Chacom #1

Slightly surprised by the quality of the Chacom #4 blend, I opened the other tin of this brand I have - what about #1? The manufacturer claims this blend as English, but the relatively small amount of latakia and Cavendish, which slightly standing out in the flavor and taste –the reason to attribute it to the Scottish type.

Appearance: the tin, packaged in early 2022, contained a mix of tobaccos in various hues, from lemon-wheat to almost black. Latakia was frankly not much, cavendish is a bit more. The different sorts of tobacco were easily distinguishable, in addition, some of the Virginia was in a thoroughly broken flake form, while some was sliced ribbon similar to the other components. A certain amount of fine leaf is noted among the orientals. Other external flaws in the mixture has not been found, the humidity is also almost perfect - the mixture does not require humidification or drying.

Flavor: For a relatively small amount of latakia, its leathery and peaty tones are surprisingly bright. Cavendish brings a pleasantly sweet wine-cherry variety to them. Grassy and light fruity tones of light and orange Virginia are successfully intertwined with these flavors. As for the orientals, they play the background role in the bouquet of the blend, creating a spicy accompaniment which is, however, quite simple, providing just notes of pepper and coriander, and almost sinks in the latakia and cavendish. The overall bouquet is calm, subdued.

Taste: subdued, but a little harsh at the beginning because of the fresh tobacco. However, the overall taste quickly becomes more smoot. There is some prevalence of spicy, slightly pepperish orientals. The mix of Oriental, Latakia and Cavendish also gives a very pleasant, slightly sweet, nutty nuance with some tannin that binds your tongue at the beginning of smoking. Then the Cavendish opens up a little more, the tobacco becomes a little more winey and sweet. There is not much latakia at all, it complements the orientals rather than acting as an independent player. As for Virginia, its light bread notes act as a kind of basis for the rest of the taste nuances. The tobacco is a little deceptive with respect to strength - initially it seems that it is below average, but in fact, in very large pipes you can get a nicotine hit, so I conclude that the strength of tobacco is medium, indeed. The tobacco smokes slowly and cool, burning into a gray ash with few small particles. The aftertaste is sweet and winey, a little astringent, not persistent.

The smoke has a spicy-sweet smell. It is layered in a loose carpet around the room, being quite persistent.

What's the result? A great, albeit slightly treacherous, in terms of strength, morning blend. I'd still let it age in a tin for a few years, as it's a little harsh when fresh initially. It certainly has some competititors, i.e. Ashton Artisan's Blend by the same manufacturer, Kohlhase & Kopp, and there are plenty of good Scottish blends by other manufacturers as well.