Solani 127: Green Label

Despite not being an aromatic fan, when I saw that this was apple flavoured, I had to try it, as I'd never smoked an apple-flavoured tobacco before, so I picked up a tin along with my usual order of straight-up tobaccos.

Upon opening the tin, this presents itself with a lovely apple scent, there may be (as others have noted) a slightly chemical, sickly edge to it, but in the main, the tin note is very pleasant, although somewhat overpowering.

The tobacco appears to be a mixture of ribbon & wild cut. Predominantly ribbon, but with big swathes of blonde leaf left unchopped, and Cavendish balled up into little pellets. The mixture is largely Black Cavendish, with a good measure of blonde Virginia in there, I would say the ratio is probably nearing 50/50, with the Cavendish perhaps being slightly dominant.

The tobacco packs easily & lights well. It burns steadily & doesn't require too many relights, doesn't get goopy & doesn't - for me, at least (others may disagree) - deliver any tongue bite, although it probably could if smoked recklessly.

The apple flavour is strong - no doubt about hat you're smoking here - and remains so throughout most of the bowl, tailing off towards the last third of the bowl, and leaving that part of the smoke somewhat lacklustre, as - whilst I'm sure the tobaccos used are okay - when one has had strong apple flavour & then it's gone, without a space to readjust the palette, then the taste of Cavendish & bright Virginia can seem a little insipid. Whilst the flavour is there, though, if you like apples (I do), you'll most likely appreciate it.

The room note is very pleasant, & the nicotine strength is mild - mild/medium.

I probably won't buy any more, because I don't generally smoke most aromatics unless I get them as gifts, I prefer my tobacco more tobacco-ey,complex, and a bit stronger in the nicotine dept. However, as aromatics go, this one's not bad, and if you like apples, the I would definitely recommend if for you. Pair it with a mild sweet beverage, like an apple juice or a fruit tea. It deserves 3 stars as - apart from the last third of the bowl - it was a simple, but fairly enjoyable experience, especially if you like this sort of thing.

Solani - 127: Green Label. After reading the reviews on here I felt I had to try this for myself. Granted, I doubted I'd enjoy an apple tobacco but if I try it I can form my own opinion.

The first thing to stand out from the opened tin (aside from the huge smell of apples) was the size of the ribbons; it's not the Black Cavendish pieces that are large, they're 'normal', it's the Virginia ones that look incongruous. I note how a few guys found their tins contents dry, mine however look perfect, it must be a bit hit and miss!

Once lit the flavour is exactly as I thought it would be from the tins note, it seems to be mostly apple. That's not me wrongly expecting another false flavour, what I mean by 'mostly' is I get mainly apples and hardly any tobacco flavour from it. Tobacco flavour aside, I really believe a small amount of vanilla or cream flavouring would make a drastic improvement to the smoke. There are a few better points I guess, it burns well, doesn't bite and gives an alright room note but for me they don't improve the final result by much.

Somewhat recommended as I believe some folks would love it.

I bought this based on the reviews that claimed this tobacco to be 'heavily cased'. I thought I was going to get an apple tobacco in which I could taste some apple.

What I ended up with was a shadow of a memory of a hint of a whisper of apple. I can hardly taste apple (or tobacco for that matter) at all. There is not even a room note of apple. The predominant flavor in this tobacco is WAX PAPER.

I guess Solani has joined the long list of other tobacco companies in pandering to the people who want their aromatics to taste like squadron leader (i.e. hot air - no taste at all - not even tobacco).

Solani, please put the flavor back in and stop using wax paper in your tins.

This is what seems to be a disturbing trend. If you dont want to taste apple/vanilla/cherry/orange then dont buy apple/vanilla/cherry/orange tobacco DUH!

If you only buy aromatics to draw attention to yourself then complain that you can taste apple/vanilla/cherry/orange, well - grow up and stop ruining it for everyone else, and tobacco companies, stop listening to them.

UPDATE: 23/07/2013 - After removing the wax paper and letting it rest, the apple flavours are coming through, actually not a bad smoke, but still needs more flavour - I guess the wax paper got the balance of it. Upgrading to 3 stars.

Yeeooww!

This is one hot apple turnover.

