Tinder Box Philosopher Blend

I just smoked a bowl of this in an old Kaywoodie Bulldog. The sample I had was straight from the jar from Tinderbox, and as all the jars were full to the top, I presume this is as freash as it gets. I did not dry my sample at all, and I must say it does remind me of Frog Morton On The Town, although it seems to have a more pronounced Virginia component than Frog Morton. It starts out with a pronounced cavendish smoothness, then the Virginias come into play in the middle of the bowl. The Orientals are in the passenger seat all along. I normally shy away from cavendish, as I prefer quite full bodied smokes, but this stuff is pretty good. I think if one likes the Frog Morton series, this would please. I will smoke this on occasion, but I lean toward the likes of Nightcap and 965 when I hunger for a smoke in this class. Still, all in all a pretty nice smoke. There was a good bit of unburned dottle at the end, but again I did not dry it out at all. I think this is worthy of a try, and I just might learn to appreciate cavendish a little more. Yeah, recommended. Update: Boy, I hate to edit my original review so soon, but.... this stuff is just soaked in propelyne glycol(SP?). I think anyone who smokes Latakia or Orientals is probably an experienced smoker, and would be far better off to purchase Dunhill 965 or Nightcap. I can understand the need to keep tobacco fresh in the bulk business, but better packaging sure beats PG anytime. If one is out of quality tobacco, this will fill the bill untill top shelf stuffin's can be had, but don't bother with this if you have better options.

No Virginia leaf I can detect, and Latakia is the Oriental component. This is lightly sweet, but more than say Early Morning Pipe (which is VA based and uncased) and less than Frog Morton, probably due to the cased cavendish base.

This is a moderately interesting blend for distracted consumption that burns nicely (despite tactile moisture) and leaves some fairly substantial dottle in the bottom of the bowl. Low lying forage as an occasional change for pure aromatic or traditional English blend smokers.

The one thing I like about Philosopher over other bulk Americanized English blends is that it does not have a sooty or machine oil aftertaste.

I think the reason UncleGar's impressions of Philosopher did not match up with the stated descriptive is because this present day version is not even close to what Philosopher once was in the 1970s. There is an esteemed reviewer in our group (OSR) who worked for the Tinderbox chain for many years who no doubt can give a better history lesson regarding this blend than I can.

I recently received a tin of Philosopher as well as another called Lamplighter. I am told both tins are 1970's Tinderbox originals. Philosopher does indeed have a somewhat cased "English" type taste. The very broken flake was dark and easy to light. It certainly provided an unusual flavor presentation that was almost sour. I am wondering if the casing caused this because I have noticed that cased blends with 20 or so years of aging actually cause the blend to head south over time.

After reading UncleGar's review, I think I'll take a pass on the new stuff.

A very thoughtful (non pipe smoking) friend gifted this to me a few years ago, knowing that I liked English tobaccos. Very kind gesture to be sure, I was and remained touched with the thought.

I tried a bowl worth when I received it, and being big into Balkans at that time I found this unappealing. Some latakia, but a very notable quantity of sweetened cavendish. From there, it remained in the bag for roughly 3 years untouched. I recently came across it again and wanted to compare it to some Stokkebye bulk English blends I picked up (reviews coming soon, need some more "mileage" with them to give them the fair assessment they deserve). Sure enough after 3 years in a non-airtight-bag it was almost as moist as when I first got it. Humectant aplenty.

There is Latakia, the orientals show up, to be sure there's elements that are familiar to English smokers. I guess it's the pronounced sweetness that it's aromatic cousins share that makes Philosopher bland. It does not develop throughout the bowl in any notable way: You get sweetened cavendish at the start and you get sweetened cavendish at the end. Certain latakia blends can incorporate cavendish to good effect, although they are usually brown and / or unsweetened, a la Dunhill MM965. This one does not work with the same effect.

