Peterson -- Sherlock Holmes

Brand: Peterson
Blend: Sherlock Holmes
Style: Virginia/Oriental
Pipe Used: Trypis Rusticated Dublin
Price: Gift

Appearance: 7
Taste: 7
Room Note: 7
Value: 7
Overall: 7

Since it's St. Patrick's Day I decided to get my Irish on with some appropriate pipe tobacco. I settled on Peterson's Sherlock Holmes which is billed as being made from an Irish recipe dating back to 1880 and is produced by the venerable Dublin company.

The marketing blurb for this blend says that it's a straight Virginia but the tin itself states that it includes some Burley as well. The tobacco is drawn from a variety of orange and red Virginias and includes some Mysore and Brazilian leaf.

Upon opening the tin I was greeted with a blond colored ribbon-cut tobacco of uniform size and the aroma was that of fresh-cut hay and a dash of citrus and lavender. The tobacco was also bone dry.

I loaded up my Trypis Rusticated Dublin (as close to an Irish pipe as I own) and proceeded with my charring light. The tobacco lit right up and started giving off a lot of smoke which is indicative of a very dry blend.

The initial flavor was typical of a light Virginia with that classic hay-like sweetness. Slowly sipping on the pipe kept thing firmly planted in that Virginia realm and I soon found myself becoming rather bored with the blend.

But after I started smoking a bit harder some more complex flavors became apparent. The citrus and lavender that I smelled out of tin started to emerge and the blend took on a taste very reminiscent of Earl Grey tea with its bergamot undertones. Unfortunately the harder smoking also led to some unpleasant tongue bite.

The room aroma was fairly mild for the most part but any furious puffing soon resulted in a harsh edge to the smoke that was off-putting.

The pipe stayed lit from beginning to end but the bowl did get a bit hot and the tobacco burned out rather quickly. This pipe typically makes for a 45 minute smoke but in this case I was down to the ashes in 20 minutes.

I still don't know how to classify this blend. For the most part it's a straight Virginia and I never noticed any of the advertised Burley but the bergamot and lavender aroma and taste put me in mind of a classic Oriental leaf. There don't seem to be any added toppings that would otherwise be responsible for that flavor profile.

Peterson's Sherlock Holmes is seemingly two tobaccos in one. Slow sippers will be greeted with a mild-mannered Virgina while fast puffers will be rewarded with a fine Oriental-style blend. Unfortunately the smoking technique needed to access the full flavor also leads to a hot pipe, some serious biting, and a fast and furious smoke. Whereas most tobaccos require a bit of drying before smoking this one seems to require a bit of hydrating if you happen upon a tin as dry as mine.