Solani 131: Red Label

I did not notice any whisky myself. The nicotine was fairly low. It burnt well but got a tad hot and a little bit bitter. But it was by no means a poor smoke. Quite a interesting looking mottled mix of decent leaves. Some unfold to be quite big. I won't be buying again because it wasn't my thing. But it's to be tried

I smoked the "three colours" of Solani right after another and found them so similar with each other that I ended up copying pretty much the same review for them all. They are all flavoured, fruity, sweet aromatics on the mild, easy to smoke side, reminding me of Peterson's Connoisseur's Choice, but with different set of flavours and toppings. And for that very reason they don't do much to me; the tin note is exquisite, the room note enjoyable, they pack, light and burn well - the consistency of large, dry flakes varying from light yellow to black is delightful actually - but the smoking experience... While nothing wrong with it per se, leaves one with a certain feeling of artificiality, of everything not being 100% true to nature. Therefore, while an enjoyable smoke in itself, not really something I would be dying to have again anytime soon.

For me, Red falls between Blue and Green in just about everything. The burley does not come as fully as in Blue; I have trouble detecting the whiskey as is and the end result is... Something slightly woody, almost like red curry? No tongue bite to speak of if smoked calmly, but it does feel like this would quickly change if the pace is increased. While not bad as such, it's fairly indifferent and a more firm 2-star than the other two.

For my part, being "too aromatic" and a somewhat pricey brand to boot, Solanis can stay on the shop shelf in the future. I can heartily recommend them to fans of fruity aromatics though, you'll like it more probably than not.

Note: This blend was reviewed about 10 years ago when I used a different handle. I've recently rejoined TRs & this is my most recent revised review of Solani 131. I can't say for sure now but 10 years ago when I wrote this review 131 was loaded with PG and I'm sure there's more additional casing & topping than just Whiskey. I suspect it's probably something like peach, apricot or mango combined with vanilla. However, this one should please those preferring heavily cased aromatic blends. The room note is very subtle considering the strong bouquet from the tin... not like some of the aromatic blends that leave a lingering, intriguing, aromatic room note.

It is fairly comfortable on the palate for an aromatic but will bite like a mad dog if puffed too hard, especially toward the end of the bowl. The palate is bathed with a little of the flavoring that comes through while smoking & leaves behind a slight pleasing aroma. This Solani 131 aroma is similar to Peterson Founder's Choice but the Pete is so much better in flavor, palate comfort, room note & smokes even better from the halfway point toward the end. What you smell in 131 is transferred to the palate during smoking but not much & it didn't taste all that sweet.

It leaves a lingering taste that I wasn't real crazy about. I just wanted to try it out since it received some favorable reviews but didn't like it well enough to barely get started. A couple of bowls was enough for me. Not that I didn't like it all that much, I just liked so many others much better. Actually I still have the nearly full tin stashed in my cellar & it's still moist with humectant. It left a goopy ghost in my bowl & I don't really care for aromatics containing humectants. However, aromatic fans will probably fall in love this. Maybe two & one half stars.