MM comes in a high quality pouch similar to those used by Iwan Ries which does an excellent job of keeping the tobacco moist. My pouch has been open for over two years yet the tobacco is still moist and ready to smoke. I'd say it improved significantly over the last two years, being a bit harsh at the outset but it has settled down to a rich Oriental smoothness. I'd love to see it in a tin for better long term aging.

The base is dark Virginia with Yenidje, Latakia and other unidentified Orientals. The taste is balanced, the burn fine. One can only imagine what the original tasted like decades ago but Maxim has established himself as a first blender with the Comptons series. Recommended.

That's pretty much what this tobacco blend is all about. Sure, there's latakia here as well as a good dollop of more familiar orientals. There's also some virginia here, although I suspect only in condimental amounts. But make no mistake -- you will taste yenidje in every draw, and oftentimes it's by far the most prevalent flavor.

Is this a bad thing? Not necessarily. Many smokers will love this with a passion normally reserved for mistresses and antique cars. Many of us still remember the Balkan Sobranie of yore and will leap at the chance to once again sample the trademark incense/savory flavor that had become, until the last couple of years, almost as rare as a gold nugget found in the backyard vegetable garden (and nearly as valuable). Others will wish to sample at least once in their liftime this legendary tobacco in a presentation that, in all probability, is a reasonable enough facsimile of the old Sobranie.

To my tastes, however, this blend isn't appropriately balanced. I love good orientals, but to me they should be used as condiments and in this mixture the amount of yenidje seems to go beyond that. I could have used less of that leaf and more of ... well, everything else in the pouch!

Nonetheless, the quality of all the base tobaccos appears to be absolutely top-shelf and others might well find this to be expertly blended to their tastes. The burning qualities, presentation, etc. are all fine if not spectacular. I enjoyed my sample of this, but I don't expect to be cellaring this in quantity (although I am tempted to perhaps mix it in with another Balkan such as Odyssey as an experiment). Russ Ouelette's new blend, Magnum Opus, does far more with far less of this fabled spice leaf and is a far better value for the money, IMHO.

To my purely subjective tastes, this is about 2 stars. I'm going to bump it up to three stars, however, because the quality is obviously there and I do recommend that other Balkan lovers give it a shot.

This blend is fantastic and worth every penny of the comparatively high price. A large part of this is due to Canadian bureaucratic nonsense and also Compton's uses tobaccos of the highest standard, indeed it's very apparent.

The high accolades of this being compared to the famed Balkan Sobranie White are not amiss by any stretch. In fact I would be so bold as to say this blend is superior. It seems deeper and richer to me. It did require some drying time before the first pack, but this is not a fault by any means.

I have the good fortune of having some Sobranie hoarded away to be smoked on special occasions and I've been smoking these back-to-back, off and on. Of course I assume the intentions of Compton's certainly not to replicate Sobranie, but simply to make a great tobacco and they've done so far beyond my expectations. I'm quite looking forward to trying more from the Canucks.

This is a nice, creamy balkan-style blend but with that nice sharp burst of flavor that Sobranie white and Dunhill 965 possess. I enjoyed this a little less than 965 (my staple in this genre) but it's still a good smoke. The orientals really sing. My first 3-4 bowls of this were less than stellar but the nuances eventually came through. Ok, it's a costly puff and the cost-to-benefit ratio is dubious when one compares the cost of other premium tobacco blends. But if you're still knocking your head against the wall for the disappearance of Sobranie white, give this stuff a try. I'm an indoor smoker but I just had to put on my jacket and sit on my porch with this one as I watched the leaves fall. Really a great experience!

Comptons makes masterpieces after all. Cool, pleasant, dry with rich flavor and ready to smoke immediately after opened. Virginia, Latakia, Yenidje are the components of this mix that is smoked dry up to the end maintaining its flavor all the way to the end. Mediocre up to high in nicotine content. It leaves a slight bitterness in the end of the bowl, but this to me is not a problem. I don’t compare it with Balkan Sobranie, because I consider MMC a much better tobacco.

