Gallaher Limited War Horse Bar

I took my Bar and shaved a couple of nice slices, fairly even. I was going to cube cut it, but given its potential strength I thought I'd rub it out. Also, this, while reasonably rehydrated, was still some solid lumps of tobacco, and I didn't want to be battling to light it and keep it lit. The slices were very dark, but had some lovely mahogany streaks in them, more towards the centre of the slices - you may notice that in the pictures. When rubbed out, the lighter colours were more obvious, and while reassuring, this was still very much a very, very dark tobacco. I assumed from age, though maybe it was quite dark to start with.

There was little to no noticeable aroma from this, at least not holding it some way from the face, as you can with a freshly opened tin. Up close and personal there was the remnants of a tobacco smell. It would once have been a deep, earthy, moist aroma - now it was faint, it hinted at past glory. This did not bode well. I thought this was going to be a disappointment. My spirits sank.

I loaded my pipe. The instrument of choice was a venerable old Pre-Republic Peterson It had to be a Peterson, as this was a tobacco made by the quintessential Irish tobacco manufacturers. Nothing else would do. So, pipe loaded. Teapot ready. Off to the greenhouse.

I did a charring light - literally 2-3 short puffs holding the match over the tobacco, and then put the pipe down to rest. Remember, gently does it, patience. Held the smoke in my mouth, then exhaled through my nose slowly, hardly daring to acknowledge the sensations. Thin wispy smoke, from tiny, pathetic puffs. Even so, I was expecting a buzz-saw to my nostril; to fold over in agony as this animal ripped my membranes from my face and danced on them, leering at me all the while for my impertinence of daring to think I was man enought to challenge it.

It was sublime.

I had to take stock, as I was a little shocked. I sipped some tea. I sniffed the air - pleasant aroma - nothing over powering. My face was still intact. Nose where it should be. This is good. Though I must admit to being disappointed at not getting to be wheeled into causality and people shaking their heads at the folly of my actions, while secretly thinking how bold I was to tackle WARHORSE. Dreamland again! I didn't even contemplate the flavours of the tobacco at this point. Sadly, that moment is gone for good, and I missed it completely.

So I went for the main light, fully expecting it to spring on me and maul me. What I got was just the smoothest smoke I have ever tasted. This stuff was silk. Absolutely NO harshness, no kick, no surge of acidity, no miscreant behaviour of any type. It took light easily and evenly (more by chance than any design on my part). I sipped gently. Deep, rich, lustrous taste. Smooth, smooth, smooth. Denseness like I really can't describe. If all other tobaccos had a depth of flavour akin to sand falling through your fingers, this was like rich, vital, loamy soil fresh after a summer shower.

The smoke was thick, and clung to my mouth.

This has been compared to the mighty condor. PAH!!!! Condor plug is king in my book - the smoke is dense and fragrant. - the flavour is beyond anything else you will ever smoke. But, and I don't say this lightly: Condor Plug is the weak, skinny, sickly, but handsome, younger brother of Warhorse,. This is smoking the very earth we walk on. Smoking this I felt I should be striding majestically and purposefully across the land, in search of adventure, fearing nothing, and everything fearing me (albeit I would be a kindly tyrant).

This does not have Condors fragrance, or the oft maligned "Lakeland" (however you define it). This is no aromatic. This is TOBACCO - pure and simple and strong........but, oh, so smooth. If this were personified it would be a medieval knight, vicious, courageous, strong, resilient, but gentle and charming in female company. It is manly in the right way. It has strength, depth of character, resolve, but knows how to use it. It doesn't bully or flaunt itself. It is humble, unassuming, reassuring, companionable.

Back to the smoke. I won't say I didn't relight, or that I smoked it all the way down in only two lights. I took it gently and let the tobacco dictate the pace. Sipped tea. Pondered. Let the tobacco die gracefully. Relit as and when needed and progressed at a leisurely pace. As I did so, I noticed more in the taste. A lovely pepperiness developed and got more prominent the further down the bowl I smoked. It complimented the main pure strong tobacco taste excellently - neither overpowering or dominating the other. The smoke was full and rich. It was like a liquid merangue that had managed defy gravity and flow upward. Every puff was exhaled nasally - no harshness - even to the bottom of the bowl.

I spent a good hour in my little patch of heaven. I concluded that this tobacco is the old, world weary tom cat curled up contentedly in front of a glowing fire on a cold and wet winters evening having done his days prowling. He will let you rub his ears. Tickle his tummy. Revel in his soft, fur warmed by the fire.

