Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG) Half & Half

In the interests of full disclosure, I am not a big fan of burley-dominate blends and Half & Half is loaded with burley. So why did I order it? Morbid curiosity and occasionally I find a blend that I do like. This was not one of those blends. The pouch note was unremarkable. Upon lighting it I picked up a cocoa taste, not bad but it didn't last and gave way to the burley. On to better things...

Half and Half has been around for a long time. I am not sure why. Maybe it is the low price point, maybe some just like it. It is easy to pack and light, but the taste is horrible. All I taste is licorice which I do not like. Not. One. Bit. So I had to try it due to the great reviews, but I will not buy it again.

This tobacco just fails all around. This tobacco is extremely moist and takes about half a box of matches to light. There is instant tongue burn and the taste is extremely sweet and artificial. If i could rate this a 0 out of four I would.

I tried this many years ago and did not care for it. Recently I purchased pouch to give it another chance on the thought taht, maybe, my tastes have changed. I was wrong. This stuff is little better than cigarette tobacco. It may be very good cagarette tobacco, I wouldn't know not being a cig smoker, but none the less... I simply cannot bring myself to like it. However, if you are transitioning to pipes from cigarettes, this stuff may be a good "crossover" tobacco. Until you can be introduced to something better.

This "old codger burley" smells nice in the pouch and has a pleasant room note. It burns well and produces a fairly fine ash. It starts out pleasantly sweet; however, the problem I have with this tobacco is an almost overwhelming "cough syrup", chemical taste. I found it so displeasing I threw the pouch away after only a partial bowl. I didn't even elect to add it to my mixed tobacco jar. I love coder burleys but Half and Half is just not for me.....

This one´s a stinger. If you´re stuck with some, mix it with something very mellow to get a smoother smoke. Lights well, burns well, tastes sharp - recommended (with reservations) to novice smokers. No special flavors to confuse (or thirll) you. Availability a plus (to me). Look elsewhere for an experience to remember. Later: mixed this 40:60 with McBaren´s Vanilla and got a very smooth and satisfying smoke!

On a recent trip to the US I decided to try as many of the OTC or "drugstore" tobaccos as I could. Half & Half is the only one I could also get in most tobacconists over here in Germany, so I was hoping for a pleasant experience.

Upon opening the pouch, my first impression was that this was RYO cigarette tobacco being marketed as pipe tobacco to lower the tax. Both the look and the aroma were clearly those of cigarette tobacco. I even detected a very slight hint of something like menthol, which I don't like. The smoke left me with the same impression: RYO cigarette tobacco. I very rarely chuck tobacco, but in this case I did it with a clear conscience.

To sum it up, if you are a cigarette smoker wanting to try pipe smoking, then maybe this is for you. I will not buy nor smoke this tobacco again. If you are a true pleasure pipe smoker, then I would advise you to steer clear of H&H.

Saw it at CVS, never desired to try it, really liked the pouch and its colors, reminded me of Hangar 24 craft brewery in Redlands, I don't really know why, but it did. My fondness over the pouch could not be said about the contents inside of it. To be blunt, to think what ingredients constitutes this filth simply repulses me. Soap is the main taste I can detect. The room note is just strange and somewhat musty. There is an okay amount of vitamin N, and thankfully no bite, and its not real harsh. Pipe was goopy, but I smoked only in a cob...if partaking in trying this goop, I recommend using only a cob. The main problem I have with it is the weird, creamy, caking aftertaste it leaves. It isn't even an aftertaste, it's almost a lining in the mouth, and it lingers! Maybe one day I will drink enough, marshal the courage (or stupidity) and smoke another bowl from a different pouch. I know that it is possible I bought a bad pouch, and in order to obtain valid and accurate result of a test, one must sample further. This review may contain erroneous statements about this tobacco, but for now I'm going to maintain my belief that this is crap. I don't often bash on a brand, especially an older drugstore brand, usually because you know what you are buying isn't the best in the first place, but at least it's pretty consistent. Half & Half was not consistent, it was a curve ball. I know I'm being rather harsh but at least I said the pouch was pretty...

Not knowing where to buy pipe tobacco I stopped in at a local "head shop" and was directed towards a pouch of Half & Half. This tobacco served as my introduction to pipe smoking and honestly if this was all there was I would have quit. To me it tasted and smelled like I was smoking a cigarette, which was a huge turn off. I will never pack my pipe with Half & Half again.