Mac Baren Presbyterian Mixture

When I first started to explore English blends in the mid sixties I would see these strange blue and white tins on shops' shelves with, of all things, a Victorian era church on the lid and I didn't know what to make of it. That probably explains why I was somewhat late in smoking this mixture; somewhere around 1969ish. I liked the blend and classified it as a good medium English. That was the problem though - there were so many medium English blends available then that I kind of forgot about it and didn't pick it up again until the mid seventies. However, this tin was not to my liking: lighter in overall color and lighter in taste; it had become a light English and I wasn't into those blends at that time. I didn't smoke this blend again until earlier this year when a longtime smoking buddy of mine showed up with an open tin and I liked it. The tobacco had become darker and more stout in its taste and I felt it was now a medium/heavy English and that was to my liking. I bought five tins and opened one with my buddy and we discovered it had changed somewhat again: still dark and stout but with a wider variation of colors from blond to very dark brown and it smoked with a satisfying medium/heavy English aroma. I feel that the current production blend is the best variant in the last forty-five years and I highly recommend it to all smokers. Four stars.

Enough has already been said about Presbyterian, so I will keep this brief. I’d rather listen to someone around my grandfather’s age give their opinion, who has been smoking this blend for the past 50 years, instead of a snot-nosed novice like me.

From what I know, the blend has been changed over the years and there is a big debate if Latakia even exists in it. Well in my opinion:

1) I can taste ‘salty, seawater and campfire’ so it has to have Latakia in it, unless the Oriental’s fell overboard during the shipping. The Latakia becomes more evident the more you smoke it.

2) I’m not sure how much Presbyterian blend has actually changed over the years. I highly doubt my grandfather or his generation were smoking “Latakia Bombs’ or anything so unbalanced like today. The current Presbyterian seems like something he would smoke, and I doubt he would even touch the Latakia overloaded English Blends.

3) Quite similar to My Mixture 965 (which is my current favorite English), just less emphasis on the Latakia. Great for a beginner or a seasoned veteran.

4) An excellent blend. A darker, more flavorful English blend. I smoked it 3 times out of a corncob and wasn’t impressed, then smoked it from my briar and then absolutely loved it. Give it some time and smoke it from a nice briar.

5) It is a tough decision if I should make this a part of my regular rotation. Like I said, it’s on par with My Mixture 965, unless I like Peterson’s Old Dublin or Dunhill’s London Mixture more, I could see myself smoking Presbyterian for many, many years. A magnificent, all-day smoke, 4 out of 4 tobacco blend.

This is one of my standbys. A faithful, companionable smoke always. Controversy aside, the latakia issue is nearly moot. I believe the blender when they state selected latakia tips are added to the mixture, but they are only the faintest of whisper in the flavor. This blend shines as an everyday smoke of mellow, round va and creamy, savory, briny macedonian. The nose in the tin is like capers or manzanilla olives. I have 2 pipes dedicated to this blend, and i find it to be eminently satisfying. Truly unique, but understated. A perfect gem.

Even halfway into my second tin of Presyberian, this blend remains something of an enigma to me. This tin aroma is rich, earthy, and sweet. Even though it smells _very_ faintly of Latakia, none of that unique smokiness can be detected in the actual smoke. It smokes quite cooly, burning to a fine grey-white ash at the bottom of the bowl.

I've really begun to enjoy the interplay of the fully mature Virginia and buttery Oriental flavors that this historic blend offers. This is an excellent hot weather blend and something I will most definately keep in my rotation.

Well, this was an odd experience!

I bought this tin on the 2nd of May 2019 and opened it in the middle of October 2019. When I opened it I was shocked to discover that it was not vacuum sealed, the tin just opened easily. So basically, for 6 months (at least) this tin was sitting there without being vacuum sealed. I never checked it, so I didn’t know until I decided to open it. And I don’t even know how old this tin is, because I don’t know how Planta tobacco tins can be dated (if they can be dated).

