John Middleton, Inc Walnut

Well, one thing that cannot be claimed with Walnut is that change of ownership messed-up this blend; it is John Middleton's oldest blend, and its original.

As we age, our tastes and tastebuds change; and though the ownership of this venerable tobacco has not changed hands, I would swear the tobacco HAS. Twenty years ago, people complemented its aroma; now they threaten me with arrest. I know there are other variables in there...but don't get me started!

Walnut is a classic, no argument there. There are others in its vein, and better. The list is long and distinguished, but this is about Walnut.

This is truly a Burley-based mixture, and far from the worst of its kind. But it DOES wear on one after a while. It is NOT walnut-flavored, but it is cased, and the polyethylene-glycol only nasties-up the casing. DuPont long-ago abondoned their slogan, "Better Living Through Chemistry." Why can't John Middleton follow suit? Despite propaganda to the contrary, tobacco CANNOT be re-humidified to its original taste. Middleton might experiment with a better seal on its 12-oz. container of Walnut. It used to be much better.

There is no heat, bite, or harshness to this blend. But it does draw derisive comments from those who can detect Latakia at a hundred years. And the casing--whatever it might be--wears on one after half a can. After a while you might think you are smoking a candy bar.

If you like a combination of Burley and Latakia, you could do worse than Walnut...but you could also do a whole lot better.

I aged a tub for four years before opening. Actually, I think this is okay if you live alone and don't care if your pad smells like ash tray. It is too mild for me to smoke outside. Smoke it slow for a fairly tasty bowlful of a gently complex blend. I don't think this will make my rotation unless I forget what a premium blend tastes like.

(Notes based on 2oz bag, not a tub)

This blend was not at all what I expected. Tin note was surprisingly heavy with Latakia and Kentucky, which was not expected from an OTC tobacco. It should be noted that there is significantly less Latakia in the smoke than the tin note would suggest.

As a frequent burley smoker, I would not consider this a burley-forward blend. It's nothing like PA, CH, etc in that regard. There's more going on here.

Sadly, it is like its OTC cousins in the chemical content and subsequent chemical aftertaste. It also bites, unlike Carter Hall and others.

An interesting and surprising OTC. But a chemical laden OTC nonetheless. Worth a try for the experience. Certainly not a keeper as there are far superior mild Latakia blends out there.

Edit: it was suggested that I mix this 50/50 with Carter Hall to create something called "Wal-Hall". The result is surprisingly good and better than straight Walnut.

Lets go back to meet John Middleton in 1856 in his shop in Philadelphia. No cars, no airplanes, no telephones, horse drawn carriages. No dynamite, no machine guns, no anasthetic for tooth extraction. Lots of perfume to cover the body odor since few took baths and showers were unheard of. Tolstoy was writing War and Peace, Charles Dickens was the best writer of the age. Harriet Beacher Stow had written Uncle Tom's Cabin, the spark about to set off the Civil War. Abolitionism was the political topic of the day.

In the summer the aroma was of horse dung and garbage, in winter the haze of burning appalachian coal darkened the air.

John is determined to create a premium blend though the civil war has made good tobacco difficult to obtain. He can't get perique so he intends to use latakia. But that comes from the other side of the world, several months round trip by sailing ship. But he knows an exotic spice tobacco will make his blend a true luxury.

Carnegie steel builds this country, Rockerfeller's Standard Oil powers the Industrial Revolution transforming the USA into the mightiest nation on earth. And people buys Johns Walnut blend. Two world wars change the face of the planet. Automobiles and air travel compress time. And people buy Walnut. Men land on the moon and John Middleton's Walnut is enjoyed by smokers the world over.

Today Walnut is widely copied, rarely equaled and never exceded. The competition resorts to fancy little tins backed with elaborate web sites, all touting the exotic nature of their newest hope of success, their lap dogs writing glowing reviews. But like the Rock of Gibraltar Walnut has withstood the test of time.

This blend contains all the complexity your humble ability will ever be able to appreciate, enough flavor to please the king or the pawn, just the right strengh taste and smoothness.

Walnut is more than an excellent tobacco. It is a visit with men who were building a new nation and a new world. Men who shared a dream of freedom, opportunity and prosperity. Men who celebrated their success by sharing the best premium tobacco available.

But after 2 ounces: Light body with just a hint of Latakia. Life moves on. Bitter aftertaste, non descript flavor, ashy tonge. No real flavor and no nice smell either in the pouch or in the smoke. No not even think of buying again.

