Hearth & Home Old Tartan

Not much to add here except to offer a high recommendation; "Old Tartan" certainly holds a permanent place in my top 5 blends. A very tasty smoke that offers an exceptionally unique and refreshing smoke. Modeled after the old Pat Vottis blend "Black Watch". The burleys play the main role in the mixture with the cavendish and Latakia complimenting them perfectly. This blend does leave some moisture, and I've found that a Kirsten pipe lends itself wonderfully to Old Tartan. A great blend.

What a wonderful blend.

If you have sat downwind of someone who is smoking a pipe and said to yourself "now that is what a pipe smells like at its best", then this is the aroma you are looking for.

I thought it was high quality vanilla until my pipe mentor pointed out that its deer tongue that the sweet and rich vanilla-esque scent is. Its accompanied by a tiny pinch of lat that I can barely detect even though I know its there, and very good burley to make it earthy and sweet simultaneously.

Rather than just being a vehicle for the deer tongue, its a fine blend in itself with a gratifying oomph from the burley which is dark and rich, and the cav adds an element that I cant describe.

I'm not doing a good job describing this, so let me just say, its smells like an old fashioned pipe blend, with good burley base and on top of that there is a rich creaminess from the little bit of lat, and its topped off with a twist from the deer tongue which gives it almost a crossover English feel.

One of my faves.

Really unique blend. Tin note is mostly anise/black licorice; there's a nutty banana bread hiding behind them and faint honey-like smell from the deer tongue. (I sometimes stick my nose in the tin for a little pick me up.) Crazy mix of cuts (shag plus cubes??) and nice range of colors.

Packs and lights well. (Another reviewer's suggestion to pack a bowl and leave it for several days is interesting; will have to try that.)

This is one of the few blends I've tried where the smoke smells and tastes a lot like the tin note. The room note is incredible. (But I enjoy smelling of campfires and burning tobacco, so what the hell do I know?)

The burley, cavendish and latakia play in a way that almost tastes like a spicy oriental at first, go figure. That soon gave way to the nicotine-laden burley, with a taste that reminded me of baking bread and hot cocoa.

The deer tongue is dancing on top almost the entire time. Try to imagine standing outside a bakery that's cooking something chocolate while you're chewing on a mouthful of black licorice. The deer tongue adds another dimension to the aftertaste and tongue coating that isn't entirely pleasant. But like everything else about this blend, it's different.

It's not for everybody, and as with any burley-based blend, it can start to go sour the longer it's heated up. But Russ has done a masterful job with this one, imo. I'd give it 3.5 stars if I could.

3/4/2014 - The more I get to know this blend, the more I like it. Upping to four stars. This is really good stuff.

If you have wished for someone to package the smell of an old tobacco shop, wish no more, here it is! 'Nuff said.

I did not know if i would like this or not, but I wanted something different. And this answered that craving quite well. I really like this blend! In the pouch, it is a mottled brown mix with a little of the latakia darker leaf in small pieces and if you look hard the light green flakes of the deers tongue lightly mixed in. The pouch aroma is very spicy with a sweet twang. Very intriguing. It packed easy with just a touch of too much moisture, so I let the pipe sit an hour before lighting up. On first light, I was rewarded with a nice sweet smooth smoke with a little spice and twang, and the room note has the great aroma of a good burley with the deers tongue making is present known the the sweet tart almost vanilla way it does. It is very tame in it's bite but the perique keeps it alive on the tongue and the latakia kicking in once in awhile adding it's smokey goodness in. It burned all the way down to a medium grey ash with very little dottle in the pipe. I enjoyed this blend a lot. I can see this pouch going fast and me reordering it in bulk to have around. Great with a cup of black tea. I highly recommend this blend if one wants to try something different and tasty.

As a fairly new smoker I simply love this tobacco, this is my go to blend when I can not make up my mind. It is hard to put a finger on exactly why this is so, this is something I find myself smoking all day. I really enjoy how well all of the ingredients in this blend play well together, nothing really comes to the front and grabs you, it is all a beautiful symphony of flavors playing softly in the background allowing you to just enjoy. I will be ordering a BIG bag of this to have around all the time, it is that good.

Anyone who has been following my reviews on the Hearth and Home series is probably wondering if I am on the payroll at Pipes and Cigars because all my reviews are four stars. The answer is simpler; they get these reviews because they are excellent tobaccos. Old Tartan follows in that mold.

In the pouch this tobacco has several different hues of brown from the burleys, some black flecks of cavendish, and sparsely scattered among these are little pieces of deer tongue. The pouch aroma is slightly sweet, no doubt from the influence of the deer tongue and cavendish.

After loading and firing up a bowl (I packed with the Frank method) the first flavors sensed are the subdued nuttiness of the burleys, along with the smokey Latakia flavor, all overladen with a sweetness from the deer tongue. It is a delightful taste, one that could easily be smoked all day. As the bowl burns down, the deer tongue fades a bit without ever going away, and the Latakia and burley come to the forefront. They are almost perfectly balanced, with one never dominating the other. This was my first deer tongue blend and it was a pleasant experience. I prefer this tobacco to C&D's Crooner, which also has deer tongue. The tobacco burns down to the bottom of the bowl, leaving only a little blackened dottle. Relights are also kept to a minimum, and a lot of the credit for this has to go to the cut and packing method.

Old Tartan is only sold in bulk, which may put some smokers off who prefer tinned blends. Take my word for it; this one will hold its' own with any tinned blend. Considering the quality of the tobaccos used, the price is reasonable, too.

As for the scores on Old Tartan; taste- 17 of 20 points; lighting and burn- 9 of 10; value- 8 of 10. A total of 34 of 40 adds up to a solid **** for Old Tartan. And the winning streak for Russ Ouellette continues.

This is my first review and I haven't been smoking for that long.

That being said, I bought the sampler pack from pipesandcigars and one of them was Old Tatan and I really like it. I seem to be liking English/Balkan blends which this isnt realy like that but I like it alot just the same. I have reached that smoke "nirvana zone" state with bowls of this several times.

The base is a really good quality burley I think. There are chunks of it and some cube cut and ribbon in the blend. The deertoung makes it a little sweet on the humantounge. The latakia makes it a little Englishy. It is very smooth yet complex. 'Pretty consisitant down the bowl. This is the best/easiest packing blend I have yet experienced. Lights Easy. Just the right moisture content. I could smoke this all day as it has never bitten me.

I am with the first reviewer here...I'm going to buy a big bag of this!

This tobacco is a unique and delightful surprise. It does not taste anything like the most popular and highly rated English, Burley, or Crossover blends. The Latakia is very mild and condimental, just the right touch to mellow and enhance the plain tobacco flavor. The burley is buttery rich and smooth with semi-sweet vanilla leaf (deer tongue) on top . A satisfying smoke all day long, all year round.