Ilsted Own Mixture No.88

Totally underrated. A niche. Similar to my great adored and sadly discontinued Ashton type 2. Bright virginia, slightly sweet and tart, the mild topping is orange and i'll detect some cane sugar flavour. The cavendish is unflavoured with a faint of brown sugar/molasses. A good portion of Cyprian latakia, with a slight cedarwood boosted this great tobacco in a terrific experience. A great all day smoke. 4 stars. Today it's named Ilsted Own English mixture no 88 without the Kentucky.

I picked up a couple of tins of this at a local tobacconist because it was dated September 2000, and was under 10 bucks a tin. If there ever was any Latakia in this, it has long ago taken a back seat to the cased tobaccos in this mixture, which presented scents of honey and vanilla. At first I decided I did not like it, but as I continued to smoke this mixture, it grew on me. The Virginias definitely come through, and the casing is mild enough to complement the blend nicely. I like this as a late morning smoke, and it is very mild, leaving behind a pleasant room note. Do not buy this if you are expecting an English blend, as it is sure to disappoint if you do.

I concord with TheGerman and Doc'spipe. This is a good light modern english blend, with an elegant sweetness and easy to handle. I appreciate it.

I was looking for another flavored Latakia blend similar to Sillem's Black as a rotation partner. Ilsted blends are blended by the same blender as Sillem's Black - Kohlase & Kopp of Germany. Their website says it is flavored with honey and orange. This I could not honestly detect in the tin aroma. Perhaps a faint sweetness that remained so while smoking. Nor would I have guessed honey or orange if it hadn't been listed. It smelled mostly of Latakia and the addition of the Kentucky made for a pleasant, spicy smoke. It did smoke a bit hot, as does Sillem's Black, but I experienced no real bite. The tin sample was a bit sticky, but packed and retained its light without much problem. After a bit of drying, it retained its light fairly well. There was some moisture while smoking, and I was left with a mix of medium gray ash and a little dottle. It was a pleasurable smoke, and sweet tasting (not natural tobacco sweetness, but a cased sweetness) without being overbearing. A solid team player for that three or four time a week smoke. Although I prefer Sillem's Black, No. 88 can serve nicely as a change of pace for a mildly aromatic Latakia unless I find something better.

If you are looking for a mild Latakia, this would do. This may prove beneficial as a good introduction for the aromatic smoker who wants to branch out as I feel there is enough sweetness, albeit nondescript, to prove enjoyable. Hard-core Latakia smokers, I am sure, would find this too mild for their likes.