Iwan Ries - Dr. Bradley pipe tobacco reviews

Review

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Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Showing reviews 1 through 20 of 20 reviews of this tobacco
SBC	10/15/2012	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
An excellent berry crossover. It’s just a little tough to light at first, but once it gets going, it burns very consistently. It also burns very lengthily, by the way—you can get quite a long smoke out of this one. It seems to really take off after about a third of the bowl. The final two-thirds produce billows of soft, white smoke. Others say that the topping affects room note only, not taste—I heartily disagree. I definitely taste a high quality berry topping. No chemically funkiness—just a great berry flavor. It melds quite nicely with a bit of nuttiness from the burley and a bit of sourness from oriental. This is an exceptionally cool smoke. Few blends smoke this cooly. Dr. Bradley is exceedingly similar to Milan’s Chartwell. That was my most pressing impression from the first puff to the last. Three slight, but noteworthy, differences between Chartwell and Dr. Bradley: [1] Chartwell emphasizes the crossover with latakia, whereas Dr. Bradley emphasizes the crossover with orientals; [2] Chartwell smokes more warmly than Dr. Bradley does; [3] Chartwell does not produce the billows of white smoke that Dr. Bradley does. But really, these two are sisters. They strike me as very slight variations on the same blend. I won’t venture to assert which is better until I’ve compared them side-by-side more carefully. For now, I'll simply say that if you like Chartwell, try this; if you like this, try Chartwell. Definitely recommended. I don’t give it a 4 star for reasons I can’t quite put my finger on, but it’s a solid 3.5.
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rramstad	06/14/2011	Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
Even dried out, this blend won't stay lit, smokes a bit goopy for me, and also aggravates the roof of my mouth somewhat. The flavor is good, but there are many other blends that burn better and have better mouth feel.
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Peppino	04/02/2011	Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant
This is a good tobacco, not great but good medium latakia blend.. It burns well and has a sweet/sour flavor in the back of my mouth that I like. It's a clean/dry smoke as well, which seems all the Ries blends are,to me anyway. Good Stuff!
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Judge Adams	03/02/2011	Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant
A super cross-over blend developed ages ago by Iwan Ries in Chicago for Dr.Preston Bradley, a prominent Presbyterian minister.There is just a hint of latakia in the background of this predominantly burley mixture, and a light dose of the very famous Iwan Ries taste--all without any shred of black cavendish. I smoke it daily and recommend it highly to aromatic and non-aromatic pipemen alike.
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piedpiper	06/29/2010	Very Mild	None detected	Very Mild	Very Pleasant
A professor I had in college used to smoke this during his lectures (yes I'm dating myself) & I fell in love with the exotic aroma-I'd never experienced a British blend before!! I tried this back in the 70s & again recently. My take on it today is as it was then-the room note is much better than the taste. As a matter of fact, it's one of the least flavorful tobaccos I have ever experienced. It basically has NO taste. I would call this a crossover blend ( as does IRC), as the casing along with the Latakia make for the intrigueing room note. A very mild blend which will make your pipe welcome among the openminded, however, I prefer to taste my tobacco!!
