How Many Esoterica Blends are Rebranded Germain's Blends?

[filmguerilla]

My local Tinder Box has done a great job of regularly getting the standard (less rare) Esoterica blends, so I've had a lot of experience with Margate, Dunbar, And So To Bed, and a few more. Recently they started getting some of the Germain's tins, so I snatched some up and I've noticed that a couple of these just seem to be the exact same tobacco as the Esoterica. Germain's King Charles tastes like Esoterica Margate to me--and I've seen a few people compare Germain's Royal Jersey Perique to Dorchester and Dunbar (pretty sure it isn't Dorchester as I love that one and it has an apricot topping). So I'm wondering how many of the Esoterica are just rebranded Germain's tobacco for America/Arango.

 

[sablebrush52]

All of the Esoterica blends were derived from Germain’s Catalogue of blends, blends made by Germain’s for use by other labels, most notably the Smoker’s Haven blends, which are cousins to the Esoterica blends.
When Steve Richman of the Piedmont Tobacco Company commissioned the Esoterica line from Germain’s he had them customized, so while they they are similar to the Smoker’s Haven blends, and similar to blends that Germain’s sells under their own name, they are not identical.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Ah, Steve. May he be resting in peace.

The store took a turn for the worse when he died, but am curious to learn how it's doing now, if at all. (Used to be my go-to B+M until I moved away from Piedmont)

 

[mingc]

Following up on @sablebrush52's post, @glpease was on Steve Richman's panel of tasters when Germain's was developing Esoterica and has written about it here, mainly on Penzance as far as the Esoterica blends go:

Since Penzance is hard to come by... :: Pipe Tobacco Discussion

Someone mentioned Margate. The Lil Brown Smoke Shack has it in small tin and bag. They are offering free shipping in July. Penzance is out of stock... http://www.lilbrown.com/c-254-butera.aspx Bigvan: I'm not describing the Penzance flavor correctly. Maybe Camphor is the word I was looking...

pipesmagazine.com

and here:

October Tobacco Crawl with Greg L. Pease :: Pipe Tobacco Discussion

I've been alternating Penzance and Quiet Nights. I prefer the tine note and texture of Penzance but when it comes to smoking qualities, Quiet Night holds it's own.

pipesmagazine.com

 

[filmguerilla]

All of the Esoterica blends were derived from Germain’s Catalogue of blends, blends made by Germain’s for use by other labels, most notably the Smoker’s Haven blends, which are cousins to the Esoterica blends.
When Steve Richman of the Piedmont Tobacco Company commissioned the Esoterica line from Germain’s he had them customized, so while they they are similar to the Smoker’s Haven blends, and similar to blends that Germain’s sells under their own name, they are not identical.

Interesting. I've heard people say that Germain's, much like Gawith/G&H, like to put specific toppings on their tobacco (I've noticed anise and apricot on a few), so I wonder if the difference you're noting here is just a different topping. At any rate, some of them taste close enough to each other that I'd be happy with either being around without the other (Germain's or Esoterica).

 

[spicy_boiii]

Ah, Steve. May he be resting in peace.

The store took a turn for the worse when he died, but am curious to learn how it's doing now, if at all. (Used to be my go-to B+M until I moved away from Piedmont)

Out of respect for who I believe is his widow, and Steve himself, I'll refrain from sharing my contemporary experiences and let any opinions be presumed - If you know what I mean.

 

[sablebrush52]

Interesting. I've heard people say that Germain's, much like Gawith/G&H, like to put specific toppings on their tobacco (I've noticed anise and apricot on a few), so I wonder if the difference you're noting here is just a different topping. At any rate, some of them taste close enough to each other that I'd be happy with either being around without the other (Germain's or Esoterica).

Not just a different topping, but different balances in the blend components, according to what Greg Pease told me when I asked him about being a taster during the development of the Esoterica line.

A good example might be Esoterica Stonehaven and Germain's Rich Dark Flake. Both have a substantial treacle topping and at first acquaintance seem to taste like the same blend, but RDF also has ale in the topping and is more Virginia forward while Stonehaven is more Burley forward, IIRC. The differences become more noticeable when one has smoked both for a while.