Boswell Pipes & Tobacco Berry Cobbler

Berry Cobbler and Christmas Cookie may be Boswell's two most aromatic blends, in terms of pouch scent…which is pleasant in itself, though cloying even to the nose, and a bit of a red flag.

Some of Boswell's other aromatics, such as Pennsylvania Dutch Treat, maintain a clean tobacco taste, and limit the chemical nastiness, and give hints of flavor that are true to scent. Unfortunately, Berry Cobbler (along with Christmas Cookie) is not like that, but more like a typical aromatic, which tastes very little like it smells, and leaves a chemical nastiness in your mouth.

Boswell has some truly stellar tobaccos (No Bite Delite is their best), but IMO, this is not one of them. It's no worse than a run-of-the-mill aromatic, but no better, either. Like them, the taste left in the mouth has some very undesirable dimensions.

I'm not that big a fan of the fruit flavoured aromatics, and much prefer the vanilla's and caramel's (dessert type flavouring). This one however, is quite enjoyable. It's a light smoke that has a very noticable berry flavour that almost made me want to inhale. I found it smokes a little wet, and for best results let the tobacco sit outside of the bag for about 15-20 minutes before packing. Love Boswell's and definitely love the price.

This blend was WAY too much for me. Too sweet and heavy, if you really like aromatics you may enjoy it, but I actually ended up throwing out most of the 2oz. bag I got.

I bought a few ounces of Boswell's Berry Cobbler a couple of months ago, and got around to giving it a go this week. Upon inspection the color brown seemed to dominate with a good mixing of the black cavendish providing contrast. The strong scent of mixed fruit jam hit me upon opening, and this tobacco was in need of some drying out.

After letting it dry a bit, the first unlit sip brought the jam flavor along with it, as did the initial light. The flavoring never really burned off as I progressed down the bowl, it only became fainter. This tobacco burned hot for me no matter how I changed my puffing rhythm. I just couldn't seem to get along with it at all. There was not noticeable aftertaste and it left a superb room note just as advertised as it turned to a white ash. The room note indeed reminded me of fruit cobblers baking.

This tobacco burned a bit too hot for me as I mentioned, and the flavoring was not strong enough for my tastes. The flavoring was just noticeable enough after burning mostly off to detract from the taste of the tobacco. I probably will not be buying more of this, though I adore other Boswell offerings. Anyone who likes a simple aromatic will probably enjoy this more than I did.

This is the epitome of aromatic smokes as fas as I'm concerned. I enjoy the entire spectrum of tobaccos, aromtics included.

You don't go searching for an aromatic smoke to taste the tobacco base of Virginia, burley, etc, but to find a change of pace. Aromatics are not meant to be complex, full bodied or heady, so don't knock them when you go knocking on a door no one lives behind.

I don't know how the Boswell's incoperated real berries in here, and you would have a hard time convincing me there isn't real fruit in here. Yes, it's that good.

If you can resist the temptation to actually injest this, fill a bowl and relax. You'll enjoy the ride.

I have yet to attempt a drink pairing with this blend as I do in all my reviews, but check back soon.

Update 9/11 Even stored in a sealed jar, the flavor disappears within weeks to leave only a base tobacco blend. Very disappointed.

Edit again 8/31/19

I have to edit once more. I did not find it fair to knock this blend down to 2 stars because the flavoring disappears after a few weeks. I've learned to just smoke this fresh and be happy. I cannot explain how delicious the berry flavoring is in here! 4 stars for this aromatic!

I can't decide whether to give this zero stars, or three. So I'll compromise and give it two.

First, the good: it does smell wonderful and, unlike most aromatics, the aroma and flavors match. It smells and tastes of berries and caramel. I would recommend this tobacco to a beginner, for its light sweetness and its forgiving smoking qualities.

That said, I would not recommend it to anyone else. It's so mild there's really nothing left other than the casing. A first time smoker could puff away on this without coughing. That's fine if you're a first time smoker, but not if you aren't.

My experience with Boswell aromatics (and their blends in general) truly underscores the need to evaluate a blend within the context of its type, and not against some personal standard that may have no relevance to the mixture in question. It is ridiculous to start a review with "I hate aromatics, but I reviewed this aromatic blend anyway, found it to indeed be an aromatic, and therefore give it one star."

In this case, the critical factor to keep in mind is that Boswell blends these tobaccos to be extremely mild in nature. My experience is that they are truly mild in every sense. You are not going to experience any significant jolt of nicotine, and while the odor may be strong, the flavor on the tongue is certainly not. Now personally, I am not a huge fan of overly mild tobaccos. I like big strong blasts of tobacco flavor, and you are not going to get that here. I have not, therefore, rated this in relation to some absence of strength, as they are blended for mildness, and definitely achieve that goal. If you want a super mild aromatic blend, this is a blend to consider.