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ruffinogold	05/01/2010	Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
I realy like it :) Very smooth and medium all the way .Relaxing as heck .I can see why this has been round forever . I sure hope alot of people are buying from IRC cause I dont want their stuff to go away . Update .. This is good stuff man ... kinda like dunhill std med in that medium way [ if that makes sense ] . I realy didnt notice a berry topping .It does have some top note to it that I cant figure . It is kinda sweet , which I normally dont care for in a blend that has orientals or lat . But here , it works pretty good . I liked Dun Std med and being its no longer around I 'll smoke the IRC Royale which is a better blend , this is a crossover for sure
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Jason	10/16/2009	Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
I've seen this Dr Bradley described as an "American English". I would agree. Great tasting, well balanced (but just slightly leaning towards the sweet side). There's Latakia here, but just enough so you taste it - it doesn't overpower. Comes out of the pouch a bit wet (which is better than the alternative I guess). Tobacco packs and burns easily, and is medium-dark/dark as far as color goes. I reach for Squadron Leader or this when I want Latakia. Iwan Ries calls it a "traditional crossover" and their site says this about it - "One of our premier creations. A rich tasting tobacco has hints of an aromatic, however there is no aromatic taste or aroma- just quality and character." Sent some of this to a friend and he rightly pointed out that it has some burley in it, some VA, some topping (cherry perhaps?), some latakia, and some orientals. He also mentioned it might make a good blend for beginners looking to get past the traditonal starting point of Burley and Aromatics. UPDATE: now that I've smoked many more blends of tobacco, I have to lower the rating here by one star. The "bar" has been raised for me by some of the fantastic tobaccos I've smoked. This is still good stuff, and inexpensive too, but there are certainly better blends out there. Still worth trying, and especially great starting point for rookies.
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AcworthAl	05/18/2009	Mild	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant
This reminded me of old time tobacco. It is simple, pleasant, easy to smoke and delightful. I first smoked a pipe in the 60s and when I smoked the first bowl of Dr. Bradleys it brought back memories of blends whose names I no longer remember. I have been very impressed with the quality of the tobacco from Iwan Ries.
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PipeProfessor	04/29/2009	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant
This blend has become my one of my daily smokes. Balanced burley with a light berry casing, virginia with alittle latakia. The topping shows up in the room note, the flavor is quality tobacco with no bite and no bitter aftertaste. There is an creamy quality that is enjoyable. If you enjoy "American Engish" blends, you will enjoy Dr. Bradley.
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montag	03/11/2009	Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Full	Pleasant to Tolerable
Like my father, I had been smoking 3-Star from Iwan Ries for some time but wanted to try something different. On a visit to Chicago during a 30-day leave from the USAF in January 1970, I made a point of stopping at the Cellini pipe shop to purchase a new Lovat shape and then made my way to Iwan Ries. They provided a sample of Dr. Bradley which I had never tried before. Ah, what a wonderful blend in my new Cellini! I continued to smoke Dr. Bradley for the next 24 years before giving up my pipes in 1994. I just recently resumed my pipe hobby (why not? I'm not getting any younger.) So I immediately placed an order with Iwan Ries for some Dr. Bradley and yes, some 3-Star Blue as well. I was so happy to learn that Dr. Bradley hasn't changed one iota from the first time I tried it 39 years ago. As others have mentioned here, it burns cool and doesn't bite your tongue or irritate the palate of your mouth. This is a wonderful tobacco which I highly recommend!
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SmokeKing David	04/02/2008	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
An English-Aromatic hybrid of some note. Pleasant and non-biting. Worth a try.
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ChicagoPipe	12/02/2007	Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant
I haven't smoked this blend for about 30 years, but I recently started working in downtown Chicago and am only 3 blocks from Iwan Ries. Iwan Ries is the oldest tobacco shop in America, 1857, and they have the best selections of pipe tobacco anywhere. Dr. Bradley is one of their oldest blends, best described as an American English. It has a light casing added to improve the aroma, but you cannot taste the casing while smoking, but it provides a pleasant room note. Burley based, with VA, latakia and a touch of orientals. Dr. Bradley smokes cool, dry and with no bite. Makes a great all day "English" smoke. The cost is very ecconomical, $12.60 for a 7oz. bag, buy 2 = $11.20/bag. If your looking for a good all day english type tobacco with a nice room note, give Dr. Bradley a try.
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WmZiggy	11/30/2007	Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant
I hadn't smoked Dr. B in a long long time. I got nostalgic when I was visiting the Iwan Ries web page and ordered a pouch. It rekindled some memories and I was somewhat amazed I could say, "Yep that's how I remember it". I thought this had to be a testament to consistency in an age where everything seems to be changing. This is a nice tobacco. It didn't bite or burn. It is a straight forward tobacco blend without a lot of complex development throughout the smoke. I also detected a small about of Latakia and liked the lighter amount; some blends beat you over the head with it. This will be a part of my rotation again.
