I made a Perique thread previously in the blending section, for those of you that gave advice and information - thank you for participating.
Here is a verbose sharing of my experiences with some different periques.
The Periques sourced were as follows (and are visible in the following photo from left to right) :
1)Sutliff TS20 Blending Perique
2)Pipes and Cigars Blending Perique
3)Daughters and Ryan Blenders Bench Acadian Perique.
As you can see the Sutliff and P&C periques look very similar. The D&R perique is mostly a fine Shang-like ribbon cut, with some rogue strips of whole leaf interspersed within.
The pipe used for this experiment is a Tsuge "The Tasting 16" briar pipe. At its size, a tasting (or Flake pipe) it is.
The Sutliff and P&C were purchased in bulk and arrived in a plastic press-lock bag. The D&R arrived in 6oz Tubs.
Sutliff:
The Sutliff smells like fish. Or fish sauce. Or fishy soy sauce. Whatever adjectives could be used, there one thing that is undeniable - its funky. Mixing with other tobaccos and blends lends a pervasive funk taste and smell that can be quickly overpowering. Some may find it off putting.
Despite the complexity offered by umami-lending characteristics from something akin to soy-sauce, it's fairly one-dimensional. Funky with some salt. The pepper, earth, spice, and rich herbal smell and taste just isn't there.
Smoked alone, it gives a salty funk taste, and is surprisingly mild. Puffed harder it lends some some raw horseradish spice, but neither increases in complexity nor flavor. The smell is a direct clue to the taste. That being said, I'd imagine a small amount could do interesting things to a blend that is dry or raw tasting.
I've found it to deaden and unify the taste of blends that I've added it to. It absorbs flavors more than adds to them.
There is zero plum or fruity taste, and a very very minute sweetness not unlike, well, soy or fish sauce.
P&C
The P&C, as you can see in the photos above, looks near identical to the Sutliff, but that's where the similarities end.
The smell is very interesting, and offers vague hints of the taste to come. Earthy, slightly herbal, musky leather (but not B.O. funky). I might be reaching, but I almost get a oak smell from it akin to that of whisky.
The taste is complex. Earth, dry dry chocolate, pepper, leathery raw beef. Palate filling. Yet somehow still tastes crisp and fresh. This perique is not vaguely related to the Sutliff.
It is surprisingly "bright" and "fresh" tasting. The flavor components are scattered and not uniform, almost as if this is a blend in itself.
There's an incense peppery note in the retrohale that is not unpleasant. In fact, I didn't want to stop smoking it. It is in no means overbearing, and I was reminded of some of my favorite VaPers.
Still, no plum or sweetness.
D&R
The D&R is paler and came drier than the other two periques. It's smell is very fresh, hardly any funk, and very earthy and almost charred oak-y smelling. It smells delicious.
The taste is very similar to that of the P&C. Many of the same flavors are there, but it is more clean tasting and a very dry smoke. If I was to hazard a guess, I'd say that P&C took the same or similar perique and simply added some preservative(s) or Humectant(s) to it.
Now, it may be a function of the apparent unmolested nature of the D&R, but it was certainly the best smoking of the three. It could be sipped, during which the herbal and earth notes would absolutely dance. Wow, amazing stuff.
It could also be puffed harder and the pepper would rear its head. A tasty pepper like that of the spice, not simply the dry horseradish-like taste.
I'd have to let the P&C and D&R meld and age with other varietals to tell a large difference between the two, but to my tastes, the D&R tasted like a fresh rub of a mixture of fresh spices, while the P&C tasted like McCormick made the same exact mixture at the same percentages. Think fresh ground to pre-ground pepper. A little more strength to the complex and light-scented and flavored notes of all kinds.
That being said, I think for many, differentiating between the D&R and P&C as blending components would be splitting hairs.
Overall I've enjoyed my experimentation, which will continue. I've purchased six 6-ounce tubs of the D&R which have each been sealed in 7-mil Mylar to be used for future projects.
Depending on how the many Pounds of my aging Red Virginias end up, I'll pick a favorite to make a VaPer or VaPerOr eventually.
I must give credit where credit is due, for a Perique available in bulk (as little as one ounce) for a low price, P&C blending perique is quality stuff.
If anyone can source some Peter Stokkebye 311 Perique, please let me know.
