Benjamin Hartwell Chesdin Mixture

(2.65)
Rich, smooth latakia blend - Benjamin Hartwell's Inn was the Quail's Breath. The specialty was wild game. Ben traveled deep into the woods to hunt and fish. His favorite spot to relax was Chesdin by the river. This is the rich, smooth latakia blend he made to enjoy in those pleasant, quiet hours at Chesdin. The recipe comes down to us as a reminder of the importance of simple pleasure at any age.

Details

Brand Benjamin Hartwell
Blended By Sutliff Tobacco Company
Manufactured By Sutliff Tobacco Company
Blend Type Virginia/Latakia
Contents Latakia, Virginia
Flavoring
Cut Ribbon
Packaging 50 grams tin
Country United States
Production No longer in production

Profile

Strength
Mild to Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
Very Mild
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Tolerable
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming

Average Rating

2.65 / 4
6

10

13

2

Reviews

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Displaying 1 - 10 of 31 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 01, 2015 Mild to Medium None Detected Mild to Medium Pleasant
I smoked a several years old tin of this one and found Chesdin Mixture to be a very fine smoke but with no rough edges. The Latakia was nice and smokey and the Virginia leaf seemed to have grassy undertones. There was a little strength in this blend due to the Virginia leaf, and I rather liked the subtle sweetness the Latakia provided (along the same line as the McClelland Froggie blends). I do think this one has potential and I will continue to age the remaining two tins for a few more years.
6 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Mar 26, 2014 Medium Mild Medium Tolerable
The Cyprian latakia is sweet and a little smoky and woody as the major component. The mild Virginia citrus and grass offers some support. The vanilla topping is very light, but it helps give a Frog Morton-like impression in some respects. Has a mild nic-hit. Won't bite or get harsh. Burns clean and cool slightly less than at a moderate pace with a very consistent flavor. Requires a few relights, and will leave a little moisture at the bottom of the bowl. Has a pleasant sweet and smoky after taste. A nice introductory blend for those who are thinking of venturing into English blends with a little sweetness. Three stars for that type of smoker, two or two and half for the experienced ones.

-JimInks
6 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Aug 17, 2017 Medium Very Mild Mild to Medium Pleasant
Benjamin Hartwell - Chesdin Mixture.

The ribbons are short, and apart from some occasional flecks of yellow, jet black. The moisture's a little too high, not unsmokeable when fresh, but in need of a short drying period.

The Latakia leads, unequivocally. But, isn't sharp, or cutting, instead it's very smooth and laid back. I get hardly anything from the Virginia, it's overwrought by the flavour from the Lat'. There's the presence of a sweet, vanilla, flavour, which works well with the smoothness of the Lat'. The burn from Ches' is without fault, giving a consistent burn, with a cool, bite free, smoke. I think this would suit an English/Balkan smoker who wants something insouciant to relax with, for a change, but has little interest in over-sweet/mild aromatics.

Nicotine: medium. Room-note: pleasant.

I think this deserves full marks:

Four stars.
Pipe Used: Erik Nording
PurchasedFrom: Smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: Two months
5 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 28, 2012 Mild Very Mild Mild to Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
My review of Chesdin Mixture is based on a tin that has a number of years of age on it so that should be kept in mind. I will echo those that compare this to Frog Morton. It smells very similar to Frog Morton on the Town in the tin. Like many McClelland blends it is quite moist and takes a while to dry down to my favorite humidity content. Once lit, it tastes like a sibling to FMOTT, albeit a not as good. It is a little stronger and a little less refined than Froggy. Where it really breaks down is as each bowl smoked progresses toward the bottom third of the bowl the flavor turns nasty. Chesdin becomes somewhat bitter and “ashey” in the bottom third.. I enjoy an occasional bowl of FMOTT as it was my very first “Englishish” blend, but there would be no reason to purchase Chesdin when I can have the real deal.
4 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 17, 2012 Mild to Medium Very Mild Medium Pleasant
Luscious, velvety, rich, voluptuous, how many adjectives can I apply to this blend which you can see I am obviously very much enamored with. If I could reward it with six stars I certainly would. I wouldn't have suspected such piping pleasure from an Altadis product. Chesdin Mixture has the perfect balance of texture, smokiness that is complimentary not overpowering and a rich but not cloying sweetness. Think dark chocolate (but it doesn't taste like chocolate). The contents list Virginia and Latakia but I would suspect also some quality Cavendish has been included as an ingredient. This blend lights easily, burns well but is very long lasting. No tongue bite but it is a moist tobacco so it should be sipped not huffed and puffed on. It contains some vitamin N but not in an overwhelming manner. Fill your pipe lean back and become entranced. Most highly recommended.
3 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 23, 2017 Mild to Medium Mild Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
The Lat dominates. It's smooth and woody and mildly smoky. The Virginias add a little grass. It very definitely has sweetened Black Cav which adds more sweetness and flavor than the Virginias do. The toasty note from it is obvious from one third of the bowl to the finish. While this is pleasant, it's also very ordinary and lacks any pizazz. 2 stars.

