Maybe this is more like C S Lewis' Gold Block. But it's not very gold to look at.

It smokes well enough and will not be thrown out by me.

Updated 8/13/12 Well I purchased a second tin just to see what everyone was talking about when it came to the topping ??? I still don't get it, the topping is so mild I have to really search for it, maybe a "Tuity Fruity flavor ?". That said , I do find this tobacco tasty and very easy to smoke. The typical Dunhill ribbon cut, lights and burns great, maybe a little too great as it burns fast and hot. I like to start with a pinch about the size of a walnut , roll it tight, until it is the size of an olive and press it into the bowl. The taste is somewhat "cigaretteish" , but it does have some sweet and sour taste that I like. 2 1/2 stars

Have to agree with reviewer, "scottyspipesebay 06/06/2012", "Just a go to for a good strong smoke"

Little did that person know that I, like Indiana Jones, am an obtainer of rare antiquities. Which Royal Yacht distinguishably is.

The tin aroma is very heavy, piquant as described, much like a box of fresh raisins.

The thin shreds of tobacco vary from dark chocolate to a creamy coffee brown.

It packs beyond effortlessly, lights itself, all you have to do is bring a flame to it and burns incredibly easy.

I think this may truly be a tobacco that every piper should try at least once.

However, I did notice that the strength was slightly lacking, the flavor was pretty bland, and that I may have used the wrong pipe. This to me, seems like something that should be enjoyed in a smaller bowl. I know a lot people favor larger bowls, but this seems like a scotch type tobacco. You won't ever drink a keg of scotch in one sitting, nor would you want to.

This is a delicate tobacco, and at the same time nothing too special. It's almost like comparing Starbucks to Folgers. Now, on that same token, I do drink Folgers every day. I don't drink Starbucks nearly as much as I would like to, but I digress.

This is a high quality tobacco with a flavor profile not all too dissimilar to that of Prince Albert or Carter Hall, just made with higher quality ingredients.

I may edit/update this review once I have tried it in a different pipe at least once more.

10/26/2012 Edit: Upgrading this to four stars. Age and refining tastes yields a great deal of pleasure with this tobacco.

My first attempt went bad, but after buying new Savinelli I've tried once more – and was fascinated. The smell of the tin is autumn, cool sweet falling leaves. The blue smoke is beautiful, the taste is good. Try it in a new pipe, sip slowly. Ideally, do it in a rainy autumn or cold winter. It’s not an all day smoke, but definitely worth a try. RY became one of my every day's smokes.

Update 10/07/2012: The topping seems too strong and contradicts my personal chemistry. Still good from time to time, but not every day. 3 stars in place of 4.

Update 05/03/2013 I just can't stand this topping anymore. It leaves bad aftertaste for all day. I definitely do not belong to royal family.

Update for 7/16/12: I also enjoy good Danish rolling tobacco, so I gave this a try in an attempt to be able to use this stuff, and had GREAT results. Rolled and smoked, it has a wonderfully sweet aroma and flavor, and it rolls up effortlessly. It burns slowly and evenly, and the outdoor note is heavenly. In the pipe I can only give it 2 stars. It's just not for my palate. Rolled, it is a good 4 star tobacco. That may sound crazy, but it works for me.

8/13/12: The more I smoke it the more I am understanding the blend. The raw and room notes are excellent! I am starting to understand big Virginia and the nic is great without being too heavy. I have also done a 50/50 blend using McClelland Bulk 2035 Dark Navy Flake that is unbelievably good. I smoked that up in a week and cellar-ed the rest, and looking forward to that. However, I am finding it hard to leave it alone! Anyway, I have changed my tune about RY. I do like it, but it is not nearly a stand alone favorite. Just a go to for a good strong smoke.

***Edit*** My second bowl after allowing it to dry out is more pleasant. While it is still a very strong smoke, the taste is more noticeable. My mom, who does not enjoy the smell of pipes in the least, sat next to me for about half the bowl, so the room note seems to be fairly tolerant. I'm going to keep this at a 3/4 stars, however. I'll update on my next bowl.

