Paul Olsen BS Hvid Balkan

(4.00)
White Balkan Sobranie style from My Own Blend. A classic English mixture of latakia, Virginia, Oriental, and Kentucky. Lots of spice and depth.

Details

Brand Paul Olsen
Blended By Paul Olsen
Manufactured By  
Blend Type Balkan
Contents Kentucky, Latakia, Oriental/Turkish, Virginia
Flavoring
Cut Ribbon
Packaging 100 grams tin
Country Denmark
Production Currently available

Profile

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

Average Rating

4.00 / 4
5

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0

0

Reviews

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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 25, 2017 Medium None Detected Medium to Full Tolerable
The very smoky, woody sweet, musty Cyprian latakia is one of the stars, though it tends to be more of a team player. The dry, lightly sour and buttery sweet, woody, earthy, lightly floral Orientals almost play at the same level as the latakia, and at times, takes a little of the lead, mostly due to the very obvious spice content. The woody, earthy, slightly nutty and spicy Kentucky falls just shy of being a secondary contributor. The tangy, fermented dark fruit, earthy, slightly grassy and citrusy Virginias are almost background participants. The nic-hit is just past the center of mild to medium. The strength is medium, and the taste is a couple of steps past that. No chance of bite or harshness. Burns cool, clean and a tad less than at a moderate pace with a little creamy smoothness, and a mostly consistent, deep, rich flavor with some complexity. Leaves little dampness in the bowl, and requires a few relights. Has a very pleasant, lingering after taste. Can be an all day smoke for the experienced Balkan aficionado. The description claims it’s made in the “White Balkan Sobranie style”, but it strikes me as being closer to Balkan Sobranie 759 (and Black House) than it is to B.S. White.

-JimInks
4 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Mar 01, 2016 Medium None Detected Medium to Full Strong
My initial reaction upon lighting up my first bowl of this from a newly arrived tin: Wow!...in a good way.

I'll forgo any comparison to Balkan Sobranie and say only that this is a very Oriental-forward, Latakia and Virgina light mixture. The room note has that Balkan reek that usually wins no friends, but to the palate of this smoker; there's a lot going on. Rich and full, but not overwhelming. It's different enough from other Balkan mixtures to merit trying.
PurchasedFrom: The Danish Pipeshop
3 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 07, 2016 Strong None Detected Very Full Tolerable
Paul Olsen - Hvid Balkan.

Although it's a mixture there's no big chunks in the tin, it consists of mostly medium ribbons. The smell from the tin isn't out of the ordinary: a simple Balkan. As I always say with My Own Blend, the moisture's perfect.

If I'm honest, for the initial few puffs I wasn't exactly enamoured, it tasted good, but not remarkable. It took a few bowls for me to get into it. The first taste to leap out to me was slightly incongruous: a bit salty. But after a very short while any salt from the Oriental's faded and gave way to a more intriguing flavour, with the Virginia being the lightest, it's pretty much un-noticeable. I find a bigger taste from the Kentucky and Latakia; the Kentucky takes a little more effort to identify in comparison to the Latakia, but is definitely present. For me, it's the addition of Kentucky that brings this up from a full taste to a very full taste. The nicotine's strong from this: a probable good morning blend for a lot of folks, and the room-note's only tolerable at best.

Even though it took me a while to get into it, I'll award it four!

Highly recommended.

Pipe Used: Peterson Silver Spigot XL02
PurchasedFrom: The Danish Pipe Shop
Age When Smoked: Six Months
1 person found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 10, 2016 Medium None Detected Full Strong
I've smoked an aweful lot of this since I opened the tin as it's just so moorish and tasty. On a few occasions I've smoked another blend I've found myself thinking 'I wish I was smoking Hvid'.

I find this a really flavorful tobacco yet it's very smooth and very easy to smoke. The Oriental are forward throughout the smoke with the other tobaccos playing a supporting role.

I'd say it is certainly worth trying if you can get some. I'm not sure if I'll rush to buy it again once I've finished this tin, but only because it's in Denmark and I'm in the UK. Otherwise I'd smoke it often. But then, if I buy another Danish pipe I'll certainly buy some more of this to pad out the order... any excuse.

Pipe Used: Briars
PurchasedFrom: The Danish Pipe Shop
Age When Smoked: Fresh
1 person found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 20, 2017 Medium None Detected Medium to Full Pleasant to Tolerable
Got this gem in a trade with StevieB. Many thanks, my friend.

Very nice Orientals in this. Sour, mildly woody, mildly buttery, and a nice herbal note. They lead with the smokey Lat a little ways behind and the Virginias lending a little sweetness. The Kentucky shows with a smoky earthiness in the second half of the bowl. Fairly smooth with a little edge to it. I'd like a little more sweetness, but the quality of the Orientals earns it 4 stars.

Medium in body. Medium to full in taste. No added flavoring. Burns very well.
Pipe Used: MM Little Devil Cutty, Little Devil Acorn, Marcus
PurchasedFrom: acquired in trade
Age When Smoked: a few months
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