escudo navy de luxe

[tullius]

A much loved blend, getting more and more expensive each day. Here's a whole leaf version that smokes extremely close, and doesn't require any pressing or stoving, 1/8" shred, all tobaccos WLT:

7g red VA (14%)​

7g bright VA (14%)​

7g lemon VA (14%)​

5g thin VA (10%)​

9g katerini (18%)​

15g perique (30%)​

Since it's not pressed or aged, it lacks a little of the sugared raisin bran sweetness of the original. Does have the robust nic kick and general flavor though, and is best tried in a smaller volume narrow chamber pipe.

This winter when I have more time, I'm going to keep the leaf whole, leave out the katerini, roll the blend into an extra large carrotte, bind it navy style, age, and slice into coins. Should be identical. If anyone has more time than me right now and wants to try this, be my guest.

 

[deluxestogie]

leave out the katerini

Why?

Bob

 

[tullius]

No oriental in the original. I used it in the no press/no stove version to give more green/white peppercorn spice: think all the pepper flavor in the pressed original comes from the perique. Might do a stick of each now.

Why did you ask? Suggestions?

 

[deluxestogie]

Why did you ask? Suggestions?

Mostly just curious. You might find the WLT Stacked Basma a bit sweeter and less "peppercorn". I haven't smoked the original, so my thoughts are just wild conjecture here. Raisin-like taste is sometimes brought out of Virginia blends with just pressing.

Bob

 

[Costard]

bind it navy style

Would you mind sharing your process and "navy style" recipe? Thank you.

 

[tullius]

Take the in case leaves correctly proportioned and laid out and tightly roll them into a fat tobacco sausage a couple inches in diameter and at least a foot or two long. Very tight, as tight as you can get them by hand. Wrap the carotte in sterilized sail or cheesecloth. I use brewer's bags: anything you can get sterile and is breathable will work.

Then take a 3/8" to 1/2" dia. sterilized rope, tie one end around a ship's mast or whatever you got that's upright and immovable, and bind the cheeseclothed carotte tightly with the rope perpendicular to the long axis of the carotte. Put your whole body weight and muscle into the pulling and wrapping motions and keep the rope wraps touching. Cinch off the tag end securely, leave for 2-3 days, then unbind and rebind. Check it again after a week and rebind if necessary. Total bind time should be at least two to three weeks. Be on guard for mold.

Could you case the tobaccos with high test rum? Sure you could.

Somewhere around I remember seeing navy binding, but I couldn't immediately locate the pics. The dominicans do something sort of similar with andullo and the cord binding.

And welcome to the forum.

 

[deluxestogie]

Welcome to the forum, @Costard. Feel free to introduce yourself in the Introduce Yourself forum.

Bob

 

[Costard]

Thank you for the detailed description of your process (and for the WLT Escudo recipe in your first post), @tullius. Great information, very helpful. The binding method you described reminds me of a video i watched recently:

 

[Radagast]

Thank you for the detailed description of your process (and for the WLT Escudo recipe in your first post), @tullius. Great information, very helpful. The binding method you described reminds me of a video i watched recently:

I just watched that last night myself! Haha!

 

[tullius]

Thank you for the detailed description of your process (and for the WLT Escudo recipe in your first post), @tullius. Great information, very helpful. The binding method you described reminds me of a video i watched recently:

Great video! Interesting technique using the second line suspended with slack between two points and sitting on it to make a rolling compressor, I didn't think to do that.