It has a sweet nutty taste and it burns slow. It really is the perfect smoke for old codgers who remember what burley used to be. 4 stars.

Except for not noticing any overt nicotine punch, my review agrees with BOC's, except he wrote it better than I could.

This one is going into my regular rotation. Nice, congenial burley blend. Excellent!

The cut makes it suitable for any size pipe. It packs easily and lights without fuss. I've never had trouble keeping this blend lit. It burns down to a darker gray ash.

The flavor of this tobacco is simple and straightforward, which is what most burley smokers want. It starts sweet, but not like candy at all, more like sweet corn. The sweetness dwindles as the bowl progresses, but this burley never gets harsh or sour, even when pushed. Be warned, though -- this tobacco has a nice nicotene punch! It's an iron fist in a silk glove, so unless you're used to it this is not an all-day smoke.

The most remarkable aspect of this tobacco is the room note! It smells like roasting tree nuts -- some say chestnuts, I say hazelnuts. For a tobacco with no detectable casing or flavoring, it sure smells nice! NBB is great for social situations where folks may be sensitive to strong tobacco aromas, but will tolerate aromatics. This blend is aromatic without being an aromatic!

To compare NBB to a beverage, I would liken it to Newcastle or Smithwick's Ale. Utterly approachable, elegant in its simplicity, and of top-notch quality. Highly recommended!

It is a pleasing presentation of a well broken cube cut - a crimp cut, if you will, with the addition of short ribbons of leaf. Most Burley blends have some Virginia, Maryland and Turkish leaf additions for the qualities each bring to White Burley. One can only guess what the short ribbons in this blend are. Compared to ERR, any maple casing is turned way down in this blend.

NBB has a wonderful Burley room note, and the taste, though turned down from ERR, has a subtle nutty sweetness. I especially like that NBB doesn't get bitter toward the bottom of the bowl, which speaks to the quality of leaf used here. It lights easily and stays lit. I found it cool burning and it did not bite my tongue. Although not an exact match of an old favorite, I highly recommend this to Burley smokers or those looking for an ERR substitute.

It has a deep earthy, nuttiness to it. It smells like good tobacco should too. I detect no casing on this at all.

No problems with bite, or bitterness.

If you love Burley, this is a good Burley to love...

08/20/2008 NBB is back and it is just as good as it has always been. I have been waiting for months for Carole to aquire the correct ingredients and she has them now. I plan to order several pounds and celler them just in case.

Original review - 08/03/2004

This is absolutley the finest burley. Everyone in my home likes the smell......and the taste is exquisite. Carole at Wilke's is a very pleasant shopkeeper and the tobacco is all quality. Cant go wrong. Cool, rich and a good blend when my King Eider has destroyed my tongue. Wonderful chestnut aroma in my Cob! April: This is now my everyday, at work smoke. Every batch is consistent and always at the perfect moisture level. It smokes best when dry, i leave some in a bowl on my desk, about a weeks worth.

Recently added some Christmas Cheer and made my own version of Half and Half but better. Yum!

Update 5/31/2008 - This blend has been discontinued by Wilke. I find Peretti 333 to be very similar and more interesting due to the inclusion of some matured VA.

Perhaps it is because simplicity can be so beautiful, this Burley is very enjoyable. The four-ounce bag I received had some cubes and lots of leaves, nice and light brown in color with just the right moisture content. The smell in the bag is great...like fresh baked cookies. Packing and lighting is easy due to the cut and moisture levels.

The flavor is very mild, although I am used to Edgeworth Sliced, and the characteristic grassy taste of good Burley is prominently in the front. While enjoying the initial grassy element, the background keeps it full by providing a clean creamy finish with a mild nutty flavor. There is no bitterness, it smokes dry and down to a very fine ash.

UPDATE: 4/25/09 A few years later I am still enjoying this tobacco and now consider it my main blend. In the right pipe Nut Brown Burley is what I hope Heaven is.

I like that this tobacco has a nice sweetness to the smoke, but it isn't heavy enough in the casing to interfer with the burly's superb ability to just keep trucking. I ended up setting the pipe down, about half way through the bowl, and coming back to it later. Even after sitting around it hadn't really soured and was really much as it was before I set it down. My only real downside for this tobacco was that I really didn't get any "Nut" flavor, or at least not any more then I have come to expect with a burly. Other then that little gripe, I would say this would be a fine addition to my rotation, and it really shows what a fine burly can be like.

This is one of my top three favs. I included a sample of this in a recent "deserted island" box pass and it received highly favourable reviews all around.

This certainly isn't Prince Albert, and to compare it so is a sad reflection of someone with terribly abused taste buds.

This is what burly is all about: depth, interplay of different burleys and nuances for the sophisticated palate.

Original:

I recently placed my first order with Carole Burns at Pipeworks & Wilke (a four by two ounce sampler pack) and Nut Brown Burley immediately emerged as my favourite.

This delectable, dark and rich tobacco is exactly what I have longed for my pipe and self to experience. This blend is far from monochromatic. Though not sweetened, I detect chocolate and coffee notes, and there?s a creamy richness to the experience that offers the similar gastronomical reward of finishing a well-served steak.

This is the only tobacco that I?ve ever experienced where I wish I had a pipe that could accommodate a one pound load. And from a fellow who sips his tobacco out of smaller pipes, this is quite the compliment.

Nut Brown Burley is certainly a burley smoker?s dream.

I?ve got a beautiful 100-year-old tobacco jar just waiting for a pound of this tobacco. The second pound of my order will cellar for a year. This tobacco is now a staple of my diet.

This is an exceptional, mellow smoke that I whole heartily recommend.

Update 9 Match 2006: Having smoked another half pound of NBB, I have found that it nearly always leaves my mouth with the same scoured feeling I sometimes get with McClelland blends. NBB remains tasty, and of quality, but it does not, apparently, agree with my tongue. Too bad.

This blend offers a friendly puff from the start. No wading through half a bowl for rewarding draws. The solid, quality burley taste it offers the smoker is amongst the finest experiences around. The sweetness of the pouch aroma carries through to the smoke itself. There are subtle layers of flavor to be found; I did not find this to be a monochromatic blend. But the smoker needn't ponder Nut Brown Burley to enjoy it -- it warmly walks right up to you whether you're thinking about it or not.

I've smoked it in briar and meerschaum, small and medium bowls, and it worked its magic equally well in each.

My hat's off to P&W for a masterful, high quality, throughly enjoyable blend. I'll keep a supply of this at the ready.