Welcome to another episode of Tasting Notes. I am working my way through all of the HU tobaccos that are finally available on the U.S. market after years and years of anticipation. In this episode, I am smoking HU Louisiana Broken.

HU Louisiana Broken is really interesting on paper and it's right up my alley. It is a blend of robust Virginia grades complemented by a little bit of Kentucky and a little bit of Perique. I've got to be honest, it's a little bit different than I expected but in a good way.

Bright Tin Note

Let's start with the tin note. What you have here is a really lovely broken flake ready-rubbed type of tobacco. I would say it's mostly lighter in color to medium chestnut. There's not a ton of dark leaf in here. The tin note is really enticing. It's brighter and zestier and a little bit more bread-like than I anticipated with the Kentucky and Perique. I do think that there's just a whisper of those two components.

This is firmly a Virginia blend. For people that are more straight Virginia smokers or that are maybe sensitive to Perique or Kentucky and only want just a touch of that influence, this is the perfect blend.

A Treat For Virginia Lovers

It's still really rich and naturally aromatic. This is gonna be a treat for a Virginia lover such as myself. I'd say the moisture content is just a hair past what I would normally prefer. I did not give this one very much dry time, maybe just a couple of minutes of aeration because I didn't want to lose any of the nuance.

It's a beautiful cut. The aroma is a little tangy, a little zesty, rich, and dark, with earthier, Virginia-type notes.

A Punch of Flavor

Let's get into the actual smoke. This one is really perfect to pack right out of the tin. You can choose to rub it out a little bit further if you're smoking indoors or if you're smoking it in a smaller pipe. I gave this one just a little bit of aeration and just a little bit of air time before I lit up and it's performing perfectly. It takes to the flame really well.

There is a lot of flavor right off the bat. Sometimes I find that straight Virginias, or Virginias that have a little touch of some condimental leaf added to them, take a little while in the pipe to develop to get that richness and to get all of the complexity that I'm looking for.

Louisiana Broken actually starts off with a pretty powerful punch of flavor, with notes of baked bread, the sourdough that I associate with Red Virginia grades and darker Virginia grades like Mahogany. There is a little bit of a citrusy type of zest going on here.

Intriguingly Creamy Density

I would say one of the most interesting things in the first third of the bowl for Louisiana Broken, for me, is the mouthfeel and the density on the palate. Considering that this is Virginia, Perique, and Kentucky, I'm surprised how creamy and full-bodied this one is. It gives me the same feeling that blends that have Latakia and Black Cavendish in them have where you're talking about a lot more body, more volume of smoke, and that creamy texture.

This is a Virginia/Perique/Kentucky that has that and that's really odd. I find it really complimentary to the lightly sweet and bready notes that the Virginias here offer as well.

Louisiana Broken is one of those Virginia blends that is really an anytime, anyplace kind of a smoke. I think it's very elegant overall. It can fade into the background and just be an enjoyable smoke. But if you do pay attention to it, there is a fair bit of complexity here.

I think as the bowl progresses, the retrohale becomes really interesting. The interplay of the darker, woodier, earthier spice of the Kentucky and the more peppery and dark fruit notes of the Perique start to weave a really interesting thread to follow through the smoke.

A Virginia Built For Long-Term Cellaring

The base of Virginias is the star here for me. It has the tang, the sweetness, and the zesty, grassy notes that I'm looking for in a good Virginia, but maybe a little deeper than that. I'm guessing that there's a lot of darker grades in here because of the depth of flavor and the very mature feel to it, even though this is as fresh as it gets.

This one is going to age extremely well. I think at the 2, 5, 10 year marks, you're going to notice a crazy change here, affording a lot more sweetness, complexity, and a really interesting retrohale. This is a Virginia blend that's built for the cellar, in my opinion.

Today I'm smoking HU Louisiana Broken in a trusty Adam Davidson little sandblasted Billiard. This has been a Virginia/Perique pipe for me for nearly 10 years. It's the perfect match for this blend.

Approaching the second half of the bowl, the depth of flavor from the Virginias, such as the tanginess and the baked goods, come forward a lot.

I also think that at this point in the bowl, the Kentucky takes a little bit of a backseat to the Perique. I notice a little bit more of the dark fruit notes and a slight incense kind of quality, almost like Latakia, but not quite smoky. This one is a bit of a chameleon.

There's a really approachable straight Virginia kind of a feel to this one but if you peel back a few layers and pay attention, there's a lot of complexity here as well. Mark my words, this one will be famous for how well it ages once all of us get deep enough in our cellars and give it a few years rest.

Once again, we're so excited that our good friends at Kopp and our friendly neighborhood Laudisi have been able to make the HU blends available in the US market finally.

If you're a Virginia or Virginia/Perique guy, HU Louisiana Broken is a pretty good place to start in the lineup, and this is one that you will be pleased you cellared deeply. I think this is going to age beautifully. It's built for it.