Latakia - I Just Don't "Get" It

[jkenp]

I enjoy the occasional Lat. It isn't my everyday choice but makes a nice change of pace. I smoke Proper English and a bit of HH Syrian. Neither is a Lat bomb. Both will last me quite a while. (1# bulk)
It is a shock how tastes vary and it would be less a world if we marched lockstep. I hear about this or that as a favorite/superior blend and find it blah while the next one mentioned might get a fist pump. I guess it all goes to show that our unique taste buds are ours alone. So waxing poetic or panning something makes me no nevermind. We all have to figure it out on our own. Some view might looking interesting and we give it a go and hope for the best.

 

[drrock]

Shortyeastcoast - I'm also not a big fan of Latakia blends even though over many, many years of pipe smoking I've tried to learn to appreciate blends containing Latakia. I also am in the "all or nothing" group whereby the Latakia is the only component of the blend I taste. The only Latakia blend I've been able to appreciate/tolerate is Cornell & Diehl Plantation Evening. Even the well-touted Frog Morton blends from McClelland don't do it for me & I've been a huge fan of McClelland blends in general.
That all said, one of my overall favorite pipe tobaccos is MacBaren Plumcake, which contains Latakia only as a condiment. The Latakia there doesn't overwhelm but adds just the right extra something to the overall flavor of the blend.

Another blend I recently sampled and was pleasantly surprised by is Uhle's Raider Blend. It too has just a "smidge" of Latakia. Raider blend is also a cherry blend, and I'm also not a big fan of cherry blends yet thought that particular blend was really delicious.

 

[phred]

As a new pipe smoker, I kind of had this problem with tobacco in general. It didn't take me long to discover that there were major differences between, say, Latakia blends and Burley/Cavendish-based aromatics, but the subtle distinctions within the major types was still a little beyond me.
But it was the same thing for me with beer, then whisky, then wine - at first, it all tastes the same. With time and experience, you start to 'get' the subtleties. I'm starting to think that doing "tobacco flights" on my Friday afternoons may be a good way to go - get a bunch of small bowled pipes (MM Pony Express, for example), set out 3 blends, and smoke each in turn. It worked out when I was trying to understand Codger Burleys - Sir Walter Raleigh and Sugar Barrel are similar in a lot of ways, but distinct enough that I can tell the difference and develop a preference (for Sugar Barrel, BTW...). Latakias are still revealing themselves slowly - I just picked up some Frog Morton, and I was somewhat surprised by the flavor intensity after hearing people talk about it being a "lighter" or crossover English. But it's definitely not quite the same as Black House, or even House of Lords - even if I can't tell you off the top of my head exactly what the difference actually is.

 

[blueeyedogre]

I've tried the McClelland's Frog Morton as well as 4noggins Bald Headed Teacher and concluded that Latakia is also not for me. My everyday smoke is 1Q, but I have fallen in love with McClellands Beacon Extra and perique blends. I've jarred the remainder of my Frog Morton and BHT and maybe I'll come back to it one day.

 

[kcghost]

I am a Latakia lover and have no problem distinguishing in the level of Latakia in a blend. A blend doesn't have to be dominated by Latakia to be a great smoke. I love Nightcap and FMC and many points in between. It all comes down to balance.

 

[howulikeit]

Maybe a little experiment would help. Buy an ounce of blending latakia and add just a pinch of it to a blend that you are familiar enough with to notice how it changes the blend.

 

[murf]

Smokey, there is no perique in Frog Morton Cellar. It is in Frog Morton Bayou.
I've been on a VA, VAPer kick lately. Had some Jesse's Own from 4noggins, and Nording's Foxhound (1yr old) to mix it up. I'm really glad I did! they were so sweet and smokey, and taste was barely affected by re-lights.
However, when I started out, I only smoked aros. I didn't even know what latakia was. I ordered the Nording's Foxhound simply based on the name. I smoked it a few times and didn't like it at all. Then, I started exploring VAs and some lat blends, decided I enjoyed them more than aros. Then got stuck on VAs for a few months. Taking a break and smoking some lat blends was such a treat.
My smoking techniques has definitely improved since my first latakia experience, but I'm still improving it. Slowing down, not puffing so hard, keeps the lat from going "rancid." Taking your time with lights, and re-lights helps too.
I've started (trying) to go through an entire tin (or at least half) of a blend before making a decision on it. It gives you time to get to know a blend. Rather than smoke 1 bowl, think "what the heck is this?!" and then go back to what you know.

 

[kashmir]

Latakia is an aquired taste, no doubt. But give it a chance and it'll grow on you. I smoke none other.

 

[liltoast]

Like some said above, Latakia is not for everyone and is an acquired taste. If u are sick of lat blends, try smoking others and come back to lat later, it makes a huge difference. Your taste buds can get used to flavors after smoking them consistently so a change is a good idea to broaden ur palate as well as make u appreciate other tobaccos. For me, I mainly smoke Latakia heavy English blends, I love them, I had a lb of penzance that I smoked every day, multiple times a day, till it was gone, sad about hat by the way haha. When I tired of the flavor I move on to some VaPers and eventually come back to English blends again and it's like the first time all over again. And for some, they just never will like it, don't force ur self to like Latakia if u just can't get into the taste of it. Happy piping

 

[starcat]

If you drank Pabst.....alas, it may be too late........
SC

 

[sfsteves]

I spent a lot of time looking for a blend I liked ... for me, some were barely tolerable, many were objectionable, and a few were out and out nasty ...
Then, a knowledgeable tobacconist got asking me a few questions and based on my answers pulled a jar off his bench and asked me to smell it ... he suspected that this was the common denominator among the many blends I'd disliked ... I told him I was sure he was right and he said "well, that's Latakia ... we just need to find you a blend you like that doesn't contain it" ...
It was that experience that started me down the VA/Per trail and I've found a level of pipe-smoking pleasure that has continued for many years ...

 

[mso489]

A lot can be done with other tobaccos with Latakia, to give a blend complexity. Turkish, orientals, and cavendish of various kinds

can give Latakia a whole different presentation. And it's not just lots of Lat or very little. Latakia can be used in an artful way, or

just laid on strong. And Perique has enough presence to give Lat at different levels a whole different spin. Latakia is a tough test

for the blender to make it interesting and not just heavy-handed.

 

[swampmouth]

I don't get it either, but I've smoked a heck of alot of it.

 

[petes03]

@starcat, what's wrong with Pabst Blue Ribbon? I like it!

 

[northernneil]

To me Latakia blends are kind of like cigars, when you first try them they all taste the same. Once you get more experience with them, then you'll start to notice little differences between blends. If you really want to see the difference between latakia and a latakia mixture with virginia or orientals, then try smoking straight latakia. When you smoke your next latakia mixture, you will notice the different flavors behind the latakia.