Mac Baren Amphora Virginia

I've been smoking this off and on for three months now. Very tasty indeed with no casing or flavoring added. It is a good mid-day smoke. Nothing fancy about it. It produces a tingling in the nose which I like. No nic hit, wife doesn't mind the aroma, and only a relight or two.

After a month I've become attached to this simple tobacco. I like mild tobaccos and this is no different. I like the citrus aroma in the bag. For me, this a 3-1/2 star smoke. No negatives. Simple is better.

I had to smoke a few bowls of this to decide whether or not I liked it. Well, I have concluded that this is a pretty decent straight Virginia blend. Keep in mind that my favorite straight Virginia is G.L. Pease "Union Square", so I'm comparing this blend to that. As other reviewers have noted, this blend has a sharpness to it along with the usual hay-like quality. The pouch note led me to think that there might be some kind of light topping, but after smoking several bowls in a briar and a cob, I'm thinking maybe not. I also didn't notice humectant. But that sharpness is rather nice. It's not too sharp. The overall taste is very nice. It is grassy with a noticeable touch or sweetness that intensifies as the smoke progresses. I, too, find that this blend gets a little rough around the edges and a tad bit ashy near the end of the bowl. But the majority of the smoke was very tasty. It looks like a broken flake to me, so I just bent and stuffed it into the pipe and I tamped it in there fairly firmly. I didn't find it too hard to get lit and it generally required only one or two relights. I think the key here is to keep the burning tobacco firmly tamped as I'm smoking. At least this works for me, and it seemed that I could keep that bowl going very nicely through almost all the smoke. I only needed to re-light near the end of the bowl. This blend performed best in my MM Country Gentleman. A full bowl in the Country Gentleman provided about an hour and twenty minute smoke for me (and yes, DO sip this blend for the best flavor). Overall, a very decent smoke. Not nearly as good as GLP Union Square (but that's nectar of the gods to me), but really decent, just the same. Tasty, nice room note, long burning, doesn't seen to bite, smokes cool if you go slowly with it. It comes at a decent price, too. This blend will likely age well, but I'd take it out of the pouch and jar it. I recommend this blend if you like straight Virginias, and it would not be a bad selection for those wanting to try a straight Virginia for the first time. Cheers!

My frist sharp Virgina tobacco, I usually prefer aromatic ones.

At pouch opening: I would say broken flake with thick pieces, natural, intense and pleasant pure Virginia aroma.

At touch: not too wet, a little thick.

Loading and lighting: need to break it to smaller pieces. I prefer to dry it a little. Burns well after some relights.

Smoking: obviously stronger than my habits. No tongue bit but some harsh to me. Leaves a clean bowl.

Room note: my wife is used to sweet aromatics so that's just tolerable to her.

The after taste is pleasant, not too persitent.

I'm smoking it repeatedly to appreciate it as it deserves. I'll try in my corn cob. Not an all day to me, but I'm sure it will be appreciated by those who love Virginia's.

Recommended

Contrary to what the yellow pouch may suggest, this is not a bright Virginia blend. The broken flake is very brown, and the pouch note smells of bread, with a little cigar-like hay and sweetness. The moisture level is very good, pliable but dry to the touch. It can be smoked right away, but I'd recommend drying it for a bit. I find the cut to pack surprisingly well, no need to rub anything out, just stuff into your pipe and light. It's a little hard to light at first, but stays lit well afterwards.

The taste is different than I expected from the pouch note. It reminds me of a nice dark rye bread, malty and a little spicey. The sweetness does not much carry over to the smoke, just enough to round off the bitterness but not enough to taste "sweet". Not much of a sour tang, as again this is a hot-pressed, brown flake. There is a heavy room note, and there was surprisingly more nicotine than I expected (although I do not know how much was from the tobacco and how much was from breathing in all the extra smoke it produces). It has ridiculously good smoke volume, which is something I feel is often lacking with pipe blends. Smokes hot, as many Virginias do, but curiously it doesn't bite at all. Had this been sold a regular pouch price, say $5-7, it would be an easy 4 star; but seeing as it is being priced like a tin, I would say there are other blends out there that I'd rather smoke at the same price. It's also a tad bit too heavy for me to call it an all day smoke.

