I just finished a bowl of the Blue and enjoyed it but I find myself looking forward to the great pleasure and satisfaction I get with Sillem's Black.

I vastly preferred the excellent Sillem's Blue which is rich, heady, mapley and flavorful, and on its heels, the lighter, slightly less interesting Green, then the very different but quite excellent, fruity Red. YMMV. Still great stuff no matter what your preferences, all of it, and Sillem's is top notch across the board. Try them all. But try black if what you want is....LATAKIA. Try the blue if you want a slightly more aromatic experience of the highest order.

One tin should do me fine for a while. I'm mostly an aromatic smoker, but this is a nice addition to my repertoire.

Recommended if you enjoy Englishes, somewhat recommended if you enjoy aromatics.

Very tough to get your hands on! I had to wait two weeks for it because it was on back order from cupojoes.

If you dry this tobacco,you will be surprised about the depth in aroma it can reach!

It arrived a little over-moist in the tin, but rubbing out a portion and letting it air in the open tin before packing allowed it to smoke perfectly. If you drink a cup of coffee while smoking a bowl, you may notice that Sillem's Black leaves the same nuanced aftertaste as IR's Gourmet English on your palate, although Sillem's Black has perhaps a hint of a more licorice-like aftertaste. For this tobacco blend, I have nothing but the highest recommendation.

Now the critique - not of the tobacco, but the packaging and availability. While IR's Gourmet English is readily available in an airtight sealed two-ounce tin or in bulk, Sillem's Black only comes in a 100g tin. Although the tin is very aesthetically pleasing, and no doubt contributes to the higher price of the tobacco, unfortunately it does not provide an airtight seal so the tobacco dries out too quickly. The tobacco inside is packaged in a folded cellophane pouch which is taped shut, also not airtight. It helps to put a humidor disc in the tin if you are not going to smoke the entire tin soon. An airtight tin, or perhaps a resealable foil pouch inside, would be a huge improvement. It would be nice if it was available in bulk too, but it is not.

Right now, Sillem's Black is unavailable for purchase anywhere online that I know of. If someone comes across any website that actually has it in stock, please inform us. But until some more becomes available in the future, I recommend trying Iwan Ries Gourmet English, as it has almost identical qualities in every way, and it is available in bulk too.

[BTW: Stop whatever you are doing right now and call your representative in Congress. Tell him or her to vote NO on H.R. 4439, the Tobacco Tax Parity Act of 2010 which was introduced on January 13, 2010. If passed, it will raise the tax on pipe tobacco 775% - that's seven hundred seventy five percent - from $2.8311 to $24.78 per pound. At that rate, you'll see typical pipe tobacco retailing at $150 a pound - which will put a lot of local tobacconists out of business for good, which is the intent behind the legislation.]

The tobacco nose from the tin is Latakia. The flavor at the match is robust, smokey and semi-sweet. I can readily taste the casing as well as the "campfire" flavor of the Latakia. Neither overwhelms and the "English" part of the flavor dominated... slightly.

The only drawback (and it is just a personal thing), is lack of strength. Still, for a fun, different and delightful smoke, Sillem's Black is just the ticket.

The only negative criticism I have about the blend is that it can smoke somewhat hot at times, giving a touch more bite than one might expect from a traditional English. That said, the bite/heat from Sillem's Black is nowhere near what one gets from most traditional aromatics.

4 out of 4 stars.

To me, this is not "the best tobacco I've ever smoked" as someone said, but it is good aromatic. Very good for easygoing hot Summer days along Adriatic Coast.

My rate: 3.80.