Sweet apple odor upon opening the tin. Almost juicy, thick cut black and Virginia leaf. Packed well but was a bugger to light and keep lit. After 1/4 bowl I decided I didn't want to keep it lit anyway. Too much apple flavoring for me.

If you enjoy aromatics with an apple flavor that is steep with every puff, well, here you go pardner.

i enjoyed this tobacco, first puff you can tell solani uses very good quality tobacco, way better than any OTC pharmacy crap i use to like, however i want to add i used to chew tobacco, the smell and taste of this is identical to skoal green apple, kind of turned my stomach at first with my mind crossing back and fourth over different tobacco realms, but once you get over the strong smell out of the tin all is well, comes a little wet so it is hard to get lit, however once lit it stayed lit, definitely has a bit of tongue bite even with a medico paper filter, still need to try it with a 9mm charcoal, but if you just sip on it you'll have no problems....the apple flavor is stronger than i would have liked, which is why i couldn't smoke this all day everyday, if they could make the whole bowl taste like the bottom half of the bowl id be a happy camper (less appley) but when it does come out of the cellar i'll thoroughly enjoy it, as far as the room note goes my daughters' reviews aren't in yet, but i like it. highly recommend if you are a die hard green apple fan or crave a fruity kick here or there

This is another well done blend by Solani. The topping is not my top choice, but I did enjoy every bowl I smoked in a meer. I did not like this one in a briar at all, it was just too sweet. I kind of enjoyed it in a cob, but it lost too much sweetness in the cob.

The base is pretty much a standard European aromatic base. Mostly Virginia with some black Cavendish thrown in. It provides just enough body to let you know you are, indeed, smoking tobacco and not candy. The topping is described as apple, but don't expect the taste of an apple that you just bit into. Think more in terms of a jolly rancher green colored hard candy, that being the sourapple flavor. That is what this most reminded me of.

Solani does aromatics better than just about anyone, IMO. This came from the tin at a perfect smoking humidity. It takes a light without issue and remains so throughout the duration of the smoke if uninterrupted. The topping does not really fade and it can be sensed from beginning to end. It is the dominant flavor. Do not expect rich tobacco taste.

Finally, the room note on this is very good. In a crowded room at the last Chicago show, one of my friends who had just purchased a new meer was wondering what to smoke in it. I shared that I really liked Aros through my meers and that this one was fantastic through the same. I pulled out my Altinok Billiard and we both proceeded to load our meers. We lit up about the same time and it was amazing how heads turned as the smoke emanated throughout the room triggering compliments from the owner of each nose it touched.

This one is a crowd pleaser to be sure. Three stars, but it is still not as good as the Solani Blue Label.

This one has the strongest caramel topping that I have found in an aromatic, ever. The apple takes second place as a medium player behind the caramel. Nothing else is detectable in the taste, except a hint of cavendish.

With a topping this strong you would think this blend would bite like mad, but it only does if pushed too hard.

Sometimes an overwhelmingly flavored tobacco is all that will do, and I don't know of any tobacco that has a stronger topping than this does, not even a lakeland flake, exept tinderbox cherry almond.

The room note is so tantalizing that people want to taste this stuff, even non-smokers!

If you want a flavor bomb this is it. Probably the best caramel aromatic that I ever tried, and one I will never be without.

This blend was recomended to me by Frank at Barclay Rex on Madison Ave. in NYC. This type of Blend can be found under other names Carolina Rose and another Blend sold in Germany called Fancy which is the best of all three but har to find in the USA. This is a very pleasant aromatic smoke for the smoker for a change. It has a bit of a bite. There is a faint Apple & cherry flavor. At the start but just gets smokey later. Like mentioned in previous reviews. The problem with this type of blend is that it is better when dryer. It will then stay lit better. And it softens the bite a bit. Worth a try also try Carolina Rose which is the same blend. You get a little more with Carolina Rose for the price. I have to say I like to keep this around for a departure from the usual blends. Beside the ladies like the aroma. It is a Medium Smoke maybe not for the beginner pipe smoker. Open the tin for a day or two and let it dry out a bit first. CAROLINA ROSE IS A BETTER CHOICE.

The cut on this quite unique and the tin aroma is that of a very heavily cased tobacco. The casing is so heavy and overwhelming that it reminds of cologne or parfume'. It was very astringant when smoking with a cloying aftertaste and no tobacco flavor at all. Yuck!