Bufflehead Virginia Ruddy Duck

David Windsor's Virginia Ruddy Duck was perhaps the favorite of mine in the Bufflehead line as the Virginia leaf employed was top shelf and the sugary leaf was sensational for aging. I thought it was okay fresh, but just had a feeling this one would age well and got a dozen or so tins for my cellar. Knowing that I will run out one day, I savor a tin a year or so. I just finished another one a few weeks ago and the decade of aging make the leaf very dark and loaded up with sugar crystals. Just a sensational blend. If you can find an old tin, grab it if you like well aged Virginia smokes.

Pipestud

Virginia Ruddy Decoy raises the bar for all Virginia blends ever made. No exceptions. None. If Dave Windsor at Bufflehead had been marketing this stuff in 1775, Kansas would have been the first state admitted to the Union. Pick any significant criteria to measure with - taste, bowl behavior, burn properties, room note, performance in different size/shape pipes - doesn't matter. There is Virginia Ruddy Decoy and then everything else is competing for 2nd place. And to put some great icing on the cake - as of next week (June 1) Bufflehead tobaccos will again be available (go to www.bufflehead.com for details). Seriously, Virginia Ruddy Decoy is a positively Fantastic blend. It WILL reshuffle your assessment of other Virginias. An' Tha'ss a Fac, Jack !

Tiger

I have been waiting for a few weeks for my shipment of Bufflehead tobaccos, and I had a new Bosi Cherrywood (from the good people at smokingpipes) ready to be broken in with this tobacco (I think it is called Virginia Ruddy Decoy, not Duck). Well, the wait was well worth it. I had been smoking Virginia/Perique blends for the last two months or so, and this is a welcome change. A delightful zesty, sweet odor, a mix of red and orange and brown ribbon cuts of tobacco, and a perfect moisture content for immediate smoking. I packed the poker up and relaxed to a perfect smoke for the next 45 minutes. Not a drop of moisture accumulated, and the taste and smell was perfectly delicious to the end. High praise for this blend. Ranks near the top of pure Virginias.

My tins say Virginia Ruddy Decoy, but the tobacco description is the same as above. Bufflehead sells some fine tobaccos, and this is probably my favorite of those I have tried. If you are looking for a rich, McClelland Virginia flavor with no bite and no sweeteners, you will not do much better than this. Highly recommended.

What a great VA blend, I don't think this gets the credit it deserves. This has become my summer tobacco of choice, with one pipe devoted to it. Fantastic tin aroma, I pick up rasins & figs. It packs and burns great, and the taste is sublime. I'm sure it will only get better with aging...but I can't seem to keep a tin around long enough! Try it, I don't think you will be sorry.

I received a sample tin of this fine Virginia when it was as yet unnamed. The people at Bufflehead kindly included it with an order and asked for my opinion. This is a high quality Virginia, not stems whatever to be found. It has a pleasant scent in the tin, a grassy, haylike smell. The moisture level is near perfect for me. It packs very nicely. McClelland does their blending for them and 5100 is used as a base. To the 5100 is added a darker, stoved Virginia. It is well aged. This is a Virginia, and rushing the smoke can cause it to warm up the tongue. But smoked patiently it is a very enjoyable Virginia to smoke. I compared it to McClelland 2010. The are similar tobaccos, though this is a nice medium ribbon, not a broken flake like 2010. Nor is it as moist as 2010. I enjoy smoking Virginia Ruddy Duck. And the people at Bufflehead are very customer friendly. They are to only online tobacconist that has sent me free samples. They also answer email inquiries promptly and personally. They also appear to keep a customer database to track my preferences. Nice service. Also a very nice Virginia

Dave Windsor blended some fine tobaccos. Perhaps this was one of them. Unfortunately, my reaction was dismal. Poor burning, hot smoking and a flavor I just didn't like.

Virginia Ruddy Decoy. A fine example of an orange and red Virginia blend. The tongue tingle from the Virginia is medium. Faint trademark scent from those McClelland Virginia's used in this blend. I think some of the components are from another supplier, which is why the scent is more rich and hay-like. No bite here. Packs easily and burns well. Best flavor when smoldered. BOB's that have trouble with flakes would probably appreciate this cut of tobacco.

It's getting rarer every day.

Enjoy!

Carlos

My tastes go against the grain here. As noted by prison chaplain below, this blend has MC 5100 as its base. I do not care for 5100 and this, of course, explains why I am not enamored with this blend although it is slightly better than 5100. For me, this blend was short on flavor and, at times, was bitter. So if you like 5100 you will like this blend. If you don?t, you won?t.

A cigarette is to be smoked. A cigar is to be enjoyed. A pipe is to be savored.

I rate this tobacco 5.5 out of 10.