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Pipestud	11/19/2007	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Strong
Now here we go, a real tobacco with nothing but a straight forward, in your face, real tobacco taste! This is one of Iwan Ries's oldest and highly regarded blends. It came along before the 3-star series and has been a big hit for a million years. I can see why. If you want straight tobacco taste, take a ride with the Doctor. I order one of those mylar pouches of Dr. Bradley once ever couple of years and it is thoroughly enjoyable. This is more than just a step up from "drugstore" quality blends and has a mostly Burley and background Virginia taste that will bring back very pleasant memories for those of us who have been puffing on our briars for several decades.
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farmer	12/18/2006	Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant
I smoked Dr. Bradley's for the first time over thirty years ago in a college dormitory. When somebody said it smelled good, I immediately returned to Dunhill and Sobranie, which I could not afford, fool that I was. I ordered a sack from IRC a few months ago, hoping to make peace with my wife over the atmosphere drifting out of my office, having recently started to work at home. Well, she's happier, but not as much as I am. I was delighted to find that it reminds me of a blend I used to buy at the old Cellini pipe shop. I can't remember the blend, but I do remember the taste. Anyway, Dr. Bradley has a good complex taste and an excellent room aroma, which goes very well at my house.
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OLDTIMER	10/27/2006	Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
This stuff is great. Not a aromatic but close. There is just enough Latakia in this blend to keep it interesting. Smokes cool, and without bite. This old blend was great in it's day, and great today. Try some!!
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The Unknown Piper	10/13/2006	Medium	Mild	Medium	Tolerable

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Taste Buds	10/13/2006	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Tolerable
This is an ok blend for those who like the so called "drugstore blends", but I'm not one of them. This must have been a winner in it's day, but that day has long passed. I found nothing of redeeming value in Dr. Bradley to recommend to others.
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emmbee	09/11/2006	Mild to Medium	None detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
I'm surprised there's not more reviews about this one. It is one of IRC's oldest blends, named after Chicago's Dr. Preston Bradley: Protestant minister, social reformer & culture patron of the last century. The magnificent Tiffany mosaic domed concert hall at the Chicago Public Library Cultural Center is named in his honor as well. I agree with the two reviews below: straightforward, honest, no nonsense, pure tobacco product through and through. No fancy casings, no unusual or exotic combinations of any sort. This seems to be an American burley/ Virginia type affair, though it's distinctly IRC without the Three Star casing. Yes, it's a sort of House of Windsor trip through yesteryear, but of higher quality. I can understand the endurance of this blend. It's an all day smoke that neither overwhelms nor underwhelms, probably like one of Dr. Bradley's homilies. Two and a half of five stars ------------------------------- september 2006 I'm upgrading. This really is very pleasant and reliable. I gave it another few shots and it reminds me a lot of a chocolatey 'Count Pulaski' and a non-fruity 'Mixture 120' from Jack Schwartz, which I've been trying to get posted for review here to no avail. The cut is stringy without causing severe heat to the bowl. The VA and Latakia work to compliment one another. Finally, the price can't be beat for an 8 ounce package of cool smoking pleasure, especially when you purchase it during IRC's annual no tobacco tax sale. Pick up a pack of this fine old reliable next time you visit the venerable Iwan Ries. Three and a half of five stars
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thedstnguishdgntlmn	07/07/2006	Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
An excellent no nonsense smoke.A lot of natural tobacco flavor. If you are a fan of COUNT PULASKI you will love this blend. It has a perfect balance of Burley,Virginia,Latakia, and Perique with an absolutely fabulous topping gently applied. It is a sweet/smoky blend that will satisfy all but the Vaper lovers. I believe the topping is a cross between chocolate and anise. A very similar blend to Count Pulaski in all respects.This is a must try for true pipe smokers. 4 of 4 stars!!
Showing reviews 1 through 20 of 20 reviews of this tobacco