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Select Mixture

Brand: Smoker's Haven
Blender: J. F. Germain & Son
Tin Description: Many of you know the slow-burning, dry-smoking qualities of our outstanding English mixtures but did not want large amounts of Latakia and Turkish. Our new Select mixture answers that need now, mild, slow-burning, dry smoking with just enough top quality Latakia and Turkish to know it's there. Select Mixture, rich without being heavy.
Country of Origin: UK
Curing Group: Flue Cured
Contents:
Virginia
Latakia
Turkish
Cut: Ribbon
Packaging: 8oz Tin

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Average Ratings
Strength: Mild to Medium
Flavoring: Extremely Mild
Taste: Mild to Medium
Room Note: Pleasant to Tolerable
Recommendation: Highly Recommended


The Reviews  

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Showing reviews 1 through 6 of 6 reviews of this tobacco
 
Reviewed By: Date: Strength: Flavoring: Taste: Room Note: Recommendation:
Passion 05/13/2013 Very Mild None detected Mild to Medium Tolerable highly recommended
Normally I like blends with large amounts of oriental or latakia. This is one of the lighter blends that I really enjoy. The sweetness from the virginia is at the forefront, with the orientals there for added support. The latakia is in the background and just barely noticeable. The dark pieces in mine (latakia) had tons of white and grey crystals on them. Yummy!

I really enjoy this, and because it is such a light smoke, I can enjoy bowlful after bowlful.

I like it!

One caveat: This is the wettest tobacco I've ever found in tin form. 10% of the weight was probably moisture (I'm exaggerating), but I did need to lay it out overnight before it was to my liking, and it is a ribbon cut!


Reviewed By: Date: Strength: Flavoring: Taste: Room Note: Recommendation:
Duke 03/18/2009 Mild to Medium Mild Mild to Medium Very Pleasant highly recommended
Through this winter I have really favored Virginians, but English blends are part of my regular rotation. Two premium crumble cake flakes are part of my inventory. One day I brightened an English flake with Xmas Cheer and was pleased. That led me to find a lighter English blend. Select Mixture is that great blend. There?s so much to like-quality, complexity and balance. The very fine ribbon cut allows for effortless smoking. It smokes well in both small and large bowl pipes- quite user friendly. The Syrian Latakia and Turkish are perfectly applied by never outpacing the sweet and tangy Virginians. Each component tobacco shows up throughout the bowl. If you enjoy Early Morn Pipe, Squadron Leader and Presbyterian Mix you should not miss this blend, and HH Vintage Syrian, sadly, can?t compare. The bowls finishes with a dry, powdery ash. This is a marvelous all day smoke. I am head over heels on this blend.


Reviewed By: Date: Strength: Flavoring: Taste: Room Note: Recommendation:
bent-1 09/15/2008 Medium None detected Mild to Medium Pleasant highly recommended
I'm really enjoying this superb string cut blend. It's mostly a VA, with a small amount of Turkish & sprinkled ever so lightly with Latakia. I'd guess it to be a Syrian Latakia, very smooth & creamy tasting, strictly as condiments. It's sweet, stays lit, and is satisfying. As mostly a VA piper, I like the fact that the pallet isn't overpowered for a follow up bowl of a straight VA.

Key, it does well when allowed to dry in a ZipLok baggie for a couple weeks.

I like it best in bowls with 13/16-7/8" bore diameters. Thanks to Smoker's Haven for reviving this fine blend & to Germain.


Reviewed By: Date: Strength: Flavoring: Taste: Room Note: Recommendation:
Philo Beddoe 04/04/2007 Mild None detected Mild Pleasant to Tolerable recommended
I got a sample of this on a recent trip to Smoker's Haven in Columbus, and as their Our Best Blend is among my top 10 favorite tobaccos I thought I would give all of their proprietary blends a try. Select is touted as their lightest offering in the line.

Select Mixture was a bit of a let down for me, as I enjoy my English tobaccos to have more flavor than this provided. I was pleased with the base tobacco, as it was of very good stock, but Select just did not provide the taste I was looking for. I realize it is supposed to be light, but this is too light for me.

Recommended for those who enjoy EMP or Squadron Leader, as this has a similar level of both taste and quality.


Reviewed By: Date: Strength: Flavoring: Taste: Room Note: Recommendation:
SopwithCamel 05/31/2005 Mild to Medium None detected Mild to Medium Pleasant to Tolerable recommended
I purchased this as I was looking for a good, warm weather English. I tried this in a short clay, to get the full taste. The Virginia is slightly sweet, yet toasty, the Latakia is present, but is a bit in the background. It smells more of Latakia than it tastes, which is what was intended. The Turkish adds just a hint of spice, which grows stronger towards the bottom of the bowl. It arrived a bit moist, and would probably benefit from drying. Go slowly at the end, as it gets a little bitey. I suspect drying would help this as well. It leaves a nice, natural, tobacco aftertaste. I don't believe the room note will win you any new friends. My only quibble is it is a bit pricey. But as I only smoke a bowl or two a week, eight ounces will last me a long while. Definitely a top quality blend.

Addendum: I let this stuff dry out a couple of days, and what a difference! Although not a heavy blend, this is surprisingly rich. The Smoker's Haven site hints this could be a morning smoke, but I couldn't imagine using this as a wake up blend. I find it a little too full. There are hints of unsweetened cocoa, fennel, and black walnut. It is still a little nippy at the end, but slow smoking will thwart tongue bite. This stuff is much better in a briar. It reminds me of a milder version of Black Mallory, which is one of my favorites.


Reviewed By: Date: Strength: Flavoring: Taste: Room Note: Recommendation:
RCUSElder 05/18/2005 Medium Extremely Mild Medium Pleasant to Tolerable recommended
Another fine all-day smoke!

Appearance and Tin Aroma: Comes in a bulky large tin with a plastic bag inside. It is a bit moist, will benefit from some drying time before you pack your pipe. It smells very rich with the orientals prominent, there is a note similar to "And so to Bed" by the same blender. Visually it is a fine ribbon cut of mostly browns to dark with the golden Va ribbons here and there.

Packing and Lighting: once dried out a bit, easy. 3 lights typical.

Initial Flavor: "And so to Bed" light? This blend definitely has the Germain's signature flavor which I love.

Mid-Bowl:Aah! delicious! This is a perfect mid-strength English blend with the top note at the perfect level. "And so to Bed" gives me a whopper of a headache, this blend did not, even after several bowls in a row. None of the leaves stand out, everything is in perfect harmony.

Bottom of Bowl: A slight build up of strength and all you are left with is dry mottled ash. Which pipe shall I fill up next?

Overall: I was pleasantly surprised by this blend. It will not overtake my favorite English blends, but will be in my rotation pretty regularly. As a side benefit, the room note is liked by some of my non-smoking friends. To me, this blend fits between Royal Jersey Latakia and King Charles Mixture by the same blenders. Very well done indeed!

It is Hi Time to visit my August tobacconist, will you join me in the pipeline?


 
Showing reviews 1 through 6 of 6 reviews of this tobacco
 

 


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