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Any company that has been in business for over 150 years requires a healthy sense of tradition. The L.J Peretti Co. enjoys many traditions, not least our iconic yellow tobacco tins. Born from necessity in the 1920’s, the earliest use of the can for tobacco storage can be attributed to “the Major,” Robert Peretti’s father. He favored a tin for its re-usable and re-sealable qualities. Once Robert Peretti (Bob) entered the business following World War 2, he set to developing a wide selection of proprietary Peretti blends and formally added a tobacco tin to the Peretti presentation. His choice gained in popularity & we continue to proudly serve our hand blended tobaccos in the iconic yellow tobacco tin (a.k.a the paint can).

Over time, various iterations of the Peretti cans have come and gone. For over 70 years we have packed our blends in both 8 ounce and 16 ounce tins manufactured by Allstate Can of New Jersey. Tin packaging protects its contents, is tamper evident, convenient, durable, sustainable and highly reusable and recyclable. These pressure-sealed cans are made in the U.S.A. We strive to support American manufacturing and to develop and maintain long term partnerships with our vendors in order to deliver the most consistent product to you. These tins provide the essential elements for the storage and cellaring of our tobacco. Draped in our distinctive yellow and black labels which we adhere by hand in store, our tins reflect the quality and craftsmanship of our artisan, hand blended tobaccos.

Stephen Willett affixing a yellow Peretti label to an 8 oz can.

Many of our customers reuse their Peretti cans for decades, and we encourage this. It gives us great pleasure to think that our tobacco tins can be found in the homes of pipe smokers all around the world. In today’s throw-away society, the Peretti can delivers not only the promise of a great smoke but a testament to time tested, solid American craftsmanship.

As many of our friends are aware, ‘Thanksgiving Day’, a four-ounce pressed cake has been a tradition since 1939. Year after year, we make it available in a limited capacity starting on November first. This effort keeps us tied to our roots when Major Joseph Peretti, father of Robert Peretti, set forth to blend Peretti’s Burley and English mixtures.

The Major wanted to create a blend with the essence of the holiday season, and after countless trials, a mixture of 7 different tobaccos blended with a balance of dark rum and fruit juices was concocted and pressed into breakable 4 ounce cakes. This process has not changed since the first batch was taken from the press.

It starts with Burley. This classic tobacco acts as a platform to which we can add our formula that gives the final product its distinctive flavor and aroma. Once the Burley has taken in the rum and fruit juices, it is blended with a number of other tobaccos and there we have a mixture that is ready to be smoked, but is not yet ‘Thanksgiving Day’.

We still use the same antique hand press today that was used in 1939. Its four jigsaw-like racks have been repaired time and time again so that it can continue to serve us, albeit rebelliously. To begin pressing, the blender must disassemble the racks one at a time, and orient four blocks of wood within each rack that will act as spacers for each cake. Once the spacers are in place, the mixture is weighed out and placed into each of the five reservoirs and topped with squares of plastic to keep the tobacco from clinging to the wood that will sit on top of it. Once the spacing blocks, tobacco and plastic are in place, the blender seats a piece of wood with four jutting, press-like blocks atop the blend, and places the re-assembled rack into the press. This process is repeated four times for a single batch. After all the racks have made there way to the press, pressure is applied.

The tobacco will remain in the press for several days and the screw that applies pressure to the racks will be tightened periodically. After enough time has passed, the blender will relieve the racks of their stressful duty and dissemble them to remove the twenty cakes. The result is a perfectly square and firm, but breakable treat that is almost the ‘Thanksgiving Day’ cake we wait all year for.

These cakes are packaged and allowed to rest for at least 20 days. During this time, the tobacco darkens and mellows for a rich, smooth and lingering experience that begs to be smoked bowl after bowlful.

Tradition has always been important here, especially during a time where an intentional pause during the day has been forgotten. ‘Thanksgiving Day’ is not mass-produced and rushed out the door. It is carefully and painstakingly crafted one batch at a time. Enjoy it while it’s here.

Available starting November 1st.

The history of Peretti is extensive and at times, confusing. In our last post, back in November, we talked specifically about the history of ‘Thanksgiving Day’ and the process that takes place to create it. This time, a broader look at the history of blending at the company will be examined. It’s important to start by understanding that when the L.J. Peretti Co. was established way back in 1870, it was a company that dealt in cigars, made by the company, for the company, here in Boston. It wasn’t until the mid-teens that ‘the Major’, Robert Peretti’s father, started blending the first mixtures at Peretti.

Pipe tobacco blending at the company was a direct response to the growing popularity of pipe smoking. We can only guess at what time blending began at the company as almost nothing is recorded about it aside from the various blend books. Bob Peretti was, and still is, a notoriously private man. Given the limited information at our disposal, we must infer. Here at the store we possess a total of 5 private blend books. The first of which starts with a private blend numbered ‘1’ and ends with a private blendnumbered in the thousands. We can no longer read most of the pages in the book, unfortunately. However we can see that the earliest legible date in the first book is April, 1915. So, as far as we can tell, it is around that time that blending for customers began. The second book created is referred to as the ‘A’ book. All blends contained within were labeled starting with the letter ‘A’ followed by numbers. As you might imagine, there is a ‘B’ book, a ‘C’ book and lastly, a ‘D’ book, from which we have the blends D-7485, and D-9575 among others that we still produce today according to the original formulas.

