Lane Limited - BCA pipe tobacco reviews

Review

Please log in to add or edit a review. If you do not have an account yet, you can sign up for one here.

Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
< PREVIOUS Showing reviews 61 through 80 of 88 reviews of this tobacco NEXT >
Ricochet	06/13/2007	Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant
I discovered BCA in 1974, in a college town pipe shop that blended its own tobaccos. I quickly noticed that their most popular blends, and the ones that I liked best, were full of this rich black stuff. I thought "If this is what they all have in common, I want to try the straight stuff," so I got the proprietor to scoop me some out of his blending stock and learned from him that it was called B.C.A., for Black Cavendish Aromatic. I really liked it. It became my favorite pipe tobacco, and it has been ever since. That was a really fun time in my life, so I may be biased toward BCA in the same way as toward an old perfume a whiff of which brings back vivid memories of a teenage romance. But there's nothing wrong with that, is there? I can load up a pipe with BCA anytime and know that I'll have a pleasurable time with it. I don't get tired of it. It's nice to have something different now and then, but I'll always have BCA around. Others have already commented adequately about its flavors and aromas. Lane hit on a really nice combination with this stuff. There are other similar tobaccos out there, but I haven't find any of them to quite measure up. To me it's the standard for cavendish, and for aromatics. Nonsmokers tend to like the fragrance of BCA, and often comment at some length about how they can't stand cigarette or cigar smoke but love to smell pipe tobacco, which they feel is more "natural." (Which is rather amusing considering that the source of much of the pleasant aroma is the added casing.) Maybe smoking wouldn't have been subjected to so much restriction and banishment if more folks had been smoking sweet aromatic pipe tobaccos! I did much of my learning to smoke a pipe on BCA, and I went through all of the problems that have been mentioned in this thread including the wet pipe troubles and yes, even tongue bite! They are all problems resulting from improper smoking technique. After learning how to properly pack, light and smoke a pipe, BCA will give a pleasant, dry smoke from start to finish, and at the end the gray ash can be emptied out of the bowl by simply turning the pipe upside down. It will leave the pipe dry and clean, and doesn't even build up much cake. I highly recommend BCA, which is as good a tobacco as any for a pipe novice and one that any experienced pipe smoker will want to keep handy in his stock. I could get along happily with BCA alone if I couldn't get any other pipe tobacco, and not feel that I was missing a thing.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Big bad Jon	05/05/2007	Mild	Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
First of all I am predominately an English, Oriental, Virginia smoker? with that being said BCA is one of the few aromatic pipe blends that I will tolerate, actually I really like this one. Unlike many aromatics this one does not goo up your pipe so badly that you feel like your pipe is submerged in swampy water. It also does not have the ?typical? candle wax, plastic taste when you smoke it like many other of its peers. This pipe tobacco would be great for a beginner because it burns so easily that it really doesn?t take any concentration to keep it lit. The room note is very mild, my wife wishes that this would be the only tobacco I smoke, and she says it ?smells like baking cookies? this is especially true when mixed with Lane 1-Q. A mixture of 1-Q and BCA in equal parts is probably the best way to enjoy this tobacco, too sweet otherwise; they complement each other very well.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
CTPiper	01/17/2007	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
My favorite Lane blend so far and one of my favorite Cavendish blends. Stays lit, burns well and leaves a dry residue. Great taste and delightful room note. A much better tobacco than 1Q.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Oldman	01/07/2007	Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant
This blend is just a delicious treat for me. I always keep some handy. Never bites, stays lit very well and burns cleanly and never leaves a damp residue. I mostly smoke burleys like MB's Navy Flake but this aromatic really hits the spot. Smoke some every day! I absolutely never have to re-light this tobacco unless I have put my pipe down for a while. Lane has a winner in this one.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Philo Beddoe	12/07/2006	Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant
Maybe I got a bad batch, but BCA bit my tongue hard. I found this smoke very hot and quite bitter. I was pleased with the room aroma but that will surely not bring me back. Based on the reviews here, I tried this in several kind of pipes and got the same result each time.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
imago	11/11/2006	Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant
I am by no means a fan of aromatics, but there are a couple that I enjoy on occasion. The tobacco is VERY black and has a pleasant pouch aroma that comes through in the smoke (which is, by the way, quite thick). The flavour is somewhat reminiscent of Samuel Gawith's "Firedance Flake" in that I note slightly soapy, fruity, and perhaps some vanilla elements. However, this tobacco is much sweeter than "Firedance Flake". I don't think I could smoke this all day, but I wouldn't want to do without it when I'm in the mood for it.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
