Kramer's Pipe and Tobacco Shop English Blend

A mildly sweet English blend for the smoker who wants a mild to medium smoke. The spice, dryness, and lightly butteriness from the Oriental/Turkish is mild as is the Cyprian latakia, which adds a little smokey, woodsy quality. Most of the sweetness comes from the cavendish, thought I suspect an extremely mild topping is present. The nic-hit is mild. Won't bite or get harsh. Burns cool and clean at a reasonable pace with a consistent taste all the way through. Leaves little dampness in the bowl, and requires few relights. Has a pleasant after taste and is an all day smoke. Even though I rate it at two stars (mainly for the lack of flavor depth), I'd rate it a three as an entry level English.

-JimInks

I get the same dusty/dirty taste from this Lat as I did in Father Dempsey. It's not as bad here though. Obviously my taste buds and Kramer's blends aren't going to get along very well. Luckily, I have only one more to do after this.

At first the Cav leads with some sweet hay. Some of the sweetness seems like an addition. The Lat is light, but gets more obvious as the bowl progresses and eventually overtakes the Cav. The Orientals lend a little sour wood to the background. I don't find it as bland as Father Dempsey which allows me to go 2 stars on this one.

Mild to medium in body and taste. Flavoring is very mild. Burns well.

Kramer's - English Blend.

Kramer's, a manufacturer which I find I think tends to normally fall in the two star category. But if I'm honest this is the best of the bunch; not great, but better than the others I've had from them.

The ribbons are fairly chunky, medium brown with a smaller proportion of black/yellow pieces, and nicely hydrated.

The smoke: quite mild for an English. The Latakia gives vibrancy, by being smoky and rich, but doesn't push everything else out of the way. The Orientals are about equal to the Latakia with a sour note, and the Cavendish underscores the experience with a honey-sweetness, mellowing the smoke. The burn from it's good, necessitating only a little maintenance, giving a low temperature smoke.

Nicotine: mild to medium. Room-note: pleasant.

I don't find this 'that' bad, so will give it three stars:

Recommended.

Kramer's English blend is comprised of rough cut ribbon that shows very little dark flake. Considering that there is both Cavendish and Latakia in the blend, it is simply to light for me as an English even though I am not looking for a Latakia bomb either. The tobacco is of good quality and only slight too moist, so it only takes a few short minutes to dry. This blend is for those that like the very lightest of English mixtures.

A somewhat "standard English". Mild and slightly sweet with a noticeable but not overpowering latakia, there is also a kind of flavouring (hint of maple?) in the background. A nice but not great English which lacks a bit in depth. If a bit dried out it tends to burn hot when not puffed gently.

For the sake of tradition a must try, but honestly, there is better stuff out there.

Mild "N", only a touch of Latakia , bland flavor, no complexity , burns hot- Won't buy again -1 star

I guess we really can't verify from the "deceased" list of "stars" if this blend was really their favorite !

I found this to be outstanding! Buttery smooth and burns cool. Great place for anyone looking to try their first English. An all day smoke and a must try.

I am a regular customer of Kramer's. I think he has a very fine blend of English Blend. His "323" blend has a nice flavor to it as well as a nice slow, even burn. The room not is pleasant . and the mix of the four essential tobaccos that makes up the blend is well balanced . I wood give this blend a 5 star rating. Most of the other English blends I have tried burned hot from the start and have a bit.

This fits into the "Light English" category quite well. It is reminiscent of any number of American-style English blends by Cornell & Diehl; even though this blend lacks a strong burley presence, the Virginias in this blend are kind of earthy (which reminds me of some of those C&D mixtures.

Anyway, I found this to be real easy to smoke and pleasant. I got a sample at one of the Pipe Shows, then jarred it for about a year. I will be ordering more, and exploring more Kramer tobaccos.

Govern Yourself Accordingly.

Milder than Kramer's flagship blend Father Dempsey, English Blend is a nice, smooth mixture that could be considered an all-day smoke. It's similar to 965 in being an English blend that contains a creamy texture and a bit of natural sweetness (possibly from the same cavendish used in Father Dempsey).

The only problem I have with English blend (aside from its uninspired name) is that it bites if not smoked slowly. I think this would be alleviated by some drying as the tobacco arrives somewhat moist (not moist like an aromatic, but moist like a freshly opened tin). When you get in the zone, however, you're rewarded with a great tasting tobacco.