Watch City Cigar The Churchwarden

The smoky, woody, earthy, musty, incense-like, sweet Cyprian Latakia is the star component. The dry, sharp, woody, earthy, herbal, buttery sweet and lightly spicy Orientals play a secondary role. The spicy, raisiny, figgy perique is rather obvious in every puff as it underscores the experience. The cigar leaf is woody, smoky, earthy, floral, herbal, vegetative, and a little sweet as a condiment; not quite to the level of the perique. It’s likely responsible for the lightly harsh, rough edges. In a small amount is the nutty, woody, earthy moderately sweet Kentucky. The Green River cavendish is not really noticeable, but works to add a little sugary smoothness to the product. The strength level is just past medium, and the taste is in the center of medium to strong. The nic-hit is a couple steps past the center of mild to medium. No chance of bite. This is a slow burning crumble cake that has a very deep, rich, and consistent, nuanced flavor from start to finish. Leaves little moisture in the bowl, and requires a fair number of relights unless you totally rub it out. Has a pleasant, long lived after taste, and strong room note. Not an all day smoke.

-JimInks

This is a full flavored Krumble Kake (sort of, as my flakes needed extra work to fully break up), that boasts a lot of cigar leaf to go with the Latakia and Kentucky that provided fullness and strength. Not a particularly sweet blend at all, but one that still had a wonderful presentation at the match. Not for those who enjoy lighter English fare.

In the Tin/Pouch or Mason Jar:

First off, this is no longer a ribbon cut but was received in a cake for home crumbling, slicing, dicing or just rubbing out. A delightful block that reminds of a chunk of particle-board soaked in oil or possibly some fine stout. Funny thing, their website states Ribbon Cut but as a bulk. It does state that in Crumble Cake format it is available in tins. I ordered tins but received an email saying they weren't available so they sent along a few bags.

The smell is deep in the orientals and Latakia with that tasty campfire goodness that always sets my mouth a watering! It is dark and rich with a decent moisture level; that is for a block. Breaks easy with some bending and crumbles out fairly well. If it dries in large chunks you might need a blender or mortar and pestle.

Advertised as a Balkan with cigar leaf and Green River Blk Cav. and some Perique. Just a hint of the Perique in the aroma, no detecting cigar leaf over those Orientals and that sweet smelling Latakia. I ain't picked out the pipe yet I'm already drooling!

Packing and Lighting:

Sprinkled it in to the bowl of an EX Sav for total tasting pleasure. Gave it a good crumbling and let it sit to dry about 90 minutes. The remaining big chunks were harder but broke up between the palms. You could over crumble and make dust so pay attention.

Lighting was more effort but after those first few charring tries this baby took hold and simmered to the end! I don't mind a slow start when it rewards with that even consistent burn to the bottom.

First Impression:

Right up there with Stokkebye Balkan Supreme but even a greater depth and darkness. Can't single out the cigar leaf or the Perique, at first, but it is there adding the tobacco equivalent of the subwoofer range.

Damn this is nice!

That Louisiana spice is just tickling the tongue and back of the nose as the first third expires and I find myself urgently puffing.

No bite, no bark, no bitch. This one is a real trooper smoldering on regardless how bad I abuse it.

This is a keeper. A real rotation clean-up kind of hitter. Reggie Jackson in the Series sort of powerhouse!

Overall:

Room Note; who cares! Let them go outside, but my sweety loves this smokey, dark, syrupy-deep, evil lusciousness; so beware. If your SO or CINC-Spouse or whatever can't take 6 campfires during s spring shower, then take your efforts outside!

I likes me Balkans; as well as me VaPer's, and other variants for a Latakia delivery.

But this, wow!! This rates as a Super Balkan. Order some, order some now or I'm going to cellar the whole damn production run. Wooohaaaaa Haaaaahoooo woo!

No really, try it, if you dare! 6 stars out of 4!

Tin note 5/5 Berry, BBQ vinegar, earth, smoke

Cut and pack: 5/5 I love this presentation. Thick chunky brownie-esque slices. Very similar presentation to SPC crumble cake. You can rub it out or cut it but either way works really well.

Taste: 5/5 Very very similar to SPC Pp Suuuper creamy and thick thanks to the cavendish. Smooth with the 30% oriental and Latakia. Not a Lat bomb IMO. This blends sounds far more intense and scary than it really is.

There’s an earthy aftertaste due to the pinch of cigar leaf but it does not in any way taste like a cigar. I was concerned about this component but it’s nothing to be afraid of. It adds a nice earthy, dirty (in a good way) element that’s missing in SPC-PP

Perique is noticeable on the retrohale and when puffed hard. Not much bite from the cavendish but this blend is meant to be smoked like you’ve got all night to sit and ruminate slowly on the tobacco.

