I just tried the Ashton Revival: Pebblecut.

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Blackhorse

Blackhorse

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Tinned by: McClelland

Description: Selected red mottled leaf from Carolina, rich in flavor and oils, small Oriental leaves from Macedonia of piquant aroma, bright nut-flavored broad leaf from Virginia, and pure Louisiana Perique all combine to form the framework of this blend which is hard-pressed and then lightly stoved.

Curing Group: Air Cured

Contents: Virginia, Perique, Oriental


I must be one of the most shallow characters around...I thought this would be pebble cut...like cube cut...and be all little tiny cubes of tobacco. Bugs Bunny would laugh at me and call me rude names. Be that as it may, it was indeed a broken flake...but not broken very much as it was big chunks for flake in that tin. My only wish for it would be that it was tinned by C&D so there would be a full 2 oz. Oh well.

What was it like. Well Jeez! I've only had the one bowl...in my Pete Rosslare Royal Irish pipe that's not even close to being broken in. I mean, there's no cake at all yet. But I just might dedicate that pipe to this stuff...as the pairing was that good. What was it like, you press me. OK - in a word - Eureka! (which when translated means, "I have found it!". It took maybe a quarter bowl to get into its groove...but then it was as close to being absolutley PERFECT as I've ever smoked. I'd sure like to know what those "small Oriental leaves from Macedonia" are, in terms of varietel or whatever...because this has EXACTLY the Oriental flavor that I get from C&D's Oriental Silk, Captain Earle's Honor Blend and a very few others. I call it Turkish...or Smyrna. But I could be wrong. It doesn't matter though, as here it is in a lovely dark and nicely pressed into an easily rubbed flake that came nearly perfect for immediate smoking. I really can hardly believe how good this is...the Red VA's, the Turkish, the Perique...it's all there in ideal balance. It's just too much...

<<pause for quiet manly sob>>

There, I'm better now.

<<disclaimer>>

The above opinion is that of Blackhorse only and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of any other BoB Member or the Management, or their families, or their relatives, pets, etc. Smoking Pipe Tobacco poses a health risk...as it often makes you so damn happy that you nearly 'bust your buttons' which could prove fatal in the state of California.




BTW: when I got this tin (delivered this afternoon) I also got a tin of the new 'Bedloe's Island'. Film at eleven.
 
Welcome to the world of the masters in KC! I've smoked this one for several years when they first brought it out and it was my go-to Oriental blend till I found their Oriental #14. Besides the cut (#14 is a nice ribbon cut as opposed to the chunky/flake of Pebblecut), #14 does not have Perique in it and a bit more Latakia which works better for me. But I occasionally still pick up a tin of this when I want some of the "pepper" Perique adds to a blend! It is , like ALL of the ketchup masters blends, EXCELLENT :p
 
So far as I know ALL the Mickey C Oriental blends have Latakia in them...and Pebblecut has none. This makes it a better match for me right off the bat. In addition, IMHO the interplay of the "O" and the "P" are one of the things that make Pebblecut so much fun. That and the Red and Bright base tobaccos which have been stoved a bit forming a semi-sweet background. It's like a happy family...Dad, Mom and the two kidlets. The whole thing is damn near perfection. In fact...I think it might just be that...perfect.

:king: :queen: :geek: :joker:
 
I went through a tin of this myself. I shared much of it with some co-workers. I enjoyed it at first, but the spiciness of what I was guessing was the perique kinda of got to me. Maybe I should try the #14.

In any case, I'm glad you found what you were looking for BH.
 
That's what drove me away from C&D's 'Sunday Picnic' which is a highly regarded blend. Too sharp, too much acrid spice...which I assume is the Perique. The odd thing about Perique is that depending on the type and the ratio in a blend it can do wildly different things. Sometimes, if you add more...the flavor impact goes down! Greg Peace has a great article out there on it.

But I was looking for a VA/Per/Oriental without the Latakia...and this is a great one for me. Another, which is milder in most ways, but still have the interplay of the Turkish and Perique is C&D's 'Oriental Silk' - which I think is amazing stuff...and CHEAP as it's a low priced bulk. At P&C you can get a quarter pound for under ten bucks, with a pound going for a shade over $30. Not bad.
 
Its interesting because I have a tin of this open now and have found it to be completely flat, not much going on at all. Perhaps I'm smoking it in the wrong pipes or got a slightly sub-par tin, but I really thought it would be up my alley since I love Tudor Castle and most of the blends from McClelland.

BTW, the Bedloe's Island is great stuff. I got a nice sample in Chicago and immediately ordered a handful of tins when I got home.
 
Yeah, that's odd all right. I ordered Bedloe's at the same time I got the Pebblecut and prefer the later by a good margin, finding it more full and rounder (must be the red + bright + stoving). Also I like the Oriental leaf in the Pebblecut more...different flavors so I assume it's a different leaf. So overall I'm finding the Pebblecut to have a fuller flavor than Bedloe's. So whatever we're doing...we should take good notes and swap so we can capture each other's proceedure or whatever! lol

Have you tried the Oriental Silk? Or the Honor Blend?
 
Hmmmm.....

Seems to me I got in a tin of Pebblecut some time ago. Must've forgotten about it until just now. Looks like I'll have to pop that tin and get stuck in.

Thanks for the reminder BH!



