Rattray Bagpiper's Dream

This is a surprisingly good aromatic mixture of the highest quality. I say “surprisingly good” because I don’t particularly care for the tin note. However, Bagpiper’s tin note doesn't quite foreshadow the intricacies of its flavor character once this blend is put to flame.

The taste is a delicate balance of sweet & tangy with a touch of spice. The smoke has a nice texture to it and the room note is pleasant. It's kind of a cloying, sweet-floral lily-like aroma, with hints of vanilla and holiday spices.

Once properly lit, the Virginias shine a bit more and provide a woody, toasty tobacco taste. The topping has good staying power and continues to add contrast throughout the bowl with its sweet mulled wine like flavor. Bagpiper’s performs wonderfully. There’s very little bite, no weird waxy chemical taste or strange off-flavors. As long as it's sipped, it doesn't burn too hot and it burns dry right to the bottom.

Altogether, this is a good aromatic tobacco and should not be missed by fans of the genre. Very enjoyable & recommended.

Rattray - Bagpipers Dream.

The unlit blend is an eclectic mix of shapes, sizes and colours, there being some large jet black Cavendish pieces, some light Virginia and some darker Virginia. Aroma is that of a predominantly Virginia blend with a topping of brandy, but it isn't too false smelling. Moisture level's decent.

The flavour of B.D's pleasant. The brandy gives a touch of grapy-sweetness without making the smoke taste of bitter alcohol. The black Cavendish rounds the flavour with a vanilla sweetness but the leading tobacco's the Virginia. It burns well for the duration of a bowl and remains bite-free.

Nicotine: mild. Room-note: pleasant.

A good aromatic, three stars:

Recommended.

An Aromatic from Rattray, the tin says it is composed of Dark VA flake, spun cuts, golden, red and dark VA and their exclusive black cavendish. The full spicy taste of the tobacco's is rounded off with, amongst others, cognac, all the rest is a secret (translated from the German description on the bottom of the tin). The tobacco smells very nice, fairly highly flavoured with a spicy background. Indeed the cut is loose cut with the mentioned rubbed out flakes and some spun cuts. The quality of the tobacco is excellent, smoothly palatable with no tongue bite. Behind the flavouring the spicyness creeps in and all the different cuts blend in harmoniously when smoking. Give this one a try if you are into high quality aromatics. Rob

Pleasantly surprised by the tin note after all the references to Cognac! It's much sweeter and creamier, and very pleasant! (Cognac is very low in sugar - less than 1 gram per ounce). Four cuts of Virginia translate into an attractive looking tobacco. Slightly moist out of the tin - some drying improves the burn. The taste is of Virginia, Cognac, cream and quite pronounced notes of fruit (raspberry and apricot) and flowers (rose). The raspberry and rose are evident in the pleasing room note too. Not overly mild in tobacco strength, which is a positive in my book. A bit hot and bitey when pushed but al in all a very good aromatic. As I am not particularly fond of either rose or raspberry I cannot give more than 3 stars. If you enjoy well done boozy, fruity and floral notes you will probably love this tobacco.

Bagpiper's Dream smells intensely of cognac upon opening. The various cuts in the blend are a pleasure for the eyes and the himidity level is a bit high, so I had to put the tin away for a while before trying it.

BPD smokes dry and cool. It is very good, tastes of cognac big time but lets the tobacco taste come out as well. A nice aromatic of high quality!

Rattray's Bagpiper's Dream was an enjoyable smoke, but did disappointed slightly in that the smoke didn't quite live up to its tin note (although this is common place with most aromatics) in saying this, BP's Dream is a lovely aromatic and very enjoyable once air dried a little which left a somewhat dry bowl. The smoke was very smooth with no tongue bite. With a little more nicotine, this would be a well-rounded satisfying blend. It had a consistent flavour from the sweet Virginia throughout the bowl and I was left with a beautiful room note, recommended to any aromatic lover.

Even though a scottish bag piper enjoying a cognac based tobacco does not immediately make sense, this aromatic is quite extraordinary!

The tobacco smells immensely of cognac upon opening. The various cuts in the blend is a pleasure for the eyes and the himidity level is a bit high, so I had to put the tin away for a while before trying it.

BPD smokes dry. It is very good, tastes of cognac big time but lets the tobacco taste come out as well. As it marks the pipe, you want to dedicate a pipe to this beautiful, rich and tasty aromatic.

oh what a pitty!!! Out of the tin a soft and sweet smell and a great appearance of all sorts of cutting let me think of a satisfey smoke, And once lit,there is a really sweet and pleasant smoking,but , often complained, to less nicotin!!!! if there is anybody knowing a sweet but STRONG tobacco which is NOT in the 1792 SG,or ST BRUNO style,please mail me. coming back to bagpipers dream; It doesn´t bite,it keep lit easy,and there is a mouthfull of light flavourt high quality tobacco, 3 stars about the little nic otherwise 4, i can recommend for all mild smokers who look for a sweet but tobaccotasty blend,

update the flavouring is one of the best i tried but the body is .......? 3stars for being sweet and the fine cognac taste. 1 for being a nicotin skeletor. together 3 stars if you looking for a good but very mild booze tobacco

Now, to set the tone of this review, I am not and aromatic smoker. I smoke primarily VA's, Burleys and limited English blends.

In looking for an aromatic that does not offer the traditional aromatic lack of taste and goopy residue in the pipe, I stumbled across this blend while filling a bad case of TAD.

The Cognac top dressing appealed to and intrigued me. Upon opening the tin, a pleasant aroma arose.

The pipe packed easily and the charring light emitted a distinct presence of the cognac, but also I detected quite regularly throughout the bowl the presence of vanilla.

I enjoyed this bowl as I was expecting a lot less. Quality tobacco, a pleasant room note that the wife and kids actually like, and a very nice change of pace.