I don’t know what makes it much special (perhaps Yenidje) but certain moments of day or night I can’t seem to have enough of this particular tobacco.

Compton's Compendium, a tasting journey through all of Maxim Engel's Compton's Blends.

This is a very full-flavored blend that actually seems fuller to me than York Full. I think this could be a result of the profound smoothness of York as compared to Macedonian which perhaps has some sharp edges to wear down. But this is by no means a bad thing. While York is the quintessential smooth old powerhouse, this is the brash younger upstart. However, based on my sampling from a couple years ago, it improves with age, which I am very much looking forward to.

On first light it’s fantastic, with a richness from the well-balanced proportion of Virginia and Orientals. As the bowl burns, a contrasty sharpness appears which tingles the nose and the soft palate, even the tongue at times. I wouldn't call it bite, it's more like "spicy."

The Orientals are far in the lead in this one, lending flavors ranging from tangy to smoky to herbal/toasty in various proportions, influenced strongly, I believe, by the Yenidje. Even the room note is nice! For those of you who like an Oriental Bomb (that's the first time I've ever used that term!) this one will certainly satisfy.

I have a tendency with this blend to puff pretty hard, which intensifies the flavors and provides lots of beautiful smoke (and can heat up the briar). But when I slow down and concentrate, the rewards are manifold, including a wonderful complexity, verious flavors wafting in and out, and a richness that rivals or surpasses many of the full Balkans out there.

Four stars, consistent with my TR review from more than two years ago.

OLD REVIEW: This is one delicious blend! It was great when I opened it months ago, but I put it in a jar and just re-opened it after about six months of aging. Not a huge improvement, but a little better than it was which is to say fantastic.

Jar aroma is smoky sweet like 965. It's based on dark Virginias, which I love, but the flavor is so well balanced that nothing really takes center stage. There is a wonderful creaminess and richness during the first half-bowl that gives way to a more straightforward almost-Balkan strength that just keeps giving and giving.

When I have the means I'll be ordering lots of this stuff to lay away for a while...

I don't claim to be an expert, but many of today's "top" tobaccos have left me with various degrees of want, but Compton's delivers.

wow!

Addendum: 100-150g foil "hermetically sealed" packaging is now available, and at a slightly discounted cost. I have to upgrade to 4 stars. This is great stuff (but still very expensive)

The Yenidje leaf is present in Compton's product and in similar proportions, but I guess this variety is a bit sharper. The roundness and mellowness one used to find in BSOM is less evident in MM and makes its taste (not its strength) kind of overwhelming at times. The Latakias used in both are quite similar, and if someone told me they are the same, I'd trust him.

Overall, a wonderful experience.

ADDENDUM 04/11/2007- Having smoked several more bowls of both BSW and MM I think the difference lies in the type of Latakia. BSW probably used Syrian Latakia. Max isn't currently able to obtain Syrian Latakia and probably uses Cyprian. Boy, how this mixture would resemble BSW with the use of Syrian Latakia.

Wow! Max told us about the campaign he had to engage in to win the tobacco source for this blend -- and Yenidje of old is its star in my opinion.

This is certainly on the full side but a medium Balkan or a full English Oriental is the result.

A Virginia base, adequate latakia, and the prodigal's son of tabak leaf -- Yenidje, Yenidje, Yendije -- has returned.

Compton's dose of this fine Turkish leaf is somewhat bolder than in Master Pease's many Oriental mixes, but that makes this blend a class act by itself. Few can stand upright in comparison to Pease, and this one jumps for joy.

I huff and sniff the pouch as I write. I have missed this quality and quantity of fine Turkish leaf for maybe 20 years. And this blend despite the abundant dose of Turkiah is not hot or harsh at all, likely due to the Latakia and dark Virginias used. But full.

I does remind me a lot of old Balkan Sobranie I think white label -- the one with the oriental leaf (not the full Balkan one with lots of blue mountain Latakia), but it is a tad fuller than the oriental one. But similar enough, true quality, and Turkish galore.

Highly recommend to English and Oriental fans. Wow!