Tobacco, blind taste test

[harkpuff]

Tobacco curiosity:

Since aromatic tobaccos are basically unlimited in their realm of possible aromas and flavors due to the virtually unlimited possibility of toppings that can be applied, the subject matter I am addressing here is in regards to blends that would not be considered topping enhanced aromatics.

My curiosity causes me to wonder....that since all English pipe tobacco blends are made from a handful of various kinds of grown tobaccos, and there seems to be hundreds of brands and names out there on the shelves.......I'm wondering how much these brands and blends within brands overlap in similarity to aroma and flavor. It makes sense to me anyway that since toppings are typically for the most part not a part of English blends that the English blends would be far more limited in flavor and taste than the aromatics.

I'm wondering if a blind taste test were conducted using only the "English" blends, how many connoisseurs of pipe tobacco would be able to tell for certain what they were smoking. Is it possible for a pipe smoker to be so connected to his favorite blend that he could positively say from under his blindfold..."yes, I am definitely smoking Samuel Gawith Navy Flake"? How many blends are there out there that are occupying tins on the shelf that are so close in their characteristics that most would be really hard-pressed to tell the difference? How many different (blend names) are there... even within the same manufacturer... that posses so little enough difference that most pipe smokers would find it difficult to discern between them?

This has been a topic of curiosity for me since even some manufacturers seem to have a dozen different English variants just within one company.

I guess a blind taste test would be fun to try with a panel of a dozen connoisseurs using say only six of the top names in the English blends and even make it more interesting by telling the panel ahead of time the names of the six blends they will be smoking. It would be entertaining and fun to see how many get it right.
Harkpuff :D

 

[baronsamedi]

I bet most could pick their favorites or if one had a stand-out note that they either liked or disliked it would probably get an instant reaction. There is a lot of overbleed in taste between Englishes. It would be like Taking six doppelbock beers and blind tasting. Unless those six were mainstays and the taster liked each one for a specific reason, there would be a higher probability they would get it wrong. I could tell my favorite Balkan from any other one, but I'd probably get at least 3 of the six wrong. You can add to the confusion, the fact that the taster would likely be smoking it from six different pipes, which would alter the flavor from his regular pipe. If you used the same pipe for each, you would have to give it a full cleaning and rest between tries or the flavor of the previous tobacco would cut through.

 

[gmwolford]

The other day my son and I went to the local B&M and he bought a tin of Nightcap. We bought a few other bulks, one being Balkan Supreme. When we got home and opened the Nightcap it's tin note was so similar to Balkan Supreme he actually said "I hope I didn't pay $13 for the same stuff you got for less than $6!". It truly was a moment to savor lol. They are, in case you are curious, similar but I can tell there's a definite difference though my palate isn't refined enough to explain it well. :mrgreen:

 

[judcole]

I agree with Baron, I could tell my favorites apart. Identifying blends I don't smoke as often? Harder. But I can sure as shootin' tell you the difference between, say, Penzance, Old Dublin,and HH Vintage Syrian.

 

[shawn622]

What Baron said!!!

 

[cortezattic]

Identifying the exact brand would be difficult. Isolating and identifying the ingredient tobaccos would be easier, though not a cakewalk.
As of this posting, TobaccoReviews.com lists 4260 different blends, though many are out of production, so there must be a lot of similarities, as your litany of questions suggests. Distinguishing characteristics can come about by varying proportions, and using different processing (ribbon, flake, cake, plug, twist, etc.) G.L. Pease touched on some of these things in his Aug., 2011 article A Glass Of Tobacco, A Bowl Of Wine -- though in a different context. You might enjoy reading it.
I think psychologists have a lot to say about perceptions in blind taste tests, such as personal expectations and suggestion. Could one detect for example, that the contents of two different tins of a similar blend had been switched?
Fascinating post, harkpuff. It's the stuff of which "Ask G.L.Pease", and Russ Ouellette's "Put That In Your Pipe" articles are made of.