Mild to medium in body. Medium in taste. Added sweetness is mild. Burns well if you dry it a while and further rub out the chunks.
Pipe Used: MM Dagner Poker, Country Gentleman, Marcus
PurchasedFrom: Mars cigars and pipes
Age When Smoked: fresh
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Nov 30, 2015 Mild Very Mild Mild to Medium Pleasant
I agree that Chesdin Mixture is very similar to Frog Morton but somewhat sweeter which is interesting since Altadis manufactured these Benjamin Hartwell blends but I would bet my hat that McClelland actually produced them. As with all McClelland blends, the tobacco is very high quality with the whole sweet / smoky English hybrid thing done very well. I absolutely love the tin art, the little background stories that accompany the BH blends and the fact that they employ top shelf leaf, also the fact that the series encompasses an aromatic, Virginia and English type blend ensures that one could be content with having a tin of each for their morning, day and nighttime smoke. I just prefer the other two BH blends and while this is a nice blend, its just not my thing.
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 02, 2014 Mild to Medium Extremely Mild Mild to Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
Disappointing for the cost.

Just kind of blends in with a load of other middle of the road English blends for me.

Nice lat, nice aroma, lit well, smoked decently, but for the cost and the fanfare that goes with it, I expected to have my hair blown back.

Refined, maybe just needs some age.
Pipe Used: Cant remember
PurchasedFrom: Cigars International
Age When Smoked: Dont know
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 04, 2012 Medium Mild Medium Tolerable to Strong
I like this small series from Altadis. I think the packaging is nice, the little anecdotes attached to the tins are nice, and the tobacco is not too bad. Surprisingly enough my favorite blend from the Hartwell series is the aromatic in the line, evening stroll.

Chesdin mixture is a real middle of the road latakia based blend. The flavor there is solid and good but it is certainly not wow you good. It doesn't list it on the tin but I would suspect there is some black cavendish involved here? Black cavendish is not always a bad thing in the english world, as demonstrated by the great MM 965. It definitely makes a lot of sense to me that this blend is produced by Altadis. It has a lot of the characteristics of the other Altadis blends. This stuff is really moist, probably a high PG content. Drying this out is a little bit of a futile effort and you really just have to smoke it as is. It really comes off as a blend that was designed to sit in the bulk bins of small B&M's.

My main complaint with this blend is the cut. I hate the way this tobacco is presented. There are these big chunky folded mishmash of leaves here. This type of blend is so hard to pack well, especially in pipes that are of a smaller size. It is also really difficult to get this style of cut lit well. The cut and the moisture come together to make this blend a bear to get going and keep going. Once you are rolling it is not a bad blend.
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 23, 2011 Medium Mild to Medium Mild to Medium Pleasant
I bought it in March 2010, but the tin had a seal underneath for 2- 2004. With the first puff I felt tongue bite, but I shouldn't judge hastily as it didn't only disappear as I continued, but also a gentle sweetness appeared that I particularly liked. What bothers me is that the tobacco remains highly humid, no matter how long you let it dry out. It is something that really puzzles me. It does not have the intense smell and taste of Latakia, because probably Virginia prevails. So we can say it not what Latakia smokers seek. Possibly it has a certain very vague aroma added to it. Perhaps.
2 people found this review helpful.
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