HOWEVER.... the tobacco is contained in a plastic wrapper and a paper disc over it, so I guess that this is what saved my tobacco. Curious enough, even after all this time, the tobacco was not dry at all, it was just right to put in the pipe and smoke. However, I did put it in a vacuum sealed jar.

First impressions:

Now, the second surprise came when I wanted to smell the tobacco from the tin. It had a very sweet note, somehow close to vanilla. I really didn’t expect this, because it’s an english blend, right? It somehow reminded me of Samuel Gawith Perfection. I don’t know if this is normal for Presbyterian, maybe my tin was different, maybe I need to get another one that smells and tastes like most people describe it.

The cut is indeed a coarse cut, small pieces, a lot of golden leaf, some brown leaf and a little black leaf, which should be the latakia. You can tell it contains a lot of virginia just by looking at it, so no mystery here.

I packed up my pipes easily, and it was also easy to light it with two matches and keep it lit. Burned great, maybe a bit too fast. It didn’t get hot, but it somehow burned fast, I didn’t even realize I was already to the half of the bowl.

The first smokes were very sweet, with a grassy and sweet virginia in the front, a bit of floral taste and yes, vanilla taste. Why does my tin have this vanilla note? I don’t know. However, there’s also a little smoky, creamy latakia in the back. Tastes more like a scottish blend than an english blend, if we take the description of the scottish blend from pipedia, saying that “A Scottish blend is similar to an English, with less Latakia, a more dominant Virginia character and, perhaps, little or no oriental leaf.” This is how I would label it.

The taste is mild to medium, but it’s good. I didn’t like Early Morning Pipe because it was too mild and flat, but Presbyterian, even though it’s as mild as EMP, I like this one better, I find more taste in this, so if you’re out of EMP and want something similar, get yourself some Presbyterian.

Later impressions:

After many other bowls and almost the tin empty, I decided to give the final impressions, because guess what! Things changed!

While it sat in the jar for a month, it changed. First of all, the vanilla smell is not that strong anymore, but it still delivers a very sweet smell.

So, what about the taste? Well, definitely changed. A decent virginia with a touch of latakia.

Still mild, but the vanilla taste is gone, leaving a virginia forward taste, and a liiiiittle taste of creamy latakia. When you get to half of the bowl, the sweetness fades a bit, leaving some room for the little amount of latakia. This is why I don’t know if I should smoke it in a pipe for virginia tobaccos (like a billiard, chimney) or a pipe for english blends (prince, pot, bulldog, author etc.).

Having so much virginia in it, not only changes the flavor, but the smoking technique as well. What I mean is that if you puff too quick or too much, you’ll have the same experience as with a straight virginia: It gets hot, not necessarily the smoke, but the pipe. So, puff easily. If your pipe gets to hot, let it rest for a few minutes. The good thing is, this tobacco doesn’t go off easily, so you don’t need to puff too much in order to keep it lit. It burns excellent, with no need or relights, leaving a good gray-white ash and leaves very little dottle or moisture.

It’s a decent smoke, I don’t know if it’s better than Early Morning Pipe like I initially thought, but not my type. I like strong blends, strong latakia. It’s subjective in this case.

However, I doubt that you’ll hate it. There’s nothing to hate about it. It will either leave you indifferent or you will like it. Easy to smoke, pleasant, but nothing special, a good all day blend.

My first love in pipe smoking. The macedonians are just great, the virginias first quality, and the latakia mmmm to add some controversy i dont think its latakia at all, maybe some sort of smoked turkish, but just a pinch. This is a must for every pipe smoker, since the first moment you open the tin and smell like a dirty barn coming out (no kidding) till you left gray ashes at the bottom of your pipe.

Being a Presbyterian myself, this blend had my immediate curiosity and desire to try it upon seeing it listed at P&C. Providence afforded me the opportunity to try some a couple weeks ago while visiting a friend (while BBQ'ing). I took notes during my smoke so I could post my thoughts here.