Thanks for reading.
Here is a verbose sharing of my experiences with some different periques.
The Periques sourced were as follows (and are visible in the following photo from left to right) :
1)Sutliff TS20 Blending Perique
2)Pipes and Cigars Blending Perique
3)Daughters and Ryan Blenders Bench Acadian Perique.
As you can see the Sutliff and P&C periques look very similar. The D&R perique is mostly a fine Shang-like ribbon cut, with some rogue strips of whole leaf interspersed within.
The pipe used for this experiment is a Tsuge "The Tasting 16" briar pipe. At its size, a tasting (or Flake pipe) it is.
The Sutliff and P&C were purchased in bulk and arrived in a plastic press-lock bag. The D&R arrived in 6oz Tubs.
Sutliff:
The Sutliff smells like fish. Or fish sauce. Or fishy soy sauce. Whatever adjectives could be used, there one thing that is undeniable - its funky. Mixing with other tobaccos and blends lends a pervasive funk taste and smell that can be quickly overpowering. Some may find it off putting.
Despite the complexity offered by umami-lending characteristics from something akin to soy-sauce, it's fairly one-dimensional. Funky with some salt. The pepper, earth, spice, and rich herbal smell and taste just isn't there.
Smoked alone, it gives a salty funk taste, and is surprisingly mild. Puffed harder it lends some some raw horseradish spice, but neither increases in complexity nor flavor. The smell is a direct clue to the taste. That being said, I'd imagine a small amount could do interesting things to a blend that is dry or raw tasting.
I've found it to deaden and unify the taste of blends that I've added it to. It absorbs flavors more than adds to them.
There is zero plum or fruity taste, and a very very minute sweetness not unlike, well, soy or fish sauce.
P&C
The P&C, as you can see in the photos above, looks near identical to the Sutliff, but that's where the similarities end.
The smell is very interesting, and offers vague hints of the taste to come. Earthy, slightly herbal, musky leather (but not B.O. funky). I might be reaching, but I almost get a oak smell from it akin to that of whisky.
The taste is complex. Earth, dry dry chocolate, pepper, leathery raw beef. Palate filling. Yet somehow still tastes crisp and fresh. This perique is not vaguely related to the Sutliff.
It is surprisingly "bright" and "fresh" tasting. The flavor components are scattered and not uniform, almost as if this is a blend in itself.
There's an incense peppery note in the retrohale that is not unpleasant. In fact, I didn't want to stop smoking it. It is in no means overbearing, and I was reminded of some of my favorite VaPers.
Still, no plum or sweetness.
D&R
The D&R is paler and came drier than the other two periques. It's smell is very fresh, hardly any funk, and very earthy and almost charred oak-y smelling. It smells delicious.
The taste is very similar to that of the P&C. Many of the same flavors are there, but it is more clean tasting and a very dry smoke. If I was to hazard a guess, I'd say that P&C took the same or similar perique and simply added some preservative(s) or Humectant(s) to it.
Now, it may be a function of the apparent unmolested nature of the D&R, but it was certainly the best smoking of the three. It could be sipped, during which the herbal and earth notes would absolutely dance. Wow, amazing stuff.
It could also be puffed harder and the pepper would rear its head. A tasty pepper like that of the spice, not simply the dry horseradish-like taste.
I'd have to let the P&C and D&R meld and age with other varietals to tell a large difference between the two, but to my tastes, the D&R tasted like a fresh rub of a mixture of fresh spices, while the P&C tasted like McCormick made the same exact mixture at the same percentages. Think fresh ground to pre-ground pepper. A little more strength to the complex and light-scented and flavored notes of all kinds.
That being said, I think for many, differentiating between the D&R and P&C as blending components would be splitting hairs.
Overall I've enjoyed my experimentation, which will continue. I've purchased six 6-ounce tubs of the D&R which have each been sealed in 7-mil Mylar to be used for future projects.
Depending on how the many Pounds of my aging Red Virginias end up, I'll pick a favorite to make a VaPer or VaPerOr eventually.
I must give credit where credit is due, for a Perique available in bulk (as little as one ounce) for a low price, P&C blending perique is quality stuff.
If anyone can source some Peter Stokkebye 311 Perique, please let me know.
Thanks for reading.
