Boswell Pipes & Tobacco Northwoods

Northwoods is a full Latakia blend that has just the slightest hint of sweetness, perhaps from a bit of Cavendish in the mix. The dominant flavor, however, is the rich fullness of the Latakia, pleasing the palate with its' creamy, smoky presence. It is a favorite late evening blend of mine.

It packs, lights, and burns well. The moisture content of the tobacco as delivered is just about perfect for me. It does have a strong room note, as do most full Latakia blends. While I wouldn't rate the aroma as being as strong as Pirate Kake or Penzance, it probably won't win you any friends among non-smokers. It leaves no dottle in the pipe, burning down to a fine mottled ash.

It is a pretty expensive tobacco, selling for $3/oz. or $48/lb. This reflects the quality of the base tobaccos and the reality of tobacco prices and taxes today.

Scores for Northwoods: taste- 17 of 20; lighting and burn- 8 of 10; value- 7 of 10. 32 points equals a **** rating and another winner for J.M. Boswell.

Edit, Feb., 2011. Boswell's have increased the price of their tobaccos substantially. This is an industry wide trend but Northwoods is now up to $60/lb. I can't in good faith award a 7 ot of 10 for value any more, it is 6 of 10. That lowers the score to 31 and equals a *** rating.

I'm not going to add too much to terrain that's already pretty well covered. But I want to add a bit to the reviews that recommend this as a beginner's English. I absolutely think that's true. But hidden behind that statement is often an explicit or implicit bias that you'll quickly move on from Northwoods once your taste becomes more "refined" and you discover more "serious" bends. And that is, at least in my case, completely incorrect. I have been smoking a pipe off and on for nearly 20 years and I've tried quite a few of the Latakia blends on the market, including venerated favorites like Penzance, Balkan Sobranie, Bohemian Scandal, Westminster, Squadron Leader, and et cetera. And I still think Northwoods is absolutely fantastic and completely holds its own against any of them, even if it is playing the game with an unconventional style. In fact, when I'm in the mood for Latakia, the truth is I reach for this more frequently than anything else. And for the people looking for a replacement for Frog Morton. Eh... Not quite. But probably about as close as you can hope to get. In my opinion, it's actually better because while it's not a perfect match, it's also not as fussy to prepare and there are far fewer relights than FM.

I read someplace this was a good substitute for Frog Morton, and while it has been a hot minute since I puffed the tadpole, I retained enough to compare notes. The open bag certainly has a similar sharp English aroma, though the Latakia and Oriental were a bit tamer with an added musky/earthy note in its place.

The cut was even, with a few twig bits in a mostly black mix with the right moisture to get cooking right away. The lit product had a sippable strength that left some buzz in your month, though Frog Morton has more gunpowder spice and taste complexity all the way through. Still, the flavor was certainly in keeping with a good quality English and was happy to have it still on the market.

Ultimately Northwoods stands on its own while being a decent Frog Morton proxy.

Casing was unexpectedly overwhelming upon opening the bag. Clearly not a traditional English, nor Balkan blend (comparing to Artisan’s, GL Pease Westminster, Dunhill’s My Mixture 965). Taking away the "English" expectations, Northwoods is pleasurable, good room note, low on natural tobacco flavor other than Virginias that are noted. Seemingly very strong on casing flavor. No Orientals to speak of. An all day smoke if you like an aromatic style “English”. Unexpected casing has thrown me off. Aftertaste of Virginia's is good and welcome .

I cant add anything here that hasn't been said. Northwoods has a intoxicating tin note, one that even my wife likes (and she hates everything, even most aromatics), and is just a well behaved blend that is a true joy to smoke. You will not unravel the mysteries of the universe with this blend, but you will have a great time just enjoying it for what it is, a good smoke.

A unique approach to an English misture with the addition of a cavendish. An enjoyable smoke that retains it's flavor throughout. I personally enjoy it with a nice cold glass of Riesling and smoked slowly in a fine pipe. The only reason I will not continue smoking this is due to the fact that at $68 a pound plus shipping I cannot justify the expense. The Boswell's are great people to deal with an I have not found any of their other tobaccos I would consider bad

The smell is very intense and unique. It is definitely an acquired taste. I didn't like this blend much at first. I have aged it for about 8 months and it's getting more delicious. The last bowl I smoked made me add one more star to my review

The Boswell's are wonderful people and I own five of their pipes and use them on a regular basis. The quality of their pipes are superior.

Their tobacco's are of the highest quailty. Northwoods in no exception. I have a hard time keeping this lit, but taking time to dry it out would likely fix this.

Too much of an L-Bomb for my tastes, but good tobacco. Recommend to the Latakia lover.

It's a tobacco mixture I would recommend for beginners, as it is mild in strength, easy on the tongue, smooth and cool-smoking. It's also delicious.

It has a nice dose of smoky Cyprian latakia, and has a smooth, creamy texture. It's quite sweet, as one might expect of a blender known for aromatics. It requires little care or attention, but delivers a rewarding smoking experience.

While flavorful and creamy, this is decidedly light in body. Those who call this a 'full English', whatever that means, must be referring to something other than its strength.