A friend gifted me a tin of the new Escudo because he and a couple of other friends were upset about the reduction of perique. I decided to totally rewrite my review from scratch, and relate my experiences with the blend through the changes I have noticed during the past quarter century. I also give an update on the current production.
STG Escudo Navy De Luxe mm em mm pt 3
Late 1990s to circa 2005 A.C.Peterson version: The Virginias provided a fair amount of tart and tangy citrus, tangy dark fruit, vegetative grass, bread, sugar, earth, wood, hay, mild foralness, tart lemon, and light spice as the lead components. The spicy, raisiny, plummy, figgy, earthy, woody, moderately sweet perique was a supporting player. Had an obvious prune topping. The strength, nic-hit and taste levels were a notch past the medium mark. Didn’t bite or get harsh. Had a few small rough edges. Burned cool, clean and a tad slow with a very consistent VaPer flavor. It was more citrusy and grassy than the Murray’s Deluxe Navy Rolls at the time, and a couple of step less fuller. Wasn’t an day smoke. Four stars.
Circa 2006-2013: It didn’t change that much. It was a little lighter overall than the A.C. Peterson version with a higher degree of vegetative grass and hay, and a tad less sweet and spicy. The dark fruit, earth, wood, and sugar were mildly lower. The strength, nic-hit and taste levels were medium. The rough edges were slightly higher. Burn rate was the same. Wasn’t an all day smoke. This was a three and a half star experience. Was a little further away from Navy Rolls than before.
2014-2022: This version had a duller Virginia presence using youthful Stokkebye stock with very little dark fruit earth and wood due the the use of lighter Virginias. Was more grassy, too. The perique remained the same with a tad more plummy presence, and that much less spice. It also had a light sour acidity that was never present in earlier manufacturers. The prune topping was lightly weaker. The strength, nic-hit and taste levels were a step below the medium mark. Had a few more rough edges than all previous productions. Burn rate didn’t change. This was a two and a half star blend that I lowered to a two star rating due to the mild, but heightened astringency. Had a smaller similarity to Navy Rolls than what I reported in the second paragraph.
5-16-2023 Update: The citrus level is a little higher now with less tartness. No dark fruit exists here now. Earth and wood are minimally present. The lemon notes have very slightly lessened to mild. It has a little more bread and sugar, and is a touch more floral and spicier. Has a fairly high grass content, though the vegetative aspects are very light. Acidity is very slight. Due to the severe reduction of the perique content, it is a condiment now. Very mild spice, barely has any figs and raisins, and the plum is lightly more obvious than the spice notes, but much less than before. The prune topping is very mild, more so than at any previous time. The strength, nic-hit, and taste levels are a couple of steps below the medium mark now. Rough edges are minimal. Burn rate hasn’t changed. The flavor is less complex than all previous productions although the astringency of the previous Escudo has vanished. It’s an all day smoke now. Two and a half stars upped to three because this is a more pleasant smoke than the 2014-2022 manufacture even if it is different. My current ratings are reflective of the 2023 product.
STG Escudo Navy De Luxe mm em mm pt 3
Late 1990s to circa 2005 A.C.Peterson version: The Virginias provided a fair amount of tart and tangy citrus, tangy dark fruit, vegetative grass, bread, sugar, earth, wood, hay, mild foralness, tart lemon, and light spice as the lead components. The spicy, raisiny, plummy, figgy, earthy, woody, moderately sweet perique was a supporting player. Had an obvious prune topping. The strength, nic-hit and taste levels were a notch past the medium mark. Didn’t bite or get harsh. Had a few small rough edges. Burned cool, clean and a tad slow with a very consistent VaPer flavor. It was more citrusy and grassy than the Murray’s Deluxe Navy Rolls at the time, and a couple of step less fuller. Wasn’t an day smoke. Four stars.
Circa 2006-2013: It didn’t change that much. It was a little lighter overall than the A.C. Peterson version with a higher degree of vegetative grass and hay, and a tad less sweet and spicy. The dark fruit, earth, wood, and sugar were mildly lower. The strength, nic-hit and taste levels were medium. The rough edges were slightly higher. Burn rate was the same. Wasn’t an all day smoke. This was a three and a half star experience. Was a little further away from Navy Rolls than before.
2014-2022: This version had a duller Virginia presence using youthful Stokkebye stock with very little dark fruit earth and wood due the the use of lighter Virginias. Was more grassy, too. The perique remained the same with a tad more plummy presence, and that much less spice. It also had a light sour acidity that was never present in earlier manufacturers. The prune topping was lightly weaker. The strength, nic-hit and taste levels were a step below the medium mark. Had a few more rough edges than all previous productions. Burn rate didn’t change. This was a two and a half star blend that I lowered to a two star rating due to the mild, but heightened astringency. Had a smaller similarity to Navy Rolls than what I reported in the second paragraph.
5-16-2023 Update: The citrus level is a little higher now with less tartness. No dark fruit exists here now. Earth and wood are minimally present. The lemon notes have very slightly lessened to mild. It has a little more bread and sugar, and is a touch more floral and spicier. Has a fairly high grass content, though the vegetative aspects are very light. Acidity is very slight. Due to the severe reduction of the perique content, it is a condiment now. Very mild spice, barely has any figs and raisins, and the plum is lightly more obvious than the spice notes, but much less than before. The prune topping is very mild, more so than at any previous time. The strength, nic-hit, and taste levels are a couple of steps below the medium mark now. Rough edges are minimal. Burn rate hasn’t changed. The flavor is less complex than all previous productions although the astringency of the previous Escudo has vanished. It’s an all day smoke now. Two and a half stars upped to three because this is a more pleasant smoke than the 2014-2022 manufacture even if it is different. My current ratings are reflective of the 2023 product.