The broken flakes are quite moist and need to air dry for about an hour. Upon lighting I’m greeted with a mouthwatering citrus taste. It’s sweet and sour. I’m immediately captivated. It’s also spicy, but doesn’t bite. I would describe the citrusy taste as a combination of lemon and bitter orange.

It burns at a moderate rate. It’s not harsh, even when I puff repeatedly. Be warned, the bowl will heat quickly if you’re a quick puffer. The nicotine level is almost medium, and the taste/body is slightly greater than medium. It smokes well in briars and cobs.

Do not be discouraged because it comes in a pouch. These are high quality tobaccos. It may contain glycerol, but it does not interfere with the taste or burn. I suspect this will age well. 3.5 stars

Well, to my big surprise I'd got a royal sample of this tobacco, in a pouch. Once opened, I saw a light brown broken flake. A good smell of Virgina, pure reached my nose. A bit kitteling. Need 3 matches and the flakes burn quite slowly in their medium meerschaum bowl. When I smoked it 2/3 I need a relight, one is enough. People may ask where is your tobacco-review?? Well, .... this is a pure Virginia blend. Nothing more nothing less. For the Dutch market it means really an acquisition. We don't have such a tobacco. This is a Virginia that will have a very warm welcome in many smaller countries like NL. I can imagine that you'dçhoose Virginia as an allday tobacco. Congratulations MB. Edit: the other day my hand grabbed automatically to the pouch Virginia. For me it means it passed the test, it has a good chance to be my daily tobacco. Also important: I've smoked this tobacco without a filter. And it's true what the rumours say: there was no tongue-bite!

I love Straight Virginias. And, at the same time, I have hypersensitivity to the Virginia bite. Even though I smoke my Straight Virginias in filtered pipes I still feel the bite most of the time. So I just have to bear it, if I want to enjoy subtle flavours and aromas only Straight Virginia can produce. I didn't expect much from this blend: it's a pouched tobacco in a lower price category, after all. In a way, my low expectations came true. Flavourwise, Amphora Virginia is not the most remarkable Virginia blend I've ever tasted in my life. Samuel Gawith Best Brown Flake and Full Virginia Flake are richer, more flavourful and overall superior.

But...

This. Virginia. Does Not. Bite.

Which is a true wonder of nature.

The blender from MacBaren who created this blend was heard telling at the presentation that Amphora Virginia won't bite.

He wasn't kidding, it turns out. It doesn't.

It's sharp. Pretty sharp. But not bitey.

It's citrusy. But not acrid.

It's not soft or mellow. But it doesn't tire the palate.

It's definitely made from cheaper tobaccos than the competition. But not even a hint of bitterness or any other evident indicators of the simpler leaf is present.

Like the other two new Amphora blends (Burley and Kentucky) its quality far exceeds its price tag. And it's the cheapest of all True Straight Virginias. And quite a decent one.

I could suggest to explore this blend to anyone who, like me, have Straight VA hypersensitivity. You may find it the first Straight Virginia comfortable to smoke.

Being a bit dissapointed from other Amphora blends i hesitaded a little but some great reviews and being a virginia flake lover made me purchase a pack of 50 gram.once the seal breaks a nice aroma of sweet grasses and tea notes comes out.the broken flakes are very similar to the HH line flakes so some rubbing is needed.if not rubbed the lighting is really tricky and several relights are needed through smoking.the blend moisture is proper.while smoking the flavours combine very well each other and feel very natural.lots of grass notes,some citruses,tea notes,lots of dark fruits and some earthy notes are popping out from the beginning till the end.smooth and sharp tastes co exist giving some complexity to your tongue with no tongue bite.burns slow and cool to perfect ash with some moisture being created at the end of the bowl.the room note is pleasant and the after taste pleasant too.an all day smoke with no harsh spots that any virginia lover should like.despite all these something is missing for me.i know some of you may critisism me but i believe this blend is incomplete without some perique.with this addition i believe the blend will launch it's flavours and can be a 4 star blend that a lot should love.

This is a good straight Virginia. A pleasant surprise. Not entirely natural, because there is a little bit of flavoring in it. Anyway the taste is Virginia, pure Virginia. Brown in color it is robust enough, with a high nicotine content and it needs to be smoked slowly, without warming up. For Virginia' lovers. In my personal rating system (from 1 to 10) my score is 8 and three stars.