W.D. & H.O. Wills Capstan Mild Navy Cut

To my taste this is a great Virginia flake and sadly, an under rated one.

Great uniform flake presentation with perfect moisture content straight out of the tin. Grassy light notes mingle with stewed fruit/figgy darker tones and some mild spice is pleasantly present throughout the bowl. I cannot detect a topping, although apparently there is one!? It's so well behaved I usually smoke a whole bowl on two matches and have never been bitten despite being a very aggressive puffer at times and my fast smoking has never marred it's taste.

I'm adding this just to boost the rating. I believe it's worth a solid three stars, light & pleasant as it is. The new MB offering is definitely lighter than the blue, which is one of my regulars in straight Va. I like the slight topping of (maybe) orange; it never cloys or bites. Just a good, light Va.

Well after being impressed with the navy cut medium of this tobacco I was tempted to try the yellow tin put out by MacBarens as well and guess what? I found it actually sweeter (in a natural way) and tastier than the old Wills release from years ago. Lighter and more floral than the blue but a great change of pace especially with the Summer coming up.

Capstan Mild Navy Flake is my standard tobacco since the 1980's. A very straight forward light Virginia that I can smoke any time of day. Like with most tobaccos of this type, it should be smoked slowly. If you don't have the patience and suck like crazy on the pipe, wanting to have a stronger smoke, it WILL bite your tongue!

No, it's not an flavour explosion in your mouth, but a cool slightly sweet smoke. The second half of the bowl the taste increases in depth in a way I enjoy very much. The only light Virginia flake I liked more was Four Square Mild Navy Cut (Yellow), but it hasn't been available for years.

As an occasional smoker, I really like the Capstan tin. The seal is very tight, so it keeps the tobacco moist for months (if you are careful when opening it the first time)

This flakes are beautifull, large rectangules, as big as the tin. On the tin it comes not very moist, aroma is on the raisins side. Very easy to rub but I prefer it folded or turned into a ball, since it seems to smoke too fast if rubbed.

It's not exactly a mild tobacco in strenght or flavour, but closer to a medium. Smokes really smooth. Dark-gray granular ashes, as stated before.

In the taste department I find it very roasty, warm, like a slightly over-cooked fresh raisins bread. Not much sweetness, nor citrus.

Highly recommended for those who like a roasty flavoured virginia, as I do. Perfect for a early smoke or as an all day. (from a tin with the vertical lettering)

Original 6/6/2008

Finally managed to get hold of a couple of tins of this, I have'nt had it for years, and I didn't like it then, so I thought I'd give it another try.

A very good quality tobacco, perfect moisture content, rubs out well without turning to sawdust, packs easy and burns down to a fine grey ash with just one match, no tongue bite.

A smooth cool smoke, slight hint of lemon in flavour, much better than Orlik's Golden Slce, but not much else, just a good honest tobacco, not pretentious in any way, wife did not appreciate the room note, I didn't notice it, thus "pleasant (for me) to tolerable" (for her). Sad rearly, I keep expecting more flavour from this tobacco, and it just isn't there, so I have to keep reminding myself, "If you want more flavour YOU SHOULD HAVE BOUGHT THE MEDIUM and not the MILD"

As I can only get this from Germany, when someone goes, will I ask them to get me some more ? most certainly yes. Will I miss this if I run out ? YES I think I will.

update 21/1/2010

Well I did buy more because I knew I would miss it before I ran out. I tend now to let it dry out on a sheet of newspaper for about 24 hours. It now makes an excellent "First thing in the morning smoke" for me, along with a large mug of industrial strength tea.

Well worth 4 stars.

A companion to the blue tin version (Original Navy Cut; if interested please see my review on this blend), this other Capstan I recently bought during a trip to Spain, with the Gold Navy Cut inscription underneath the red name on a yellow mustard tin, was also a wonderful surprise. Very similar in structure and texture to Original Navy Cut, it however seems to have a bit more spiciness, though it maybe sligthly milder. Again, I find this flake very similar to some of the Fribourg & Treyer's Virginias, but more so to Stokkebye's Navy Flake.

Smooth, toasty, easy to pack in, this is a delightful flake. I don't know if there is some Perique in this one, but by the end of the bowl I do find a certain peppery piquantness that added a wonderful taste to the blend. An excellent straight Virginia that, without that natural sweetness (redolent of molasses or dried raisins) present in many other Va. flakes---Dunhill's, Rattray's or Gawith's---it nevertheless delivers a top quality smoke, very tasty and rich. (03/05)

N.B.: as I stated in my review of Original Navy Cut, I don't know if this review should go here. The tin I reviewed is rectangular, but yellow with red letters, in a vertical rather than horizontal layout.