I was on my way to my Office Christmas party when I decided to stop into Iwan Reis in Chicago. The oldest Brick and Mortar in the United States, it was my first time in the shop and I desperately wanted to linger and browse through the tobacco tins, searching for the oldest, rarest tobacco on the shelf. Unfortunately I didn’t have much time, so I asked the tall Catholic Gentleman behind the counter what he was smoking. The room was filled with Cigar smoke, and I couldn’t smell the tobacco, but I figured if he was smoking it, it outta be good.
He pointed out the tin on the shelf. Pennington Gap by Cornell & Diehl. Nothing about it seemed that appealing to me. It was a plain white container with an image of an old wooden barn, a man leaning up against a post, and a dog running in a field. I thought, whatever, might as well give it a shot. I was in a rush to get to my party so I purchased it without even reading the description.
It was a warm day for Chicago in December so I decided to walk the mile and a half to the venue and I promptly cracked open the tin. It smelled like dark chocolate and nutty, sweet berries. I packed up my Missouri Meerschaum Diplomat and began puffing away. A lovely taste of bourbon cherries and chocolate filled my mouth. That lasted for about 10-20 puffs until it faded into a wonderful Kentucky, Burly nutty flavor.
About halfway through the bowl I started to taste the unmistakable bold spice of perique, which dominates the second half of the bowl. “What a lovely well rounded blend” I thought. I arrived at my venue realizing that I had only had to light this pipe once. That’s the beauty of the blend, it stays lit, it doesn’t have any bite to it, and it leaves a beautiful grey ash.
I am an English blend guy, and I don’t really care much for Virginias or aromatics, but something about this tobacco speaks to me. It’s my go-to whenever I cannot make up my mind on what to smoke. It never disappoints, sweet and wonderful in the beginning, with a bold perique/cigar leaf finish. There is nothing else quite like it. Desert Island blend? Perhaps. I certainly wouldn’t mind it if this was the last tobacco I smoked.
I am packing my last bowl into my moonshine devil anse as I type this. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day, but you can bet your last dollar that I’ll be stopping in that brick and mortar shop for another tin of this gem.
He pointed out the tin on the shelf. Pennington Gap by Cornell & Diehl. Nothing about it seemed that appealing to me. It was a plain white container with an image of an old wooden barn, a man leaning up against a post, and a dog running in a field. I thought, whatever, might as well give it a shot. I was in a rush to get to my party so I purchased it without even reading the description.
It was a warm day for Chicago in December so I decided to walk the mile and a half to the venue and I promptly cracked open the tin. It smelled like dark chocolate and nutty, sweet berries. I packed up my Missouri Meerschaum Diplomat and began puffing away. A lovely taste of bourbon cherries and chocolate filled my mouth. That lasted for about 10-20 puffs until it faded into a wonderful Kentucky, Burly nutty flavor.
About halfway through the bowl I started to taste the unmistakable bold spice of perique, which dominates the second half of the bowl. “What a lovely well rounded blend” I thought. I arrived at my venue realizing that I had only had to light this pipe once. That’s the beauty of the blend, it stays lit, it doesn’t have any bite to it, and it leaves a beautiful grey ash.
I am an English blend guy, and I don’t really care much for Virginias or aromatics, but something about this tobacco speaks to me. It’s my go-to whenever I cannot make up my mind on what to smoke. It never disappoints, sweet and wonderful in the beginning, with a bold perique/cigar leaf finish. There is nothing else quite like it. Desert Island blend? Perhaps. I certainly wouldn’t mind it if this was the last tobacco I smoked.
I am packing my last bowl into my moonshine devil anse as I type this. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day, but you can bet your last dollar that I’ll be stopping in that brick and mortar shop for another tin of this gem.
