Just Old Tobacco…

10th August, 2007: Posted by glpease in Tobacco, Enjoyment

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Old tobacco is amazing stuff. I mean the really old stuff, the vintage tins that people talk about and pay astronomical sums of money for. By now, most of us are cellaring tins of our favored blends for the blessings that time bestows upon them, and, of course, we should keep doing this while we continue to explore the pleasures of getting to know tobaccos in their juvenescence, and at various stages of their development. In fact, some enjoy their smoke most when it’s still possessing the exuberance of youth, and some tobaccos seem to lend themselves particularly well to being enjoyed while young.

I’m talking about something different, though. I’m talking about those distinguished old blends, long unavailable; those marvelous and revered tobaccos that have been sitting on dusty shelves for years or decades, lying in wait as little hermetically sealed time capsules containing something of both our collective, and our individual pasts. There is sometimes much more in those tins than old weeds. Read more…»

Robusto - Revival of a Classic?

3rd August, 2007: Posted by glpease in Tobacco

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A few weeks ago, I received from a friend a generous sample from a 40+ years old knife lid tin of the venerable Sobranie Virginia #10. The sample was vacuum packed in thick, freezer safe plastic film, and arrived looking more like a Slim Jim than tobacco. My friend had sent email telling me it was on its way, so the anticipation was already in top gear, and the arrival of the little sausage put that anticipation into overdrive.

I didn’t instantly open the sausage-like package, but allowed the suspense to linger a bit longer, waiting for just the right moment to begin the exploration. When I finally slit open the top, fresh air crept in, coaxing just a whiff of the aroma out. One of the things I love most about opening old, puffy tins of vintage tobaccos is that explosion of scent that erupts as soon as the seal is broken. The vacuum-pack robbed me of that, and forced me to work a little harder for my first of what would prove to be many rewards. Sticking a nostril under the bag, I began to tease the still tightly compressed tobacco apart, releasing some of its goodness to the air. Read more…»