Smokers' Haven 20th Anniversary Mixture

Another fantastic blend from one of my all time favourites J.F. Germain & Son, blended on Jersey Channel Isles UK then shipped to the US where it's tinned and labelled, tins akin to McClelland or C&D.

I popped the tin and my mirror home-office was full of smoky ale (cask with a slight topping), just great since I'm an avid homebrewer as well. I love the fine ribbon shag cuts because the blend always stays consistent in the tin delivering a balanced smoke with an even burn. Although one does have to be careful not to tamp too much while packing it can tighten-up quickly. A tad moist from a fresh tin, 10 minutes spread out on some paper does the trick otherwise it's a bit too steamy; however, I find most blends from the blending concern of J.F. Germain & Son do smoke better on the moist side compared to C&D for example. Too dry and this blend looses it's balance with the bitter notes becoming too dominant.

The taste is just great, Latakia in the background, Orientals up front, and the Virginias with a touch of sweetness for balance. This is expertly blended stuff and right up my alley. Certainly best to go slow in a relatively clean briar this is a rare blend at least to me as the retro-hale is almost the same as the palate, interesting and not many blends will do such a thing.

Highly recommended when it's available and even better when shared in good company.

My all time favorite blend is Smokers' Haven "Our Best Blend"; this is similar in cut to OBB. It appears there are more lighter-colored strands present and it also has the additional aroma and flavor of what I think is an Ale topping. I find this blend is similar to Esoterica's "And So To Bed" which has in its mixture some Maryland along with the Virginias, Turkish and Latakia. All of Smokers' Haven and Esoterica's blends are manufactured by the estimable J.F. Germain & Son Company so there should be quite a similarity. The tin aroma is that of an English - Aromatic and the Latakia smells more Syrian than Cyprian. The Ale topping is more predominate in "20th Anniversary Mixture" than the Cognac is in Smokers' Haven "Cognac" mixture. The flavor at the start seems to be dominated by the Ale but half way down the bowl this fades and the other flavors of the mixture start to take over. The strength builds nicely and by the end of the bowl it seems quite potent, both in flavor and in Nicotine.

It's the heat of August and I'm about half-way through my open (8oz) tins of Smokers' Haven Cognac and 20th Anniversary Mixture. Something about the heat of the summer makes these two fine blends taste wonderful, the slightly aromatic qualities and aroma of each blend along with the slight sweetness in my newer Altinok Meers just seems to hit the spot for me. I'll upgrade my rating and will count on these two blends as my summer mixtures. 9 out of 10 stars.

Pure and wonderful, 20th Anniversary is a natural tobacco with no additives and does present an ever so slight Lakeland effect with the Virginia leaf. Spicy Orientals and Latakia are major players as the palate is offered a sweet lullaby as the blend is smoked. I have recently been revisiting the Smoker's Haven blends and this is one of my favorites in the impressive lineup.

Stringy shag cut and mottled in color, this has a tin aroma of latakia, orientals and a generous topping of some kind of sweet alcohol - perhaps rum or cognac. The casing/topping rules the proceedings with respect to the tin nose.

I found this one odd. The casing lasted throughout the bowl, and not being one that enjoys a lot of non-tobacco flavorings in my tobacco, this proved problematic over the long haul. It started out fine and interesting as well as sweet and spicy, but the flavoring eventually became wearing. Literally the first puff to the last tasted like the alcohol mixed lightly with the three tobacco components. Drying this helped but too dry and it burned too quickly, courtesy of the shag cut. On the other hand, drying it did not reduce the flavoring as it usually does, which made me wonder if the taste I'm experiencing is more the merger of latakia with some specific orientals that I'm not accustomed to. Certainly such a phenomenon has fooled smokers in the past. However, Lakeland blends don't lose the flavoring when dried, either. So I'm not sure I ever got this one's full measure. As I said, it was an odd and consternating blend. I guess I enjoyed it to some degree but I can also say that I won't be buying any more. 2.5 stars rounded to 2.

I try not to review a blend until I have had time to get to know it in several different pipes over a period of time. Unfortunately I was only gifted a couple of bowls of this wonderful blend. Based on that, it's safe to say that this another high quality blend by Smokers Haven/Germain. A medium English blend with a light casing that I believe to be some type of spirit. Lightly sweet and smokey and just flat out delicious. It's a shame that Smoker's Haven blends have been unavailable for the past several years. I will be keeping an eye out for the rare tin. Highly Recommend.

Smoker's Haven started in 1940 and this blend came out in 1960. That is the year I started smoking a pipe in earnest and by the early to mid sixties I was smoking this blend. At that time it was tinned by Sobranie Ltd. and it was a rock solid medium English. Somewhere around 1980 the J.F. Germaine Co. began making the blend. This iteration, although not totally the equivalent of the Sobranie version, was a very good tobacco with a finer cut. The current production tin I bought and opened was quite damp - too damp to smoke outright and required two days of airing out. When lit, it smoked with a high register and, due to it's very narrow ribbon cut, burned rather quickly and I found myself becoming somewhat bored after two or three bowls. So, its not a bad blend but I doubt I'll be hoarding the current version. However, I have enough confidence to recommend it and give it three stars. I still have in my possession a Sobranie era two ounce tin which we reviewers ought to get together somehow and smoke so that you can see what this blend was in the old days.

11/17/14 - I rarely alter my reviews on this site and have never done so to lower the rating of a blend I have reviewed...until now. I have continued to smoke this blend straight out of the tin and this is my current opinion of it - boring! I tried using it as an ingredient in microblending , but it just doesn't do much of anything when I do.

20th Anniversary is one of the Smoker's Haven's blend that are often overlooked, along with Select Mixture, Cognac, and In-N-Tween. The current version tastes very much like a Germain-made blend and seems similar to me to And So to Bed. It is a light English with a topping that does does not detract from the fine balance of the Virginias, Oriental and slight Latakia. It is a fine ribbon and smokes dry and cool. Worth a try.

This blend surprises me in that I do not understand why more people have not reviewed it. Cool and easy burning it delivers balanced flavor where the Virginia and Turkish leaf combine to produce a sweet musky taste that is present throughout the smoking experience. Predominately darker in appearance it serves notice of pleasures to come. The Syrian leaf serves to resonate the complexity of the other superior ingredients. There is very little trash so one is smoking high leaf content - a mark of the blender's craftsmanship. Tangy with soft references to campfire and leather, it should be smoked indoors for best effect. This blend could easily become an all day smoke for those so inclined. It is full of flavor without being overpowering. Whether to call it an English or Balkan is difficult as it captures the best essence of both. Smoker's Haven dates the tins which informed me that my tins already had a couple of years in the can. I believe this would be even better if it was a coarse cut and pressed. I feel that this blend would be most receptive to some cigar leaf mixed in. I recommend this fine blend with no reservations.

Meerschaum Man Smoking an Altinok Smooth Canadian

I agree with Jiminks that this is about a 2.5 star blend, particularly to my tastes, so I am rounding it up to 3 because it is still a well done blend. This one is a little sour to my tastes probably as a result of the orientals used.

The blend seems to be dominated by both the Virginias and orientals with the lat present in a condimental sense. It lacks the creaminess that more latakia rich blends tend to have and is more tangy. The Virginia component is pretty sweet as should be expected as it is made by germain, who seems to age their vas extensively. Like all Germain blends it is a high quality product thus making it a recommended blend for those who enjoy the type of Balkan that this is.

For me, I enjoy more smoky and creaminess in these types of blends.