Sutliff Tobacco Company Eastfarthing

This is rather a first impressions than a review.

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Presentation: The tobacco is very moist and sticky out of the tin which I can relate to usage of propylene glycol that the US Tobacco providers are kin on using, but I'm not sure. Anyways, had to let it sit for a while (actually I left the lid a little loose for the night and still it needed time to dry) I also found my biggest twig yet in this tin. Smells like vanilla and a little bit of latakia out of the tin.

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Mechanics and tongue bite: Easy to pack, light and keep lit. I'm through almost half the bowl as i'm writing this and no tongue bite has presented itself.

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Taste: It tastes cool and sweet... And American. Some un-ripeness that is present in any American blend I've tasted till now. No tongue bite or harshness not even in retrohale whatsoever. Sweetness is the prominent taste here. Smokes cool and dry despite the heavy aroma and wetness if you let it dry out accordingly. All I can say for this blend is this: Imagine Captain black, only better. If you're into Captain black's vanilla sweet aroma, give this one a try.

Right ... this review will be hard because of the love/hate relationship I have with this tobacco. Popping the tin, you are visually greeted by a dark ribbon cut. The main component of the blend's color should be latakia. The tin aroma isn't overly strong. The vanilla topping is obvious ... but let's be honest .. if you got this, you are already aware this is an aromatic. I am, however, also getting notes of caramel .. like a bourbon. The main blend components do give you the campfire notes, as well as some walnuts and sweet grass from the virginias. In all honesty ... I'm not mad at the tin note.

Now we're going into the preparation territory. The tobacco isn't overly gloopy, however, it is moist to the point I had to leave it out for an hour prior to smoking. The smoke itself is actually really decent. The latakia leads melding with the topping. The burleys and virginias are detectable in the background. The nicotine level isn't high. The burn is cool due to the decent amount of latakia. It didn't bite or turn on me while smoking, but it did require a higher number of relights. I think I should have let it dry for two hours more. Overall it is enjoyable, and the people around you won't be mad at you for smoking. The issue is that I can't smoke it often. Not sure why but although enjoyable, I wouldn't call this a daily burner. I have a bowl every two or three weeks, usually outside in a beer garden. I don't even know what would pair well with this.. bourbon might be ok, but beer isn't for me due to the vanilla casing. Wine could be a good choice .. maybe some Spanish tempranillo or dessert riesling.

I know some people will really like it ... I don't hate it, but I don't include it in my rotation.

I was excited to try this when I was exploring lighter aromatics after taking a latakia break. Perhaps it was due to having recently smoked too much Pirate Kake, but while the taste was good, there just wasn't enough. I tended to draw heavier and hot to try and coax it out. If you are used to lighter blends, this one is worth a try, if not I'd skip it. Note: I also don't like how Sutliff fluffs 1.5 ounces in a jalapeno cheese can that's bigger than C&D's who puts 2oz in theirs. It's inconvenient.