Imperial Tobacco Group, PLC Saint Claude

I bought a pack of this three four years ago. At first when I smoked it I thought it wasn't bad, with a bit of roundness, but not much interest. It was a bit sour, and also, this tobacco still has the strongest nicotine hit I've ever had. Even stronger than bell's three nuns, for example. So, on the upside, it will still your nerves rapidly, if that's what you're looking for. My conclusion was that it was better than most pipe tobaccos you can buy at an average french news and tobacco place, but that it wasn't really interesting either. It wasn't bitter, it wasn't bad, it just didn't have much taste to it (and didn't resemble cigars at all).

Note, this tobacco smells pretty dank.

Then I cellared it for two years. Took it out. It was pretty much the same. Maybe the sour taste was a bit more present. In any case, I recellared it for two years.

I took it out after four years of cellaring. The smell is still pretty dank but... it actually got very nice! And I mean very nice! Nice enough, that I am thinking about buying 2-3 packs and stocking them for four years. It is rich, flavorful, gives off a thick mesmerizing smoke, and, depending on what you want, still packs a strong nicotine punch. I really like it... after four years.

Of course this result gives me mixed feelings. On the one hand, it's a "not bad, but nothing special" tobacco when you buy it. At first, I had put 2 stars for that. On the other hand, it is a really, really nice tobacco after 4 years. But, it takes 4 years to get good! And that just makes me want to cellar it again and see what happens! Ahhh... 3 stars.

A lighter scaferlati that could be smoked all day. Brown tobacco still dominates with that roasted, earthy, cigar like taste. A no fuss, inexpensive pouch tobacco that could be bought in Tabac stores in France at around 7 euros. It's good to know that Europe still has some affordable pipe tobacco. The same cannot be said about those tinned ones whose price has doubled because of new taxes.

Virginia lover

I agree with Mr Zorg, this is worth trying.

Also it is easy to pack, light and smoke. It delivers earthy, woodsy flavors like "Gris" does but has a somewhat broader cut to it.

I obtained some St-Claude, Gris, Caporal Export as well as Belgian Semois and am a big fan of these tobaccos.

I smoked Saint-Claude for years. It will give you a nice nicotine kick, if you like that.

It is a typical French blend, a little more elaborated than Scaferlattis and Caporals though.

In that range of tobaccos, I would also advise the different Semois from Belgium.

Every once in a while, I get back to it. It is not a sophisticated blend at all, but it will not make your pipe stinks either.

One of the tobaccos that are easy to find in France, and that is worth trying, in my opinion.

My first French blend I've tried so far, I've picked it up in Paris just recently during my honeymoon. The tobacco looks like something between roll-yer-own cigarette tobacco and a classic ribbon cut. The tobacco in the pouch was just right after opening (for somebody might be a little dry-ish). Burns evenly however it needs a bit of an attention as it has a tendency to burn fast (and hot and bitter) but if you watch it it's a treat. All-in-all it's an easy natural, rather rustic tobacco of a cigaretty/cigary/earthy flavour.

This is a better version of the Caporal export, if you look for a refined and complex smoke. This contains a part of Virginia and a part of Semois leaf, so it returns more subtleties during the smoke than his Caporal cousin. It is sweeter, firstly, and a lot less hot, but pay the same attention in smoking it slow because it can easily turn bitter.

Cheap french drugstore Caporal blend The same leaf as in Gaulloises cigarettes but more rough-cut. It burns damn fast, and is impossible to inhale without getting serious breathing problems. And no, I'm not a neophyte - I smoke Royal Yacht and love it.

If you like Caporal style blends, this might ring your bell - I'll just steer clear.......

One of the classic French national offerings, made for about 92.5% of tobacco and the rest of additives (which certainly contribute to the strong sweetish/honeyish smell of the mixture) as the pouch states. It comes quite dry, in a ribbon cut which is more suitable for pipe smoking than the shag cut of many similar Italian offerings. The taste is, anyway, similar to that of the Italian traditional tobaccos (after all, Italy and France are quite near...): half way between Comune and Forte, if you have tried them. The taste offers a rustic taste which shows some sweetness from the virginias and some woody bitterness (especially at the end of the bowl) typical of burley or kentucky. It is also reminiscent of some versions of Half&Half that have appeared in these last years. Not a completely bad tobacco, but not one that I would gladly smoke every day... It burns fast and even. Beware because it dries VERY fast, and when it does it becomes unbearably bitter like a bad cigar! Well, it does so even when at the right moisture... but only at the end of the bowl!

Back in Paris after a long pause due to the pandemic and out of pipe tobacco I visited a shop that's known to carry some decent tinned tobaccos - À la Civette du Palais Royal. This shop is currently almost entirely devoted to cigars, with a relatively small offering of pipe tobaccos. Tobacco taxes are outrageously high in France. At this shop, a tin of the Dunhill (now Peterson) Early Morning Pipe costs 32 euros. I purchased a pouch of this stuff for 15 euros. The helpful young salesperson informed me that this blend contains cigar leaf. This may be so, and another review here claims that it contains cigar leaf from Paraguay. Manufactured by MacBaren, and available ( I subsequently discovered) at most "tabac" shops in France, that company's web page describes the tobacco thus: "A fair amount of Dark Fired Kentucky is balanced by the natural bright Virginia tobaccos. The special air-cured tobacco adds the French touch and magic in quite a unique way". Whatever that "French touch" is supposed to mean, the pouch odor is very light, slightly flowery. The taste is bland but not unpleasant. The ribbon cut burns easily. Apparently a good example of the French "braun" tobaccos, it will have to tide me over until my C.A.R.E. package arrives from the U.S. Until then I'll use it for blending.