Drucquer & Sons The Devil’s Own

I remember the Drucquer blends from years ago though , living in new York , I seldom was able to smoke them . While re-issues can never be exact because we simply do no longer grow the same tobacco in the same fields, this smokes relatively close to the original . Devil's Own seems to be Virginia forward blend with burley and latakia present , though as minor players . The Virginia is fine cut and of the golden type . The quality of the Virginia is decent as are all of the included tobaccos . Though a minor player , the latakia is a definite presence .The burley gives the blend a bit of extra body . The fine cut of the tobacco causes to smoke a little hot down the bowl if puffed to hard. I found this to be a " woodsy" smoke reminding me of a fall day in New England . Going deeper into the bowl I noticed a sharper , more pungent taste . This is a complex tobacco very suitable to an afternoon walk or a quiet evening on the patio . I am in debt to Greg for making these classic blends available to us again . This seemed to me like a labor of love and we are , as smokers , embellished by his effort .

I picked this one up on sale when I needed to reach the free shipping point on Smokingpipes.com after reading the reviews and also liking the tin design and name even.

The tin is dated 2-23-17 so it is approaching 3 years of age when I opened it on New Years Day 2020. Over the holidays, I had been smoking more aros than usual and I wanted something different than my usual flakes so I decided on this one.

The tin has an interesting note to it with the sweetness of the Virginias leading to my nose. The moisture content was great and the tin was stuffed to the top was ribbons of multiple colors of tobacco. The Golden VA's stood out against the darker ribbons. It was easy to pack and light. Burns easy with minimal relights required.

Taste wise I feel the Virginias held the high-ground with grassy/sweet-hay. The sweetness was not overpowering at all. The Cavendish might be contributing there I'd assume in support to the sweetness. The Latakia was in the woods somewhere throughout the bowls. My wife picked up on the campfire notes more in the roomnotes than I did in the actual smoke until usually the last third of each bowl. The latakia left a pleasant after-taste which is common with me. The burley seemed to stay in the background also. It comes through as maybe a little nuttiness or darker notes in the back.

For a blend with so many components, I feel that they work well together to give a complex easy smoke which pared quite well with a glass of bourbon or an English style ale as an after-dinner treat.

To me, the nicotine level seemed mild as I felt its presence but it "kick" me as hard as some other blends seem to.

This wouldn't be an all-day smoke for me, I prefer those to be "simpler" and require less thought but it might find a home in my extended rotation for times when more complexity is what I seek.

Based on a tin dated 10/2016.

I have never had the original of this blend. This review is of the version blended by G.L. Pease.

I mention in some of my other Drucquers reviews that I enjoy the classic tin art and the tobacco cans.

The smell of the blend is sweet and kind of tangy and bready. I don't really smell much Latakia, not like I did in Red Lion or Blairgowrie (I mention those because they have a supposed minor portion of Latakia, but still detectable, to me).

The taste is immediately tangy and grassy, even spicy, with a hint of Latakia. It can get a little harsh and does burn hot in the beginning, but taking it slowly can thwart all of that. There is a sweet, wineyness and fruit-like character. There are some of occasional cocoa notes that mix with a bread sweetness that develops. The Latakia is pretty noticeable when puffing, which I like when I get towards the middle and final third of the bowl. The Latakia offers a balance to the creamy, bready sweetness. At first, this tasted closer to Red Lion than it does Inns of Court. After weeks passed, my opinion changed and it is kind of closer to Inns of Court, and Red Lion is much different.

The strength and taste are medium, and so is the nicotine.

I really enjoy this. I would recommend this to people that like lighter mixtures. But, saying it's 'lighter' doesn't mean there is little flavor. This is flavorful, but it's not heavy on the Latakia. The Virginia provides a relative fullness and zestiness to this. It's an interesting blend with some complexity, but what I love most about it is that it's not overly complex. It's somewhat simple, and sometimes simpler is more special, for me. It burns well, the cut is easy to work with. This is consistently a joy to load and smoke, just as it was smoking through Inns of Court.

This is distinctive mixture, but I wouldn't call it an English. This is a Virginia/Burley/Cavendish/Latakia blend in which the latakia is mildly condimental. So what makes this memorable? The sweet and grassy notes are mixing with a delightful citrus note with just a hint of barbecue flavor wafting through on occasion backed up with just a hint of nuttiness. This burns very well and is a slight change of pace for the non aromatic smoker.

Tin note of tangy vinegary fruit and fermented vegetation. Tobacco is a Ribbon cut of yellowish tan, light brown, brown and black. Moisture content is great. Burns moderate with few relights. The strength is medium and nic is mild to medium. No flavoring detected. Taste is medium and somewhat consistent, with notes of floral, tart fruit, very spicy, very woody, musty hay, lemon zest, very acidic, orange peel, dry, molasses, tangy citrus, spices, toast, bitter, grassy, sugar, a sour fermented vegetation background note, and a peppery retro. Virginia is leading with Burley and Cavendish supporting. Latakia supporting from the sidelines. Room note is pleasant to tolerable, and aftertaste is good.