Smokers' Haven Select Mixture

Made with the special touches that only Germain can produce, Select Mixture contains special well aged Virginia and puts that leaf at the forefront. They then added just enough of their world renoun ripe Orientals to produce spice and cool burning delight, and finished up with just enough Latakia to add zest and smokiness to the mixture. Another winner from Germain and Smoker's Haven!

Normally I like blends with large amounts of oriental or latakia. This is one of the lighter blends that I really enjoy. The sweetness from the virginia is at the forefront, with the orientals there for added support. The latakia is in the background and just barely noticeable. The dark pieces in mine (latakia) had tons of white and grey crystals on them. Yummy!

I really enjoy this, and because it is such a light smoke, I can enjoy bowlful after bowlful.

I like it!

One caveat: This is the wettest tobacco I've ever found in tin form. 10% of the weight was probably moisture (I'm exaggerating), but I did need to lay it out overnight before it was to my liking, and it is a ribbon cut!

I got a sample of this on a recent trip to Smoker's Haven in Columbus, and as their Our Best Blend is among my top 10 favorite tobaccos I thought I would give all of their proprietary blends a try. Select is touted as their lightest offering in the line.

Select Mixture is a wonderful tobacco for my first bowl of the day and this could certainly be an all day smoke. I have a deep love for English blends and Select Mixture fits the light English niche for me wonderfully. Highly recommended to those who enjoy Dunhill's BB1938 and Early Morning Pipe or Samuel Gawith's Squadron Leader, as this has a similar level of both taste and quality.

This stuff is awesome! I thought that I would miss the Latakia in this one like I did with In-B-Tween Mixture but this smokes more like a lightly topped VA blend than it does an English blend. It’s a very soft but rich smoke that has a lot of complexities to it. I detect a tad bit of licorice but there is certainly more to it than that. This blend is a treat that I think would make a great holiday smoke as the tin note conjures up images of the warm spices that are commonly associated with Thanksgiving and Christmas. Mulled wine is one that comes to mind the most and I wouldn’t be surprised if they used some type of wine in the topping. I highly suggest dumping out the whole tin on a plate and thinning out the tobacco to air dry for about an hour and a half as it comes a bit too moist for immediate smoking but I appreciate that they pack it this way cause it just seems to age better with a bit more moisture in the leaf. I was fully planning on adding some more Latakia to this after reading a lot of the reviews but I think I will leave this exactly how it is because like I said before, it is a real treat. I’d highly recommend it to English afficianodos, VA fanatics and even the aro heads alike as it’s got something that will certainly please everyone. The main problem I foresee is we all know that it can be hard to obtain Germain products and lately all of the Smokers Haven blends have become scarce as well. Will this beat out Exotique for my favorite SH blend? Absolutely not! But I certainly would buy more tins in the future if they become easily obtainable again like they once were. Nicotine in this is light but the full, rich flavors in the smoke more than make up for this.

This gets a full four stars from this here pipe smoker.

Through this winter I have really favored Virginians, but English blends are part of my regular rotation. Two premium crumble cake flakes are part of my inventory. One day I brightened an English flake with Xmas Cheer and was pleased. That led me to find a lighter English blend. Select Mixture is that great blend. There?s so much to like-quality, complexity and balance. The very fine ribbon cut allows for effortless smoking. It smokes well in both small and large bowl pipes- quite user friendly. The Syrian Latakia and Turkish are perfectly applied by never outpacing the sweet and tangy Virginians. Each component tobacco shows up throughout the bowl. If you enjoy Early Morn Pipe, Squadron Leader and Presbyterian Mix you should not miss this blend, and HH Vintage Syrian, sadly, can?t compare. The bowls finishes with a dry, powdery ash. This is a marvelous all day smoke. I am head over heels on this blend.

I'm really enjoying this superb string cut blend. It's mostly a VA, with a small amount of Turkish & sprinkled ever so lightly with Latakia. I'd guess it to be a Syrian Latakia, very smooth & creamy tasting, strictly as condiments. It's sweet, stays lit, and is satisfying. As mostly a VA piper, I like the fact that the pallet isn't overpowered for a follow up bowl of a straight VA.

Key, it does well when allowed to dry in a ZipLok baggie for a couple weeks.

I like it best in bowls with 13/16-7/8" bore diameters. Thanks to Smoker's Haven for reviving this fine blend & to Germain.