The earliest blends produced at Peretti we’re rudimentary. The practice of combining finished tobaccos from overseas manufacturers was commonplace at the company. A number of the still legible entries demonstrate this. It wasn’t until a short while later that actual blending components were worked into the practice at the company. D-7485, for example, was blended in 1933, almost 20 years later, and produced entirely from unfinished components, exactly like it is today. Clearly, a few of the blends from the ‘D’ book survived into 2017. When Bob made his way into the company, sometime after the second world war, he created many of the blends we offer today, all of which are distinct creations. Some men chased women, Bob chased hybrid Burleys.

Mr. Peretti was all business. He arrived at the store to blend, repair pipes, and do business. Customers worldwide thought highly of him and his creations from the blending bench, but Peretti thought nothing of it. To Bob, it was all in a days work. He is responsible for the Burley flavor that is unique to the company. In fact, there are a multitude of blends we can no longer produce, as the components are no longer made. One such example is Lexington, a burley mixture that had a distinct Concord grape flavor. Sound odd? It was a delightful smoke that many customers enjoyed. Only Robert Peretti could make the flavor of grape play nicely with Burley. Take ‘No Name’, for example. It’s doubtful that any pipe enthusiast has smoked anything quite like it. Give it a chance.

Today, the tradition of blending is kept alive and well by Stephen Willett, the blender and proprietor. He too has a list of mixtures that have become mainstays in the current roster of pipe tobaccos. While we may sell a great many different cigars, it is our pipe tobaccos that make the L.J. Peretti Co. distinct.

Tom Anello, Social Media/Web Guy

Here at Peretti’s we are constantly being asked to create new blends. I have always found this curious since we have eighty-plus standard and over 250,000 private blends that we have created for individual customers. With the prospect of impending FDA regulations that could restrict the our ability to blend new tobaccos, I decided to forage through our formulas of discontinued blends.

Until about 1960, we offered blend 52. This mixture was created by Robert Peretti in 1947, after he returned from his Navy duties in WWII. Blend 52, like other Peretti burleys, is based on the premise that American burley is the noblest of tobaccos. As the Major, Mr. Peretti’s father, once told me, “sooner of later, everyone smokes burley.”

Blend 52 is created to showcase the deep flavor of the burley. The nuttiness of the burley is somewhat moderated by the addition of a smooth red Virginia that naturally sweetens the blend. Then, a small amount of the finest Dubeck is added. The Dubeck, from the upper leaves of the plant, is the mellowest form of Turkish. When combined with the burley and red Virginia, the Dubeck opens the blend to a combination of sweetness and subtle piquancy. Blend 52 adds a new dimension to the Peretti portfolio of burleys. Here is a tobacco that is mild, mellow, and offers a new variety of tastiness. We urge you to explore all of the many Peretti burley tobaccos. For indeed, burley has long been neglected by the pipe smoker.

S.L. Willett, Blender and Proprietor

 

Admittedly, when you have eighty standard blends and have concocted over 200,000 private mixtures, some get overlooked. While blending the other day, I noticed that these five exceptional tobaccos have not been selling as they once did. Perhaps it has something to do with some mystery surrounding their flavors. So, I thought I’d take the time to talk about them and provide a little more detail so that you can make a more informed decision when in search of your next smoke.

D-9507

Kind of an oddball, but truly delicious. We have yet to find a similar mixture. We utilize a base of fire-cured Cavendish and blend a small amount of Perique and Dubeck Turkish. D-9507 is a smooth smoking mixture with subtle sweetness and a good measure of fine piquancy.

Blend ‘W’

A blend of dense cube-cut burley with only a gentle touch of latakia. Blend ‘W’ is a solid blast of classic Peretti burley flavor with an added dimension. The latakia brings out the nut-like quality of the burley. On paper, it’s simple. In the bowl, it works oh so well.

Blend 1072

Technically an aromatic burley, 1072 has a light sweetness and a clean finish. Added Virginia provides an undertone to the burley and reveals a unique taste sensation. 1072 is of medium body and offers a stellar introduction into the world of burley.

Blend 100

First blended in 1928, Blend 100 is distinct. Burley, Virginia and Cavendish tobaccos are dressed with a proprietary aromatic and the result is a sweet aroma and taste with a lingering hint of white pepper.

Original

The name of this tobacco is not entirely accurate. The original “Original” is no longer produced due to the loss of an English blending component. This burley-based blend has a distinct blend of two aromatics in the subtlest proportions. The combination produces an enchanting room note and a deep taste profile. No Cavendish, no casings, just flavor.

 

S.L. Willett – Blender, Proprietor

Many of you are familiar with something called “Yuletide”. It is a concoction that is made yearly, and each iteration is different from the previous years’. This time around, we sought to make something more rooted in our decades old tradition in blending. Bob Peretti made blending a staple at this company, so this time around, our holiday mixture is recreated in observance of his contribution to this company.

Upon returning from commanding a sub-chaser in WWII, Robert Peretti settled neatly into running the family tobacco business. Bob, responsible for (NUMBER) of the existing Peretti blends, became world famous for his talent at the blending bench. Mr. Peretti retired from the family business 15 years ago, but is still puffing away on his cherished briars at the age of 96.

This Christmas, we have decided to revive the first Yuletide tobacco that Bob blended in 1951. This limited-run blend consists of Burley, Virgina, Turkish, and a special and slightly sweet aromatic that gives both body and mildness to the finished mixture.

Join us this holiday season to commemorate and celebrate the work of tobacco-legend Bob Peretti, and light up a bowl of this holiday tobacco.