That said, my friend stated it was a new tin he was saving for our 'que knowing I'd probably be interested in trying it. I cracked the tin and found a piece of cardboard covering the goods. The smell was wonderful and like no other tobacco I have tried before or since. First and foremost was the plum/raisin, followed by the Virginia's with their familiar sweet hay aroma. I was about to move pull it away from my nose to remove the cardboard when I got a hint of leather and/or earthy aroma with floral-ish notes. OOoo, wait; was that Latakia? Intriguing. Cardboard out, interesting plastic bag opened ... and wow ... now the aroma's are even more powerful but with that moistness that's hard to describe. I just sat there and took it in. Blissful is all I can say. My wife even liked it(!!).

The cut as y'all know is a fine ribbon which I don't usually like as I prefer flake. I have to admit, I was disappointed with this facet of the blend. It is my only point of contention with it; in fact, if it came in flake: I'd be broke. If anybody reading this knows of a flake that is similar to PM, please let me know. Because it seemed moist, I pulled out a couple bowls worth out of the tin and let it sit about 20 minutes before loading. The rest sat till 2nd bowl (see further down).

It packs easily enough into the bowl and doesn't "rise up" afterwards before lighting. I drew a couple of times just to see if it changed profile at all. Only a bit in that it was mainly the leather tones coming through.

Char light revealed the hay and leather first and forward followed by some floral. Very pleasant and only served to pique my interest further. 2nd light was easy and it stayed lit till I was done. PM is a cool smoke; I've since tried freight training with it and my pipe(s) only ever get warm, never hot. Very forgiving. The Virgina was there instantly. Perhaps that's because I'm a huge VaPer fan and detect my beloved Va's quickly. However, the sweetness was accompanied quickly with the floral and then rounded out with what appeared to be a Lat. Incredible.

Mid-bowl the tastes are melded together perfectly and last to the end of the bowl. It remains consistent and satisfying throughout. If any flavor moves forward, it is the Lat - but only a touch forward.

If there is a lingering taste, it's mildly sweet and smokey. I've only had one bowl where there was a bit more than ash at the bottom.

Bottom line: It is in my rotation always as I consider it 5 out of 4 stars. If you are looking for an introduction to English blends, PM is where I'd recommend you start. However, true to its name: be warned, it's stubborn and won't like leave your rotation.

As I said above, I had a 2nd bowl shortly after the first (and finishing my Shiner beer). Short version: it was good or better having been aired out for about an hour. Lighting was even easier was probably the main difference.

My first day as a member and my first review, so I hope you like it.

When I commenced my pipe smoking journey, I was like a blindfolded man lost in the wilderness. I randomly sampled a collection of aromatic, virginian and English blends together with one vaper (Peterson Elizabethan). I decided I did not like aromatics, as I found them either too cloying, just tasteless or tasting nothing like the tin descriptions (looking at you Peterson’s Connoisseur). The English and Virginias I tried nearly put me right off the hobby. The English blends by Samuel Gawith gave me steam burns and just tasted dirty (Commonwealth and Skiff Mix) and their virginias (Straight Virginia and Best Brown) were huge nic bombs (but tasted pretty good barring those steam burns and the spasms of heavy nausea). Elizabethan is good but had me throwing up uncontrollably. But before throwing in the towel, I decided to give the hobby one more chance. I spent time doing research using inter alia this website and listening to the YouTube channel ‘Stuff n Things’ with our good friend Bradley. I then proceeded to engineer my ideal flavour profile: a pronounced savoury forwardness together with that familiar virginian rich sweetness, accompanied with a lingering smokey yet creamy backdrop from beginning to end. And being a nicotine featherweight, my ideal blend had to be rich, flavourful but light on the nic. You could liken my perfect blend with a woman’s idea of the perfect man i.e. non-existent. But that did not deter me. I looked beyond the brands and blends with the most hype and “sex appeal” and searched for a brand with modesty and a deep sense of history. I think it was my destiny to stumble upon Presbytarian Mixture. I loved how the product’s recipe originated from the thoughtful minds of humble theologians and became the mainstay of the great Stanley Baldwin. Such distinguished patronage coupled with it’s survival to this day must be a positive thing. So I took the plunge and splurged $120 Australian dollars on a tin of Presbytarian Mixture (tobacco taxes are insane in this country). I faced the possible realisation that this purchase could be a total waste of money and I swore that I would pack the whole lot in if Presbytarian turned out to be a wash-out. That was a year ago.