BUT, make no mistake, this battered, unassuming old moggy has the DNA and heritage of his ancestress, and living wild cousins. He has claws, and by heck are they sharp, penetrating and lethal when taken unawares - it's in his very nature. Why do I say this? Well, having finished the bowl, and glowing in the hour of bliss I had just experienced. Having had all hopes and expectations surpassed bar one, I was feeling a little smug, maybe, a little off guard.

I had misjudged my new friend. It had beguiled me like the Sirens of old. I was doomed. I was in love. But the price was heavy - the claws were out. I stood up to go indoors and that's when I was pounced upon.

I have smoked for 29 years. First pipe at 14. Since then I smoked players navy cut, Sweet Afton, senior service, and all sorts of pipe tobaccos, and cigars. Now only pipes and the occasional cigar. Never, and I repeat, never, have I been buzzed by nicotine, or felt Ill. Until now. I actually had to go lie down for approximately 40 minutes - my stomach churned, my head swam. I'm still not sure how I made it indoors, but I did. I have never encountered nicotine like it. Amazing. Wonderful. The kick in the head I had been expecting initially. The beating I saw coming but then forgot about during the smoke. This was no chivalrous knight, this was a marauding Norse God, come to wreak havoc on a mere mortal who had dared to look him in the eye. He strode majestically across the universe while I meekly looked on and thanked my gods that he was moving away from me

So, the smoothest, richest, flavourful smoke I have experience, but with a kick to knock you into the middle of the 19th century. Maybe I'm hyping it, because a lot of to is about time, place, expectations, etc, etc, plus the exclusivity of the tobacco. Maybe not. All I know is that this is a beautiful plug, a wonderous smoke, a sublime taste, but a cruel mistress, for the unprepared.

The bar consisted of strong, deeply rich and earthy floral Virginias (one of the major ones being red) that had a touch of spice. They were dark fruit and fermented stewed fruit sweet, the latter being more prominent than the former, providing a fair amount of sweetness. The burley was powerful in all respects; earth, nuttiness with sweet overtones. The bold Kentucky was woody, a little smokey, and earthy with a minor spice note in a supporting role. The toppings were treacle, and rose/geranium floral essence, and perhaps something else as well. That floralness mildly reminded me of Condor. The toppings were strong, but the tobaccos always had their say in the proceedings. The plug was dense and black, and needed a little prep time. The burn rate, no matter how you cut or dried the tobacco, was slow, and many relights were required. The flavors from the toppings and tobaccos never weakened, and in a big bowl, could dull your tongue a little by the time you were finished, unless you were a slow to moderate puffer. The amount of moisture in the bowl depended on one's dry time, but it could be burned to ash when dry without any dottle. The nic-hit was full, and not recommended to those smoking on an empty stomach. The after taste lingered. The room note was not as strong or repellent as one might have thought.

The version I was referring to was from the 1970s. Some sweetness was lost over time, but enough remained to gauge the inherent properties of the tobaccos. The floral notes were a little more pronounced for that reason, as they were likely not quite as obvious when fresh. And that sweetness mitigated the potentiality of dullness on the tongue that I referred to earlier. The 1980s version was almost exactly the same, though the topping was slightly sweeter than the 1970s, which indicates less topping was lost.

-JimInks

I almost cried when I finally decided to pull out my War Horse Plug that had been sitting for more than 15-years in my "cellar." I pulled the leaf from the wrap and carefully began the slicing and dicing process. A little muscle in the rubbing department and it was ready to load. The stale, fruity smell aong with the stench of a powerful tobacco was smudged all over my hands as I began loading up.

At the match I cried again. Heaven on earth? Not hardly. This stuff is rank and kicked like Man 'O War himself. It tasted like Virginia leaf was added to a bar of nicotine. This tobacco is aptly named. Give it to the enemy to smoke and they'll surrender in no time.

This is a tobacco that has been going for donkeys years, but lately I have been unable to find it which leads me to wonder if it is still made? This tobacco has a lovely flavour a bit like Condor but with tones of pine wood and very strong fruit flavours coming through. The package has the legend "A man's smoke" which given the time's we live in having sisters of the pipe, it's a bit sexist, but if that is slang for strong enough to blow the socks off you then that is fair enough. The first few puffs you can really taste the lovely flavours, then BANG the strength of this stuff hits you smack bang in the face, be warned this is really, really strong stuff! It's burning qualities aren't great I found it quite difficult to keep lit, letting it dry out a bit is something I would reccomend or alternatively try the flake version which is much easier to smoke. The tobacco comes in plug form and needs a lot of rubbing and cutting to get it in to a smokable form and the colur is very dark, almost black. If your after non-armotic flavours with a lot of strength then this is the stuff to try.

