John Middleton, Inc Prince Albert

I know several people have reviewed this one quite a bit, and has gotten praise and scorn. I think that this one is wholly dependant on several factors as far as personal enjoyment. Myself, I am more of an aromatic and taste pipe smoker. In my quest for taste and such I have tried various types of tobacco in most of its forms. That being said I will continue with my review.

This is a burley tobacco and so you can taste the flavor of it very well, but it depends highly on your tastes. It tastes like rolling tobacco, which I personally like in its own right, but mostly for the flavor...but that is not to say it tastes like cigarette tobacco...which tastes pretty awful. However, it has the distinctive taste of burley tobacco too which makes it a pretty good smoke all the way around as long as it is the kind of flavor you enjoy.

The room note, is well...it leaves much to be desired. Thats all I am going to say about that. 🙂

It is nice to smoke when you are looking for something a little bit different, out of your regular tobacco favorites, or need something to smoke while you are busy doing something else around the house. It does have a good piece of nicotine in every smoke...if that is what you are looking for too.

All in all it can be enjoyable to smoke, don't underestimate it for its value, or its package.

Drugstore blends can't be compared to the meticulously created high-brow blends like University Flake, Scottish Cake, or Red Scottish Flake. They are a breed of their own.

This is the best over the counter blend I've had so far. There are some premiere blends it might even hold a candle to. But as far as my experience in OTC goes, this wins. Hey, you got money? Buy a tin of quality. Got a cheap wallet and a long drive? PA. It's a nice little smoke as opposed to, say, Middleton's Apple or Captain Black, somewhat more complicated (we're talking Tony Morrison vs. Ha Jin here, not Dean Koontz vs. Thomas Pynchon, so take it with a grain of salt) than the other OTCs I've tried, and is rather enjoyable in a pinch. So, for an OTC is gets four stars.

Against high-grade tobaccos? Two, maybe even three.

It's like comparing Budweiser to Ommegang as opposed to Budweiser to Naragansett if you're gonna hold it up to the quality blends.

I'm sorry, I tried PA on the general recommendation of this and other sites as a good example of traditional, good quality burley in an inexpensive drugstore brand. I gave it a good shot but I did not find the tast of this tobacco to be at all pleasant plus each time I finished a bowl the aftertaste was too reminiscent of the scent of the estate pipes that I have accumulated and refinish from time to time. Obviously PA has been a common smoke for many of these. Plus the aftertaste hangs with you forever and can't be easily eliminated. It does have a pretty good nicotine kick so if that is what you are needing then this may be your ticket. With so many good quality tobaccos on the market at very reasonable prices, I just can't bring myself to recommend this old standard.

It came, I smoked, and was unhappy. Sorry Al, this is just not an inspiring tobacco.

Ok this is my very first time smoking a pipe but I am not new to smoking hehe. i dont quite know how to review yet. All i can say about this tobacco is it taste ALOT like a cigarette i had to keep relighting it but i think this is because im new to this. It was very dry like bugler or tops rolling ciggarette tobacco. i think that this is because the pouch was not sealed i do not know if this is normal because the box it self was sealed but not the pouch. So theirs my first review just thought i would pop my cherry with this blend. are you suppose to INHALE when smoking a pipe i have no clue ?

Well after my summer of OTC burlies....This one kinda fell short. Taste was ok, nicotine was a little short. Not so bad mixing with Carter Hall (at the suggestion of Big Bob Burley)- the mix was nice in the am. For some weird reason, the mix also smoked better in a cob....But maybe that was me waxing nostalgic....

I have been on a trial and error of the different drug store blends for a few months now. PA is right at the top of my list. I was somewhat afraid to try it after some of the reveiws I read, but was pleasantly surprised when I did. This blend has a straight forward tobacco taste which may be some folks hang up, plus everyone has different taste. The room note is ok so I'm told (sorry to say when I smoke I can not smell the aroma).It is a mild to medium body smoke that I would recommend anyone to at least try. I love to smoke this with a cup of coffee, and the after taste is quite pleasing to me.

One of the time-honored old names in our hobby, recognized even by non-smokers. If you've never smoked it, chances are you know or remember someone who did.

Well, no one's ever gonna associate me with Prince Albert in their sentimental moments. I have no way of knowing how this stuff compares with the Prince Albert that our grandfathers smoked, but nostalgia alone couldn't put this blend over for me. The pouch aroma was pleasant and reminded me somewhat of dried apples. The blend lit up quickly and stayed lit well, smoked cool enough and provided lots of smoke. I usually resolve to complete a tin/pouch before I post a review. But every time I fired up a bowl of PA, I got a headache. Maybe it was the tobacco taste, maybe it was the nicotine content, or maybe just a case of unfortunate body chemistry. Prince Albert is the first blend that I can truly say I won't finish one pouch of, and I certainly won't be buying more.

A tip of the hat to the Prince for his place in pipe smoking lore, legend and history, but I won't be smoking it again.

Prince Albert - I bought this from a local drugstore and was pretty excited to get it home and try this well known blend...besides to find a backky that is pretty cheap would be nice too.

E--GADS!!! I open my pouch to find little kibble and bits! I find a bunch of light brown/tan pebbles...the tobacco is fossilized! This stuff must be dried out? I hope it doesn't normally come like this.

I proceeded to pour some Albert rocks into my pipe and made the mistake of packing with my finger and damn near drew blood. Took a few puffs and set er down. Bad experience to say the least...might have to try a fresher pouch...ah not anytime soon...that was a total nightmare!