Nat Sherman 536 Empire English

On the pea green soupy tin: the elegance of the Manhattan panorama circa 1935. In the tin: the olfactory greeting is burnt wires ala elevated/subway 3rd rail and buttered popcorn; more Gotham reminders, perhaps? In the pipe: pure, creamy smoking enjoyment. This is a full English, Oriental-based blend with exotic touches that is surprisingly direct, reliable and true. My New Yorker friend tells me this is not available west of the Hudson; apparently Nat?s hording it for boroughs only consumption. (Incidentally, why are all New Yorkers imbued with that annoying provincial smugness of pointing out all the things the rest of the world supposedly doesn?t have, and as if it really mattered? ? Yes, we have opera, pastrami and proctologists out here, too). Nevertheless, this is a fine blend, no matter where it comes from. Apparently, like so many other good things in this world, it?s being discontinued. I plan to stock up on a couple of remaining tins if I can. I remember Nat?s excellent cigars before he irreparably changed those beyond recognition. If you can find 536 in or out of New York, treat yourself to a bowl of this excellent mainstay before it's gone forever, and nobody, not even gothamites, will be able to enjoy it.

Three and a half of five stars

This blend (536) is called "EMPIRE ENGLISH" by Nat Sherman's. It is described as: "The quintessential British blend of exotic latakia, and Turkish Yenidje and Malhalla tobacco. Spicy, musky aroma and taste." To be frank, that's a fairly candid, straight-forward assessment. This is Nat Sherman's take on Dunhill's Early Morning Pipe or 965. Kind of somewhere in the middle of the spectrum, but not anywhere near venturing towards Nightcap territory. But, if you get the idea of what I'm trying to convey, then you might get the sense of what Nat Sherman might be trying to accomplish with this tobacco.

Honestly, they to do a dam* fine job of it. This is a very pleasing tobacco and one that I will continue to reach for time and time again. I only discovered it by virtue of the fact that a friend of mine recently sent me bushels of various Nat Sherman blends, this being amongst them. Aromatics and such aren't my cup of tea, and this being by far what I'm used to was certainly right up my alley. Very, very classic English and very tasty. A fine job indeed and for the price (less than $7.00 for a 2.0 oz bag), quite reasonably priced. Definitely would recommend picking this up if you are at all fond of the aforementioned Dunhill variations.

Metropolitan Tobac No. 536, blended for Nat Sherman, made in Denmark.

Tin of note of smoky, spices and sweet sugary fruit. Tobacco is a mostly a ribbon cut of brown, black and tan with a little dark brown. Moisture content is great. Burns moderate with few relights. The strength is medium and nic is mild. No flavoring detected. Taste is medium and very consistent, with notes of smoky, floral, sweet-toasted bread, spices, sugar, nuts, incense, wood, creamy, peaty herbal vegetation, leather, tangy dark dried fruit, rich earth, zesty citrus, a mildly sweet lemon grassy background note, and a peppery retro. Latakia is leading with Cavendish, Burley and Virginias supporting. Room note is tolerable, and aftertaste is great.

Some have described this blend as an American English. Does that mean a mild English with some sweet black cavendish added? I can't agree fully with that description. It is a mild tasting English for sure, but the description on the tin, "full bodied", is no joke. You may experience the mild Latakia flavor, but there is also a noticeable nicotine kick. I learned to take it very easy with this one. Because the taste is mild, one is tempted to puff more frequently and deeply. That's a mistake. Your head and stomach will let you know. But if smoked gently, it's really very good. It's cool and even burning and doesn't taste bad or leave a strong aftertaste. I prefer big taste to big nicotine kick, so I may not get this again, but if someone gifted this to me I wouldn't pass it up. Recommended.

Empire English is black cavendish forward, and has that typical cavendish sweetness about it making the smoke very round and smooth. The Lat. trails this and is only slightly smokey with a faint note of leather. I will be honest, the Mexican burley is what caught my attention when looking at it to purchase. Cigar smokers know that Mexican Maudro wrappers are among the most sought after in the industry for there unique flavor. The burley is muted a little with all the cavendish but it is still very earthy but only slightly nutty. The VA's are sweet and there is a faint spice note that comes in on occasion that may (or may not) be from them. Overall, a nice offering that is a little sweeter than most English blends due to the cavendish. This is not a complex smoke compared to other English blends but there is some depth of flavors. The body of the smoke stayed at the mild to med. range, pushing to get more smoke did cause a slight bite. The nic was at the upper range of mild to med. for me. Recommended for those looking for a sweeter English than is typically offered, newer smokers might enjoy this one too after they have their first few more traditional English blends under their belt. Room note is fairly pleasant overall.

Black Cavendish isn't really my kind of thing in English blends. It just isn't. Although it's a smooth and rounded as a smoke, and very enjoyable also, it kind of differs from the classic English blends that we're used to.

I'll give it 3 stars, just because in a genre of itself, it may be considered as a masterpiece. Taste is OK, smoke is creamy, satisfactory level of nicotine, and so on.

No orientals can be detected, at least I couldn't. Latakia is present but doesn't play the main role. VAs give a nice body to the smoke, but the distinctive VA flavors aren't much noticeable. Now, the main feature: Black Cavendish. It's there from the beginning to the end. It doesn't bother much, and if you like it, you'll enjoy it. There is a special note when Black Cavendish and Latakia combine that can be very tasteful, however I'm not used to it if there isn't enough oriental flavor to make it right. It's sweet, but in a different way than Virginias. Some fellow reviewers find flavoring in it, but I think that is the Cavendish they are catching.

So it really deserves 2 stars for my taste, but for those that like american style tobaccos it goes solid 4 stars. The judgement will be in the middle. If you like american blends (Epiphany, And So To Bed, Spillman Mixture e.t.c.) you'll love this. If you're predominantly Balkan style English smoker, you'll smoke a tin of it, but won't be your choice for go to tobacco.

This is an excellent middle of the road English blend that is light on latakia but has a nice touch of orientals. Course cut and burns quite easily. Has a nice seet note given by excellent Virginanians in the blend with a mild smokiness but exceptionaly creamy. As some reviewers stated, the nicotine content is high but that does not take away from the fine blend that is integrated nicely. It reminds me of a stronger Early Morning Pipe by Dunhill. From what I can tell, has a nice room note and as the latakia is in the background, makes it a nice indoor smoke when around people that might not like the full frontal assult of a full latakia like Odessey.