Ashton Celebrated Sovereign

With the ever expanding market and cost for aged tins I think it is important to still comment on them. I smoked the McClelland Celebrated Sovereign some time ago and it was good, but there was no “wow” factor. Smoking the K&K made CS from 1991, my first reaction is WOW! Due to the age, the “woosh” sound came from opening the tin. There are some sugar crystals on the Virginia portion of the blend now. It is smooth, very smooth. It is a little sweet and a little spicy too. CS is balanced and has an incense like flavor coming from the Syrian Latakia. The thin ribbons pack with ease too. I am going to buck the tide a little bit and say that time has only served to enhance CS and to my surprise, the Latakia, which isn’t in great proportion, has managed to stand the test of time quite well. The K&K version of CS seldom shows up for sale, but if it does, it is worth a few extra bucks.

For starters, let me just say that I only smoke Latakia laden blends as a rare change of pace. Most do not rock my world, but this one sure did!

Celebrated Sovereign is one fine hodge-podge of British tobacco. Each element complimenting the blend. Not for the weak hearted though, this blend packs as much wallop as ole' Henry Cooper (who once knocked down Muhammed Ali).

If you want a different sort of Latakia blend that is more complex than the usual, put on your track shoes and head for your nearest tobacconist. By the way, I smoked my tin of this bloody good stuff in a EXEXEL Barling Quaint that I reserve for only Latakia blends. The experience was just a tad short of religous!

I am sure I am only writing this for my own personal tasting notes, but I felt compelled to review a unicorn. This is from a 1992 tin of Ashton Celebrated Sovereign. I have never smoked it young and the only comparison I have is to the version made by McClelland young. It is well aged and as good as you would think. I love the Virginia's used, I sense the same as in Black Parrot. Sweet, bready and mildly earthy. The Syrian Latakia is what makes the blend. I love this stuff, it brings a subdued, sweet, smokey and incense like flavor to the smoke. When mixed with quality Virginia'a and the woody Turkish leaf you get a complex, mid strengthed old world English. I love the newer McClelland version and had smoked plenty before I got my hands on the original. I can honestly say that, in this case, the older is even better than a darn good copy.

A member of a French pipe smoking forum exchanged my HH mature Virginia with this one. And I am so happy we did this. This mixture sets itself apart from the other few English/balkan/Latakia mixtures I tasted because it contains some black cavendish and carolina tobacco. There is certainly the spice of Latakia (I am not sure it is Syrian though) and the Orientals, it also has a very highly sweet virginia and I suppose the cavendish and carolina mellow the taste, which makes it softer than most other blends of the same family.

This is the discontinued K&K blend I am reviewing.

Very recommended, but too bad no longer in production.

Blast from the past #2 - Found a single tin dated 1990 online, the McConnell/K&K version. I know I smoked one tin in the early 1990's but wasn't impressed. It seemed like an also-ran in a crowded field at the time. Today of course, Syrian latakia is a luxury. At any rate, this was a lighter colored ribbon with a huge oriental tin aroma. HUGE! Smelled like Compton's #21... very enticing.

The latakia in this one has virtually disappeared and consequently this became a very oriental forward blend riding a backbone of sweet and spicy Virginias. A little extra sweetness from the Cavendish but I got the impression that had been quieted somewhat as well. I really don't have much of a memory of this one from "back in the day" but 24 years of age turned this one into a delicious, delightful oriental blend with a hint of sourness, a hint of perfume and a massive amount of depth. It was soft but full, in the best Scottish tradition. I didn't miss the latakia at all. Nuance upon subtlety, the complexity I often crave is here. This is simply an excellent blend and I'm going to search for more. Meantime, I believe I'll sample the McClelland version as well. Very highly recommended and cellar-able!

I am sampling a tin that is manufactured by Robert McConnell (Kohlhase, Kopp & Co). The tobacco had minimum humidity (which I prefer)and presented a range going from light to dark brown, as well as black ribbons. The mixture is dominated by the VAs, ORs and the Black CA. Consequent with the tin aroma, I cannot say there is a lot of Latakia but it is not detrimental, overall, to the quality and pleasant richness of CS. If there is, it must be Syrian because it does not come through. Past the first third, the OR dominate, bringing a spicier side to the smoke that will last throughout, attenuating the sweeter side brought on by the VAs and Black CA. There is a point of smokiness emerging on occasion, which confirms the Latakia as a condiment. I have not tried the McClelland remake but this one is worthy to try. I do not like Latakia dominating and CS is certainly not the case. I tend to compare CS to Red Rapparee, as they have similar basic components, but find CS to be much better in terms of taste, richness, strenght and burning qualities. This is to me the ideal english mixture companion when I run out of Black House.

From 2005: I enjoy this blend fragrant with oriental and Syrian latakia tobaccos. As other reviewers noted, this is a "creative" english blend, as are the Frog Morton blends. Like FMAP, the latakia isn't center stage but a player that lends its transparent color. Wonderful stuff, this.

1/09: Note to self: thanks for buying up the last tins fro dealers for the cellar. Four years later, a tin retrieved and popped open this week has been the joy of the new year. This stuff aged wonderfully, becoming richer, more complex and aromatic in the oriental sense. If this combination of tobaccos re-emerge somehow, stock up.

Upgraded to 4 stars, as if...

