Perique in HotW and Old Gowrie? Not according to the blender

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judcole

Lifer
Sep 14, 2011
7,149
32,922
Detroit
Today I popped a nice new tin of Rattray's Hal o' th' Wynd.Included was a nice little booklet describing each of the Rattray blends, in English and German. With all the claims lately, based on website descriptions, that HotW and Old Gowrie were Va/Pers (much to the surprise of long time fans of these fine blends,who thought they were Virginias), I read the descriptions.

Although Perique is mention as being an ingredient in both Marlin Flake and Dark Fragrant, it is not mentioned for either OG or HotW.

OG is "Virginia tobacco pressed as a broken flake following the old traditions of Charles Rattray. A spicy, yet noble tobacco with cool characteristics and subdued sweetness. The tobacco gets its harmonious flavour from several weeks of maturing."

HotW is described thus: "A full-bodied Virginia tobacco with a slight sweetness and extremely pleasant smoking characteristics. The name comes from that of the armourer in The Fair Maid of Perth - a man who had a most unusual share of strength."

I'm sure they would have mentioned Perique if it was there. And,yes,I know what the website says.

 

clarkj734

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 2, 2014
112
1
Having smoked pounds of both...i have never bought the argument that either one contained Perique.

 

leacha

Part of the Furniture Now
Jun 19, 2013
939
8
Colorado
There is member here that is allergic to perique. Send him a sample and the truth will be known.

 

tppytel

Starting to Get Obsessed
Sep 23, 2014
156
0
HOTW does say "a pure Virginian tobacco" right on the can, for what that's worth. I've got a can open right now and have smoked pounds of the stuff over the years. I've never considered it a VAPer. It wouldn't surprise me if there's actually a touch of it in there, but the overall effect is nothing like Escudo, St. James Flake, etc.
It's been a while since I've smoked Old Gowrie, but I don't remember anything Perique-like in it at all. Definitely a straight VA.

 

billypm

Can't Leave
Oct 24, 2013
302
3
I'm not sure about the Perique, but I sure can taste the Kentucky in Brown Clunee. And while I used to like Old Gowrie, I sure don't now. So I'm voting for neither of those two, at least, being a straight Va.

 
Oct 12, 2014
328
21
"Having smoked pounds of both...i have never bought the argument that either one contained Perique."
This. I havent smoked pounds but I smoked more then a few tins of both..never tasted Perique. These are straight VA.

 

mawnansmiff

Lifer
Oct 14, 2015
7,385
7,295
Sunny Cornwall, UK.
Perhaps an old thread but reading it got me thinking, particularly about HOTW. My tin bought about a month ago clearly states on the back...
"HOTW is an unusually strong Virginia based mixture. Fire cured Kentucky is added to a base of a variety of Virginias and Perique completes this mixture. It is then pressed and finally rubbed by hand - a broken flake in a class of its own"
So there we have it, HOTW does indeed contain Perique! As for my tin of Old Gowrie, it tells me nothing of the contents.
FWIW my tin of Brown Clunee lists its contents as "...Kentucky, Perique and dark rubbed Virginia".
I hope someone finds this useful.
Regards,
Jay.

 
Some folks cannot taste the cinnamon in an apple pie over the flavors of apples, nor taste the cinnamon in a cinnamon bun, most likely because they relate the taste of cinnamon to that of red hots or stronger doses of cinnamon. This may be what is happening here. The condemental leaf is used very sparingly to sweeten the tobacco, and they cannot taste it over the Virginia. Or, maybe they are associating perique with Escudo or Bayou Morning, and they don"t understand how different amounts of perique affects the flavor differently. Plus, perique doesn't have a flavor of its on per se. It's like salt. What does salt taste like? Pure salt is different tasting than just a sprinkle over your beans. And, a sprinkle over beans is different than a sprinkle over chicken.

It's an elusive flavor for sure, and probably confuses some folks.

 

mawnansmiff

Lifer
Oct 14, 2015
7,385
7,295
Sunny Cornwall, UK.
Cosmic, I appreciate what you're saying but some folks were quite adamant there was no perique in the blends. Not prepared to say "well if it's in there I can't taste it". Nobody likes to be wrong but occasionally we all can be.
Regards,
Jay.

 
...just like Kevin, the owner of this forum and magazine, reporting that Escudo and Dunhill Navy Rolls are made on the same assembly line with the same ingredients, and there are still people who say they taste a difference. I am not saying that they don't taste a difference, nor that there is nor isn't a difference, just interesting.
Being right or wrong, who cares, smoke what you like, like what you smoke. Fiddle-faddle over ingredients or who knows more than someone else is just ego juice, and no one wants to get somneone else's juice on them. :wink:

 

mawnansmiff

Lifer
Oct 14, 2015
7,385
7,295
Sunny Cornwall, UK.
"Being right or wrong, who cares,..."
I care and I care very much when someone gives me information that is incorrect. There are so many myths, fables and outright lies told on these forums by folks who really should know better. Though still a relative newbie in piping I am slowly beginning to pick up on these myths etc. If something doesn't sound right then chances are it isn't right.
I would be mortified if I were to come on here and tell everyone emphatically that X blend contains Y tobacco only to find out that it didn't. I suppose we just have different standards.
Regards,
Jay.

 

andrew

Lifer
Feb 13, 2013
3,042
400
https://socalpipester.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/rattrays_booklet.pdf Here is the booklet and it does state it's all Va but I think the booklet is outdated as on the K&K website it lists kentucky, va, and perique. Either way it's a good blend and Rattray's should admit that the booklet is more of a souvenir than fact. I can't taste much perique in OG so it could be similar to how it's used in Orlik Golden Sliced.

 
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