Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG) Troost Slices

When I began smoking I smoked the Dutch (aromatic) tobacco's. But I was never satisfied, too much flavour, too little flavour, smoking hot, sharp on the tongue. I had seen Troost slices but I didn't dare to buy a tin. Then somebody learned how to fill your pipe with a flake (Knick, falt, screw) I'lightened my tobacco and was completely surprised of the taste. Of course I had to learn smoking flakes. But pipe after pipe it was going better. Since a year of two I nearly only smoke Troost Slices. If you got the chance, try a tin. It is unbelievable that this tobacco is only available in the Netherlands.

If I could have just one tobacco....I'd take three, and Troost Slices would be one of them!

If there are any pouches of this lingering in the shops, pass them by. They are a poor imitation. I have forgotten which particular conglomerate owns Van Rossem's recipes (it's the one that owns Dunhill, Lane, et al), but they haven't yet managed to bugger up the tinned version of Slices. There is still that baking bread, slightly spicy, chocolatey-burley, delicious Virginia flavour. I have found that as well as the requirement to smoke only the tinned version, a clean pipe is very important for full enjoyment. Some year I'll dedicate a pipe or two to this flake. Which I'm sure will single-handedly cause it's demise.

There are enough four star reviews for Troost Slices to make this addition superfluous. Except I know the best place to get more of this manna! So far, my experience with amsterdam-cigars.com has been wonderful, so I won't change. While you're at it, if you're feeling the slightest bit adventurous, do try the Troost "Baai" tobacco. Also very tasty, and quite different.

Troost Special Cavendish has always been one of my favorite tobaccos in my now over 33 years of pipe smoking. As of recent, I have been enjoying their Aromatic Cavendish as well. So, it was only natural for me to want to venture and try their Slices as I, overall, prefer tobacco cut as slices. I know the Slices are not available stateside, nor do I ever remember seeing them during my early years of pipe smoking.

Well, our colleague pipestud had a 50g pouch from March 2001 listed in his consignment shop for $5. Not only a steal, but I had to have it for what it was. During the transaction period with pipestud, he noticed the outer cellophane wrapper was slit open and he felt the tobacco too bone dry to sell. I contacted him and said I would take it anyway. I am sure glad I did! After removing the outer cellophane wrapper, there was the distinct aroma of licorice. The pouch itself was still solidly sealed, and hard as a brick - like a plug tobacco. Upon opening the pouch there was the distinct aroma of butterscotch. I had no trouble separating a very dry flake from the rest of the pack. Folding it in half split it like dry wood, but I managed to stuff the two pieces into the bowl of a slim billiard. I breathed into the top of the bowl and through the stem as per pipestud's suggestion and I lit up. The butterscotch flavor came to the forefront and thus began a real treat. The tobacco smoked very cool and dry till the end. The butterscotch taste lessened by mid-bowl, but never totally disappeared. I couldn't detect any of the licorice. The Virginia used certainly had time to age in my pouch and its presence was was delicious and spicy without being grassy. The Burley component rounded out the smoke by giving it just the right amount of body. I was very satisfied by the bowl's end. Occasionally, I was treated with a mild soapiness, which actually added character to the smoke. I do remember this from the original Troost Special from years ago, but have not experienced this with the present day incarnation.

I would have to say that the three versions of Troost are very similar, however, they are different enough to stand on their own. The Slices, in my opinion, are closer to the Aromatic Cavendish in appearance and overall flavor. Before smoking the Slices, I would have thought them to be the Special Cavendish before being rubbed out. I believe it is the butterscotch addition in the Aromatic and Slices versions that tie the two together in overall smoking characteristics. I do wish the Slices were available in the USA as I would definitely add that version to my rotation. I rank the three starting with my most favored; Special, Slices, Aromatic. Thank you Steve for not chucking out that dry pack!

UPDATE 9-21-12: I recently bid and won a 3 1/2 ounce tin of Troost Slices off of ebay. The tin was very old looking and rusted top and bottom. While the tax stamp was intact, the tin had lost its vacuum seal - and I don't think it was opened by the seller for prior inspection. There were two coupons inside for a Van Rossem Delft Blue Tobacco Jar and from what I can tell this tin of tobacco goes back to at least the 1970s, making this tin 30-40 years old. The tobacco was wrapped in a gold foil wrapper and totally stuck to the content. I needed to tear it with the end of a pipe tool and peel the pieces off in strips. The flakes were very dark indeed - dark brown to black. The initial tin aroma was tobacco in nature with a hint of spice/must. The flakes were not tinder dry, but close. The flakes still were peel-able from one another and slightly pliable, breaking apart when bent in half. I took the entire wad and placed the flakes into a thin zip lock bag and then in another, slightly thicker zip lock. By the next day, what a beautiful bag aroma! My first impression was of ginger with perhaps a bit of cinnamon, smelling like Ginger Snaps were baking. One of my daughters thought maple syrup. At any rate, this is a very pleasant smoke and very different from my first encounter with the slices (see above). I'm sure the aging did wonders for these flakes and I am very tempted to plunk down the money necessary to get this directly from a shop in Europe that will ship this to the states for comparison. There was not one hint of bite nor did it smoke hot - even with fast, hard puffing. A truly delightful encounter.

