Compton's of Galashiels - Balkan pipe tobacco reviews

Review

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Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Showing reviews 1 through 11 of 11 reviews of this tobacco
tabaco	07/08/2011	Medium	None detected	Full	Pleasant
Yet another excellent blend from Compton's cool, very rich, no harshness at all even if you puff like a Shay Locomotive. You can tell these folks are not simply following a recipe and put a lot of attention and care into their blends, using base tobaccos of the highest quality. Indeed, a tad expensive compared to others but well worth it. The quenching level is very high, often one bowl or two bowls is sufficient; one is not left wanting. And the nice part is you'll be looking forward to the next one. One could say a somewhat seductive blend. An evening with such a fine blend is quite the pleasure, Balkan and English enthusiasts ought to do so. It's surprisingly difficult to compare with Compton's Macedonian since both are superb. I cannot say I prefer one over the other, why not enjoy them both, an open relationship.
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zunismoke	06/25/2011	Medium to Strong	None detected	Very Full	Pleasant to Tolerable
This is a very full Balkan mixture, but with not a hint of harshness or of bite. Someone compared this to Balkan Sobranie 759. I would agree that this tobacco is right up there on a level with 759, but it is definitely not an exact match for it. I am not a great reviewer, and the nearest thing I can come to regarding 759 is that it has a sharpness to it that is there from the first puff. Compton's Balkan does not have that. I will say that when my stash of 759 is gone, I will not be crying, I will be relaxing smoking a bowl of COG Balkan. If you like a good Balkan, you will love this!
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peakbagger	12/19/2009	Medium	None detected	Full	Tolerable to Strong
This comes in an 100gr vacuum packed foil pouch. The delightful pouch aroma is mostly Oriental with fragrant Latakia. The cut is a rather coarse Ribbon of mostly dark leaf. The flavor is wonderful, dark and mostly Oriental and Latakia, the VAs are there too but not as sweet as Macedonian Mixture. 9 out of 10 stars.
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DK	10/27/2009	Medium to Strong	None detected	Full	Pleasant
My bias up front - I'm not the consummate balkan/latakia smoker, as I prefer virginias, vapers, and burleys. I tend to smoke more latakia mixtures in the fall and winter and I enjoy them but I'm certainly not the last word in balkan reviewers. That said, this is a very satisfying mixture. The expense aside, this is a full-bodied blend but the latakia does not overpower the orientals, or even the virginias, although the latakia and orientals tend to run the show. This does remind me of Sobranie 759 but I admit my memory of that stuff is a little hazy. Alternately nutty, sweet and smoky, this is a great contemplative blend. I cannot concentrate on anything but the smoking experience - which is a good thing! Of the three Compton's blends I recently ordered, I had the lowest hopes for this one, and it turned out I got more than what I expected. If you yearn for those great balkan blends of the past, pick up some of this. You might just yearn no more! As a balkan, this earns 4 stars. For my personal taste, 3 stars.
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Lbarraa	03/04/2009	Medium to Strong	None detected	Very Full	Tolerable
Sorry but I must to write my history with this tobacco: My first experience with this tobacco was 6 years a go (2002), when I was a novice pipesmoker. I order a Maxim Engel a Pipe and in the box was included a unique gifth... a pouch Comptom´s Of Galashiel´s (COG) Balkan was my first non aromatic tobacco... and I must say It was a revelation! After tried different english or Balkan tobaccos, including the extint Balkan Sobraine, GL Pease´s Odisey-Renaissance-B.Scandal-Westminster and Mephisto, the Dunhill´s series and the Presbiterian Mixture, but the memory of the COG´s Balkan still in my mind. This year (2008) I order a new pipes to Maxim Engel, and a new pouch of this wonderfull tobacco was inside the box... that was a great reunion... me and COG´s Balkan. If you love the english-balkan blends this tobacco is the one for you. Has a nice strong virginia foundation, with red an flake virginias, a very good proportion of oriental and latakia... the smoke is creamy and nutty, very pleasent with no bite. Easy ligth or religth. Smoke this tobacco is a real pleasure. The problem is a litle expensive, but worth every cent that you pay. In addition Maxim Engel improves the pouches of the tobacco, keeping the tobacco fresh for weeks. Somehing more? Yes, dont hesisate... try this tobacco. Bests. Luis Barra Ahumada
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quantumboy	02/05/2009	Medium to Strong	None detected	Full	Tolerable
[edited 2/5/09 - last paragraph] Wow! I was tempted to leave it at Wow!, but I can't help but give more glorious detail about what I'm experiencing right now with my favorite Dane Craft freehand. I like Compton's Macedonian mixture a lot, so I've been saving this gorgeous little black pouch of Balkan for the past four months for aging - shooting for a year, but I just couldn't leave it lying there any longer. (I'm a Myers Briggs Perceiver...couldn't just leave it alone for a whole year!). Perfect humidity out of the pouch (a bit dryer than from most suppliers, which I like), smells amazing, packs nicely, it's a rough cut that's fun to play with. Yes the Latakia is in your face but it feels oh so good! Rich from the very start with copious smoke, it has been consistently delicious from the first puff. Lots of flavor, and the Virginia is still noticeable and tasty, especially if you nurse it. But don't. Get some big storm clouds brewing around your head because that's when the true flavor comes thundering through (and with zero tongue bite). Stokkebye's Balkan Supreme may have just been derailed as my premier smoke...Compton's price may be the only thing that keeps it in second place. Don't get me wrong, compared to cigars this is a steal...50g cost me $13.75, and I can only buy one or two good stogies for that. Still, it's on the high end of pipe tobacco. But it's absolutely well worth every penny. * insert contemplative pipe smoking pause here * Just ordered three bags, but Stokkebye is still up there. Did a parallel tasting, and it turns out Stokkebye is my go-to for richer, warmer flavors, and Compton's will be my heavier stronger smoke for those days when I'm looking for cigar-level strength. It's a tie for first place...