In defense of Tinder Box English tobaccos though, I do believe one of their English blends started me down the path of more noble blends when I first started pipe smoking in the late 90's. From a blend similar to this (can't remember specifically which one), I've gone on to enjoy a huge range of amazing smokes after learning that there was more to pipe tobacco than vanilla, fruit, and tongue bite. For the reason of being a "gateway blend", and for having received this as a gift from a thoughtful friend, I'll remain friendly to the Tinder Box English blends and thank them for making blends like this available.

I picked up a complimentary ounce of this blend after buying a VERY nice black, rusticated Savinelli Trevi pipe from my local Tinder Box pipe store. In explaining to the manager what type of blends I preferred, it didn't take long for him to reach for Philospher. I packed a bowl when I got home (not in my new Savinelli though) and can say that I was not impressed. This is a completely harmless tobacco for anyone who thought this was an end of day robust smoke. It's very bland, not much taste and definitely no aroma whatsoever. In the baggie it came in, I could only detect the slightest hint of a sweet somewhat pungent aroma. However, that's it. It's borderline English aromatic if there's such a thing. On the plus side, I didn't get any tongue bite that I usually get from blends with unnatural casing. It doesn't smoke hot and I smoked it pretty hard. Lights easy, no relights and burns to a white/gray ash. I can't recommend even for those seeking to switch from aromatics to Balkan blends because there's gotta be something out there better than this. Two stars, would not buy again nor can I or recommend.

I try to feed the local Tinderbox despite their dearth of tinned tobaccos. They have about a dozen jars of "custom" blends (Lane) with names that sound like either donuts or hookers. I was offered a free couple oz. with a pipe I bought there last year. I reluctantly accepted a sample of this.

Jar aroma: slightly sweet, slightly oriental, slightly phenolic (think band-aid.. how my nose perceives latakia). Trace of alcohol topping possible.

Appearance: typical oriental? shreds (light) about 10-20%, sticks 5%, heavy dark brown clumps and shreds, balance. Somewhat moist in a cavendish way.

First light: English, sweetish. Latakia sure seems to be there, as does cavendish. Orientals there in minor amounts. Mild tasting, like Aperitif-light. Trying hard to taste VAs.

Development: orientals stronger, sweetness stronger. Sidestream smoke curiously bland. Vague sense of autumn burning leaves. No further development. No bite, flavor mild overall.

Final call: actually, I liked it. I often enjoy mild tobaccos. I disagree with the stated description of ingredients, unless cavendish counts as a Virginia and latakia gets classified as an oriental. I haven't smoked Lane's Crown Achievement, but I suspect this is it, relabeled. A good light English (Scottish?), dainty almost. Bland, but in a good way. An English for people who don't like English, a wise offering to the customers of Tinderbox, judging on the rest of their offerings.

Went back in my way back machine and purchased a sampler of English tins on ebay from 1978! All unopened! Oh yeah, I'm 23 again. In my head anyway. Upon opening I was surprised that the tobacco, although dry, still had that wonderful tin note. Woodsy Latakia. So far so good. Put it in a fresh zippered baggie along with a small humidor button to re-hydrate. Next day, trial by fire! Loaded up the Ascorti and hoped for the best. First puff and yes, it has not lost a thing! The brain says, I remember this! Lat forward smoky goodness, grassy virginia and a touch of oriental. I was surprised the Latakia had not gone south on a tin this old but I got lucky. Can't comment on the new Philosopher as there are no Tinder Box stores lest around here. We used to have 3. Now to find that Lee Van Cleef movie...

Latakia, yes, but not too much. Orientals, yes, but again, not too much. At one time, I found this tobacco to be too rich for me, but as I have traversed the pipe tobacco world...and aged....I have changed my mind about this stuff. It will never be the great Godsend blend for me, but it has a fantastic smell, burns well, and has a great taste. again, Tinder Box Latakia blends are quite good.

It has been so long since I tried my first and last pouch of Philosopher that I do not remember much about it other than it made me a pipe tobacco fan after a few failed attempts in years prior.