renaissance man	08/28/2006	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant to Tolerable
Does produce a lot of smoke but not very exciting on the aroma or flavor end of it. Seems to burn relatively cool...does have a creamyness in flavor but that creamyness is quite transparent.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
F. Prefect	07/17/2006	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant
I'll have to agree with the majority on this one. Although I've smoked a pipe for a number of years I only recently smoked my first bowl of BC-A and all things considered, this is one of the best aromatics I've smoked. It packs easily, smokes very slow and cool, and you probably couldn't get it to bite if you tried. Although it makes for a very pleasant smoke by itself and would be a great tobacco for a new pipe smoker, this tobacco also has some qualities that would lend it to being a very good blending component. I don't why it took me so long to try this tobacco, but I'm very glad I was able to "find" it. Truly a classic aromatic that has to rank with 1Q as being at the top of Lane's best selling tobaccos. F. Prefect
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
SopwithCamel	06/09/2006	Mild	Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant
This is a classic cased aromatic. It smokes well, tastes pleasant, and smells very nice indeed. I find it also leaves the bowl of my pipe fairly dry. I don't smoke this too often, but for a mild, sweet, change of pace it isn't bad. A lot of fellow pipesters use it as a blender to pep up more drab blends. If you are worried about the moisture, and lingering aroma, just smoke this in a cob, meer, or clay. It has been the standard for Black Cavendish aromatics in the U.S. for a long time...
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Cinema Bill	05/29/2006	Mild	Medium	Mild	Very Pleasant
Fire-cured Cavendish tobaccos discreetly flavored to produce an extremely mild, slow burning cool smoke. This blend is well suited for early morning or late evening smoking. I suggest a small to medium bowl pipe only because it?s moist nature may tend to cause the bottom of a larger bowl pipe to become ?soggy? after a long smoke.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Collezionista	09/28/2005	Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Very Pleasant
This pleasant aromatic blend was one of my first forays into pipe tobacco. It's mild, burns nicely and has a mellow, brown sugar taste to it. Nothing exciting by any means, but I keep it around for the rare ocassions when my sweet tooth attacks, as its one of the few heavily-cased blends that I can stand.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Pipe Guy	05/16/2005	Extremely Mild	Very Mild	Very Mild	Very Pleasant
I had high hopes for this tobacco after reading these positive reviews. Unfortunately, this blend let me down. The tobacco has a truly wonderful room note and pouch aroma that is vanilla and chocolate. Yum! This stuff is very, very mild, and it is just about impossible to get it to bite. Also, this stuff smokes very cool. Now the bad stuff... What did I find after a pleasant bowl? Lots of goop! It looked like the bottom 1/3 of my bowl was coated with roofing tar. I can live with a little moisture from aromatics, but this was excessive. I don't care how good this tobacco is--sludge coated bowls are unacceptable. Everything about this tobacco was great except for the goop. I guess I'll have to find another (drier!) cavendish blend to enjoy. :-(
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
smoker390	03/10/2005	Mild	Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant
This is one of the better all black cavendish blends out there. It has a nice balance of nut & fruit fusion, unlike the typical vanilla & cherry all black blends out there. BCA is moist, but not wet and it will dry out if left to do so. It can be smoked by itself, or used as a blending tobacco. Best smoked in a smaller bowl to keep cool and burn as complete as possible.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
MozzMann	12/22/2004	Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
BCA or Bobs Blend is a good smoke. It has a good roomnote as well as taste. Its a very dark leaf and has a nice chocolate aroma to it. A very good after dinner tobacco. Its also a good mixer as well, I mixed this with Cornell and Diehl "Autumn Evening". It was a perfect mix. Highly recommended! MZMN 12-22-04
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
InTheBiz	12/13/2004	Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant
Lane BCA, or Black Cavendish Aromatic, is the first pipe tobacco I ever smoked nearly 30 years ago, and it's still my absolute favorite! It always provides a cool, smooth smoking experience in virtually any pipe. Vanilla flavor, but not too overwhelming, with hints of licorice and chocolate. I had the chance to visit the Lane factory in Tucker, Georgia a few years ago and learned that Herman Lane developed this tobacco in the early 1970's using only Green River tobacco of the one sucker variety. Several farmers in Kentucky grow this strain of leaf and Lane buys all of it. Other tobacco companies try to imitate BCA, but to no avail. The base tobacco is one the secrets to its unique flavor and burning qualities. If you get a wet dottle smoking this blend, than I believe it's your technique rather than the tobacco. Try packing it a little on the loose side. It won't bite even if you have to puff more frequently. Overall, BCA is a classic. No bite, great flavor and aroma, incredibly smooth. A solid 10 out of 10!
