Sutliff Tobacco Company Erin Go Bragh Apple Crumble

Not a good smoke. Hot air with barely any taste. This could be my fault, my pouch was open for a month before smoking this. I opened it to smell it, no apple scent but it did smell sweet.

On the charing light I got a whisper of something apple like but as it burned in the smoking session, the flavor seemed to diappear in the hot air.

Did not bite.

Smelled cigarette like in room.

May try with a filter and update later.

Definitely a burley/Virginia blend. The topping is present but the apple hides behind the “crumble” flavor, and I won’t try to pretend to state what that is exactly. It is creamy more than apple. I expected the apple to be more pronounced, but it took the passenger seat to the “crumble.” Nonetheless, not a terrible blend. The room note was creamy and decent. I’m not rushing to get another pouch though.

You know one of the finest aspects of this time of year is the harvesting of my favorite piece of nature’s profitable goodness, which is the common apple. Like Thoreau I am convinced that the apple is in fact the noblest of fruits. Furthermore, I have mentioned in passing, my piping venture embarked principally on the assortment of dime store aromatics back in the 1980s. There was one mixture in particular that became the prize possession of my smoking joy, the old Middleton Apple. Since its calamitous discontinuance, I have been on a casual pilgrimage to find a reasonable counterpart with shameless bad luck in truth.

So, I find myself here once again, probably for the “n-teenth” time but who is counting, on yet another quest to secure a blend that has fallen not too far from the original Middleton tree. Showing utmost humility, my only needful request is to discover a tobacco that graciously offers the same faithful goodness of this stellar fruit to the confines of my now ravenous pipe bowl. In crossing my fingers, and who knows maybe yours too, this venture shall take us into a healthy bite of the subject Erin Go Braugh’s Apple Crumble, an Irish dessert tradition.

From a selection of exclusively branded products, comes Apple Crumble, which if I am not mistaken is actually manufactured by the Sutliff Tobacco Company. This mild natured aromatic is comprised of “velvety” Burley, mixed Virginian, and soothing Black Cavendish. Reminiscent of the old Gaelic treat, these tobaccos are dressed in a modest coating of delightful apple and assorted culinary spices aimed to inspire one with the tasteful memories of this fine Erin baked dessert. I do not know about your personal experiences, but of being of Scotch-Irish descent, the targeted flavor is known to me quite affectionately, so let us see how appley good this blend surfaced to be.

As a pouched varietal, Apple Crumble arrives neatly folded in a festive green package adorned with the images of a golden harp, shimmering shamrocks, and the famed Claddagh Heart. In hindsight, maybe I should have saved this one for Paddy’s Day. Nevertheless, let us adhere to the coming autumn theme of course. Contained within, I discerned a moist rough assemblage of coarse-cut and ribboned tobaccos that leaned heavily upon beefy earth-toned Burley, red-golden strings, dark orange/red-brown clusters, and irregularly shaped blackened crumbs.

Carrying a pouched nose that was Burley cigarette sweet, Apple Crumble’s polite sugary air embraced notes of cocoa, stewed plums, bright spicing that touched upon common kitchen ingredients, and darker sugar. The featured apple influence was moderately postured with a sweet tartness that is almost wine-like in quality. Interestingly, the fragrance of this blend revealed itself to be of a more inviting character once freed from the restrictions of the arresting pouch.

It should be noted that this particular mixture proved to be especially finicky as to a preference for the actual pipe used for the smoking. A clear attraction was exhibited to a venture with an unassuming hardwood Ozark, as I found its taste performance to be all but lackluster within a common briar as well as a traditional cob. Once that revelation became evident, essentially what I came to experience was a reasonably average aromatic concoction. Having stated that general point, I must profess that Apple Crumble presented a wavering and seemingly imbalanced profile that was modeled by an inconsistent push from the gentler coatings and a minimalistic mocking originating from the native strains; the Burley being somewhat the exception.

In reflecting upon the experiential wisdom of Russ Ouellette as it relates to apple flavored blendings, admittedly what I have experienced with the battery of blends trialed to date does seem to be par for the course. Namely, the most challenging additive to transfer through to prepared tobaccos is in fact apple. Yes, it stands to reason. And with this one, although the featured apple is the primary forefront attribute, its satiable impact ascended to be just a slight step beyond “okay but nothing too eventful.”

