Grown in Turkey?

[aaronsharp]

If the answers to these questions are relatively common knowledge- sorry.
I have some questions about "Turkish" tobaccos. "Turkish" and "oriental" seem to be used interchangeably, and I know exactly what those labels refer to in practical terms. When reading about various blends, however, Turkey as a nation isn't mentioned much as an actual source nation too much in comparison to countries like Cyprus, Macedonia, and Greece. Maybe "ottoman" would be a romantic descriptor. Anyway- why such a dearth of tobacco grown on Turkish soil in our market? Ecology or Politics? Maybe I'm just misinformed but looking around online everything I see seems to be grown in USA (or elsewhere) from.seeds of turkish heritage, or are from other nations in the region. Please set me straight.

 

[cortezattic]

From Russ Ouellette's article:

http://pipesmagazine.com/blog/put-that-in-your-pipe/where-your-tobacco-comes-from/

Orientals- Oriental tobaccos cover a broad range of varietals that tend to be sweet, fragrant, floral and/or earthy. Most of them are sun-cured and are grown on plants that have a large number of small leaves. Among the many varietals, some of which are all but extinct, are Smyrna, Basma, Drama, Yenidje, Xanthi, Bashi Bagli, Djebel, Dubec, Samsoun and Katerini.

They are low in nicotine and easy smoking tobaccos, so they are used (less today than in the past) in cigarettes, but they are of great value in pipe blends as they add a lot of flavor and aroma without the need for flavorings.

The main growing regions today are in Greece, Macedonia, Turkey and Bulgaria, but some is also grown in South Africa. As I previously mentioned, these varietals don’t often work well when grown elsewhere, which leads to the conclusion that microclimate has as much to do with the end product as the strain of seed used.

Latakia falls into the Oriental category because it’s made from Smyrna (Cyprus) or Shek-el-Bint (var.)(Syria), although no production currently is coming from the latter. Latakia’s signature campfire-like flavor and aroma comes from the fact that the tobacco is hung in barns with an open fire made of aromatic woods and herbs which produces smoke that saturates the leaf until it’s black.

I also read somewhere that there is a blended Oriental that incorporates several varieties, and is just called "Turkish" (something or other to do with protecting small farm operators, I think in Greece.)

 

[cortezattic]

Also, check this out (it's a pdf you may have to download to read):

http://library.albany.edu/preservation/brittle_bks/Werner_Tobaccoland/Part4_chpt21.pdf
Also, an excellent discussion:

https://dutchpipesmoker.wordpress.com/2013/02/19/oriental-opulence-part-1/

 

[aaronsharp]

Cortez- Thank you for taking time to share with me. The PDF you posted was especially informative! Now that the ambiguity has been cleared, Are you aware of any products available on the American market currently that are made with Turkish grown leaf? A search of tobaccoreviews with the nation of Turkey listed as the only specific parameter for filtration reveals only three product, none of them available domestically. Once again thank you for your answers, I am afraid I might appear ungrateful responding to you with more questions but that is certainly not the case!

 

[woodsroad]

Cortez, I had forgotten about that book. I actually have a copy of it on my tobacco shelf! Here's a link to the entire book and here's a link to a treasure trove of books on the tobacco industry.

 

[cortezattic]

Your search at TR.com should use the keyword "oriental". I really don't know which blends contain leaf actually grown in Turkey.
Dan, thanks for the links!

 

[igloo]

Great link. Thank You.

 

[aaronsharp]

I am familiar with oriental tobaccos overall. I have smoked the whole Grand Oriental blend lineup from mclelland, and many others. In this case I'm looking for a product with tobacco that has actually been grown on Turkish soil, not simply a 'turkish' or 'oriental' varietal

 

[aaronsharp]

I'm sure that if I obtain any I will ultimately be let down, however it's probably analagous to a fan of Champagne wanting to see what the stuff produced in Champagne, France is like compared to their usual Korbel or whatever.

 

[jitterbugdude]

I don't think you would notice any difference. With all pipe tobaccos having sauces added to them a blend with Turkish tobacco from tobacco grown in Turkey would taste like one with the tobacco coming from Greece. Consistency is important in marketing a product.
I once exchanged some whole leaf tobacco with a guy in Turkey .We both grew Samsun Maden. My leaf was a lot bigger than his but the taste was exactly the same.

 

[aaronsharp]

Jitterbug- your anecdote about the exchange answered my question perfectly. Ultimately I was wondering if Turkish grown stuff had a unique 'terroir' that would be otherwise missed out on.