This offers a very straightforward virginia taste. My tin is very old, at least seven years, and very dry. There is not much, if any, of the original casing note left, but perhaps a new tin would offer more of that essence. Even bone dry, this bites in a harsh manner, and is very difficult to smoke without experiencing any tongue bite. I am no beginner to pipe smoking or VA tobacco's, and in fact most recently enjoyed a bowl of the Paul Olsen My Own Blend 111 (which is much better than this, in my estimation) a few hours before smoking this. The difference was striking. The 111, another VA blend, tickles the tongue, but stays under control with respectable puffing. B93, however, is just brutally hot and harsh from the first to the past puff. This, as the Danish so love to do with VA's, has been spritzed with an additional light sugar casing, which really ramps up the tongue bite factor.

Another factor which precludes a higher rating is the fact that there are so many other, better VA blends out there. Many of the Mac Baren roll cake style blends are similar to this in flavor, but much more forgiving (a higher burley content, I suspect) than B93. Several English brand VA's from Dunhill, Gawith, etc., also offer better choices along roughly the same lines.

B 93 is a rubbed out flake tobacco made up of bright carolina belt virginias, topped with something sweet and Danish that I cannot quite place.

Once I got past the initial shock of the tin aroma and actually got to smoking it, I was quite suprised. The first bowl was quite underwhelming. I had expected a soggy, sodden mess of sugary, fruity crap, but what I got was understated virginia flavors, with barely a hint of extra sweetness wafting past my nose.

I was intriqued, and dedicated a pipe to this blend, to see if it developed a character with repeat smoking. I was not dissapointed. This is an excellent blend for someone who can dedicate a pipe to just it, I discovered. As I smoked more and more bowls of it, it began to reveal subtle nuances I had not been able to discern on my first smoking of it.

There is a faint wood smoke aroma underneath the sweetness, and the body does build up a good bit if it is smoked EXTREMEly slow, in a dedicated pipe.

I have, as a result of this blend, become very intriqued by the Danish style of aromatic tobacco, and am now on the look out for other examples of the genre that are as good as this one.

Give ita try, it may just make a believer out of you.

The first thing to hit you is a wonderful, but light aroma of apricots, brandy and hazelnuts. This is what my senses are telling me anyway. The tobacco itself is a medium brown in a rough ready rub consistency. It looks and feels very much like a dutch style cavendish such as Troost, Sail or Amphora. It is not wet, goopy, sticky or reeking of PG and the tobacco has a silky smooth feel.

I've experimented with packing this very loosely at the bottom and firmer near the top. This seems to work out pretty good. Usually takes two really good charring lights to get it going. Once going, however, the smoker is treated with a wonderfully smooth tobacco with intermingling citrus and nut like flavors. The tobacco taste is sweet, of a medium full body. Tabacco taste is not at all lost in the flavoring and reminds me of Stokkebye's Luxury Twist Flake.

At every relight, one can sense the heat and threat of tongue bite being just off on the horizon. This settles down quickly though, and in my mind, is a direct result of the naturally high sugar content leaf used. This tobacco smokes like that of a typical matured virginia - lots of sour notes in the upper third moving towards a richer taste in the middle and a slight pickup of strength in the lower third.

I inhale a few puffs to test it's strength - no problem and definetly no air cured leaf in it. The nose is good and it seems to have more strength than I originally remembered - a definite full blodded medium. The upper half of the bowl has quite a few interesting things going on with the interplay of flavors. By the second half, everything has caramelized and remains quite consistent until the finish.

I highly recommend this rare treat to imtermediate and veterans smokers, but would caution novices to stay away unless they can smoke very slowly and have mastered the ability to control the rate of burn. I have a strong suspicion that this tobacco is capable of inflicting a nasty case of tongue bite if one isn't careful. This and the other Olsen's I've tried are enough to make me wish I lived in Denmark. They ain't cheap and aren't exported to most countries. Next time you order a pipe from FF Piber, ask for a sample - or better yet, buy it if you get the chance an you'll be rewarded!