Overall: 5/5 For lovers of SPC PP this is worth a try if you’ve not found anything similar. It’s rich and earthy and complex, just enough sweet, just enough kick, and smooth like butter.

Compared to a food item this would be a thick meaty winter stew with fire roasted veggies and peppers with an added kick of tobasco spice and vinegar.

I enjoy cool smoking, slow burning tobaccos and bought this one to age. Unfortunately my 4 ounces won’t last that long. This blend pushed all my buttons. Flavorful, long lasting, and cool. No biting, no fighting. Last and orientals predominant with a great something extra to add delightful complexity.

Mostly dark cake cut thick and smelling heavenly in the bag of latakia and orientals. It was very obvious that this was going to be a heavy blend. I got the best results with a light rubbing of the cake, not too much so as not to end up with crumbs in the bottom - it ended being almost a broken flake after the load.

First impression was that this lacked elegance, and I think that's sort of the point. This was a rich, deep blend, with the latakia well up front, the orientals running shotgun and the perique and cigar leaf minor but critical players. The Cavendish in here did not develop sweetness as it did in WC's "Nor'easter", a sister to this blend. One of the things that impressed me was the fact that typically I need a strong base of Virginia or burley whenever there are multiple condimental leaves at play, to act as an anchor. Without that, the blends usually end up in confusing territory. Not so here. This blend must have taken quite awhile to perfect, as it is extremely well focused. There is a kind of mellow sharpness underneath the main proceedings, which I suspect is the result of the merging of perique and cigar leaf... or it could be the particular oriental varietal used. This blend is not for the faint of heart, as it could best be described as robust. But not the jumbled mess that is made by many other blenders when they try to include too many leaves. And my son tells me that this has the most horrible room note of any tobacco I've ever smoked. I'd have to agree, although GLP's Quiet Nights is a contender. This isn't exactly my cup of tea, but it's extremely well done. 3.5 stars, but not a rotation maker. If you enjoy latakia in large quantities but also want the complexity afforded by the other ingredients, and you enjoy a mouth-filling flavorful smoke, this is a must try! Ernie Q continues to separate himself from the status quo. Very impressive!

I bought a few of Watch City’s last June and this is one of them. This is a nice ¼ inch thick crumble cake that breaks apart into broken chunks and pieces of tobacco. PKT on this site introduced me to this company and I am glad he did. 30/30 Lat and Oriental they say. This is a smooth, velvety, yet meaty smoke that for the most part stays consistent till the end. Maybe a little stringent toward the end but nothing that noticeable. If my memory serves me correct, this sort of reminds me of SPC’s Plum Pudding. I enjoy this one quite a bit but it can get a little heavy on the tongue if that makes any sense. Not probably something to smoke all day as it is good but can over power your taste buds but not in a bad way. I had some of this in the morning but to me this is a better smoke in the evenings with the weather is cooler. Apparently prior to 2009 it also came in a ribbon cut according to some of the reviews.

Dark, heavy, rich and creamy, with that tasty campfire goodness. The smoky Latakia is the leader. The herbal, buttery Orientals play a support role. The perique is fruity and ever present enhancing the overall depth of the flavor profile. The cigar leaf is smoky, earthy and slightly sweet like a good Maduro cigar but used condimentally. Flavorful, long lasting, with a cool burn.

This is big, dark, oily and creamy. I suspect the cigar leaf in combination with the Latakia is responsible for that, though I don't really taste the cigar leaf. There are flavors that are similar to the char flavor you get on a great burger cooked over a flame if that makes any sense. I also get hints of licorice towards the middle and end of the bowl. It's a bit unique. I like it quite a bit. I'd say 3.5 stars, but since that's not available, I'll round up for the great crumble cake format and bulk pricing/availability.

Recommended for fans of: Full-flavored Latakia blends. If your tastes tend towards more restrained and civilized English blends, you may not like it. If you enjoy full English/Balkan blends like some of the C&D Latakia-heavy mixtures, you will likely appreciate this. Suitable for anyone who thinks they'd like a tobacco as described, rookie or veteran.

Strength wise, this is full-flavored. I don't detect a heavy nicotine presence, though, and is likely medium or milder. on that front.

What Plex said. This blend is absolutely amazing. Dark, rich, spicy chocolate and leather and smokes beautifully.

Not sure what the Orientals are, but they're the soft and rich kind that I like; no sharp hints of Camel straights here. I couldn't detect cigar leaf or much of the perique. In fact, I couldn't detect any single varietal in the smoke, despite the obvious presence of the Latakia and Orientals in the pouch. A concert of rich, mysterious flavor, this blend was as tight as James Brown's band ever was.

A masterpiece, imho. Definitely buying more.