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hagen	01/27/2009	Medium	None detected	Full	Tolerable to Strong
a full-steam-ahead balkan, with loads of latakia and orientals. a very satisfying smoke for late in the day. it may not be as elegant or refined as other compton's blends - first of all because i feel that the orientals have less character than in, say, their macedonian - but it's rich and fullfilling. medium strength nicotine, full strength flavour. smokes dry and fine if you don't puff like a locomotive.
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Lochinvar	11/19/2008	Strong	None detected	Very Full	Tolerable
This is my latest foray into the new world of Compton's and this has not let me down. This is a Balkan to judge all other's by, a mastepiece, the benchmark. This reminds me greatly of the Sobranie 759, although to tell the truth, and possibly risk being burned at the stake with my Castello shoved into my heart, I think I prefer this. As has been mentioned, the main note in this blend is the Latakia, not the orinetals, and it is a very high quality latakia at that. That is not to say this is not a complex blend where the other component tobaccos don't get to play, like so many of the other "balkans" where the only discernable note is latakia. This is s symphony, not a solo. I was begining to think that Pease was the only person who could create a true Balkan Mixture, but he does indeed have company to the north. This comes in perfect smoking condition, and lights easily, not usually needing a relight. The smoke is creamy and substantial. The taste is nutty, semi-sweet, with the typical balkan citric/hop astringincy, along with a sunstantial, opulent oooompf. Far all this, I have not been bitten, and while it is a full strength , full flavor tobacco, I never really get exhausted with it. If you are a Balkan fan you MUST try this, and soon. What Max Engels has done with Compton's is truely a miracle. For years we have continually bemoaned the loss of Sobranie, Cotton, "blended by" Rattrays, Cope's, Craven and all the other well loved friends who are never coming back. With Compton's we have been given blends that are substantially alike in taste, character and individuality to those departed blends. It is as if time has been reversed. 10 stars out of 4!
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Battling Maxo	09/10/2008	Medium to Strong	None detected	Very Full	Tolerable
Balkan fans, this is a must-try. I agree with thedstnguishdgntlmn, Balkan Mixture is nutty, rich, and absolutely sumptuous. I especially like the burst of rich Balkan sweetness at initial lightup; I never experienced that in another tobacco. Compton's Macedonian Mixture and Balkan Mixture are my favorite two Balkans, of course after Balkan Sobranie. B.Sasieni bites too much, Pease is too wet for my taste, and the rest meet me with various degrees of satisfaction. 3.5 stars.
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thedstnguishdgntlmn	07/14/2008	Medium to Strong	None detected	Very Full	Tolerable to Strong
Absolutely the finest Balkan I have have ever smoked! Nutty, rich, and absolutely sumptuous! If you love Balkans as much as I do try this one. 5 of 4 stars!
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Xeneize	12/03/2007	Medium to Strong	None detected	Very Full	Strong
According to the description, the main note of this mixture is Oriental, but I don't agree at all. The Orientals are there, along with some sweet Virginias (mainly red and quite mature), but the frontman here is Latakia all the way down the bowl. To me, it sometimes gets a bit overwhelming, but it's an outstanding Balkan that deserves to be tried. If it wasn't for the price, I'd give it four stars without a second thought. If you like Odyssey, give this one a try.
Showing reviews 1 through 11 of 11 reviews of this tobacco