Cheers,

RR
 
Blackhorse":61q20qo0 said:
Yeah, that's odd all right. I ordered Bedloe's at the same time I got the Pebblecut and prefer the later by a good margin, finding it more full and rounder (must be the red + bright + stoving). Also I like the Oriental leaf in the Pebblecut more...different flavors so I assume it's a different leaf. So overall I'm finding the Pebblecut to have a fuller flavor than Bedloe's. So whatever we're doing...we should take good notes and swap so we can capture each other's proceedure or whatever! lol

Have you tried the Oriental Silk? Or the Honor Blend?
Click to expand...
I have tried oriental silk, but just a sample (1oz). It was pretty good.

If you haven't tried McC VA 24 I'd definitely recommend it. No perique, but a very tasty smoke. One of my top 5 favorite blends and I've tried a lot.
 
Coincidentally, I also have a tin of Pebblecut open. My impression is that it is indeed flavourful with a nice spicy sweetness.

It is easy to overheat though. When this happens the flavour goes away.

The broken flake is a bit too moist for me but is extremely easy to rub out. I have been taking one flake, rubbing it into a ball and stuffing that in the bowl, followed by enough repetitions to fill the bowl. Seems to work well and once I get the tobacco dried out should smoke extremely well. I'll be buying a few more tins of this wonderful blend.
 
BH, I know I have mentioned to you before that I'm also getting really into the VAPerTur and basically any VA/OR blend without Latakia....

After reading this thread I have acquired a couple tins of the Ashton Revival Pebblecut as well as one very old tin of the original Old London Pebblecut also made by McC's

I will report back once I've smoked a tin of each.

My question to you is: Have you smoked Butera's Royal Vintage Blended Flake? I'm just curious because it is another well reviewed blend of VA Oriental and Perique...
 
Blackhorse":zb445zki said:
That's what drove me away from C&D's 'Sunday Picnic' which is a highly regarded blend. Too sharp, too much acrid spice...which I assume is the Perique. The odd thing about Perique is that depending on the type and the ratio in a blend it can do wildly different things. Sometimes, if you add more...the flavor impact goes down! Greg Peace has a great article out there on it.

But I was looking for a VA/Per/Oriental without the Latakia...and this is a great one for me. Another, which is milder in most ways, but still have the interplay of the Turkish and Perique is C&D's 'Oriental Silk' - which I think is amazing stuff...and CHEAP as it's a low priced bulk. At P&C you can get a quarter pound for under ten bucks, with a pound going for a shade over $30. Not bad.
Click to expand...
I really enjoy Sunday Picnic but I strongly feel that 2 years minimum in the tin is what makes it a great blend... That's why I haven't been smoking any recently... What I do have isn't quite ready yet :) I'll send you some when I open a nice ripe tin, BH just for fun lol
 
In a similar vein, I just opened some GLP Cairo from 06 and must say it is very tasty. Never had it before but I'm liking it a lot on first impressions.
 
Shane -

Intresting that you are currently all a-drool over the touted VA/Perique/Turkish...as am I. There are few blends that I enjoy more...well, except for my standard Gawithian favorites of course...Coniston, Bracken, Glengary, yadda, yadda, yadda. I know I need to try the Folded Flake...having seen raves about it. Sink me! I don't trust any of 'em. One man's this is another man's that. Etc.

I need to start a list! I need to do private evaluations! I need more funds!!!

First the list: If I were to do a search on VA/Per/Turkish is would result in the following:

1 041: Orion's Arrow Cornell & Diehl
2 414: Oriental Silk Cornell & Diehl
3 841: Sha'are Orah (Gates of Light) Cornell & Diehl (#4 is a duplicate - removed)
5 Armada pipesandcigars.com (THEY LIE...this is loaded with Lady L)
6 Back Room The Tobacco Shop LLC
7 Bayou Blend Gauntleys Of Nottingham
8 Black and Gold Robert McConnell
9 Bowled Out Dunhill
10 Captain Earle's Honor Blend Hermit (very tasty but tends to burn hot for me)
11 Clan Theodorus Niemeyer
12 Colonial Edward's
13 First Smoke Rich's
14 Kentucky Club Aromatic Kentucky Club
15 London Dock John Middleton
16 Riverboat Gambler Cornell & Diehl
17 Scott's Companion B&B Tobacconists
18 Simply Elegant Series: Red Carpet Cornell & Diehl
19 Simply Elegant Series: Sunday Picnic Cornell & Diehl
20 Young Master Steven Books

Evals. Of the above list I've tried Oriental Silk, 841: Sha'are Orah (Gates of Light), Captain Earle's Honor Blend, Rich's First Smoke, Riverboat Gambler & Sunday Picnic. Of these I will continuie to buy Oriental Silk by the pound, Rich's First Smoke (when I have money to burn), Riverboat Gambler as an occasional tin.

If I drop the Perique from the search, instead of 20 I get 80! Too many to list here. But among them are some of the finest blends I've ever found.

Of course the list includes the above 20...and among the others (the ones I really like) are Crossroads and Oriental Dusk (John Patton), Embarcadero and Rich's Old Perth.

OK...there you have the list and the eval. As for the funds...that will be $20. Thank you and good day.

 
keen smoke":yiqat374 said:
In a similar vein, I just opened some GLP Cairo from 06 and must say it is very tasty. Never had it before but I'm liking it a lot on first impressions.
Click to expand...
I've been going crazy for some '09 Cairo lately. It's very good. And I just scored a 2002 tin! Should be very good. When I crack it open I'll have to send you some
 
No...don't.

I did forget to list Cairo on my thing though. Should have.


I still have a little bit of '03 Cairo here. I think I like it newer that that. I loses something with too much age, to me.
 
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