Hearth & Home Distinguished Penguin

Never had this before but today I smoked 3 medium-sized bowls of this and I already like it. Sometimes it got little tangy but for the most part it has a rich, sweet, somewhat nutty and smokey flavor. Very mild nicotine. I cannot see the Captain Black connection others noted. The 5oz I received from P&C was perfect..not too dry or moist. It is confetti-like in appearance and is easily packable and smokes well. I will be picking up more in the very near future. Thoroughly enjoyable.

Distinguished Penguin as others have pointed out looks exactly like fish food; If you have ever owned a goldfish than you know what mean. It arrives quite dry and pipe ready. Sadly much of the bottom of my pouch was just dust. DP is a bit sweet, likely from the Cavendish, and has a bit of sour tang to it too. IMHO, as English, it is lacking, and as a Scottish blend, it falls below the other Scottish blends on the market. The flavor isn’t bad, but it burns hot. I think this was one of Russ’ blends prior to his current (and well deserved) rock star status. Given the wide array of great blends from Russ Ouellette, DP is pretty far down on my list.

I picked up a tin of this one along with many other H&H blends at last year's KC Show... or was it the West Coast Pipe Show? Anyway, good stuff. I think the combination of Latakia and Virginia in the mixture is what was tastiest. The Black Cavendish did provide some bottom to the blend and was a nice touch.

Pipestud

Wood shavings, or oatmeal and raisins in appearance. Very odd looking blend. Very dry. Much drier than I am used to. Light English tin note. Wife note is "pleasant, but not something for the car."

I'm a bit at odds on this blend. There is nothing offensive in it. The Latakia was added with a very light hand. The Cavendish likewise is present, but not by much. Packing is unusual due to the flaky, dry consistency. It burns fast and very clean but does not bite. Stays lit very easily. Leaves a slight Virginia sweetness on the back of the tongue.

I'm about six bowls into the 1.5 oz tin, and nothing is really screaming "buy more of me!" On the other hand, it is a mild, pleasant, if unremarkable Scottish-like blend. I like a little more out of my tobacco. DP would be great for someone dipping his toe into English blends, or the beginning smoker. I initially gave it three stars because it is a good blend, worth a try and I am sure some will love it, but dropped it to two stars because it is not terribly compelling for me.

Not a good nighttime smoke, unless you want to go to bed wanting more...

But there is a very pleasant trio of tastes here that I really enjoy when the mood is right. This is a good tobacco for pale beer and although I haven't tried it, I'd like to have a scotch and soda to go along with it. I want to try McClelland Scottish Woods before purchasing anymore Penguin because I don't care for the ticky tacky bottom of the jar quality of the tobacco.

Great name, less than great pipe tobacco. I'm unfamiliar with Scottish blends, this being my first one. It burns too hot for me. Everyone says it looks like fish food, but I bet fish food, if smoked, tastes better. I give it a 2.

This blend is indeed mellow and sweet. It is very much distinguished. I am opinionated against Hearth & Homes because of the all around weird taste and smell. Almost chemically.

With that said this blend was a strong body and a rich complex taste that I grew to like for a long while. It's the first iv'e seen under the scottish name which I still don't fully understand.

For the price and deals this brand offers, you can get quite a variety for a very cheap price. That would be the only reason I would recommend this besides the decent taste.

Hunter's "Wood shavings, or oatmeal and raisins" is right, that's exactly how this tobacco looks. Mine was fairly dry (bought in bulk) so only 10-15 minutes spread out on a plate was required to get it where I wanted it. I put it in an MM Washington. It bit immediately, and kept biting and biting and biting, but that's because I tend to smoke too fast and too hot. I toned myself down to very small sips from the stem. The tobacco smoothed down instantly into an experience of natural peanut butter, walnuts, and molasses with small busrts of "neighbors burning fall leaves" tartness. (You may be shouting at the monitor, "Idiot, that's how you're supposed to smoke all of them!" No doubt true, but then this is the tobacco that taught me and so I record my gratitude here). Whether sipping slow or sipping fast, there was no more bite. This was one of the most comfortable smokes I've had.

In an ideal world, this would be available in every drug store in 14 ounce honest-to-gosh tins for five bucks under a brand name like "Hunting Dog" or "Chatauqua." This tobacco is mild, flavorful, and, well, distinguished. But it's also simple and easy to appreciate. The barber shop I use has a cast iron stove and a burlap bag full of peanuts to accompany the conversation; this tobacco fits with that image. Like everyone else, I enjoy being "blown away" by amazing, fantastic flavors and star-spangled smoking experiences. But I don't want that every time I smoke a pipe. Sometimes (most of the time) I want something that's entertaining but happily takes a back seat to whatever else I'm doing, like reading or working on a hobby. For that, this tobacco is perfect.

Tried this in a few differant pipes. Could not find the "slightly sweet smoke" described. It did look like wood shavings. Not really impressed.

You know, this is just an easy fun smoke, if that makes any sense........ It can be a bit of a challenge to pack, as it is a bit confetti-like, but once lit it requires little fiddling and burns nicely. Every bowl has burned clean with virtually no dottle. The taste can be a bit tangy, the tiny bit of latakia lends a different note.....it just works. Frankly I didn't have very high expectations for this blend but have to admit I really enjoy this. It would make a good noob's blend as it takes some effort to get it to bite even a little. It tends to burn a bit quickly, so it works well for a quick smoke......put it in a pug or something similar and you have a superb 15 minute smoke break. It's wierd, it's hard to define and the description sounds like Russ mixed it from leftovers but it just plain works. Don't expect some amazingly complex smoke......just a nice and easy tasty smoke.