Tin aroma;plummy winey,very mild chocolate(or Nestle Caramac bar)sour summer fruits,fruit salad,slight vanilla,light roasted instant coffee and apple juice. 1.5mm-2mm ribbon cut,mottled golden/mid brown tan and darker leaf.

Using matches it lights easy. First impressions are light to medium tastes(compared to other things i smoke)but a strongish or stronger virginia - a strong light/mid virginia(does that sound like an oxymoron?).

Getting into it the taste builds up and i can detect the nicotine - its not an instant punch but an appearing creeper, and i can feel it up my nose like carbonated fizz bubbles which is making me feel alert and perked up.

I am starting to get a very mild cigar hint beneath the mature virginia surface and a very light "mellow birds" coffee nuance. Like a very light white coffee made with whitener rather than milk.But for the main; iam getting a nice golden/bronze smooth rich virginia base taste.(describing alegorically the colour it evokes in my mind)

Simultaneously and more dominant aromatic wise obove that coffee undertone is a sour/citrus fruit factor akin to grapefruit with a lesser degree of pinapple or apple.I have resisted looking at 'Tobacco Reviews' as i write this because i don't want to polute my own judgement or pretend to myself.

I am smoking this in a hardly used ebay purchased Turkish "Ermec Pipo" aluminium stemed system pipe with a meerschaum lined mystery but handsome stripey hardwood bowl(simular design to a falcon pipe). The wood looked like it was sweating here actually;-maybe the meerschaum and wood are porous or my hand was sweaty?(hottish burner and wet burner maybe?,it seemed perfect in the tin but i persevere). I wipe the exterior with a paper rag ,unscrew the bowl and give the moisture trap dome a wipe out.

Reconnecting the baccy has just extinguished on me so i stir up the bowl a bit and relight. Breaking in my brand new second hand pipe here which i cleaned specially,unfortunately whoever owned this pipe before me had smoked black tealeaf in it(what a dickhead!)which has suddenly spoiled my experience and i will try again,because that relight was terribly acrid but it only lasted a few puffs more anyway.

Tipping out the ash it seems like the tea stain residue at the bottom end has been chemically burned away by the Royal Yacht's own citrus cleaning factor by the looks of it;-now the inner meerschaum bowl is looking whiter.

I shant fukc about now and come strait out with it because it has been on my mind the whole while i have been smoking this: "Dunhill Royal Yacht" tastes like a mirror of "Ogdens Gold Block". Like Gold Block, only slighty darker virinia taste maybe and slightly less topping power but,it tastes like Gold Block smoked on a different day.You know how certain tobacco tastes can drift somehow where they head in the direction and start resembling by accident of conditions other known similar constituted tobacco brands sometimes?..

Well this tastes like a well behaved bowl of Gold Block.(noting Gold block's slight lack of popularity with other people,it just happens to be one of my favoutites which i have a dedicated pipe for;a vintage"Ronson 3 way" aluminium stem system pipe with 8 inch smoke travel distance which goes three times the length of the stem into a very narrow final draught hole delivery in the mouthpeice.This is the only pipe i can manage to get a good smoke out of Gold Block with no bite or bitterness and a damn tastey full juicy fruit aroma.)

con't)This Royal Yacht produces a near identical taste and delivery in a regular 6" length single draught tube pipe as Gold Block but costs @maybe £2 quid more. If there is anybody who has smoked Gold Block lately who wanted to like it i can suggest Dunhill Royal Yacht because its evidentally more forgiving and will likely taste well in a non-special pipe,and will taste how Gold Block at its best tastes (to me atleast).

My second bowl and the bowl on my Ermec Pipo is still sweating a bit,,;maybe a quirk or could be some bowl polish/finsihing oil actually which makes the wood grain come out if it isn't the moisture of the tobacco coming through. I got a good taste all the way down this time and i have a slight winey finish in my mouth which is OK.

It burns quite quick and slightly hottish perhaps - perhaps cooler than Gold Block but very simular properties,and right down to a fluffy white ash.

At this stage i think i have to say that i slightly prefer Gold Block myself:Some of that is to do with price and the fact that i can get Gold Block anywhere.Its a very close contest.Also the milder nicotine Gold Block is more proportional to its easy going taste which makes it a more suitable candidate as an all dayer because the nicotine is paced out.

