Peterson Irish Flake review

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rcstan

Lifer
Mar 7, 2012
1,466
8
Sunset Beach NC
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I opened the square tin and was greeted by a rich aroma of mature ripe tobacco, with musty wood tones. A gold colored sticker with Mr Peterson's likeness and signature sealed the paper wrap. There were 22 neatly stacked deep reddish brown slices inside the paper wrap. The slices were moist, little oily and springy.
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Took one slice and broke it in half, then further separated the strands and rolled it in a little clump which filled the bowl of my Aran 03 about two-thirds. The other half was placed back in the tin. I poured a cup of strong Turkish coffee, put on my jacket, and headed into the sunny but cold ( 36 F ) Alaskan afternoon.
Charring light took extremely well. I tried to let it go out but it did not, so I continued on. This is STRONG stuff, rich in taste and packs a BIG punch in the nicotine department. Tingles the mouth, not with a spice but with aroma and strength. DO NOT inhale ….. well, if you do, give it a while to settle in with you. It's full bodied and rich. Compared to wine, Malbec or a good Zinfandel come to mind.
Halfway through the bowl, after sipping it, it decided to go out. After a light tamp and relight, the strong tingle was not noticeable unless puffed. A grassy aroma made itself noticed and stayed to the end. Toward the heel of the bowl, the nicotine punch came through again for a nice finish.
I smoked another half a flake that evening, this time along with a small sipper of Single Malt Scotch. Sort of a bad idea, in that it intensified the effects of the alcohol. Not to an uncomfortable, sickly sort, but it seemed to mask some of the fine subtle flavors of the baccy. Even with that, it makes for an excellent night cap. It smoked consistently as it did the first time.
Yesterday evening I decided to give another half a flake a try. Same results. Burns consistently to a fine grayish-white ash, tastes consistently good, leaves little dottle in the bowl. Smokes fairly cool unless pushed, and very dry provided you take your time and don't drool through the stem. I would smoke it strictly outdoors as the smoke seemed to burn the eyes a bit whilst smoking it in the confines of my Jeep with the windows up to try and get a room note. Speaking of which, it smells like a tobacco barn in the forest. Very lovely.
In conclusion, this is an excellent, awesome, quality baccy which must be treated with respect, or it WILL demand it.

 

jcsoldit

Lifer
Mar 27, 2010
1,138
245
Wisconsin
Very nice review sir! You painted a nice picture and I have to agree with you that it is a fine smoke that I also like to pair with a good cup of coffee or a nice single malt... :puffy:

 

rcstan

Lifer
Mar 7, 2012
1,466
8
Sunset Beach NC
the flakes are so perfectly formed and nice to look at that it's tough for me to break them up
Indeed. They look appetizing to me but I know better ..... I don't know if I'll graduate to a full slice any time soon ..... the half flake took a good 40 minutes to go through, plus I haven't a pipe big enough for it.
adding a few tins to my next TAD order
That would last me quite a while. I bought two tins. 22 slices per tin. Half a slice a day ( okay, maybe a whole flake on my days off ). That's probably enough for a few months. :puffpipe:

 
Jul 15, 2011
2,363
31
I have a tin of this in the cellar that I have yet to pop open. I may have to dig into it here before too long. I have heard a lot of really good things about it and this is just one more to add to the list. Fantastic review sir!

 

rigmedic1

Lifer
May 29, 2011
3,896
75
My son gave me a tin of the stuff for Christmas, and I have been holding off breaking it open for fear of the nicotine content I have heard so much about. I appreciate your review, and I plan now to have my son over so he can enjoy it with me, lol, sans the Scotch. I am such a lightweight.

 

brian64

Lifer
Jan 31, 2011
9,602
14,666
Great review! I've smoked a few tins of IF in the past, and have one or two stored. Definitely the strongest blend I've had to date...big dose of vit N. Your review painted a fine picture of this flake. Sounds like a good choice for spring time in Alaska! :puffy:

 

auspipe

Starting to Get Obsessed
Feb 19, 2012
222
0
Australia
Sounds like a good one. I have a tin of university flake but not impressed with it, don't like the flavour.

 

rogers

Part of the Furniture Now
Mar 9, 2012
738
2,079
Well, you got me drooling over here. I ordered a tin of Irish Flake Monday; impatiently awaiting it's arrival. lol

 

rcstan

Lifer
Mar 7, 2012
1,466
8
Sunset Beach NC
Thanks guys!
@flyfishn: I haven't had a drink "outdoors" ( except for the stoop of our apartment building ) since the baby came in January, so that sounds like a great idea. But not the Bush Co. WAAAYYYY too rowdy for me in more ways than one. I'm more of the McGinleys/Snow Goose/the downstairs at Orso's type :puffy:
@brian64 : Spring is still about a month or so away. There's still a couple feet of snow and "breakup" hasn't yet happened. We had a fairly rough winter. It won't be "proper" spring until all the snow goes away and things turn green.

 

juni

Lifer
Mar 9, 2010
1,184
11
One of my favorites. I like the high nicotine content in it. And just like UF, it is packed so neatly in that tin, with a little gold sticker and paper with leafs.

 

rcstan

Lifer
Mar 7, 2012
1,466
8
Sunset Beach NC
@juni: UF is on the list of "next to try" .... by "next" I mean sometimes mid to late April. I have 9 different things open right now ...... 3 regular smokes ( MB Lat Blend, Villiger 1888 Late Night and PS Black Vanilla ), 3 sample-sized "once every couple three days" ( PS Optimum, HH Marble Kake, MB VA#1 ), what's left of the Rincon de la Pipa, the IF and a vintage tin of Radford's Sunday's Fantasy that's my "special occasion dessert smoke".
@flyfishn: let's continue on PM please, so we can stay OT :puffpipe:

 

rcstan

Lifer
Mar 7, 2012
1,466
8
Sunset Beach NC
I just ordered 2 tins after reading this thread! Im excited
Enjoy ! I saw your thread about the Pete pipe you picked up, I have learned that Irish Flake tastes best from a Pete ( mine is a P-lip Aran ). Maybe it's me, maybe it's my first impression that is impacting upon further experiences with this blend, but I have tried smoking it out of my other pipes and it doesn't quite taste the same ( the "boooyahhhh" factor is diminished and it tastes a little milder )

 

grizzly86

Part of the Furniture Now
Apr 5, 2012
692
1
I think I will have to pick some up next time I go to the shop. Sounds great!

 

orionpyoung

Starting to Get Obsessed
Mar 5, 2012
123
0
Marquette Michigan
Love this stuff, burns nice and slow, full flavor and excellent nic kick! Took me 6 bowls to find out I liked it, but this tobacco pretty much taught me how to smoke a pipe.

 

hnryclay

Can't Leave
Jan 9, 2012
365
0
I love it, very cool burning smoke as well. If you want the nicotine it is really there in this blend. However it does not disappoint in flavor. For me it is a nice cool late night pipe.

 
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