A Tale of Two Latakias

"A Tale of Two Latakias" is an essay written by American blender G.L. Pease and, according to the records, first published in Volume 5, Issue 2 of Pipe Friendly Magazine. The text sets side by side two different types of Latakia that share a name and a similar smoke-curing tradition — the Syrian type and the type processed in Cyprus. The reason the essay is cited so often in the pipe community is that it makes explicit the fact that the word "Latakia" does not refer to a single tobacco but covers two dissimilar products.

The Circumstances of Its Writing

The essay was written during a period when Syrian Latakia had long been unavailable on the market and had only just begun reappearing in limited quantities. Sources do not agree on when production stopped: one account points to a ban on cutting the wood needed for smoke-curing, dating the shutdown to the late 1970s; another describes a decline dragged out until around 2010 through the compounding effects of deforestation, blue mold disease, and civil war. According to the records, Cyprus is today the only place still processing Latakia. For this reason the essay is regarded less as a tasting guide than as a record of a production tradition in the process of vanishing.

Where the Two Tobaccos Diverge

The essay's starting point is a single fact: what makes the two Latakias kin is not the raw material but the process. The base leaf of the Syrian type is a long, narrow-leaved variety known as "shekk-el-bint"; the leaf was first sun-dried, then smoke-cured by the slow, smoldering burn of local wood and herbs in curing sheds. The Cyprus type instead uses the small-leaved Izmir (Smyrna) variety, an oriental tobacco leaf; this leaf is air-dried in sheds before undergoing a similar smoke-curing.

The difference is produced by the nature of the base leaf itself. The Syrian variety is considered strong in nicotine and takes on a dark chestnut color after smoke-curing. The Cyprus variety is low in nicotine, naturally sweetish, and burns well; its finished form is a color close to black. Descriptions of the smoke's character diverge from source to source — some records call the Syrian leaf sharp and spicy, others describe it as softer than the Cyprus type. The distinction should therefore be taken as prevailing community opinion rather than a precise measure.

Weight in the Blend

The section of the essay aimed at blenders dwells on the matter of proportion. Both types are distinguishable even at shares of just a few percent; as the share grows, the smoky flavor begins to overtake the other leaves in the blend. The Cyprus leaf's own distinctive sweetness meshes without trouble with Virginia leaves at moderate proportions. Combining it with oriental tobaccos calls for more care; the delicate leaves can be lost under the smokiness. The Syrian leaf, owing to its strong nicotine and sharpness, is regarded as a component to be used more sparingly: at small shares it adds depth, but at high shares it tips the balance in its own favor. Pease's conclusion is that the two tobaccos cannot substitute for one another — that within the English blend tradition, each serves its own distinct function.