This is probably the mildest English I have encountered. There was a humectant applied, but it does not seem to affect the taste overtly. There is a slight aftertaste though which is not pleasing , but its slight. This is a "fill the tin with it all" blend and it works pretty well for what it is. The price is good for the amount of baccy purchased. The smoke volume is moderate with few relights and I thought the tub and art work was pretty cool. This is too mild of a blend for me, but I'm glad I tried it, definitely better than I expected. TLIG

While this burns v hot for me (my fault, I'm sure), never a hint of a bite. It burned clean and easily, and was a nice tasting smoke, with no bitterness, all the way down to light ash with no relights. All-in-all, a nice OTC. The latakia was more in the aftertaste than the smoke, and the Turkish was more in the room note. Probably best for an aromatic smoker looking for a change of pace.

There's no walnut, in Walnut. Middleton's original location was 219 Walnut Street. Mystery solved. (Elementary). The tub had about an inch of harsh dust on the outside of it, as it sat in the smoke shop, as I am told by the owner, for years. The price was spectacular as he wanted to make room on the shelf for other smoker items. Once home, plastic wrap removed and tub washed, it opened to reveal dry product, but, Middleton went out of business some years ago. I recalled about 25 years ago the wetness of Walnut and its harshness, but thought maybe this tub mellowed out with time. Indeed, it did. The only thing done, was to place the tobacco into a crockery jar from a thrift shop (oh yeah, I love a good value; flea markets and thrift shops), and covered the jar with the oak wood lid. It sat from March 2010 until July 2010, when my razor keen fermented squash of a brain remembered about it. There was instant tongue rip upon lighting the pipe. At about one quarter into the tub contents, the tongue rip, continues. The strength pleasantly mild. No casings tasted, only good blending. The taste, very nice. A hint of Cavendish in the background. Here's where Latakia does not balance. For the blend, it should be cut back about 50%, because there is Turkish tobacco present, and in my opinion, the Turkish should have been increased about 50%. It's my personal opinion. The audience over 150 years perhaps felt different, and over time refrigeration replaced pickled goods and people eat less vinegar condiments as they did long ago. I tested it. With pickles at lunch or dinner, then smoke Walnut. Like Edgeworth, the matching compatability of flavors were akin to meshing gears. In my world, the Turkish blends are very interesting and should have Turkish tobacco front and center. Smoke through my nostrils confirmed this. The room note is barely noticable. I am rating Walnut at Two Stars. Smoking it through various pipes, I will state that the larger bores (stick your thumb in it, size) work better, as do longer shank and stem, set ups. There is, a caramel taste finish to this tobacco. I would modestly recommend Walnut, though not overly joyous about it. For an old, Over The Counter tobacco, it's very nice, but not the stuff tobacconist legends are made of. Would I buy another tub if offered? Perhaps. I am more interested in a Turkish blend in which requires one to be Fez attired.

Best OTC I've ever smoked, so far!

Now that I have that out of the way... this is a wonderful American burley blend with a hint of latakia. Normally I don't want any latakia in a blend unless it's the "driver" of that blend. In this case it serves its purpose as the mildest of spices, a wisp that just adds a tang to the burley. I can understand why many call this an "all day" blend because I find myself reaching for it several times a day. It always delivers.

As mentioned in other reviews, this is a great change of pace for the smokers of PA and CH and a nice "pseudo-aromatic" for the English smokers that want something less offensive to those around them. It's an unassuming blend, and by not trying to do too much, it ends up doing everything right to my palate. And it's dirt cheap... for now!

UPDATE 12/20/11

This blend has turned on me! The last three tubs I've had were bitter and bitey. I find it doubtful that they changed the recipe so I can't explain this turn of events. But I no longer find this nearly as enjoyable as I used to. Taking away 2 stars.

I've been working my way through a tub of this for about 6 months. I find myself returning to this a few times a month. It's a good value for the non-aromatic smoker. A burley based blend with turkish and latakia. There are days I find it to be excellent and others just average. Walnut is balanced with good flavor (turkish & latakia) and a good value.

Update - 5/17/09 - Down Grade to Two Stars! This will be my last tub of Walnut. Good aroma, but I'm experiencing a nasty chemical aftertaste and alittle tongue bite. Prefer Private Blend from Iwan Ries. Down grade to two stars.