Royal Yacht though has a slightly stronger recipe and if i fancied the same taste with a stronger nicotine hit which doesn't leave me wanting more for a while,then Royal Yacht definately has its usage,and is already in my categorised mind noted as"Gold Block Extra" - it has a bit more.

I was initially disapointed that Royal Yacht didn't taste a bit different(i had in my mind a different expectation)but glad i tried it and can accept it as a stronger Gold Block.

For those that care ;there was no soap or bite! I would have no problem keeping this in my rotation and would definately buy again,but i recon i will consumme more Gold Block in the longrun. I could give it 4 stars easy but will give it 3 for now because "Gold Block" in my "Ronson 3 Way" does the same job cheaper. If i have a bad Gold Block day atleast i can use Royal Yacht as a second chance or visa.

There is a topping, though not a thick syrupy aromatic type topping, just a little flavor enhancer, which adds a flavor that almost seems like it could be natural to the tobacco.

It is absolutely perfect from the tin, no drying necessary, and burns extremely well. In fact it burns better straight out of the tin than any other tobacco I have smoked.

I have never experienced such a strong and complex flavor in a blend without Latakia. Be careful though, it is very strong. Same nicotine effect as smoking a large strong cigar.

Though I could never replace latakia blends, Royal sure has its place and is quickly becoming a favorite.

A Must Try!

I couldn't quite place the tin aroma initially, after a few more smells though, it gives off hints nuts and chocolate. Packing and lighting are very easy. The taste is quite an unusual mixture, took me a while to pick up the raisin and chocolate that everyone else seems to pick up on but it arrived eventually. What impressed me was a good nutty flavour, almost coming across as a nicer St Bruno Flake, throughout most of the smoke. The roomnote is nothing special but doesn't offend. It does have a little tonguebite and has a tendency to hit the back of the throat, but neither are anywhere near bad enough to render the tobacco unsmokeable.

On the whole then, a rather good smoke, and I have every intention of acquiring a full tin. Admittedly, it doesn't quite rock my socks off to give it four stars, but certainly worth a very worthy three and a half.

I found it goes best in a cob, if you need a nic blast first thing in the morning, this is for you. I figure if you are trying to quit ciggies, this is what you need. Will be buying more to tuck away for the future. Good stuff.

The tobaccos are augmented with a light, added flavor that is difficult to pinpoint exactly . . . somewhat sweet-spicey. The tobacco flavor is never lost, but enhanced, and what you lose instead is the grassy blandness I get from most straight Virginias. This is delicious stuff. I love the flavor, and crave it occasionally.

On the flip side, there is a peppery note that, to me, is distracting -- not a Perique blast, but something along the lines of a dark-fired Kentucky piquancy. This may appeal to you. Maybe it's my cadence or the curing process -- or the Burleys or the flavoring. Whatever it is, I find it in some Dunhill blends and I don't like it.

RY is well integrated with high-quality tobaccos at the core, and it burns beautifully. It packs a nice dose of nicotine, but it's not a kick in the balls as reported. It's in the same ballpark as London Mixture and its other sister blends (except for Flake, which is lighter).

Worth a try when you're in the mood for something different. Sip it for best results.

Would I buy it again maybe... but for some reason this blends remind me a lot of C&D's Heritage.

First a caveat. this tobacco has been known by some to to give you a swift nicotine kick right in the Jackson. Some people believe the name very fitting because their stomach rolls like they have been on a yacht in rough waters. If you are a little sensitive in the nicotine department, have high blood pressure, or are pregnant, do not go on this ride.

The flavors are really nice. A great plum type of full taste. This blend really benefits from time, both in the pipe and in the cellar. If you rush this blend it will taste like a cheap cigarette, but loved and nurtured and it really shines. The Virginia tastes are very round and lovely. I like it. This one also ages beautifully. What was good when I bought it has become utopic with age. really nice.

Give it a shot, you might like it, you might hate it. If you like it smoke away. If you hate it send the rest to me and I will properly dispose of it for you. Highly recommended.