Ashton Old Dog

With the smell of fall in the air this morning I opened up a cellared tin. At first crack it smells of burnt wood and leather. I settle it out and go make the coffee. Once brewing I come back and load my pipe. Tobacco is slightly oily but packs well with no fuss. First light chars and with a quick tamp and relight I am ready. On the first few draws the tobacco is strong. Perfect for the cool morning air. I sit outside with mug in hand and smoke waking up and waiting for the big storm that is coming. Flavor is one sided but in this man cave tobacco I feel at home. It is strong. The kick is stronger. Slow drags make it so much more enjoyable. The sun comes up and I am ready to start my day. Happy I chose this tin today. I will jar and smoke the rest over the week. One of my better moments.

Ah, the memories. This is one of the first real pipe tobaccos I ever smoked. Coming from a cigar background the brand Ashton meant quality to me and I just grabbed a tin off the shelf. Had I read the tin description and realized this was not an aromatic (pretty much what I looked for in my early pipe days) I probably never would have purchased it. I sure am glad i was in haste.

This is so nice. It has that beautiful sweet and sour thing going on. The orientals are so nice, and to be honest I have not really found anything that is close to this blend. The quality is there, and it is as strong as you want it to be, it just seems to be just right no matter what I am in the mood for. The room note is pretty skunky, this is a pipe smokers blend, not one for a pipe smokers significant other.

I can say this blend does not seem to age well, or maybe my memories are just better than the tobacco really is. My tin is from 2007 and although it has been stored properly it does not seem to have that beautiful pungent taste it used to, could be due to nostalgia palate.

Cannot comment on the re introduction by McClelland. I am going to give it a shot because I respect the McClelland name and I liked the original so much, but do those reproductions ever really work out the way you want them to? We shall see.

I would like to point out that I am an english fancier and enjoy lots of latakia in my pipe. Having said that, this is one of the better english type blends I am yet to come across. This is a rich smoke, smokier than most. The tin aroma is what you would expect, latakia (I love the tin aroma of this one). The only down side is the McClelland moisture. This tobacco definitly needs to be aired out unless you have plenty of pipe cleaners next to you at all times. The flavor upon lighting is basically the same as the tin aroma. There is no flavoring used here but the black cavendish adds a slight sweetnes that compliments the smoky latakia quite nicely. This smokes cool everytime, all the way to the bottom. If its not properly aired out, there may be a little moisture as well as a small amout of dottle (this is not a problem when properly aired). For some reason this one reminds me a little bit of McClellands British Woods, another top player among english blends (IMHO). Fellow enlish fanciers should definitly try Old Dog, and I feel confident in giving this one my highest recommendation.

Tin Aroma: This is quintessentially english; dark and sweet, musty and vaguely oily. Really, much of my preference for english-type blends may be solely based on their tin aroma.

Physical Characteristics: A short ribbon cut, almost a cross-cut, if you will. Needs a bit of airing before it is smokeable, due to a high moisture content, but otherwise a beautiful dark blend. Smokes to a dove grey ash.

Notes: Fortunately for degenerate latakia lovers like myself, the taste and room aroma both accurately reflect the tin aroma, making this a near flawless blend. Make no mistake about it, this is 'big latakia', and may well destroy relationships with those uneducated to the sublime mysteries of the Cyprian leaf.

Verdict: Having so enjoyed Celebrated Sovereign, I have no idea why I did not try this earlier, but now that I have smoked my year old tin of it, I am sure to purchase more

A very dark blend with a very full can aroma, mostly sweet smoky (Cyprian)latakia with naturally sweet cavendish. Like most McClelland blends, this one benefited from some airing out before lighting. I may just like my blends a little drier than some. Upon lighting it, the flavor is just like the can aroma. Lots of latakia, balanced by the turkish and virginias, and a slightly sweeter note form the cavendish. I believe the sweetness is natural, as I could not detect any artificial flavor here. It burns well when puffed at a slow to normal rate, and is always cool on the tongue. As expected, the room aroma is quite heavy, and will drive most "significant others" to complain if they are not used to this much latakia.

I could kick myself for buying this. I read a thread on pipes.org praising this blend, calling for a reintroduction. Having seen a short supply of old Ashton tins at a Tinderbox, I happily scooped this up, with a good two years on it. My problem is this--it's great! ...and out of production.

I won't bother going into the details regarding why I love this stuff. It will just make me mad.

i bought a tin of "old dog" at a recent pipe show.the tin was 7 year`s old so...i can`t compare it to the newer "old dog",since this was my first experience with this tobacco.i wanted to buy a tin after reading the description in a pipe tobacco catalog.the description seemed very close to another tobacco i really enjoy,british woods.

well,after the first bowlfull i fell for this tobacco.i think it has a nice smokey taste,and smokes cool for a heavier english tobacco.i think it is alot like british woods.i like my tobacco alittle on the dry side,so i let it air out alittle.this tobacco is easy to keep lit,and smokes to a nice gray ash.this one will fit in nicely with british woods and nightcap,which are in my tobacco rotation.give it a try.

This is truly an exceptional blend by any standard.Although McClelland blends this,there is no ketchup smell at all. IMHO this is probably their best English offering for the Oriental/Turkish afficianado. If FMOTT can be described as sweet then this would be tart.It is very similar to FMOTT, but the different orientals yield a more Germain like quality.This is for the lover of Turkish /Latakia blends.The addition of black cavendish yields a very smooth and sweet/tart flavor.It is so luscious in flavor it cannot be described.This is a triple chocolate torte with sweet chocolate ganache on top.It has a cube like cut,so be careful not to overheat the pipe.You will never experience any bite, harshness,or bitterness.The only warning I will attach to this is the folllowing: The flavor lingers on your tongue,anything you smoke after this will continue to tast like this blend.I give this 5 out of 4 stars! You read that right. Go get some.

I concur with Norm, tilman and JClark about this tobacco. It is one of the best English blends I have tried. It makes a large volume of thick, creamy smoke that is very, very smooth. There is no tongue bite here. The taste is rich and creamy, too, with a little interesting perfume added by the xanthia. The nicotine level is satisfying, but not overpowering. Put your feet up and watch the fire while you sip on a bowl of this stuff.