so many are judged. Just remember, it's aroma and the female of the species DO NOT get along, but it smokes soooooo good :twisted:
 
monbla256":k5tieqvw said:
Just remember, it's aroma and the female of the species DO NOT get along, but it smokes soooooo good :twisted:
Click to expand...
Some would argue that the aroma is that of the female of the species. :silent:
I once gave a sample of some lat blend to a friend's Borkum smoking father. He lit it up and said, "This smells just like a Greek woman's armpit. I think I like it!"
 
I love latakia blends, but I'm not a big fan of SG's Balkan Flake. It's especially not a blend I would recommend for a beginning latakia smoker!
If I were you, I'd pick up some Chelsea Morning, Northwoods, or even something like Early Morning Pipe or Epiphany. There are tons of great blends out there, so don't pass judgment on latakia until you've tried a few examples. Latakia is a condiment tobacco, and its presentation/character varies greatly from blend to blend.
 
rev,

That sample I sent you was gifted to me a while back, and I don't recall exactly, but it may have come in a bag with other G&H blends that do have the Lakeland scent? I jarred it up separately as soon as I got it, but some of our "gang" find that Lakeland scents can permeate just about anything. I like these scents, so I don't seem to notice it at lower levels.

Natch

 
thanks again Natch for giving me lots of stuff to try. If it wasn't for you I wouldn't know how much I love FVF :) Guys, if all that was on offer was what I had, I wouldn't give up on it, just giving my first impression.

rev
 
I have tried SG Balkan Flake, I am not a seasoned smoker but I didn't think it tasted soapy or perfumey, to me when a bowl of a latakia blend is fired up the aroma reminds me of when you open a wood burner door to toss in another log, or when your relaxing around the camp fire, and it leaves a leathery taste behind on the tongue, and when I exhale, especially through the nose It gives me an outdoorsy scent.

Funny how two people can taste things so differently.. I guess thats why there are sooooo many blends to choose from, if we all liked the same there would be 3 blends and thats all :lol:
 
Well like Natch said this might have gotten some lakeland essence upon it

rev
 
I'm with MisterE here, SG's come very moist out of the tin but with cubing I think this one is really quite pleasant and tongue-friendly. I like to pack my flakes as wholes most of the time but this one benefits from the cubing just too much.

Never tasted soap in this, but I've heard many claim there's a little bit menthol in SG Balkan flake (and possibly in other SG's latakias, but I can't attest to this because too little experience with them). That wouldn't surprise me, there's definitely a cool touch to the smoke.

When it comes to Latakia, Ashton's "Artisan's blend" is one of my favs, it has some of the Syrian lat. Very soft one I think, like a lady-version of Nightcap.
 
Rev, I get a similar flavor when I smoke PS English Oriental Supreme. Russ from Pipes & Cigars told me it is a combination of latakia and orientals. To me, it reminds me of incense. I, personally enjoy this very much.
 
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