Is that the same as Sutliff BSOM?
Why Esoterica?
- Thread starter Dudditz
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I’ve only had And So to Bed and Pembroke. Both of those have a fairly unique topping that sets them apart from other Englishes I’ve tried, but I would not pay above retail for them, personally.
Three top notch blends.
Try Mac Baren's Plumcake and The Solent Mixture. Very reminiscent of ASTB and Pembroke.
They are fine blends from a reputable house that uses only top quality tobaccos.
Oh, and the sentence above could be applied to several other tobacco houses too.
Oh, and the sentence above could be applied to several other tobacco houses too.
Hey thanks, I will try to remember that!
Very welcome.
Germain makes good quality tobacco. The Esoterica blends are quite good, I like Stonehaven and Peacehaven best. Neither, however, makes my top ten favorites. The scarcity are to the allure, forbidden fruit syndrome.
One more thing:
Stonehaven is the BOMB! Just saying....
Like @hoosierpipeguy , it's not my favorite blend, and there would be a hole in my soul if I ever ran out but there's no chance of that happening.
The craze dates back to circa 2007, when Germain’s interrupted shipments of Penzance. Before this epochal event, the Esoterica blends, with the exception of Penzance, weren’t in high demand. You could walk into a B&M and find bags and tins sitting on the shelves.
After the Great Interruption a lot of pipe smokers lost their minds and the frantic hoarding took over.
Suddenly these blends became legendary objects of desire. The Psychopathy of Scarcity took root in the piping community.
I like a number of these blends and haven’t found them difficult to get because I don’t waste time on the major on line dealers. I have several B&Ms that I buy from.
These are good solid blends with a unique house style. Are they better than all other blends? To me, no, but they are top quality. Would I pay those extreme aftermarket prices? Hell no! I think that’s bug nuts.
There are some Esoterica blends I’d like to have more of, and there are some I have too much of.
I think that the Esoterica line up is very much worth exploring at retail, and very much worth ignoring at scalper prices.
After the Great Interruption a lot of pipe smokers lost their minds and the frantic hoarding took over.
Suddenly these blends became legendary objects of desire. The Psychopathy of Scarcity took root in the piping community.
I like a number of these blends and haven’t found them difficult to get because I don’t waste time on the major on line dealers. I have several B&Ms that I buy from.
These are good solid blends with a unique house style. Are they better than all other blends? To me, no, but they are top quality. Would I pay those extreme aftermarket prices? Hell no! I think that’s bug nuts.
There are some Esoterica blends I’d like to have more of, and there are some I have too much of.
I think that the Esoterica line up is very much worth exploring at retail, and very much worth ignoring at scalper prices.
I guess, if that black treacle cough syrup from the '70s was your thing.? One smoke was enough for me.
I've also wondered about them just like the OP.
I've never had any of them. I looked them up once to see what all the hubbub was all about and found out they're Englishes. Meh and bleh. End of the search.
Would I want to try them at least once? Sure. But I'm not gonna go on a hunt or pay exorbitant prices—not even for aromatics would I do that.
I've never had any of them. I looked them up once to see what all the hubbub was all about and found out they're Englishes. Meh and bleh. End of the search.
Would I want to try them at least once? Sure. But I'm not gonna go on a hunt or pay exorbitant prices—not even for aromatics would I do that.
They’re mostly Virginia and Burley based blends that I find mildly aromatic, anise, apricot, and other fruit toppings. Excellent quality leaf as a base. English is a small portion of the line up.
I seem to recall seeing at least one of them was a VA. Interesting, but not worth the price of admission/initiation.
Says the man with 800 pounds of McClellands
Its a flavor profile unique to Esoterica. Sort of a funky, musty, aged quality about them. The smoking characteristics are really good too. Nice thick smoke that behaves itself all the way down.
You get the sense of a few old men in a dank dungeon using ancient equipment and recipes while hand blending small batches at a time. At least that's the romantic way I like to view it ?
It's still a reasonable going rate for a prepackaged product though. 8oz. tins of GL Pease and Two Friends go for 39.74 compared to my 8oz. bags of Penzance and Dorchester that were $45 including shipping. I believe I paid $12.50 for my tins of Margate and Pembroke. That's a pretty standard 2oz tin price.
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