Mac Baren Capstan Original Navy Cut

This shares a lot of the same qualities with Cap Gold. Similar flavor profile of hay, citrus and slightly darker fruit. This is a bit spicier and not as sweet. It's a little smoother than the Gold, in fact that's the first thing I noticed upon lighting. Both also maintain a consistent flavor with no fading, but evolve very little. This version has a little more strength. I like both equally and I'll rate them the same. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4. A very fine and enjoyable smoke.

Medium in body and taste. Flavoring is mild. Burns very well.

Extremely smooth, creamy smoke - almost silky. Two flakes, folded, fit perfectly in the bowl of my Grabow Grand Duke (no filter). Perfect straight from the tin. Slight raisin-like fruit flavor. Tastes like Best Brown Flake and Full Virginia Flake, in equal amounts, with the positives of both. Flavor and strength build through the bowl. Excellent flavor, particularly when sipped. 4-*.

Appearance: Well made flakes, finely cut, about 2 by 3 inches. The color ranges from lemon to rich chestnut, with no dark traces. Over time, a cellared tin will turn .mostly dark, but this takes several years.

Aroma: The aroma is well matured Virginia, with a small quantity of Burley, and a trace of top dressing. Overall, the bouquet reminds me of Fribourg & Treyer?s Cut Va. Plug.

Packing: Owing to the fine cut, it packs well in any bowl. Rolling the flakes into cylinders is very easy..

Lighting: The quickest lighting flake I can recall. A one match light is possible.

Initial flavor: The initial flavor is sweet medium strength Vrginia, quite beguiling and gentle.

Mid-bowl: The tobacco burns cooler than expected unless puffed too quickly. There is a full range of medium to high notes that keep you interested, but don?t stress the tongue or palate.

Finish: Even at the finish, there is no harshness. The ash is medium gray and quite fine.

Summary: This is to me, an excellent all day tobacco that can be smoked either casually or contemplatively. It is rewarding either way.

Kudos to MacBaren for keeping Capstan Original Navy Cut alive. I paid a pretty penny for a "retro"-style tin of this offered by my local tobacconist, and on popping the tin I was immediately transported (way) back in time, when (Tinder Box proprietor) Ed Kolpin gave me a tin to go with a Dunhill pipe I was to dedicate to this blend. He then went so far as to offer a money back guarantee for the lot, provided I used only wooden matches, and I was not to try to smoke the very last of it. Today, as I smoke this tobacco in the very same pipe, I offer TR readers the same advice, though I admit I am addicted to the convenience afforded by my Tsubota “Bolbo” lighter, and I imagine any “good smoker” might be dedicated with good results. In other words, it’s the tobacco, not the pipe, that makes CONC great.

In the tin, this fine flake looks and smells, for all the world, like the same tobacco I “remember”, slightly musty/earthy, distinctly vegetal, yet unmistakably VA, rough-sh, brown bread over damp silage, with some dry meadow grasses, and nary a trace of else to spoil the experience. I still smoke it straight from the tin (or the jar), folding and loosely stuffing a flake, then slowly, patiently bringing it up to the point where it stays lit. Well tended, it burns OK at a slow pace, and I still leave some dottle at the end of a bowl, to avoid spoiling the last of the smoke. The aroma and the taste are all fragrant VA tobacco of the highest quality, mostly air-cured brown, with some flu-cured lemon, well aged and conditioned. IMO, CONC compares very favorably with Germain’s Brown Flake, in terms of overall quality and in the realization of its potential. Though CONC's lighter, flue and air cured VAs offer a different spectrum of tastes and aromas than GBF's darker VA/Bur blend, it is also very rich and subtly complex (rather than overtly so)., with a similarly natural, sweet aftertaste that goes on and on. Strength is mild to medium. Tastes build from mild toward medium. Room note is spectacular.

Obviously, IMO, CONC is something special for VA lovers. While my own rating system turns a 3.5 into a 4, CONC is a solid 4, best of the best VA flake.

Great little tobacco. The flakes are very well packaged and come out of the tin ready to smoke. Has a light sweet smoke to it that reminds me of champagne. This blend must be smoked slowly to really let it shine, if you smoke it too quickly you will loose the beautiful delicate flavor.

This is a wonderful tobacco! It has a sweet, grassy, hay like aroma in the tin that plays out well in the bowl. The flakes are perfect for my Peterson 999. Roll one up and stuff it in the bowl; it fills it perfectly and burns well. the initial light gives a sweet, bright and citrusy flavor that is truly delicious. It makes me know why I love to smoke pipes. Halfway through bowl, the flavor becomes a bit more earthy. I find Capstan an excellent balance of bright sweetness and rich earthiness. Not heavy like a Latakia, but musty and solid with a pleasant lightness that I think is characteristic of good Virginias. I think Mac Baren does well by its tobaccos; they are well worth the cost. The flavor burns through consistently and clearly, and Capstan is a delicious blend of mildly sweet, bright and bready tobacco. I tried this to get a sense of what a solid Virginia would taste like. I think I found it.

This is, simply put, one of the best VA flakes I have ever tried. I went through the first tin very quickly and without "trying" - a definite sign that i really liked it. This is not a "try-hard" tobacco. Burns clean and evenly with few relights, moisture is perfect right out of the tin and all that classic VA creaminess that we VA fans love and crave. Rubs out easily with a wonderful VA haylike grassy smell. This one smokes cool with no bite and no bitterness towards the bottom of the bowl. I think this would be a great VA flake for the veteran or the beginner. It can easily be enjoyed by all. There is no reason that great pipe tobacco should be a difficult effort. Capstan original is surely not difficult. It is quite simply one of the few perfect smokes I have ever had in my adventures with the pipe. PLEASE don't stop making this one Mac Baren. It is a Classic!!

4 stars ****

Cheers All,,

Glorfindel

That's the stronger version of capstan flakes.similar to the gold one but with a few differences.when you open it you get get citruses earth and a fig topping.rubs easy with i bit moist.no drying is needed.lights with i bit effort and might need a few relights.burns cool and slow with proper moisture.the flavours are between citrus,dried fruits, earth and sweetness from fig topping in my opinion.leaves a little moisture at the end of the bowl.the nicotine level is ok for an all day smoking experience.the differences between this one and the golden version.this flake is darker with deeper flavours and more sweetness.the golden flake is more citrusy and lighter in nicotine level.both blends are not complicated with natural flavours and certainly a must try!

My wife, an occasional pipe smoker herself, gifted me two tins she found at the West Coast Pipe Show several years ago. I still have half of one tin remaining that I opened from a Ball jar for a Christmas treat this year. This review is based on those aged tins as I was not a pipe smoker back when this Willis version was brand new. If I had to pick one Virginia tobacco to smoke for a lifetime, this would be the one. Its beautifully sweet, with a slight taste of hay and with all of the age on these tins, it was just sublime. Maybe it was more medium when first tinned, but I would place this more in the mild, or mild to medium category. It is topped, but very lightly and at this point can’t quite tell with what. What I can say is that I would happily pay the price on another tin! Great stuff.