Ashton Artisan's Blend

I am not a fan of Dunhill English blends and I am always searching for a good "English" from europe. This was it. A very nice alternative to the throat searing Dunhill blends being produced now. It reminded me very nuch of what "Nightcap" used to be. I think that says it all.Nice balance ,even burn, and a good Latakia flavor.Not for the meek! 3 of 4 stars.

Unlike its stablemates Dorisco, Wingate and Presbyterian, this is a fairly dark mixture. The tin note is sweet and perfumed with a terpene dominance from the Syrian Latakia.

Burns beautifully to a fine white ash, a genuine pleasure to have in the bowl.

I think there is a substantial proportion of stoved Virginia in this mixture since neither the Latakia or Perique would account for the overall darkness. This stoved Virginia pushes this English blend to the light and sweet side, and, altho it contributes some smokiness, I felt this detracted rather than contributed to the Latakia. There is something of the denied promise to this blend as a result. I felt the tin note should have translated into a stronger representation of Latakia in the actual smoke.

The Orientals are subdued but contribute a pleasing acidity. My body chemistry is, sadly, not well disposed to Orientals and I got some mouth irritation as a result. Obviously this is a personal result not reflective of the quality of the tobacco itself and ymmv.

The perique really is a whisper in this blend. I wouldn't have picked it unless I had been told it was there. It contributes a pepperiness as the bowl progresses.

I am confused by the product description as being for the experienced pipe smoker. I found this to be on the mild and sweet side and it would make a fine crossover blend. All in all a well made tobacco that clearly has its fans, but not my cup of tea as a regular smoke.

Tin note of very smoky, mildly sour and mildly sweet. Tobacco is black and dark brown ribbon cut with a little light brown mixed in. Moisture content is ok, though some pipers may want to dry it a bit. Burns moderate with few relights. The strength is medium and nic is mild. No flavoring detected. Taste is medium and consistent, with notes of floral, smoky, woody, lemon peel/zest, soda, herbal, incense, earthy, leather, musty vegetation, spices, mild bread, mildly dry, tangy citrus, mildly savory, a fermented sour dark fruit background note, and a mildly peppery and smooth retro. Latakia is leading with Oriental/Turkish and Virginia supporting. Perique is supporting from the rear. Cavendish didn't show up at all. Room note is pleasant to tolerable, and aftertaste is great.

Finally, after 3 years of hesitation, I opened this tin today and enjoyed my first smoke of it. Until recently I have only smoked aromatics and figured an English blend would be too strong for me. Tobacco types like Latakia/Orientals had a ring to it that made me hesitant. I'm not certain if the years it has aged has helped it or not, but, this blend has made it into my top favorites. It is not harsh, bitter, or very strong in my opinion. It smokes dry to the bottom and the taste was consistent thru to the end. I seem to taste more of a strong hint of cinnamon I assume to be the perique. I think anyone with a desire to try something outside an aromatic would be pleased. This blend has high ratings and rightfully so.

I enjoyed this blend. The inclusion of Syrian Latakia and its availabiity at a close B & M is what drove me to purchase it. It is only my second experience with the Syrian leaf (Frog ATP the other) and I found it more enjoyable than the other.

The cut is crazy long strands of tobacco and it was the most moist of any tinned brand I have yet purchased. The paper insert was soaked. It dried out nice and burned surprisingly dry. It is unique amongst english blends with the inclusion of perique.

With so many blends yet to try, I will likely not jump out and buy more immediately, but with so few options outside the internet being as convenient as this one B & M I will likely buy more at some point in the future. So recommended, but not quite four stars.

Thanks to a fellow piper I was able to try two bowls of the older version using Syrian Latakia, and that version would have surely earned a solid three stars, possibly even four stars, from me. This version (my tin is dated 23 Sept. 2021) is, to my taste, not as good. I don’t think you can just substitute one kind of distinct Latakia for another without making other adjustments to the blend. Maybe they did, but not quite enough to my taste. To compensate for the spicy and vibrant Syrian I would think more or different Turkish varietals should be used, possibly even a bit of red Virginia to enliven the mid-palate. I’ve now tried it in numerous pipes, and while each emphasize a slightly different set of nuances, the end result is that I usually regret having spent time with this instead of enjoying something I like better.

