Mac Baren HH Burley Flake

Another tasteless flake, this time from MacBaren under the guise of the HH range.

Oh no not another moan about tasteless tobaccos and Uk tobaccos prices surely ?

We've done all that.

Yes we have, but I want to award another medal to Dan Pipe for keeping the spirits up (pun in there if you want it) with regular supplies of tobacco from Germany despite the epidemic sweeping the world. In fact, they even delivered FASTER than an English tobacconist. Incredible. Lets add that to the list of my grievances against the UK tobacco industry/Government and move on.

So...(why are people starting sentences with this preposition now ?) we have a lovely tobacco flake giving off a gorgeous hay/grass/chocolate scent from one of those silly little square tins. Handy I suppose for slipping into a pocket when you are banished to the corner of the garden behind a delapidated shed in the pouring rain to smoke in peace.

The smart dark brown soldiers of flake are arranged geometrically correctly and indeed are such that a single slice can be withdrawn that fits exactly into a medium volume pipe. Rubbing out is so easy with this one, it doesn't crumble into dust like some I've come across, but unpicks into neat strips that are effortlessly broken down for loading. One of these days this old twit will learn to stuff a pipe with a flake instead of rubbing out.

This flake is that utilitarian that both methods will lead to a fine mild, smooth, smoke, that is alas, tasteless. It also burns at an alarming rate too (probably down to the idiot who packed the pipe in the first place). Smoking time is short therefore and this silly little tin will, likewise, diminish in similar fashion.

It is a well-behaved blend that certainly satisfies in the same way the excellent Capstan's flakes do. Recommended ? Certainly, as the positives far outweigh the negative, but don't look for anything different or out of the ordinary ; you won't find what you seek, grasshopper.

Excellent presentation, with its neat square tin containing a bright gold foil that holds two neat rows of dark brown tobacco. Looking at the slices, even the least practiced smoker knows what they’re going to get: dark brown burley, a few streaks of tawny and golden Virginia. The scent from the tin is understated, even faint; just the merest suggestion of figs. Perfectly typical of tobacco, and I detect no topping at all. The mildness of the scent might be attributable to the tobacco’s youth; my tin is dated March of this year.

I smoked two bowls back to back (during a long-ranging conversation with a friend), which tells you something about this tobacco’s strength. Both fold-and-stuff and rubbing it out produce a nicely smokable bowl, even with the minimal drying time I gave it. The array of flavors quickly presents itself, and it is classic burley. This is the dark, earthy type of burley, not the nutty taste of lighter burley. Hardwood and earth, a little smoke, but nothing like the floral, complex smokiness of latakia— rather a clean, salty smoke that takes the fore on the retrohale. I associate a certain citrus flavor with burley, almost like an orange peel, but here it cones through only in the tingle on the tongue that you get from squeezing orange peels, and a little bitter pith.

Flavors remain consistent from the top to the bottom of the bowl. That’s about it. For all the boutique presentation, this is a simple and straightforward smoke, easy to handle and simple to enjoy— if you like burley.

If you don’t know whether you like burley, I think this would be a good place to start for an idea of what a classic burley tastes like. I liked it, although the sourness and citrus tingle were a little too much. Burley will never be my favorite tobacco, but this scratches the occasional itch I get for it. I would probably cube-cut this and sell it in bulk for a fraction of the cost, but I’m sure the quality wouldn’t make that feasible. I will stash this tin away and put some age on it. It has the makings of a good smoke down the road. As it is, it’s merely decent.

Tannin would be the closest thing I could associate with the flavor in this blend. It’s not so much complex, but rather mysterious in an odd way. It’s a blend that you need to really focus on. And it always has you “ on your tippy toes trying to see just a little more into the window, but there’s also a glare in the glass when you get there”....

This is a very nice looking flake and it can be enjoyed fresh out of the tin, even if it’s a little moist, but drying it made it taste better to me.

The flavor takes a little bit into a bowl to develop - at the halfway point it gets better in my opinion.