I am now writing this review in my recliner smoking a bowlful of Presbytarian mixture in my Orlik calabash gourd meerschaum pipe. I smoke filtered because of my sensitivity to nicotine, but that does not change the flavour profile of this fine quality product in any way! Firstly, there is latakia in this blend, but it’s purpose is as a seasoning to the oriental and virginia tobaccos that are the stars of this movie. The sweet virginias and the savoury sour orientals fight against one another, like two hot babes fighting for you to take her home. And you can’t decide which one: the sweet, fragile petite angel (virginia) or the strong, long-limbed, curvy, wildcat (oriental). Depending on my mood at the time, I pick one and enjoy her as the main theme with the other playing second fiddle. But everytime, I’m having a threesome interchangeablely with these insatiable two. And the nicotine level is gorgeously seductive, not ram you up against the wall and tear your clothes off.

The ribbon cut for Presbytarian is my favourite preparation: pre-prepared, easy to pack and always the right moisture content. And it lights and smoulders like a dream: at most, only ever have to re-light once. Once fired up, I drift into a trance of deep concentration, contemplation and preponderance. Now I understand why Earl Baldwin made Presbytarian his brand of choice. Those caramelly virginias, those sour olive nuances of the orientals, all brought together by the smokey charcters of the lightly sprinkled latakias.

My journey for perfect tobacco ended there. I still try different blends, and have found a few others I like. But I alway end up going back to Presbytarian as my absolute favourite. The girls miss me! Peterson Standard Mix is excellent, but Presbytarian is the apex.

I was a new pipe smoker, mainly smoking Lane 1-Q. One day, I noticed a tobacco tin named Presbyterian. I'm a reformed Presbyterian myself so out of curiosity I decided to purchase this non-Aromatic. That day I was visiting my brother. I told him about the tobacco I brought with me to try and it was called the Presbyterian. He chuckled and moved on with his work on his car. I opened the Tin. The smell was off putting since I had no experience with non Aros. Bright leaf, black leaf, and the pungent smell is all I remember experiencing from that day. I packed the cob, lit it, and was disappointed immediately. My brother nearby seemed to think it smelled good. I however, smoked half the bowl and dumped the rest. I then went on a never ending search of English blends. I realized my taste had changed so much that I did not even want to try the Lane 1 anymore. I also realized I didn't care for most of them the first time I smoked them, but when I tried them 1 or 2 weeks later, I somehow enjoyed them. My tastebuds were ever changing. Then I remembered the Presbyterian. It had been 4 months since that day when I first lit that first bowl of non aromatic presbyter, in the garage while my brother was working on his car. I smoked my 2nd bowl and was amazed at its flavor this time. So weird and so unbelievable was the second encounter. None of the flavors were apparent to me that first day. Now, It was much drier, almost as if it was too dry, and stale. But I was shocked at how my taste buds reacted.

THE TASTE: a very mild fruity flavor showed up first. Then my tongue picked up sweetness that I was not expecting in an English blend. It was sweeter than Va/pers which I had come to love so much along with English blends. This fruity, sweet taste was suddenly being overtaken by a prominent caramel taste almost after 3rd or 4th puff. It felt pure, and clean and sweet. No harsh ashy bite, no scratches at all. This slightly fruity, and strongly caramelized flavor continued with easy puffs leaving sweet caramel aftertaste on my palate as it exited my mouth. It also had slight spiciness if I pushed it through my nose. Very pleasant spice note, but not too much. In fact, I got (sweet-caramel-fruit) in my mouth, and (spicy-fruit) in my nose at the same time. I was floored by its simple yet, elegant sophistication. It's like a mild English with a va/per mixed. As a member of Presbyterian church, holding on to the calvinistic doctrines of grace spiritually, I can tell you, my old Presbyterian forefather who preached Calvin's doctrines from Scotland, knew his pipe tobacco well. I will follow in his footsteps both in his choice of tobacco, and in his convictions of faith.