The tobacco itself is very attractive, and displays a mixture of what appears to be burley, cavendish, and virginias. It is obviously heavily cased, and the smell from the bag is very strong, and appealing if you like berry flavor. If you do not, then you are an idiot for buying something called berry cobbler, and deserve what you get.

This tobacco. as others have noted, can smoke a little hot if puffed without regard. What I have found is that it is very sensitive to the level of moisture when smoked. The first bowl of this was taken straight from the bag to the bowl, as I was impatient, and the smoke was hot, with little flavor. This was my fault, and not the tobacco's. A pet peeve of mine is when I read a review that considers tobacco moisture from the tin as a valid criteria for review. Pipe tobaccos in general must be stored at a humidity level which is greater than that which is optimal for smoking. I find no fault with Boswell that this tobacco, like 99% of all others, requires some drying out before it gives up it best smoking experience.

With that said, upon drying until it is dry to the touch, but not bone dry, you receive an entirely different smoking experience. It smokes much cooler, burns more evenly, and most importantly, has a richer, fuller flavor. I found this to include the berry casing, and some vanilla/caramel component which was very pleasant. The tobacco flavor is nominal in this blend, but I expect that this is what most aromatic smokers are looking for in the first place. I smoke aromatics when my wife is around, and I want to be able to get through a pipe while avoiding significant drama about how i am trying to drive her out of the house, etc. She loved the smell of this blend, so mission accomplished!

Once you get it lit, it burns evenly and well, and relights require little drama or tongue damage. Overall a very nice aromatic smoke. I find that it smokes cooler than Devil's Holiday, another berry blast blend, with a little less tobacco flavor, but more of the topping coming through if smoked slowly.

One thing I did notice is that there is sometimes a funky berry aftertaste which is different, and dare I say more artificial, than the initial very smell and taste. Boswell indicated to me that they use all natural casings and flavorings, and I take them at their word. One can imagine, however, that many things change when you light them on fire, so perhaps this is what is happening here with the berry flavor. When smoked at a high moisture level this aftertaste was more noticeable and intrusive. When the tobacco is allowed to dry, I noticed it more in the first half of the bowl, and nowhere near as frequently. The second half of the bowl is fuller, richer, and overall very enjoyable, and the caramel (to me) essence still keeps coming through.

These are nice aromatics, and to me very much in keeping with the American tradition of aromatic pipe tobacco. They do not look, smoke, or taste like a Danish or English aromatic, and that is pretty cool. So why two stars? That aftertaste, which I noticed in every bowl that I smoked to one degree or another. Palates are as individual as snowflakes, however, so I would recommend that you try this one for yourself to see how it hits you.

i highly recomend this to aromatic lovers. which i am not. im an english blend guy but i like to branch out and keep things interesting.

the room note is either very pleasant or overwhelming.

in the pouch it smells like a nutrigrain bar or fruity fruity fruity whatever. it definitely smells more like something to eat than something to smoke!

the smoke is potent and lingers long after the bowl is finished... long after, actually very long after.

boswell is a casing master no doubt!

dont use your pipe designated for english or virginian blends with this, you will mess up your cake. use a separate pipe for aromatics. i would even say if you have two pipes for aromatics smoke this with a fruit blend pipe and have a separate pipe for things like vanilla or cinnamon or whathaveyou because all you will taste for a while is berry cobbler.

my wife hates this stuff. i smoke indoors and usually avoid aromatics. she loves the smell of english tobaccos and tolerates my Christmas Cookie blend if i mix it with some Latakia or other english blends.

i cant believe im writing this much.

This is a rich and creamy smoke and does smell great. It burns well but I disagree with others, it left a lot of gunk in my pipe and after one bowl of this my pipe cleaner was very full of gunk. But...this is true of most aromatics with casing like this. Not bad enough to keep me from enjoying it though. I got a blackberry like flavor from this and best of all, no vanilla taste. It also was very nice and rich from start to finish, it did not have to burn half a bowl before the flavor jumps out. I really do think Boswells is good with casing their aromatics but I wish they were not all the same ribbon cut. This would be great if it was a rough cut or a larger ribbon. But, I will definitely enjoy smoking the rest of this, I think I will try mixing it with a burley or some of the blander blends I've been trying lately as this one does have the ability to stand up as a flavor mixer. Overall one of the better aromatics.