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
DUPE.1512	12/10/2004	Mild	Mild	Mild	Pleasant
This blend is very black in color with just a subtle note of Vanilla in flavor. As several of the above reviews say, no matter how hard you try, you can not get this tobacco to bite. This is the perfect blend for beggining smokers to start out with and a nice mild smoke for experienced pipers when in the mood for something cool and mild. This is also an awesome tobacco to mix some Cyprian Latikia and natural cavendish with. Smoked straight, It has always burned very clean. It has NEVER produced any gum or dottle in the bowl of any of my pipes, so where some claim to have experienced this, I can only speculate as to why. Based on its merits both as a straight smoke and as a great blending choice, I give it 4 out of 4 stars.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Spike	10/02/2004	Mild	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
I give this four stars for what it is....An American Aromatic, heavy on the vanilla, fairly light on the nicotine and a great beginner tobacco. If you are tired of the overpriced pouch tobaccos, this can be had at most tobacconists in bulk. It may not be called BCA where you shop, but it is most likely in one of the bulk containers. It also tastes more like real tobacco than the pouches that the discount and cigarrette vendors stock. Just don't put this type of tobacco in an expensive pipe! Happy puffing!
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Pipestud	07/11/2004	Extremely Mild	Mild	Very Mild	Very Pleasant
7/04 - I cannot believe I have not reviewed BCA before today. I smoked this black Cav., heck, I guess for two or three years regularly when I first got into this money sucking hobby. Can't add much to what has been said above. Mild, sweet, not too cloying and the leaf has been stewed to the point where it simply can't bite. If you are new to pipe smoking and enjoy Vanilla/Licorice flavored air; well then, here you go... If you are a veteran pipe smoker who wants to spice up your life with some sweetness, well then, here you go.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
DUPE.629	06/18/2004	Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant
December 2003.BCA. Easy to light mild aromatic with a exquisite mild berry taste that is cool and refreshing. Not heavily cased and tastes great.People around love the room note. This would be a wonderful blend for first timers to the pipe or those who like something mild & tasty. BCA leaves a nice clean ash with-out Goop. 8 out of 10.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
RCUSElder	06/03/2004	Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant
In my quest to find a nice aromatic, once again, I have been pleasantly surprised to find this one. I am normally a Balkan/English smoker but sometimes like to smoke an aromatic from time to time. Appearance: Black Cavendish, medium to fine ribbon cut. Aroma: Vanilla, some type of Berry too. Packing: A breeze, it is moist though, I let mine air out 20 mins. or so. Lighting: Surprisingly easy, two matches max. Initial Flavor: Vanilla, Fruity Mid-Bowl: The casing mellows, nice medium cavendish flavor comes out (you either love or hate cavendish). Bottom of Bowl: Not much more build up of flavor, ash is suprisingly dry. Overall: this is a nice aromatic, very easy to smoke, wonderful room note, no tongue-bite. I will recommend to aromatic fans, but remember to dedicate a pipe to this blend because the flavor stays in the pipe for a long time. I prefer to smoke this slowly, I find it ends drier and DGT seems to bring a little more flavor out of the leaf. Rating: 4 out of 5 poiints in the aromatic category. Enjoy...
< PREVIOUS Showing reviews 61 through 80 of 88 reviews of this tobacco NEXT >