A cigarette is to be smoked. A cigar is to be enjoyed. A pipe is to be savored.

I rate this tobacco 9.8 out of 10.

This is one of my faves, even though it doesn't contain Burley... WOW!

Appearance: This is one of the more beautiful tobaccos I?ve ever seen. Very finely cut flakes pressed into a very tight cake which appeals to the senses visually and tactilely as one rubs it out, which I seldom do to any great extent.

Tin aroma: Initially, I smell very ?bright? Virginias, and citrus, followed by deeper caramel and earthy tones. There is the quality of freshly mown hay, and a deep stewed fig kind of a smell I associate with perique.

This tobacco is very easy to rub out, though lately I find myself only rarely rubbing out a flake tobacco mixture. I find for me, I simply roll flakes up and gently inserting them works better, giving a longer more even burn. Some times I rub a small portion out for the ?top portion? to facilitate even lighting.

Lighting usually is a single match affair, though once in awhile if I pause or just let the pipe go out, I might have to re-light it. This is a very easy going easy burning tobacco that almost smokes itself if packed correctly. The initial flavor is very hay like and somewhat light almost giving me the impression that it?s going to be too light for my smoking preferences. The flavors build slowly and the brightness of high grade Virginia tobaccos are joined in wider and wider circles of flavor with perique peeking in from time to time. Though not what I would call a complex taste, there are subtle changes from time to time to keep things interesting. I begin to catch some of the coming depth of flavors; this is not a monochromatic blend at all.

Mid Bowl: Approaching mid-bowl, the brightness is joined by deepening tones, earthy and full. If exhaled nasally the brightness is still very much there, when inhaled, tones of caramel and figs are present (the best inhaling method being the ?French curve? out of the mouth and gently inhaled side stream through the nose). There is a very mild (natural) sweetness to the blend, a sweetness like molasses or raw honey, which is only ?just there? barely perceptible. While this mixture is pretty mild to me, there is strength to it, and the volume of smoke it produces even when sipped carefully is quite full. This is the kind of smoke which makes me put my feet up and hold the smoke in my mouth letting its buttery silkiness dance around my pallet.

Home Stretch: All of the starting elements are still there; the Virginia richness and the subtle amount of perique adding it pepper and spice in one of the gentlest and well behaved of all offerings in the Vaper category. This often smokes down to very little dottle leaving fine ?salt and pepper? ash. While #633 never really develops into a complex masterpiece like Escudo, or 3 Nuns, it deepens nicely to a very dry smoking winy goodness one expects from fine Virginia tobacco.

Supplemental Notes: This is becoming one of my more often reached for Vapers. For those interested in numbers ****

I have been smoking this and continue to smoke this in air-cured Italian pipes. Over time, the flakes get darker and better. Also, after dedicating a pipe to it the "roundness" and "fullness" of this blend is all the better.

Edited on 8-15-04: 9 out of 10 on the VA/P strength scale, but 7 out of 10 on the taste scale. As I finish this, my 3rd tin, I have decide that I like most of my tobaccos bone dry. I have dried this perticular a bowl at a time to various degrees, but only today after leaving this out in the sun for what I thought was a tad too long, I have nailed it. Dry, dry, dry and the taste and smoothness is there and no bite -- excellent!

I'll cellar some, and visit it occasionally (after a significant drying), but I think I still prefer Black Parrot or St. James Woods.

I'd smoke this more if I hadn't stockpiled the Escudo.

It might be better.

I tried four bowls of this, then traded it. I have tried it another three times at pipe shows. I give up.

update 12/19/03

Lately, I have been taking thin strips of this blend, rolling them up, rubbing them slightly between my thumb and forefinger and packing the bowl medium to firm. This has provided a long, cool, slow burning smoke. This technique has given me excellent smoking qualities in a variety of pipes.

If your tin is fresh from the tobacconist's latest stock, you may find the first smoke a bit thin and temperamental. Do not despair! Set the tin down for a few weeks. A little time will dry it, as well as (for whatever reason) giving it a fuller, rounder, and altogether more satisfying quality in the smoking.

While there are certainly benefits to be had from smoking a flake intact (otherwise, why not market it rubbed out?), don't hesitate to rub this one out. For me, it does best as a broken flake-- 3/4" X 1/4" approx-- packed loosely and topped by dried crumbs.

Dry is not all that bad, by the way. I left (well...lost, really) a tin for nearly a year without touching it. Bone dry, it was, and crumbled to little chunks upon handling. Nevertheless, it delivered a satisfying (and really easy to light!) smoke.

Finally if, after checking out that first tin, you feel that this blend offers something, I encourage you to pick up five or ten tins if possible. Give them a year at least of shelf time, and you will be richly rewarded! My current tin was laid down exactly two years ago. The flakes have darkened beautifully, and the smoke is ever so much richer, fuller and more satisfying.

First, this smokes quice cool for a Va. THis can be a liability since it is easy to really puff away, and this blend has a sizable nicotine content. I have found myself a bit dizzy when finishing a bowl while distracted by other things, like typing on the 'puter.

633 has great sweetness to it, a combiniation IMO of the Va. sugars and the high perique content. The perique is there from the git-go, and stays around throughout the bowl. Still, the blend is well balanced, yet very complex.

633 is a must try flake for any serious Va/P fan. I just wish it was available in bulk at a lower price...

This Solani 633 isn't bad, but for me it just seems to lack any special character. It tastes about like what I expected, just more boring than I expected. In the tin it has sort of a tangy lemon sort of smell, a bit of which comes out when smoked. Mostly it just tastes like VA with a touch of Perique.

Like I say, not bad... but it's just uninspiring and lacking in complexity. It's like someone found some decent quality tobacco and blended something which is essentially just the sum of its parts and no more than that.

The tin aroma is somewhat hard for me to describe. It has the fruity, figgy, dense aroma of a mature Virginia and the spicy/sour notes of the Perique, yet it also has a sweet smell that I've not noticed in other Perique blends. At least to my nose. I will not detail the color/texture of the blend as that has been well covered in the other reviews.

Upon first lighting the blend I am immediately aware that I do not get the mouth burn I usually associate other Perique blends I've tried. Even after letting the blend settle and relighting I'm usually hit with a lot of spice/heat in the mouth feel department. I do not get this sensation with this blend. It is sweet yet has a very mild spicy undertone to it. The Virginias and the Perique seem to be about equal in proportion to my tastebuds in the first 1/2 of the bowl. When we get to the bottom 1/3 of the bowl is when this blend really richens up. Very intense flavor yet not overwhelming, still no tongue bite and no gurgling. This blend smokes well right down to the bottom of the bowl.

I heartily recommend this blend to anyone who likes Va/Periques, or more importantly, to those who have never really liked Perique blends becuase of the tongue burn factor. I will definately revisit this blend.