John Middleton, Inc Carter Hall

I've been smoking a lot of burley lately and I've been really enjoying Carter Hall with the morning coffee. after about three mugs of high-quality beans, I'm ready to draw deep on a tasty, smooth and slight chocolaty burley, and Carter Hall allows me to do just that. Carter Hall is a damn good OTC blend that I enjoy smoking in both a corn cob or a briar and works best and also taste best when packing my pipe using the air-pocket method... Keep Smoking.

Among the best of the "OTC" blends. A decent mixer for aromatics that lack smokability. Pleasant enough when smoked slowly to avoid the chemical bite so common with OTCs (the pipe versions of sheet tobacco). I'll call this one the best of the worst. But honestly- there are so many better choices. However, if you must smoke OTC tobacco, and there are times when I've had to, smoke this one.

I'll agree with previous reviews though: it does somehow smoke better in a cob. Over time, this blend has grown on me. And I'll reach for it from time to time. But I can't give it more than two stars given the far more high quality burley blends available from Uhle, Peretti, Mac Baren, Hearth & Home, etc.

Carter Hall

With over 400 reviews, what else is left to say, if you like burley, with a slight cocoa/molasses flavor and a little bourbon on top, you’ll probably like this.

I prefer to smoke this early in the morning with a cup of coffee, I like to imagine my grandfather doing the same. This is probably the best OTC for beginners, never burns hot for me, tastes great.

Easy to pack, if you are having difficulties but enjoy the cocoa flavor I would recommend hearth and home classic burley kake.

A pleasant if somewhat uneventful smoke.. nevertheless a classic.. and it is natural tasting enough.. the flavoring is gentle.. not overdone.. simple burly blend.. perfect when you want something good but not complex

I have been on a long trek, as many of us have been, to find the tobacco of our father/grandfather that was so pleasant to our youth. Grandpa Rahn smoked a brand that entranced my siblings and I and, being the only pipe smoking one, I I took up the search. I remember being on the walking post of my patrol in about 1989 and smelling the familiar fragrance of grandpa's tobacco. (He, a retired Milwaukee PD Sgt. and me a Binghamton PD cop.) I still remembered that smell, though he died when I was 5 years old. I think grandpa smoked Sir Walter Raleigh, which smells great, but have found myself attracted with Carter Hall. So for my siblings, I will revive grandpa in their presence with Sir Walter, and for selfish pleasures at home, smoke Carter Hall.

Every now and then I achieve a monumental smoke. Not earth shattering, but just perfect. Maybe the stars are aligned just right, or all of the other variables might just be in sync. Although I have 90+ tobaccos in my cellar, Carter Hall has given me moments like these. It’s not complicated and I don’t have to over think it. It has a very satisfying flavor and mouth feel with no bite whatsoever. Just the right amount of sweetness and nuttiness with wisps of chocolate that remain constant throughout the bowl. It has a pleasant room note that does not linger. Tin note is warm and delicious and sometimes open the tub just to take a whiff. It blends with other tobaccos very nicely and has given some redemption to tobaccos that were in my opinion unsatisfactory. As far as it being an OTC, I remain unbiased. I have aged unopened tins of some of the most coveted tobaccos in my collection, but there will always be room for Carter Hall. As has been said many times before, for a stand-alone smoke, it does best in a cob with hot black coffee. It is also good for breaking in new pipes. I take this fishing with me, and when that Striper hits, Carter Hall always saves my seat.

I had always related Burley to cigarettes' so I was hesitant to give anything containing Burley's a try because I didn't want anything near that would make me smell like or taste like a stinking cigarette. A friend put me on to Carter Hall and suggested I give it a try. After my first bowl I was in heaven. Moisture content right out of the package was just right. It packs and lights well with a fraction of the fuss that many more expensive pipe tobaccos offer. Two matches was all it took to start and finish a bowl. The burn was even and consistent and required minimal relights. The aroma off the pipe and residual room note fragrance was very pleasant, catching hints of sweet baked goods or cherry pie. Carter leaves a very nice after taste follow through. A sweetness at the back of the tongue and on the lips. This is not a goopy syrupy aromatic that is laden with glycol. In fact there is not even a hint of that at all. If there is a topping at all it is very light and well into the background. I have smoked many of the expensive top grade tinned blends over the years and have discovered I like them less than I do Carter Hall. Carter Hall is a very nice, simple pleasant experience that requires little fuss to enjoy. I have discovered that there is a reason Carter Hall has been around for such a long time. The pipe snobs will look down their noses at this, but this is one OTC tobacco that can hold its own with the B&M best. Many reviewers have simply described this as a simple one sided pure Burly tobacco, however I would have to disagree. Yes, it is Burly based, but the maker states that it has some added Virginia and Cavendish. The Cavendish could consist of a pressure or heat treated Virginia or Cavendish to bring out the sweetness, or Virginia or Burly with a topping of some kind. Point being that it is much more than just a plain-jane Burly. The combination of these three components gives this blend a greater degree of complexity and interest over just a straight Burly, which can be detected as this blend is explored. I tried this in a billiard with a 3/4" wide chamber and my large bowled full bent with a 7/8" wide chamber. It seemed to burn too fast and hot in the narrow chamber and much slower and cooler in the larger 7/8" chamber.

It's a good, steady burley, with light casing, making for a pleasant smoke. It burns light and stays lit nicely. It doesn't give you tongue bite. It's not a very remarkable blend otherwise, but a fine smoke with a decent room note.

Carter Hall really is the standard against which all other OTC/codger blends are judged. This is a no-fuss, easy burning tobacco with just the right moisture level right out of the pouch. The easy smoking nature of Carter Hall combined with its legendary cake-building properties make this an excellent blend with which to break in a briar pipe.

Due to the fact that I use Carter Hall as my standard break-in tobacco for a new or new-to-me briar pipe, I have smoked this blend in bowls of all dimensions. No matter the dimensions of the bowl in which you smoke Carter Hall, you will get the pleasant, nutty taste of Burley. Unless you smoke far too fast, the taste stays true from first to last draw. I have noticed that the tastes of this very uncomplicated blend become a bit more complex in a large diameter bowl. In a bigger bore bowl I more clearly detect the molasses and mild chocolate/cocoa tastes other reviewers note. A narrow bowl gives me a smoke dominated by Burley nuttiness.

My rating of the room note is based solely on my wife's reaction to how I smell after coming in from smoking a bowl of Carter Hall.

EDIT: I am downgrading this to three stars. The nice things I have to say about the blend are still true, but my recent explorations into the wider world of old-timey Burley blends have shown me better offerings. I would especially recommend that those who enjoy Carter Hall explore L.J. Peretti's many Burley offerings.