McClelland Blending Perique, smoked straight

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beastinview

Part of the Furniture Now
Jan 5, 2016
504
3
I have toyed with the idea of smoking straight perique for a while. Initially I thought I’d go the rum-soaked route, but I decided to just smoke it straight from the tin for the first time to develop the palate.
I’ll preface this by saying that my go-to blends are all very high nicotine, bracing blends—GH ropes, SG 1792 Flake, Dark Flake, etc.
Tin Note / Preparation:

The tin note was quite powerful, but essentially what I expected. I actually thought it smelled a bit bad—too pungent, etc. I let my wife smell it and to my surprise she said, “Yum! Smells like chocolate!” It does have a sweet, raisin smell to it, but also the spicy, fermented aroma as well.

The tobacco was perhaps a tad moist, and ribbon cut, but it smoked just fine.
Smoke:

This was actually a quite pleasant smoke. Perique isn’t nearly as dominant to me as latakia, so the perique did not seem like a ridiculous thing to smoke straight. (I think straight latakia, on the other hand, probably would seem a bit ridiculous.) It was certainly peppery, but also had some sweetness to it. I expected it to be far more over-the-top than it was (too much reading online reviews with superlative adjectives), but this was a spicy smoke that, though unique, was quite enjoyable. It was a bit like you’d expect: like a Va/Per with the Perique really amped up and the Virginia… gone.
Though it was one-dimensional, and not quite the type of thing you’d probably want to smoke all the time, it is quite nice, and very well may become a somewhat common smoke for me.
Nicotine Level:

This is interesting, because you’d think leaf that had so much done to it would be low in nicotine, but I did detect a punch to this. I’m not sure it was quite on the level of the ropes or Dark Flake I’ve grown fond of, but it was close—certainly quite strong.
Summary:

I’m glad I tried this, and I may go the rum-soaked route next time. For anyone who likes perique, I’d certainly suggest grabbing a tin and giving it a go sometime. It was a bit of a novelty smoke, but not so crazy as you might think. Who knows?—you might like it.

 

cullansghost

Lurker
Jun 13, 2016
22
0
I recently smoked some straight Perique, and my experience was the same as yours. I will definitely keep some on hand as my change of pace smoke.

 

ltstone

Part of the Furniture Now
Dec 30, 2015
505
53
Hey thanks again for a cool review! I think i'm gonna get some to experiment with.

 

clickklick

Lifer
May 5, 2014
1,700
212
Tried this with my pipe club a few years ago. I don't think anyone wanted to give it another go, but it was nice to see how it tasted by itself.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
Glad to hear it wasn't a stomach churner. I don't have any yin to try it.

 

newbroom

Lifer
Jul 11, 2014
6,087
6,394
Florida
I have had some Mc's perique in the house for a few weeks and haven't even wanted to try it by itself.

I can't imagine not having some of this around all the time. It adds wonderful dimension to ANYTHING.

Smells to me like Copenhagen Snuff, which is sweet peat tobacco. Definitely rich.

I've read others reports on smoking this alone and that their palettes had suffered about a day's setback for any other tastes.

 

beastinview

Part of the Furniture Now
Jan 5, 2016
504
3
I've read others reports on smoking this alone and that their palettes had suffered about a day's setback for any other tastes.
Honestly, I found it a bit disappointing in that respect, as it was not nearly as extreme as I had expected. But how can you call something disappointing when you mean it was actually better than expected?
My tongue was in much better condition than it is after carelessly smoking an aromatic, so I wouldn't worry to much about it.
Again, it's quite possible that I don't have an overly sensitive palate when it comes to perique. It was a pleasant smoke, and not even as intense in flavor as something like Nightcap in my opinion. For my palate, latakia is always so overpowering that I don't often like it--I find perique highlights the flavors of underlying tobacco, while latakia obscures them.

 

deathmetal

Lifer
Jul 21, 2015
7,714
32
Great experiment!
For the doubters, imagine your favorite high-Perique Va/Per blend, just a bit less sweet.
The rum-soaked route is also good fun, as are mixes inspired by it like The Beast.

 

beastinview

Part of the Furniture Now
Jan 5, 2016
504
3
Great experiment!
For the doubters, imagine your favorite high-Perique Va/Per blend, just a bit less sweet.
I forgot to add: I think you mentioned this in your review / article--I did get the sweats a bit from the nicotine, which I haven't experienced before.
I have different reactions to really high nicotine. Sometimes I'll just get very relaxed and light-headed (enjoyable), while others I'll get queasy and have my throat constrict (not fun). Feeling sweaty was a bit different, but I wonder why the drug affects me differently at different times. There could also be different components as well.
I'll give the rum-soaked variation a go at some point.

 

deathmetal

Lifer
Jul 21, 2015
7,714
32
Sometimes I'll just get very relaxed and light-headed (enjoyable), while others I'll get queasy and have my throat constrict (not fun).
Good point. In my experience, there are other substances at work here as well. Burley afflicts the gut; Virginias go to the head. Perique seems to follow the Burley model.

 
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