It’s mild and light in flavor and strength but there is a little nic hit if you retrohale it enough.

I find that there is something woody about this blend. I know people often describe tobacco as woody- and this one takes the cake! It’s a flavor I’d say akin to smoldering bark . It burns nice and slow and although I do get some deep notes and a very slight sweet spot here and there, it still leaves me wanting more of something. Bold Kentucky has deep tones and sweetness and a nic hit other tobaccos could only dream to achieve. Burley flake is maybe quite bland, possibly can be a little bit flat sometimes. It’s very woody with a rough tannin walnut flavor.

I personally would take the other hh offerings any day over this one. I can’t decide weather I hate this blend, or wether it will grow on my as others have in the past. I’m not jumping on the band wagon to give this 4 stars. When I read the reviews before I packed this for a smoke, I was thinking I hit the jackpot. I was sadly taken back a bit, and I was shocked so many 4 star reviews on this 2 star blend. And keep in mind, I really do want to like this blend , and I’m trying my best to search for the good things here. Every time I pack this, I think “ maybe this is the bowl that I’ll finally get to see through the window clearly”.... but it hasn’t happened yet !

Update- I don’t hate this blend. It’s become evident that it’s just a mild burley treat that I can puff on and enjoy. Being so mild you would think to maybe use a bigger pipe for this blend. But this really was much better to me being smoked in a small little thin stemmed bent briar with a bowl that’s about 1 1/4” deep and maybe 3/4” wide. It makes a big difference in a good way for me at least. Definitely growing on me as I become more familiar with this new blend. I am actually satisfied after having a small bowl.

This was easily my least favorite of the HH line and really the only blend in said line I can honestly say I did not like. To sum up my primary problem with this blend, it is just too mild and flavorless. What I don't know is whether it is because that is just how burley is or whether this is just a bad one.

Burley leaf being as low as it is in sugar inherently has less sweetness than any of the other varieties of tobacco. This much is fact, the question I wonder is how much sugar has added to all of the burleys I prefer over this one. And that is a long list of tobaccos to be sure.

The HH line is a line of tobaccos that have no toppings or sugars added. This was the reason for dropping the wonderful HH Matured Virginia from the line as it did contain a topping. Some of my favorite burleys are ABF, Uhles 00, 300, PPB, Pegasus, Burley Flake #2. 1931 flake, Golden Extra and Stonehaven. These are all that immediately come to mind at the moment. With the exception of ABF, every one of these has a topping or contain a portion of Sweetened Cavendish to assist the burley. As far as ABF, I really don't know what Solani does to make that one stand out above all other Burleys. YMMV.

Ultimately, I think it is entirely necessary to add something to burley to bring out its inherent nutty sweetness and I think this is where HHBF fails for me. It just has very little sweetness and in a seemingly direct contradiction to burleys that aren't sweet, it is also kind of weak. Very little backbone and it doesn't even get that harsh if you push it, which is kind of a plus for a blend with so many negatives.

If Burley can't taste well without tinkering, then I applaud MB for bringing out a blend so that people can truly experience this, but I would rather smoke tinkered burleys, so this ones rates pretty low on the subjective scale. I will give this two stars for those who like tobacco that hasn't been tinkered regardless of how crappy it may taste. lol

A five year old square tin from my cellar. Upon opening greeted me with a fermented smell of grapefruit which did not translate into the smoke. Very smooth but monochromatic in character; Less interesting than a fresh tin from what I can remember. The other elements of virginia and especially the small amount of dark fired leaf seem like they have dissipated. This smokes very similar to Sutliffs ready-rubbed pressed burleys: Edgeworth match, RL-PR, F.G. 51 though the later two have a tad bit more of added casing that rounds them out a bit. Toasty aroma with a very light, straight forward natural burley flavor that verges on cardboard. Needs casing for my taste. The new tin way back when did remind me a bit of the old Lane Ltd. Edgeworth Slices. Maple sugars, molasses, licorice and perhaps rum would be a nice addition in a spin-off blend.