Frustrated by Escudo Navy De Luxe Rolls
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Agreed with all the others. You have to give it a break. There are so many good VaPers out there that are worth trying. As much as I adore Escudo, and I do mean that I absolutely love it, the world does not revolve around that singular blend.
There is nothing is wrong with Escudo, I promise you the Virginias you love are still there. Take a break, try other stuff, give your pipe a thorough cleaning, and come back to Escudo in a month or two.
There is nothing is wrong with Escudo, I promise you the Virginias you love are still there. Take a break, try other stuff, give your pipe a thorough cleaning, and come back to Escudo in a month or two.
Oh another thing. I have been smoking a pipe since the early 90's sometimes more then others sometimes much less then others. Weirdly and I don't know why there will be a day or smoke that's just bland. The details just don't pop. Sometimes I know why. I need to clean the pipe, I've over loaded my sense of taste, my allergies are super bad and everything is bland. Sometimes it switches off mid smoke. I've also noticed that enviromental factors can make a difference too. I say all year I smoke the same. But during the peak of the summer when it's nasty hot and swampy with humidity certain blends just get nasty and acrid. When it's really dry and cold some blends seem to have a blunted edge. Either way and for whatever reasons sometimes these things happen. Even if there isn't a reason escudo isn't the blend for you at the moment. Instead of being frustrated think of it like this, you probably love your wife a lot. Probably the best chick you know. And even with her sometimes you need to hang out with someone else (like some guys or just be by yourself.) And if you really strongly felt like you needed to not be around her for a moment or weekend or just didn't feel excited you wouldn't hopefully be wondering where it all went wrong.
I was waiting to see if someone else said it... but since STG took over Escudo, it is a mere shadow of what it used to be. Escudo in name and tin art only. It is not terrible, but it is not as awesome as it Escudo used to be. It definitely is not worth the premium prices that places are asking these days. If you get a chance to try one of the older tins, take it!
I can’t add too much to what has already been said. I would give the blend a break, keep pipes dedicated to it, and give your pipes a good cleaning. My absolute favorite blend is Sir Walter Raleigh regular. I have a Savinelli 104 Tre rusticated that isn’t allowed to have any other blend in it. If Sir Walter is giving me problems in one of my other pipes and it still doesn’t taste right in my trusty Savinelli 104, I know it’s time to break out the handful of other blends I have on hand.
The Psychological Ghost can also be at play here on many levels.
Overthinking it
State of mind and place at the time of smoking
Had a bad pipe experience, now carrying this Ghost
And the list goes on...
Also, your body chemistry and health is also always in a state of change. So watch what you eat and drink before, during and after.
For anything we want to enjoy in life, we also have to include the physical and spiritual/mental aspects, because they too can certainly effect the outcome of pipe smoking.
Bottom Line; The physical, mental, spiritual could be at play here, only you can decide that, rather then simply being a tobacco or pipe issue(s).
Overthinking it
State of mind and place at the time of smoking
Had a bad pipe experience, now carrying this Ghost
And the list goes on...
Also, your body chemistry and health is also always in a state of change. So watch what you eat and drink before, during and after.
For anything we want to enjoy in life, we also have to include the physical and spiritual/mental aspects, because they too can certainly effect the outcome of pipe smoking.
Bottom Line; The physical, mental, spiritual could be at play here, only you can decide that, rather then simply being a tobacco or pipe issue(s).
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I've heard this a few times... is there much that can be done with new Escudo to improve it? I'm a little nervous about stoving it, but if the chief complaint is that it's made with young Virginias and can't age much in a vacuum-sealed tin, would jarring it up for a while help at all?
I am stuck with a bunch of this also. I started noticing that age did not start vastly improving. But, like I said, it's not terrible. I am not sure there is much to do. I am just going to smoke it. There are vastly better VaPers out there, but it's not like this makes me gag. It's just not worth it to buy any more of this... for me.
This isn’t a helpful contribution to the thread, but…
Everytime I scroll by the title, I can’t help thinking, “You’re singling out Escudo for something that isn’t Escudo’s fault.” I feel like the OP’s situation could apply to any blend; his experience doesn’t seem to be Escudo-specific (apart from the fact that it occurred while smoking Escudo).
Everytime I scroll by the title, I can’t help thinking, “You’re singling out Escudo for something that isn’t Escudo’s fault.” I feel like the OP’s situation could apply to any blend; his experience doesn’t seem to be Escudo-specific (apart from the fact that it occurred while smoking Escudo).
I think you’re misunderstanding the tin-sealing process. I could be wrong, but I don’t believe any tobacco is “vacuum sealed.” If they were truly locked in a vacuum, nothing would age in the tin. There is still air at work in there.
There is a vacuum on the round flat tins, but it is not an absolute vacuum. There is still some air in there.
Yeah, I've read that something like 40% (or was it 60%) of atmospheric pressure remains after "vacuum-sealing." All I was getting at was that there'd be much less oxygen available versus a regular sealed tin.
If introducing some more air to the stuff and then sitting on it a bit longer might help, I'd be game. I have some tins, jars, and time.