First off, in either version, I just don’t see the comparisons to Nightcap, other than they are both clearly in the after-dinner style of smoke. Given the low amount of Virginia I don’t expect this will improve with age. My biggest complaint is the lack of sufficient sweet Virginia to counterbalance the heavy Latakia and earthy/bitter dark-fired used here. In fact, I tried a tweak using Sutliff 707 Virginia and that made it more palatable to my taste, but it is difficult to overcome the amount of bitterness and smoked peat in this blend without completely changing the flavor profile.

But that’s not the whole story. So far it sounds like I’m writing a two star review, but I’m giving a provisional three stars. As I mentioned, I tried a variety of pipes (as I always do) and in one pipe I found significantly more enjoyment: an oiled cured Ferndown. This pipe tends to soften and slightly sweeten just about any blend I put in it (only English/Balkan blends). So, should I, or anybody else, rate a blend based on performance in one single pipe? I could go either way on that question, but in the end I couldn’t deny that I derived a solid 3-3.5 stars enjoyment in this pipe. In this pipe it stars out at three stars and gets better by bowl’s end, sipping slower and slower in order to make the bowl last as long as possible. In my dry-cured briars, and meers, this blend only gets two stars, always with an unpleasant acrid edge at the beginning, though even in those the blend seems to show better by the end of the bowl.

If you follow a favored reviewer here who has given high praise for this blend then go ahead and give it a try. Just be sure the review is for the newly reconfigured blend. If you’re not sure I recommend you spend your money on something else, and hope to mooch off somebody giving away the rest of their Artisan Blend, which is what I’ll be doing (the giving away, not the mooching, that is!).

This review is based on two versions. One tin from 2009 and the other new. The 2009 version of course had Syrian latakia in it and is a different animal. I was never much of a fan of Syrian lat and the long aging pretty much turned this blend into a smoky mess. All of the other components are lost in the latakia. Aging did not do this justice. The tin was not exposed to air and was quite moist when I opened it. The smell and the smoke were just that, smoke and nothing else. I've had this happen before with my favorite Balkan Sasieni. After two years in a jar it was a mess and the jar was sealed.

The new version of Artisans has Cyprian latakia as the Syrian latakia seems like it will be gone forever. The newer tin smell is sweet and smoky, moisture level is high requiring some dry time. On charing light I get plums from the perique. The black cav is there along with the Virginia's. The latakia is smoky, always present and is not sharp or rough. Half way to the bottom you get the Orientals, latakia and Virginia's with the perique tickling you nose on occasion. One reviewer called this a hipster blend? What the hell is a hipster? This blend is not trying to be something else just a good stout English with a little extra kick. I'll give the 09 version 2 stars as I think I ruined it. The new version 3 1/2 stars. This blend is not for wimps or hipsters. Recommended.

Lager

Latakia bomb! Very smoky. I’m smoking a jar that’s been sitting around for the past 5 years. It’s dry, but it’s still pretty good. It’s rounded out and less complex as it has aged and melded into a much more monotone Latakia experience. I get huge Latakia flavor, and Perique flavor and spice. Personally can not detect orientals. Every puff is the same robust flavor. I smoked only Latakia blends for about 7 years . Now I like Virginia’s , Kentucky’s and I rarely smoke Latakia anymore. This is on par with nightcap and the fog Morton original. If your a Latakia lover you can’t go wrong here.

Also I’ll note how nice the Syrian Latakia is compared to the common Cyprian. It’s deeper and carries that Latakia bass note. Soft, round and extremely smoky.

A great smoke. Nothing groundbreaking. Not as strong taste-wise as i would prefer but what it has it does well. Mostly delicate yet sharp sweetness. A backdrop of rich smoked-meat flavor that unfortunately isn't always noticable. I can't taste the perique. No chance of bite. A great smoke, but there are blends out there that do what this does better (quiet nights and odyssey.)