Boswell Pipes & Tobacco Northwoods

Northwoods is a blend that is unique in its flavor profile and sort of defies categorization for this smoker. Cut of the tobacco features lots of large black pieces mixed with smaller pieces of what I assume is the Va component.

A little air time is necessary as I find too moist. Medium to large size pipes preferred. Thicker cut allows this to burn well outside for me.

The Latakia flavor is very much just a smoky undertone in this blend that is really softened and rounded by the sweetness of the Va and Cavendish components. Mid Bowl like sweet and spicy BBQ sauce as I believe another reviewer mentioned.

I'd hesitate to call this an aromatic simply because it has highly sweet aspects to me. I also hesitate to compare this to compare this to other English blends as I find the Latakia component to be robust , but not full spectrum. Northwoods is a great blend that equals more than the sum of its parts. The flavors jive and mix well. It is not super complex, but it is full and satisfying. It does not require your complete concentration to derive enjoyment.

It really captures a vibe that others have mentioned. It is like that autumn time where the sweet smells of summer still mix with the notes of leaves changing color, and nights are getting chilly. In summary, one to keep in my rotation. A great outdoor tobacco for the cooler months. Not one I'm gonna reach for all the time, but recommended.

Northwoods is frequently compared to Shortcut to Mushrooms; so, this review will simply be comparison/contrast. That may not be fair to NW, but it's the best way I know to review it.

A friend and I sat down together and packed a bowl of each, trading pipes back and forth a number of times, for comparison's sake.

For starters, the pouch smells of NW and STM are nearly identical to each other.

As for the smoke:

NW has a more exotic flavor profile, and produces more billowy smoke.

STM, on the other hand, is a tad sweeter, a tad stronger, and is to me a tad more satisfying. Others have picked up on an “incense” like flavor in NW. Yes, that is exactly right. If you're familiar with that unique, exotic scent of incense as used in liturgical Christian churches, you'll catch hints of it in NW. This becomes more noticeable after about a third of the bowl, and it's pretty consistent from thereon out. Quite enjoyable to me.

I doubt that incense-like flavor is from the latakia—it must be from something else. I think I catch more sweetened latakia in STM. Whereas I catch more of this incense profile in NW.

Both are good. If NW pushed that unique incense profile more robustly, and with a bit more sweetness, it would be even more distinct from STM than it is, and more enjoyable in its own right.

As it stands, though, it needs a bit more robustness and sweetness to stand out; so, despite bringing something good to the table that STM does not, STM remains slightly preferable to me.

I'm giving NW 3 stars, even though it probably deserves 4, just because STM has the slight edge to my personal tastes.

Ah, Northwoods. Personally, for me, it just grows on you with every puff. It's one of those tobaccos where I hated it when I first lit it, but by the time I got done with it, I had fallen in love! It has a deep, rich, woodsy, manly, spicey, smokey (duh..) flavor that you just have to experience for yourself. I personally couldn't smoke this all the time, but when you're out in the woods, or on your back porch, this makes wonderful company. As for smoking in a room full of people... I wouldn't recommend it, but the room note is definitely not as bad as some English blends I've experienced. This one is to please YOU, not the room. 🙂

This is a quality English blend for those who are looking for a good introduction to Englishes.

The tobacco itself is primarily black, both oily and dull, and is sprinkled with tan strands.

The addition of the black cavendish really cuts the smokiness, both in the tin note and the taste.

Overall, the taste of the tobacco is quite good. It tasted like a mind to medium English for the majority of the time, with occasional moments where the Latakia and cavendish would come together beautifully. In my experience, this blend tastes better with three to four shorter puffs than one long one. Towards the end of my most recent bowl, I was hit with a rather noticeable taste of perfume, which confused me, as I'd never noticed it before with this tobacco and the pipe I was using was devoted to Englishes. It may have just been a fluke of the environment and my senses at that moment.

I would highly recommend this blend to anyone trying to cross into Englishes and would recommend it to even the most dedicated English-Man.

I am not a big fan of English blends but this is the best I've tried.

An intriguiging blend to say the least. The word INCENSE does come to mind immediately. Another thing that comes to mind is a very slight chocolate top note on the cavendish. Depending on your palate sensitivity,this will detemine how much you taste. Very heavy on the latakia but since it has the chocolate/incense thing going on ,all is well in the state of Denmark. This is a full English blend. The flavor is rich and creamy. The room note also goes with that. I would give it 4 stars except the lack of orientals is noticeable. However, for an imaginative and unique English blend, it gets 4 stars.

As I normally smoke aromatics I had doubts on ordering this blend, but however since it's an aromatic american english I opted for a small sample of this tobacco. Out of the bag it smells very nice. Campfire-y like. Burns well, no relights to write home about and a flavour that will absolutely astonish your senses.

Man... This tobacco might be one of the best ones out there and I am completely hooked on it. Aroma's of campfire, pine, forests and then a little incense-like whiff of Nag Champa incense. Man-oh-man, this is yummy!

Room note is excellent if you are into this flavour and smell, for other parts of your family it will be too strong in the long run and the aroma stays for a long time. I like it, but still I get to smoke this weed outdoors because of consideration towards the other household members.

***Re-evaluating my reviews now that I've had a little more smoking under my belt... ...This goes down to "just" recommended, not that it's bad, I just reserve 4 stars to the real star blends!

What a beautiful smoke. My wife likes the room note and I absolutely love the taste. What more could you ask for in a blend? Exactly. Do yourself a favor and give the Boswell family a call and order yourself some of this perfect blend. It doesn't get any better than this my friends. In 20 years from now, people will be talking about this blend as people are talking about the Dunhill blends now. Absolutely the best English blend i have and will ever smoke, funny that it's made in America. Instant classic. Essential purchase.

Edit 11-17-17. This is another great blend if you're just starting out smoking a pipe but I just can't smoke it anymore as it's got too much of a vanilla flavoring for my personal taste. It taste like Captain Black with Latakia added to it. I loved it years ago when I first wrote this review but I now prefer a more traditional English blend for when I wan't Latakia. I still give this one 3 stars as it is a great smoke for beginners.

A good English blend. No bite, smooth and smokey fragrant. Has a sweetness in the smoke that I guess is from the cavendish. I'd put this in the middle of the road for English blends. A nice english, just didn't scratch my itch for an English. Update; As with some blends I revisit I come up liking it better and it happend with this blend. I will add that the sample I recieved from Boswell's had a small half burned wood chip in the tobacco. Is this how Boswell's produces this wonderful blend or did this chip come from a distant Arab land? Doesn't matter to me much, I like this blend a lot.