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Just from observations and guessing, I believe that STG buys these famous blends and then uses cheaper leaf to make them, (or they just can't source that leaf any more) keeping the prices high, because of the reputation of the name. This is pretty much how all corporations work, sacrifice quality for profits, appeasing shareholders. And, for the most part it works. People buy Balkan Sobranie and Escudo because of it's historical fame... no matter what crap they put inside it. And, unless the smokers have really good taste buds... they fool themselves into thinking that it's really good... because of the name. Or, they think that pipesmokers of the past just really liked mediocre crap.Yeah, I've read that something like 40% (or was it 60%) of atmospheric pressure remains after "vacuum-sealing." All I was getting at was that there'd be much less oxygen available versus a regular sealed tin.
If introducing some more air to the stuff and then sitting on it a bit longer might help, I'd be game. I have some tins, jars, and time.
How many people here have chased down some Balkan Sobranie or paid that huge premium for Escudo?
I did last week! Cracked it open yesterday because I couldn't wait any longer and it made a huge difference.
With the exception of an ill-fated bourbon experiment, I’ve yet to have it not improve a blend tremendously. Plus it makes the house smell great!
Glad you enjoyed it!
I don't understand how tobacco can smell that good. My mom used to make these delicious raisin rolls as a kid that was this doughy ball of goodness with raisins in it and my whole kitchen smelled just like it when I frantically replacing the tinfoil top with the sealed lid. Was the best smelling thing I probably had ever smelled next to those rolls.
Another review. I have been trying a few new blends this week and thought it would be a good chance to get some more practice at this. This was my first time smoking a VaPer so I went in not knowing what to expect, luckily I was very pleasantly surprised. Anywho, read on, and hopefully enjoy my review of Escudo. Thanks.
It's funny that this thread is at the top of the roster. I've been packing up the cellar for the move, something that's feeling like a herculean task, I have a lot more tobaccos than I realized, and I came across one of my few remaining tins of Escudo, the good stuff, when A & C Petersen was on the label. Rather than pack it up I decided that it was time to enjoy a tin.
It's nothing like the product that STG is putting out, I've smoked the STG version, and it reminds me why I loved Escudo so much. The Virginias have developed a dark richness, both savory and sweet, balanced and complex, a smoothness that feels luscious. And that marvelous fruitiness that Escudo used to develop over the years and is nowhere to be found in the current product, which uses young Stokkebye tobaccos in place of the tobaccos that were used years ago.
It reminds me why I used to think that there was no better VaPer made, and it's why I can't smoke the current product.
But if you've never smoked the old stuff, there's no reason not to enjoy the new stuff on its own merits. I can't do that because I imprinted on Copes (which was made by Gallaher after 1952) and then A & C Petersen, which used the same equipment and processing as the Copes. People will imprint on the blends available to them and enjoy them as they are, and that's a good thing. The important thing is to enjoy what you smoke.
But I can't help but wish that STG had cared enough to maintain the integrity of the Escudo I loved.
It's nothing like the product that STG is putting out, I've smoked the STG version, and it reminds me why I loved Escudo so much. The Virginias have developed a dark richness, both savory and sweet, balanced and complex, a smoothness that feels luscious. And that marvelous fruitiness that Escudo used to develop over the years and is nowhere to be found in the current product, which uses young Stokkebye tobaccos in place of the tobaccos that were used years ago.
It reminds me why I used to think that there was no better VaPer made, and it's why I can't smoke the current product.
But if you've never smoked the old stuff, there's no reason not to enjoy the new stuff on its own merits. I can't do that because I imprinted on Copes (which was made by Gallaher after 1952) and then A & C Petersen, which used the same equipment and processing as the Copes. People will imprint on the blends available to them and enjoy them as they are, and that's a good thing. The important thing is to enjoy what you smoke.
But I can't help but wish that STG had cared enough to maintain the integrity of the Escudo I loved.
In book publishing, there’s the idea that the mega-sellers—the Stephen Kings and James Pattersons of the world—are the books profitable enough to enable their publisher to produce other books that are worthy of publication but which will never sell many copies. Without the mega-sellers, the others would never be able to see the light of day from a traditional publisher. (As a writer who is not likely to ever produce a best-seller—and has no interest in self-publishing—my own books have definitely benefited from this situation.)
Here’s my point: You’d think this could work for pipe tobacco as well. Given the dozens upon dozens of blends and brands that STG oversees, wouldn’t it be reasonable to assume that some are profitable enough to fund an Escudo or a Peterson blend that is actually treated with the individualized care and attention they would have received in the past when produced by Cope’s/A&C Petersen or Dunhill/Murray’s? You mentioned Escudo…but up until the 1960s Dunhill’s individual ingredients were well-aged before ever ending up in a blend. That shifted as owners economized and streamlined. But I don’t see any reason why a company could not afford to return to that practice, assuming there were best-sellers to balance out the economics.
The alternative is that everything is becoming genericized as a handful of major blend/brand owners (such as MacBaren and STG) are using the same leaf and same manufacturing procedures for every single thing they produce. Since they are produced in the same factory now (and have been for almost two decades), Peterson Flake and Orlik Golden Sliced are likely made from the exact same Virginia leaf—when, in the past, they would have been: sourced from different growers, made from different leaf, aged differently and under unique conditions, produced on unique machinery, and humidified with different casings.
It seems to me that there’s still a market for blends that are truly distinctive in quality.
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