Ten year mark(520100) and I popped a tin Saturday My tastes have changed or my memory. I found that it aged well and had the right moisture content, however the latakia has really mellowed out. The blend has more Turkish and Dubec flavor than before. The virginia is still there just lighter as well as the entire blend. I did buy a new can last month ( won't wait 10 yrs to try)and will see how much it has changed during aging, this and 965 we're my standbys so I hope the new one is heavier in the Latakia Dept. I'm glad to see the Ashton tobacco's back. Great treat to puff on!!!!!! No bring back Dunhill Night Cap,965 and Early Morning and I'll be happy!

Update: After finishing the tin I can say this was just great tasting. I found it smoked best in a large pipe Billiard or Pot shape pipe. The flavor really went up near the end of the bowl, where you didn't want it to end. Not as good as Margate or BS but close!

A first important note: the first, longer, part of this review is based upon the European version, made in Germany. As I'll explain, the US version (made by McClelland) is quite different... A deja-vu feeling jumped on me as soon as I opened the can: damn, this is the hated Higland Targe made by Rattray!!! Alas, it wasn't... but the appearance, smell and taste are so close that one might think of the two blends as clones. Probably this is due to the fact that both Ashton's and Rattray's blends in Europe are made by the same manufacturer? I learnt a lesson from these two tobaccos: that I should steer clear of the lighter english mixtures (sometimes called "scottish mixtures"), those crossover blends that throw everything inside: Latakia, orientals, virginia and cavendish. There's all and there's nothing, because all tastes are so subdued and drowned: I particularly suspect that the cavendish is guilty of this, adding its dull sweetness/nothingness. I really don't like cavendish... I justify its existence only for making aromatics (although I admit that I love its presence in My Mixture 965). The label claims this is a fine Latakia mixture for connoisseurs: well, give me some REAL English Mixtures (like Dunhill's or Balkan Sobranie's), because THAT is where I can feel the Latakia!!! Room note, anyway, seems to be unpleasant to many people: I guess that the Latakia makes its presence felt this way instead of in the taste... After consuming 20 grams of tobacco only... I let the remaining 80 grams rest in the tin for two months, and the tobacco didn't dry too much, but developed a nice mellow sweetness/softness and a better taste, too! After this period, the Syrian latakia gave a more perceivable smokiness, and the whole experience became more satisfying. Sure, it still tasted flat 50% of the times I smoked it, but at least it had become a decent all-day blend, especially if puffed slow and without overheating. For a description of the blend, anyway (you might care, if you like this kind of subtler stuff: and judging by the other reviews, it may be your case), take a look at my review of Rattray's Highland Targe. Celebrated Sovereign is just a tiny little bit tastier and smokier (due to the Syrian Latakia), but for the rest identical... A bad blend? Not at all, simply devoid of much appeal to me. UPDATE: A year after trying the European version, I had the fortune of smoking the US version, too. Well, I must say that I like the US one better: sure, it still is too light a blend for my taste, but it has a wonderful delicate creaminess, and the smokiness is just right. The smell in the tin is undoubtedly McClelland. Not as vinegary-ketchupy as some of their offerings, but very fruity and deeply smoky: I guess that the main difference between the European and the US version lies in the quality of the Red Virginias. Being a fan of McClelland's virginias it's no surprise that I like the US one better! Really, it could almost get half a "star" more than the European version (which, by the way, was moister than the US one by McClelland, which is weird!).

2023 Update (yes, 15 years later!): I have recently revisited this one, when I was in search for a lighter Latakia mixture. Well, I may have been too harsh at the time. Yes, it's not a Latakia bomb. Yes, it's very dependent on bowl size and shape: sometimes it can be a bit flat, other times it hits the spot. But it has an elegance, complexity and balance that makes it quite unique. While never screaming for attention, it has a lot of subtlety. Really a fine blend, made with good quality ingredients (although I guess it no longer contains Syrian...).

I bought this tin sometime in the very late 1990’s or early 2000’s. I am pretty sure I got this from a cigar store in Del Mar, CA. It was stickered for the sale price of $12.72 which I thought was an odd price. Maybe with the tobacco and sales tax it evened out to 15 bucks, who knows. This is the McClelland version with the date code of (7)29597, can’t really read the first digit. Anyway, it is a 1997 tin with 24 years under its belt and with Syrian Latakia in it. Upon opening the tin, I was met with what I can best describe as a sweet plum note, though this is not aromatic. The fine ribbon had quite a bit of crystallization on it and was a very smooth sweet smoke. With the amount of age on it, I did not detect much Syrian but found this to be a very fine Oriental blend. There is an interesting article from the Dutch Pipe Smoker dated 2/19/13, https://dutchpipesmoker.com/tag/dubec/, which describes Dubec as follows: “Dubek (Dubec) Another variety of Basma tobacco, Dubek comes from the Macedonian region of Greece. It has a light-yellow leaf that is very aromatic and very sweet to smoke. Dubek tobacco is generally used to spice up pipe tobacco blends.” For me, this is a rich tasting blend that I have enjoyed more in the evening with a cup of Joe. This pumps out clouds of smoke and though it is about 10 years past its prime I still thoroughly enjoyed along as well as the other pipers who smoked it the other day. I normally don’t jar tins after opening but made an exception with this one. Though good, being a 100-gram tin, this is going to take me some time to finish.