House of Windsor Briggs

Rather drab. I mixed it with other non-favs to make a tolerable blend.

I like Balkan, Burley, and Boswell's. "When a Fella Needs a Friend," come on, who could pass that up? Found a tin in a local pipe shop two years ago and put it into the cellar. After this summer of no rain and 112 degrees for 3 months straight the first cool front blew through and I fired up a bowl. I neeeded a good friend. My angel of a wife said it smelled pleasant but that's about all the good I can say for me personally. I gave it two stars because it is a good beginner smoke but PA and Boswell's Best Burley leaves this in the dust. I do love the tin and the art on the label. I think I'll load the tin with Spillman's and pretend. (It does pack well, burn great and leave a good clean ash.)

I smoked a pipeful of this today infact. Of the HOW blends, this is one of my favorites, as far as the nostalgic blends of yesteryear, I really like this one. Nothing too anything about it, just a nice unassuming natural tobacco taste, if you can find it, give it a try.

For me Briggs is a standout light Burley, golden Virginia mixture. It is surely deserving of 3 or 4 star billing - a superior rating that many elitist or "tin" only aficionados among our ilk cannot possibly fathom providing to a lower than low "drug store" blend. Very, very taken I am with this Altadis "match" version purchased at the Habana Premium Shoppe (PipesandCigars.com) in Albany, NY. Mr. Russ Ouellette, their iconic master blender, told me to come over and bring my pipe for a sample. But I trusted Russ and just for the memories bought an 8 oz. bulk sack on the spot. No buyer's remorse.

Reviewed as a House of Windsor and P. Lorillard blend on tobaccoreviews.com, PipesandCigars.com website reports, "We've added (Briggs match) from our friends at Altadis who have taken the time to blend matching tobaccos for some of your old time favorites...previously discontinued." I must say that this is as true a replication of the Briggs "back in the day" in the early 60s when as high schoolers we stole an illicit smoke or two down behind a sub rosa place known as "The Rock."

Previous reviewers use such descriptors as "bourbon," "vegetal," "apple," "fennel" and "coriander" to describe some of the many exquisite aroma and tastes emanating from this mixture. I distinctly remember a "sweet metalic" flavour coming from my old boxed pouch, and the same secret aroma right after char light. Never thought this feller would ever need such a fond memory from an old friend. Very pleasant. Happy hunting...

I used to smoke Briggs, but recall that rarely did I ever finish a full bowl. I would put the pipe down and smoke it at a later time. Revisiting this long gone mixture, I conclude, what did I ever see in it? If possible, I would rate Briggs at Half-of-One Star. The Burley base goes sour, and the Virginia leaves blisters in my mouth. I need to touch the bowl with the flame, and as soon as the pipe goes "Smoke On", remove the lighting source and sip the tobacco smoke via its whisp. Multiple lightings required. The room note is okay, exactly what one would expect from a Burley and Virginia product. The flavor is immediately ashpot and goes sour, then bitter. I've smoked cheap cigars that had more class. But in the pipe smoking world, with reluctance, I would barely opt for Briggs if only nothing else were available and not really recommend it. The bizarre thing, is that years ago I had a yellow Lab who was more like a son than a dog; no leash required. In the surf he swam like Johnny Weissmuller. Every time I smoked Briggs, he would fall asleep, at my foot. I think I smoked this tobacco, more because I loved that dog, and he seemed to like the aroma, or something. He lived to be 14 years old, and when he passed, that was when I stopped smoking this pipe tobacco.

A rich but mellow burley blend, smometimes there is a hint of a sweet flavour, but mostly all I taste is somewhat like bourbon.

My wife says it smells somewaht strong, but not too bad, I enjoy this blend and it's one of my staples when I can find it.

Its a shame that the House Of Windsor operation has closed down, as for sentimental reasons i would have loved to still have Briggs in production...

Briggs is a burley lover's delight. A rich burley flavor with tones of a light VA with hints of apple and bourbon. I have had several different cans of Briggs (all made by HoW, of course) and since they're from different ages they are all a little different looking and smoking, but the taste stays pretty constant. I have one can that I got recently that seemed a bit dry. for Christmas this year my wonderful wife found me one of those old Briggs wooden barrels that have the clay (?) insert in the lid to maintain moisture in the barrel. I put the drier Briggs in the barrel today and i will update how this little experiment turns out later.

If you're a fan of Burley Blends then Briggs is a good one to try. Otherwise, this old time blend may not be your cup of tea

Just a side note here :All brands that were made by House of Windsor were picked up by a Panamanian company called Durfort Holdings: Argosy Black, Field & Stream, Revelation, Country Doctor, Union Leader, & Bourbon Street. I believe it is the intent of the Panamanian company to continue making the previously listed items, But I have no information on all the other HoW Blends and recipes that this holding company now owns, which unfortunately includes Briggs and Model

Ah....old Briggs. I remember the days when the old guys would head down to the local Soda Fountain and pick up a fresh tin of Briggs, The Prince, or Tuxedo. These blends reflect a grand time in Americana, when pipe smoking was the norm amongst men, and "when a feller needed a friend" he got his hands on some Briggs! Well, I recently had to pay my respects,in a Norman Rockwell kind of way, to this old tried and true. It had been years since I packed a bowl of this. Intitially, the blend is decent, lights easily, has an alright room note, and a slightly sweet taste. However, the older I get, the more I realize why so few a gents smoke these classic drugstore blends these days. There are just too many other better options out there. I don't regret my trip down memory lane, heck I even did some pre-smoke prep. and broke out the old straight razor, got a clean shave, splashed some Clubman aftershave on, and put on a sweater vest and my old Gentleman's hat - just to fit the part. But in the future, "when this feller needs a friend", I think I will dip my fingers back into my fresh tin of Mac Baron's "Chocolate Honey". Nothing like a tickle to the old sweet tooth. If you happen to be reading this and are into drug store blends, well more power to you. To each their own.....I'm just glad I'm not too short on friends these days. Happy Smoking.

I opened a tin of Brigg's a few days ago. I find this a pretty good smoke. A full flavor smoke, in my opinion. Seems that the nicotine content is higher than I expected. I did not notice a casing or topping, just good burley and Virginia.

At almost twice the price of H&H and the Prince, and only available online or mail order with shipping charges, I probably will only buy this occasionally. I never tried this stuff when you could find it almost everywhere(decades ago). All in all, this tobacco is good. Makes a person long for the good old days.