Largely, this peaceful apple rendering rises at a lower medium intensity for about half the duration of the bowl but then gradually tapers to a mere ghosting. Nevertheless, when it was in full regale the commenting tendered as softly sweet but more so happily tarty. And if I were to benchmark a specific apple variety that it favored, I would likely suggest Granny Smith at best, neither bold nor overly sweet in demeanor but exceedingly sharp. When all was said and done, this Apple Crumble version was perhaps the closest approximation to my treasured Middleton, or at least how I remember it. But honestly that seems to be in question even within my own mind after yet another exercise in “apple-licous” mediocracy.

Regarding the peripheral influences, Apple Crumble was streaked with a delightful combination of what recorded as all spice and baked cinnamon. These two seasonings serviced the registration well by consistently dressing and melding with the convergence of native streams. As combined the ensuing creation was a perceivable illusion of an oat-like or crusty goodness. However, for the most part the prime chord of brown sugared nuttiness from the White Burley formed the basis of the natural tobacco experience be it meager as it was. This Burley projection further offered some garnishing highlights of cocoa and actually coffee which added some interesting flair to its overall completeness.

Circulating in complement were the assorted Virginian strains, neither of which were passioned with much presence as their effects were significantly contained. For the Bright, I was able to meek out a fresh annotation of grassy green floral with a dash of orange citrus. Peeking out shyly from the very bottom the Red leaf brought a weaker note of seasoned tangy wood to the combined affair. And for the sugary Cavendish, it furthered the depth of the profile with a bit of toasted, smoky grayish char and common soiled zestfulness.

Producing an ample body of generous hazy blue-white smoke, Apple Crumble endowed a room essence that was foreseeably pleasant in the making. In particular, with a gingerly light footprint, the witnessed expenditure captured a comforting fragrance tethered with of passive sugariness, classic Burley roasted nuttiness, and a softened impression of fruity, spicy apple delight. If one were to stretch their imagination far enough, then conceivably, Apple Crumble does project an alluring aroma not too far from the splendor of the very same baked dessert of Irish renown.

Mechanically I can attest to the fact that this tobacco performed normally well in all related physical categories. There were but a couple of observations that I did find to be less attractive, however. Explicitly, Apple Crumble tended to be a bit abrasive in texture which resulted in a degree of discomfort upon the middle tongue. Additionally, I did encounter a minor occurrence of that unfavorable chemical astringency that dwelt upon my lips. Yet in general terms the blend burnt reasonably well, maintained amiable temperatures while offering minimal nicotine residuals.

For awareness purposes, I should call out that there is a similar blend, Apple # 208, that Sutliff markets under their own proper banner. Comparatively, Sutliff’s product and this Erin Go Braugh offering seem to have fallen from the same originating tree, which kind of makes me wonder to an extent. However, there are unique differences, and Apple Crumble did fancy my apple-centric eye more subjectively while achieving comparable objective scorings.
Oh, and incidentally, I did mix a little of the subject blend with P&C’s Best of The Rest English just for s’s and giggles. You know the end result actually proved to be an interesting diversion. Apple flavoring on a traditional Latakia-based production, the next hot small batch release for the taking, call it Johnny Appleseed’s Revelation. Well, maybe not, as that marketing model seems to be rather cliché these days. So, there are my thoughts on this blend. Give it a go to formulate your very own, of course, if apple is indeed your thing. 2.5 Pipes.

A refreshing blend. Somewhat light on the apple flavor, but the spice comes through with hints of cinnamon and nutmeg. More like an oatmeal cookie than apple crumble. The tobacco is moist, but not goopy like other aromatics. No tongue bite so far. Overall a nice blend at an affordable price.

I have seen this tobacco and passed over ordering it because I thought it would be another goopy, overly-sweet aromatic. I was very wrong. This was given to me by a friend who did not like it. He primarily smokes fruity vapes and is trying out pipes, and I understand why this isn't for him. Being a burley-Virginia base, the tobaccos come through in the taste very nicely. The flavorings are only an enhancement and taste of apples, cinnamon, and a light mixture of other spices. As someone who has come to prefer lightly flavored aromatics this one hits the mark for me perfectly, and quite unexpectedly, so much so that I felt the need to add this to the site for reviews. I will be trying the other Erin Go Bragh tobaccos very soon. I will be very interested to read your take on them as well. Happy smoking.