Milan Tobacconists "Our" Sugar Barrel

A thick cut plug, thicker than the original, which was mostly a cube cut with little flakes. Both the nutty, molasses sweet burley and lesser component grassy, light citrusy Virginia are lighter in color. The proportions and aforementioned flavors seem to be about the same, but there’s a little less cinnamon spice and lesser depth of brown sugar here. This has a mild, rough sharp edge the original lacks, so I suspect more white burley is present in this version. The nic-hit is mild. Burns a little slow with a mostly cool and fairly consistent taste. Leaves a little dampness in the bowl. I gave the original two stars, and this gets the same as it’s not the closest match I’ve seen made.

-JimInks

A terrific basic virginia/burley smoke (leaning on the burley of course)with a touch of sweetness from the sugar casing. I was too late to the world of pipes and tobacco to have any experience with the original but this is a good quality, honest-tobacco blend that serves as a great example of the rich in pleasure but simple codger smoke.

I like this much better than the Sutliff Match though it's probably no closer to the original. Very mild and well behaved in the pipe, the tobacco comes at a perfect moisture level.

I don't really see this as an aromatic but perhaps I'm fuzzy on that definition. Just good tobacco with a little sweetness. The people at Milan could not be nicer, very pleasant to do business with them.

Simply put, superior to the Sutliff match and by a wide margin. This is a less heralded and likely less tried of the two but if you’re looking for a fine burley and one that mirrors the original, give this a try.