Mac Baren Presbyterian Mixture

This blend grew on me. When I first cracked the tin, I smelled a familiar scent that I haven't smelled in over 30years : pine pitch. This is the very scent that used to accompany the old Dunhill Nightcap back in the day. Imagine my surprise smelling it here after so long. For all pine pitch aroma however, the blend was not latikia forward. This disappointed me because I really wanted it to be the typical lat bomb English. Seemed rather light. Bit there was this special flavor and aroma pouring through that mixture of orientals, Virginia and condiment latikia. That flavor was irreplaceable in my cellar of tobacco. I started to reach for the PM every time I wanted an English. It was magic. Only PM afforded me that fine, mellow incense and sweet/savory flavor. An exotic flavor that I invite you to try. Just don't expect an oily lat bomb. This is a tobacco of refinement that settles on your palate the more you smoke.

Nothing smells like Presbyterian. I've tried countless blends, and nothing comes close to it's magical tin note. It's difficult to describe aside from just saying: it's a perfect "English blend" smell with a hint of... something.

Nothing tastes like Presbyterian either, and I think it's because of that extra "something". And the Orientals - they're a high quality Macedonian leaf, and there are plenty of them. Unlike many English blends that focus on the Latakia as the main flavor... the Orientals are the main player in Presbyterian. There definitely is Latakia in this blend, but it's only there in small amounts to enhance the other flavors. The Virginia's, too, are there to provide sweetness and contrast to the main player, the Macedonian leaf. The extra "something" is a very slight hint of cloves or... I just don't know. It has a mild "Christmas-y", lightly smokey scent and flavor. Whatever it is, it really makes Presbyterian what it is. That "something" also shoulders some of the weight of the lessened Latakia, and it's what makes it such an original, enticing blend, IMO.

Bottom line: I don't know what to compare Presbyterian to. There's really nothing like it. In my opinion, it's the ideal English blend, with a tiny dash of something extra... it's just about perfect in every way. Experienced smokers will appreciate it's subtlety.

After reading the maelstrom of reviews on this blend, I had a tin sent from Smokingpipes and decided to give this a whirl. I am smoking this in a 40+ year old Weber billiard (unsmoked!) so there can be no taint to my smoking this. Was normal as far as moisture content in the newly opened tin. To me it looks and smells like Early Morning Pipe in the tin - a mild English. Lighting up and about a half hour later I come up with Latakia in a minor way, but surely is not anything close to being a center player. Nicotine was mild, and was an average smoke generator in my experience. Virginia is what I can taste and this stuff reminds me of Skiff Mixture which I smoked years ago when steering away from Aromatics. Recommend for people who enjoy a mild English tobacco.

The flavors of citrusy grass and hay come out just before reaching the first third of the bowl, when it starts to get really smokey. Seems somewhat naturally sweet, but man there's so much smoke for me (and that's a good thing). Definitely packing this into my rotation.

Sweet Virginia and spicy Oriental, Latakia is minimal. Cool and dry smoke, no chance of tongue bite, not to complex so perfect for all day smoke. 3 and half stars.

Man, they weren't kidding when they said this was a "mild English blend".

Upon first tin crackage, there's a very pleasant, but mild, sweetness and smokiness. It comes in a very thin, stringy ribbon cut. Really almost a shag. It loads easily enough and is well behaved in the pipe. The flavor, however, is an extremely mild "orientelness" with a hint of sweetness. Not bad, but not great, there's better mild Englishes out there.

I bought my first tin of this back in 2004. I still have it, with just a few bowls worth missing. I hadn't come across it in the vast cellar in years. I decided to do some rearranging and organizing of all the open tins and near empty jars when I spotted it. Its fairly dried out, so I ordered a few fresh tins to finally review this ancient mixture.

Opening the fresh tin, I'm surprised they still use a plastic pouch inside the tin instead of paper. Majority of very bright-blonde Va, with specks of medium brown and black tobacco bringing up the remainder. Tin note is a very sour aroma from the Orientals, with a hint of smokiness from the minimal Latakia. Reminds me of the sour note in Esoterica's "And So To Bed", minus the more Latakia aroma. Moisture content is where it should be. Packs with ease, just as I remember. Pre-lit draw produces those sour notes onto the pallet, which taste surprisingly pleasant.

Initial lighting takes a few match strikes. The Va offers hay like profile, and the orientals offer a terrific spiceiness that balance perfect. The Latakia offers very little in this blend, but it does hang out in the back just enough to know its there. If you are looking for a great English blend but are not a fan of Latkia, this is your guy.

This does tingle my tongue a bit, but I've always had a sensitivity issue. Most shouldn't be bothered. Burns well and even, leaving just a powdery gray ash. For me, this blend worked the best in a tall, narrow bowl, but we are all different.

Planta – Presbyterian Mixture

Since getting into this hobby I’ve seen plenty of reviews that heap praise on this blend on this website and elsewhere. Given that its seen as a good beginner’s English blend I figured I would give it a shot. Not available in Ontario so I had to mail-order from the USA.

The tin note is quite nice and not overwhelming like some of the English blends I’d tried previously. The scent is definitely like many of the English blends that I’ve tried but not quite as strong and spicy. Good start.

The tobacco is a ribbon cut and a large portion is light strands which I assume are Virginia. Darker ribbons scattered throughout but this one seems a bit more yellow Virginia heavy than others I’ve tried.

Lighting up and I knew I liked this blend immediately. It has a light incense note on the retrohale which I love reminiscent of London Mixture. The Virginia develops through the bowl as it seems to for me into a nice savory flavour that balances well with the sweet incense-like flavour. The Oriental is there but takes a back seat to the Virginia in my opinion.

I would recommend this tobacco to anyone. In terms of the Latakia, despite my unrefined palate I know that I can taste it in here. I suspect that once I’m unable to acquire any more Dunhill blends that this may become a regular purchase for me, but for now it seems a little redundant.

I really wanted to like this mixture. My daily rotation is currently all Dunhill - EMP in the morning, Flake at noon, and Nightcap after dinner. When Smokingpipes.com sent me an email about getting a batch of Presbyterian in stock, I ordered three tins. Upon arrival, I opened a tin and took a deep whiff. Good enough. Next, I let it dry for an hour as it was a touch moist. I then packed my pipe and went out on the deck to enjoy. First puffs were ok, seemed a "tweener" between EMP and Nightcap, but then it started to bite me. I slowed down my puffing but it kept on biting. I also noticed some stomach rumblings and a moderate nicotine buzz. I figured it might be because it was newly opened, so I set it aside for a week to try again. Since that time, I've tried 4 bowls all of which gave me tongue bite and a pretty good nicotine buzz. I'm going to open the second tin and see if I get the same results, but based upon my initial experiences I cannot recommend it.