Ashton Celebrated Sovereign

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.

This was my first real English mixture, purchased in a bulk format.

I loved the pouch aroma, smokey, sweet and spicy.

I would enjoy the first half of the bowl very much and then it would become too much.

I wonder how I would find it today? I read one of the reviewers saying it was comparable to Highland targe, I believe.

4 Ounce tin from early(?) nineties, "Blended by William Taylor" and "Made in EEC" on label.

Not bad considering that it's been sitting, unopened, in a box of other stuff from 5 relocations ago. Tin was bulging at both ends and made quite a fuss when it was opened. At first the smell was definitely more "odor" than "aroma", but with some air and fluffing out the leaf-lock, things in the olfactory department improved rapidly.

Fine ribbon cut, the individual leaves maintained their integrity quite well considering their long confinement. Short strands of gold, dark brown and almost black. Aroma became almost like that of an old Port, along with some well balanced smokiness. Pretty moist, all things considered.

Smoke was in the same genre as many similar blends, but more "Balkanesque" with the interplay of Latakia and Dubec. Virginias are both bright and deep in their flavors and aromas, and developed nicely as the bowl progressed.

Overall a bit disappointing, but my expecations may have been unreasonable. Stumbling on a long forgotten, almost 20 year old tin of tobacco while looking for an even older notebook can do that.

I bought a tin of this about two years ago, smoked several pipes full, and still can't seem to empty it. I go back to it from time to time, just to remind myself why I can't empty it. There's just too many other, better English blends in the house to put this unexciting mixture in my pipe.

The Latakia used is a smokier Syrian leaf, rather than the more common Cyprian. And the Turkish leaf is the naturally sweeter Dubec. The Red Virginia, bright Carolina and Black Cavendish make it a fairly complex blend.

But the complexity does not come through in the smoking. The various components go together alright, it tastes okay and is a reasonably enjoyable smoke, but its too simple and unremarkable to warrant ever buying it again. I have little to say about it that is bad other than, as an English blend, it is a pale third-place finisher. If I want an English blend, I'll go with something that has a bit more character.

To date, the 24 reviewers, including myself, have given it seven 4-star ratings, and thirteen 3-star ratings, while only four have given it 1- or 2-star ratings, for an average score of 3.08 stars.

This was my second venture in what I considered - at the time, in 1997- strong, full English Mixtures.

Being a neophyte in English Blends, I wanted to try this one because I liked the aroma for an English; the Latakia was far from being overwhelming. Unfortunately, being in Canada, it was only available in bulk, like most Rattrays and McConnell blends - which is a shame, as the bulk tobaccos are either inferior, or totally different from the tin versions ( no wonder they're cheaper in price...)- where was I?

Yes, yes, the Latakia not overwhelming. Some brown, dark brown and Black leaves, loose cut, if I remember well, pretty nice aroma for an English. easy to pack, easy to lioght up, stayed well lit up, the crowd was pleased with the bakkie, so I was happy.

When I hit mid-bowl, things came out of hand. It started being a bit too much for what I could put up with at the time.

Nevertheless, this is a fantastic tobacco anyway, and I will retry ASAP, if I can get a hold of some! I am sure I would, today, absolutely appreciate it.

Revised 04-14-2005

I'll be honest, I purchased this one more for the name than anything, at first. This one surprised me though, with its rich, sweet, and spicy complexity. It does remind me of Brittish Woods and FMOTT by the same blending house though.Because of its spiciness, I usually do not smoke more than two bowls in a row, otherwise my taste buds are overwhelmed for anything else for the rest of the day. Because of this virginia component, you do have to puff a little slower, otherwise you may need the elders of the church to annoint your tongue with oil and pray for you, so enjoy with restraint. My tastebuds hhave gravitated toward other blends as of late, so I don't smoke this much anymore, but it is still a good English blend to try.

This is an English blend for people who don't like English blends. What I mean is that Celebrated Sovereign presents itself as a fine Virginia blend with a nice Oriental presence that just happens to have a light added component of Latakia. The heart of this blend is sweet McClelland Virginias and Carolinas. If you air-smoke this blend (a/k/a allow air to enter your mouth around the stem on the draw), the Latakia is purely a background condiment, and the complexity of the VA/Carolina interaction is marvelous. The "dryness" (as in a dry wine, not mouth-drying)of the Dubec leaf offers a nice counterpoint, as is a feel that I could best describe as "tea" - a tasty, slight bitterness. I really can't taste the Cavendish, though I suspect it was added to cool the smoke.

If your favorite blend is Nightcap, this will certainly disappoint you. But if you are looking for a great example of a well-balanced English blend, CS is worth your time and money. I find very few English blends that I would consider "complex", but this pulls it off, while simultanously being an easy smoke. Again, I would heartily recommend "air smoking" this, keeping it just above a smoulder.