Well, I've finally had enough bowls that I feel confident in reviewing this blend. For anyone not familiar with this blend, here is the description commonly found:
"A simple classic, Mac Baren's HH Burley Flake uses ripe Virginias and a touch of Dark-Fired Kentucky to complement its Burley base, making for a pleasant, mellow, woodsy taste."
It's a is supposed to be a smooth tobacco of medium taste and strength, and for the most part, I agree. It comes in compressed flake form, and I have found that using it like a "ready rub" works best for packing. The tin note is very pleasant if you are a VABUR guy. You smell the burley, the Virginia, and the Dark-Fried Kentucky immediately. However, there is something else in there that i can't quite put my finger on. Sometimes it smells like it has a hint of whiskey, sometimes perique, but whatever that extra "smell" is, you don't taste it while smoking. It lights well, and it isn' too much hassle to keep lit, so long as you let it dry a bit.
Now as for the taste; Here's where you fans of this blend may get a bit riled up because I find it to be a "poor-man's" Hearth and Home's Slow Aged First Snow. The two blends are identical in tobaccos chosen to blend, but HH seems to be a bit "weaker" in taste. It want's to hit you with big shot of that smokey, earthy, hay-like taste, but it never quite gets there. Every once in a while, you get a tease of what seems like a real contender to First Snow or even Sixpence, but then it just kind of drops off before the big flavor hit in the next fews smokes. Maybe this isn't a bad thing for some people. Perhaps you would enjoy the "excitement" of waiting to see if the next puff will have that power-punch taste, but I prefer some consistency. To me, it's a much more mild version of First Snow, and a REALLY distant cousin of GL Pease's Sixpence.
I would buy it again in a pinch, but I don't think this will be a go-to or rotation blend.
"A simple classic, Mac Baren's HH Burley Flake uses ripe Virginias and a touch of Dark-Fired Kentucky to complement its Burley base, making for a pleasant, mellow, woodsy taste."
It's a is supposed to be a smooth tobacco of medium taste and strength, and for the most part, I agree. It comes in compressed flake form, and I have found that using it like a "ready rub" works best for packing. The tin note is very pleasant if you are a VABUR guy. You smell the burley, the Virginia, and the Dark-Fried Kentucky immediately. However, there is something else in there that i can't quite put my finger on. Sometimes it smells like it has a hint of whiskey, sometimes perique, but whatever that extra "smell" is, you don't taste it while smoking. It lights well, and it isn' too much hassle to keep lit, so long as you let it dry a bit.
Now as for the taste; Here's where you fans of this blend may get a bit riled up because I find it to be a "poor-man's" Hearth and Home's Slow Aged First Snow. The two blends are identical in tobaccos chosen to blend, but HH seems to be a bit "weaker" in taste. It want's to hit you with big shot of that smokey, earthy, hay-like taste, but it never quite gets there. Every once in a while, you get a tease of what seems like a real contender to First Snow or even Sixpence, but then it just kind of drops off before the big flavor hit in the next fews smokes. Maybe this isn't a bad thing for some people. Perhaps you would enjoy the "excitement" of waiting to see if the next puff will have that power-punch taste, but I prefer some consistency. To me, it's a much more mild version of First Snow, and a REALLY distant cousin of GL Pease's Sixpence.
I would buy it again in a pinch, but I don't think this will be a go-to or rotation blend.