UPDATE 10-7-12: I recently purchased 3 tins of the currently produced flake from the Netherlands. Although very good, it is not the same as my 30-40 year old find, but a very well prepared Virginia/Burley flake that I quite enjoy for it's mildness and subtle sweetness. I do wish it was imported to the states like their Troost Special and Aromatic Cavendish.

UPDATE 1-6-13: This smokes best when very dried out - almost to a crumble as it has a definitive chocolate taste that is very satisfying.

A friend of mine brought me a 100 gram tin of this as well as a pouch of Troost Special Cavendish from a recent visit to Holland. My first time with slices, so figuring how to get it into my pipe was rather humorous. Once successful, this Dutch blend lit easily, burned slowly and smoked ever so smoothly. Orlik of the Scandinavian Tobacco Group in Denmark (head quartered in Holland) is importing this from Holland. On the tin it clearly says "Original Recipe...Imported from Holland".

The slices were wrapped in paper in a vacuum sealed "sardine tin". At 13.40 Euros ($19.97 CDN) for 100 grams its half the price of 2, 50 gram pouches of Captain Black sold in Canada.

Troost slices is a mixture of coarse shred Burley compressed with thin shred virginia with something else in very sparse quantity which I cannot identify.

The taste is burley nuttiness with a pinch of spice which lingers on the tongue....nothing too heavy, but you do notice it. I found no real tongue bite. In my opinion a very, very nice after-dinner slow smoke with a cup of dark roast Colombian coffee. Not heavy in nicotine.

Aroma in my opinion is just honest Burley/Virginia smoke.........nothing really aromatic about it.

I wish I could find this stuff in Canada, I'd stock-pile this stuff like a loony squirrel storing nuts. But each tin would probably cost me a week's pay in Canada.

You can be sure I'm going to enjoy this tin ever so slowly. An excellent smooth and satisfying smoke to relax with.

If you can get your hands on this, make sure its in the tin, not the pouch (its not the same) and the label says "Original Recipe".

Well I feel bad for pipestud,but I think he might have gotten a bad tin. Aside from that let me say this is one of the best tobaccos I have ever had the pleasure if smoking.I consider this to be the other end of the spectrum of Stonehaven with all the same wonderful qualities.This has a very nutty,honey like quality.It burns slowly and has no bite.Rub it out and you are in for 1 solid hour ofsmoking pleasure. The room note is heavenly and the taste cannot be rivaled.A wonderful all day smoke! 4 of 4 stars.

Sadly, this rich, heavenly flake is no longer exported to this country, otherwise it would definitely be one of my regulars. I?ve searched for it on the Web and in the online tobacco stores of Holland, but to no avail. I e-mailed one Amsterdam shop to inquire whether this could be shipped to the U.S., but never received a response. Perhaps on a future trip to the Netherlands I will most certainly buy a dozen tins. It would almost be worth the trip for the tobacco alone.

A friend of mine found a can from about 15 years ago lying around his apartment. Yes, this stuff is wonderful, the stuff tobacco dreams are made of. It?s the finest aromatic flake I have ever smoked, and one of the best tobaccos, period. The tin aroma is boozy, almost dizzying in its richness. The room note is to die for. My car smelled like fresh baked spice bread for about an hour after it was smoked. Even for a person who doesn?t particularly like aromatics, I could not help but be awed by Troost. Even if they continue to manufacture this blend, I wonder if it is as good as this old can.

This is some sort of light and dark Virginia flake with a powerful but balanced casing. It smokes cool, unlike most flakes, which can render the tongue raw. Stokkebye flake is about as close as you can get with regard to richness, color and aroma, but because it smokes hot, it doesn?t come even close to Troost. Dunhill?s Light Flake is also first rate sliced Virginia, but again, falls short of Slices. The tin art is a bit on the weird side, I must say: an amused guy taunting a prisoner locked in a pillory. Sort of reminds me of an average day on the job.

Should you ever stumble upon this winner, you must give it a try. If anyone knows where this stuff can be had could you please write me at [email protected]. I would greatly appreciate it.

Five of five stars

Instantly fell in love with this blend. It does have a little topping from what I've been told, but the result is subtle sweetness and a very smooth smoke. Very nice tobacco that can easily be smoked without distracting from other tasks, or focused and entertained by the subtle nuances in the flavor. Hard to beleive that a blend like this is only found in Holland

This tobacco has really abducted me. I find it perfect. The taste is definitely comparable to a natural Virginia/Cavendish blend, with no "aromatic effect" in the mouth. The room note is delicately suggesting a chocolate flavor mixed to a typical virginia smoke.

To me this tobacco represents all the good stuff my country (the Netherlands) has to offer.

Sadly, the traditional 100gr tin with slices of ideal size and weigth, has been discontinued and replaced with 50gr tins the same size as for example Univeristy Flake.

This is a tobacco for 'anyday, anytime', it's always good. There are tobacco's I consider more luxurious, like a gourmet meal, but this one is like 'our daily bread' to me.