 

[sjpipesmoker]

baron said it...Different pipes would impar a slightly different taste...maybe even a different mood or a morning, noon or evening smoke will be different even if they were the same tobacco?? I don't want to be a connoisseur I just want to enjoy whatever it is that I smoke

 

[whimsyt]

This is an interesting topic, because I took it upon myself to do a side-by-side comparison of two VaPers just yesterday before seeing this topic. (I do realize this isn't quite what you were talking about, and not a blind taste test, but interesting nonetheless, perhaps?)
I compared Stokkebye's Luxury Bullseye Flake with Davidoff's Flake Medallions.
Out of the respective packages (LBF comes bulk in a plastic baggie; Davidoff's FM comes in a tin), both round thin medallions look identical. It would be impossible to distinguish these on appearance alone. Pouch/tin aroma is the same as well, at least to my nose.
LBF is described as: "A blend of ripe Virginia tobacco spiced with pure Louisiana Perique. The distinctive aroma of Perique combined with the natural sweetness of Virginia tobaccos provides a wonderful characteristic taste. The center of mellow, fermented Black Cavendish serves to smoother the general impression and rounding the taste. It is all a handcrafted process from selecting the best tobacco, blending, rolling, cutting, and packing. The result is an unparalleled smoking experience."

Contents:

Black Cavendish

Virginia

Perique
Davidoff's Flake Medallions are described as: "Twist cut of finest Virginias and Perique tobaccos with a core of black Cavendish"

Contents:

Black Cavendish

Virginia

Perique
I decided to do a side-by-side smoking comparison. I have two nearly identical Falcons--one is a bent stem and the other a straight. Due to the unique built in "filtering" system of the Falcons, they and the Kirsten offer me the "cleanest" experience of a tobacco, allowing me to detect nuances that I often miss in my "regular" briars. (YMMV)
I loaded the same amount in each Falcon-- one and a half medallions in each bowl.
Honestly, it was amazing how UN-different these two were. At first I thought there was just a touch more perique in Davidoff's, but I didn't cut the half medallion with a knife, and only pulled it apart, so I probably had just a bit more of the virginia-perique part of the medallion in the FM bowl. So the teensy nuance of difference in perique I am chalking up to my technique and not the actual flake baccys.
The only other nuance of difference was that the LBF seemed jut a tad bit smoother and cooler, and I do mean a teensy tiny tad, but that could be because my straight stemmed Falcon ALWAYS gives me an unbelievably cool, smooth smoke, no matter what baccy I've had in it. So again, I chalk that teensy nuance up to the different pipes and not the actual flake baccys.
So my conclusion---and this is just based on MY tastebuds--- is that these are identical tobaccos. YMMV.
Over at P&C, a 50gm tin of Davidoff Flake Medallions is $10.58, which works out to $6.00 per ounce, while Stokkebye's Luxury Bullseye Flake is $4.44 per ounce for 3 ounces or less, or $2.54 per ounce for 4 to 7 ounces, and less than that the more you order.
So if you love this tobac as I do, and the LBF just isn't available and you MUST have some, then you'll find Davidoff's Flake Medallions to be an unparalleled substitute. However, if budget is a concern, and you can wait, go for the LBF. It's a much better baccy bargain, leaving you a few coins to spend on other baccy.
To my mouth, the only difference between these two baccys is the price and that Davidoff's comes in a tin rather than by bulk. Again, YMMV.
So there you have it.
Wha? Well, someone had to do a side-by-side! It's tough work, but somebody had to do it. 8^D

 

[cigrmaster]

whimsyt, great experiment. I would be willing to bet they are exactly the same because Davidoff makes nothing of their own, they just repackage another blend. I am sure there are many other examples of that going on at the big houses.

 

[whimsyt]

Aha!!!! THAT explains it!!!! Thanks for the info. That was a really great piece of information that will be very useful for me in the future!!!
Thanks so much, cigrmaster!

 

[zanthal]

I'm wondering if a blind taste test were conducted using only the "English" blends, how many connoisseurs of pipe tobacco would be able to tell for certain what they were smoking.

that might be a tough test, particularly for relatively new pipe smokers such as myself. I admit that my favorite english blends are quite similar in flavor and body, and I might have trouble ascertaining in a blind taste test between Shortcut to Mushrooms and H&H Larry's Blend, for example.
But the way I look at it ... is if I like both of those blends quite a lot ... if I can't tell them apart because they're both similarly good ... then ... :: :puffpipe: