My Smoking Shop Gentleman's Choice

This is the cheapest in a range of own-brand tobaccos produced by My Smoking Shop of Preston in the UK. (Despite the name, it can, of course, be smoked by ladies and by peasants like me.) I suspect that it’s an offering along the lines of Gawith & Hoggarth’s Pensioner’s Mixture: a melange of leftovers, fairly heavily cased in the interests of continuity and offered as a comparatively inexpensive smoke to those who aren’t rolling in money. As such, I have to say it’s not at all bad. It isn’t a collection of floor-sweepings, by any means, and the casing, though very noticeable, is less heavy and cloying than the one G&H use on their Pensioner’s Mixture.

I describe it as ready-rubbed, but it tends in the direction of a shag cut, and it isn't all that consistent from batch to batch anyway. It’s a cool smoke that burns well and remains uniform all the way down the bowl, and the room note is not unpleasant. Not a tobacco for the connoisseur, and I certainly wouldn't smoke it all the time; but, for what it is, it's an honest, recommendable offering. Not a bad choice for the beginner, also, gentleman or not.

In the UK there is no such thing as a genuinely cheap tobacco, thanks to the level of duty payable; but, as a low-end choice, you could do worse than this. You could, of course, also buy something a little more expensive and smoke less of it. My Smoking Shop carry a good mail-order range, and the service they provide is first-class.

Bought some on a whim while stocking up on my new favourite tobacconist's website. It was pleasantly surprising. I only ordered 25g as a sampler of sorts, but I'll definitely be ordering plenty more, if only to see how it changes over time.

Tin (well, pouch) note is pleasant. For me the overwhelming scent at this point is chocolate, with a hint of vanilla, but neither is overwhelming. Definitely one of those blends I could sit and sniff for minutes at a time, like a weirdo.

As a previous reviewer mentioned, the cut is closer to shag and is quite inconsistent, not that it's a problem. It's easy enough to rub it all to the same consistency.

Pleasant room note when lit. Tastes are by no means overpowering, and I'm a little too inexperienced to give much more detail than that. It's just a nice, tasty smoke sold at a very reasonable price.

Not exactly something for the discerning connoisseur, but it's a solid smoke at an affordable price, and you could do a hell of a lot worse.

My Smoking Shop-Gentleman's Choice. A cracking little smoke!

I agree with DrDyson as he points out how the cut can vary from pouch to pouch and my pouch's contents are a lot more like a 'mixture' than anything else. I immediately identify a large chunk that's about one and a half centimetre's squared. There are numerous different shapes and cuts included.

If I'm honest the only added flavour I can identify is a subtle vanilla one. The majority of the taste seems to be a full and natural tobacco one.

The tobacco taste is very well balanced. I get a sweet, grassy Virginia note accompanied by a warming and almost homely Burley flavour.

After some time the vanilla seems to become a touch stronger. It doesn't become 'aromatic' but it becomes a more formidable addition.

I find my batch to have a mild to medium quantity of N. This may vary from pouch to pouch like the cut maybe?

I like the room note. It's not at all aromatic, not smoggy and not too heavy. It's more light and classic.

If you're looking for a blend with a slight aromatic side that's not ostentatious I don't think this will let you down.

Highly recommended.