Note: This was a mistake. I tried the Standard Tobacco version... same review, however. OK... about the War Horse Bar! The tin aroma is tantalizing... out of this world & the blend certainly doesn't smoke like it smells. It's a very sweet aroma that wafts from the tin with a flavoring that I couldn't possibly identify. It actually smells good enough to eat. It's more of a crumble cake than a plug that can be scraped with something as dull as a butter knife or a good thumbnail & takes very little drying time. No sharp implement is needed. The first few tokes tasted a little like a sweet cigar that initially, is just a tad on the bitter side. However, that taste or flavoring tones down about one third to midway through the bowl as the nicotine kicks in & the awesome aroma of the flavored casing/topping, whatever, sort of disguises or diminishes the cigaresh taste. It actually produced an alluring aroma as it burned off which seemed to make the blend more enjoyable... even when smoking outside.

I don't smoke inside my home nor due I inhale which is the reason I prefer stronger blends & this one will absorb into your membranes without bite or harshness & will give you that added bliss you're looking for in short order. It burns up pretty quick with little moisture, stays lit fairly well & leaves a light grey dottle in the bowl. I would purchase this again & it will be used as my "Nightcap" blend. It's probably not everyone's cup of tea but it works for me & goes great with a strong cup of hot coffee or tea. I wouldn't advise smoking it with anything stronger.

War Horse Bar! The tin aroma is tantalizing... out of this world. It's a very sweet aroma with a flavoring that seemed like mainly vanilla. It actually smells good enough to eat. It's mostly a crumble cake that can be scraped with something as dull as a butter knife or a good thumbnail & takes very little drying time. The first few tokes tasted like a bittersweet cigar to me but that taste tones down about one third to midway through the bowl as the flavoring kicks in & the awesome aroma of the flavoring/topping, whatever, sort of disguises or diminishes the cigaresh taste.

I actually enjoyed the aroma as it burned off which seemed to make the blend more enjoyable... even when smoking outside. I don't smoke inside my home nor due I inhale which is the reason I prefer stronger blends & this one will absorb into your membranes without bite or harshness & will give you that added bliss you're looking for without inhaling.

It burns fairly quickly with little moisture, stays lit fairly well & leaves a light grey dottle in the bowl. I would purchase this again. It's probably not everyone's cup of tea but it works for me.

War Horse Bar! The tin aroma is tantalizing... out of this world. It's a very sweet aroma with a flavoring that seemed like mainly vanilla. It actually smells good enough to eat. It's mostly a crumble cake that can be scraped with something as dull as a butter knife or a good thumbnail & takes very little drying time.

The first few tokes tasted like a bittersweet cigar to me but that taste tones down about one third to midway through the bowl as the flavoring kicks in & the awesome aroma of the flavoring/topping, whatever, sort of disguises or diminishes the cigaresh taste. I actually enjoyed the aroma as it burned off which seemed to make the blend more enjoyable... even when smoking outside. I don't smoke inside my home nor due I inhale which is the reason I prefer stronger blends & this one will absorb into your membranes without bite or harshness & will give you that added bliss you're looking for without inhaling.

It burns fairly quickly with little moisture, stays lit fairly well & leaves a light grey dottle in the bowl. I would purchase this again. It's probably not everyone's cup of tea but it works for me.

OK... about the War Horse Bar! The tin aroma is tantalizing... out of this world. It's a very sweet aroma with a flavoring that I couldn't possibly identify. It actually smells good enough to eat. It's mostly a crumble cake that can be scraped with something as dull as a butter knife or a good thumbnail & takes very little drying time. The first few tokes tasted like a bittersweet cigar to me but that taste tones down about one third to midway through the bowl as the flavoring kicks in & the awesome aroma of the flavoring/topping, whatever, sort of disguises or diminishes the cigaresh taste. I actually enjoyed the aroma as it burned off which seemed to make the blend more enjoyable... even when smoking outside. I don't smoke inside my home nor due I inhale which is the reason I prefer stronger blends & this one will absorb into your membranes without bite or harshness & will give you that added bliss you're looking for without inhaling. It burns fairly quickly with little moisture, stays lit fairly well & leaves a light grey dottle in the bowl. I would purchase this again. It's probably not everyone's cup of tea but it works for me.