Mac Baren Honey & Chocolate

I tried to like this, I tried it in a few different pipes, but any way I smoked it I got a headache!! I thought the honey was overwhelming. had to throw away about 3/4th of the tin...It wasn't for me.

Chocolate and tobacco--two most beloved delights. But do they harmonize well? Surely enough, they do. Is this an aromatic? Of course! But the folks at Mac Baren go beyond the aromatic nomenclature with this blend to produce a wonderfully satisfying taste experience not to be had with the usual and numerous aro class tobaccos. On the contrary, the tobacco itself, a quality cavendish, stands on it's own as a fine smoke. Now for the "chocolate." Here is the Mac Baren seal of quality and blending genius. Dark and rich in taste, the chocolate flavor is natural and homogeneous to the cavendish, as opposed to the usual sweet afterthought. The tin aroma is absolutely delightful, and a chocolate lover's heaven. Light it, and the transition from smell to taste is one very exquisite moment. The "Honey" aspect is mere in presence, smoothing out the velvety sensory delight. Surely recommended.

I was pleasantly surprised by this new cased tobacco.

The tobaccos are partially broken flakes, very dark. Probably an all double fermented VAs, also known as Black cavendish, mixture.

Smells like semisweet dark chocolate with honey in the background.

Tastes like 85% dark chocolate, so not very sweet.

There is some strength of character to it as well, which makes it a fine balance within cased tobaccos.

The best cased tobacco I have tried and my favorite so far. I smoke it regularly.

When you open the tin you get such an amazing aroma. After the first light it tasted great. Kept smoking for about 5 mins and then I got slapped with MACBITE. Yuck never again.

Tin note was excellent...sweet chocolate.

At the flame...not honey sweet or tasting in any regard, and only a very faint bitter-cocoa taste. Something was there that masked the chocolate flavor in the smoke...Perique? Whatever it was...the combination of constituent tobaccos and casing was terrible.

Not Recommended, and would not order again.

A companion infusion: a brown cow...or black russian.

I am baffled by this tobacco from Mac Baren: there is no mention in the blending notes of what tobacco's are used. Now, I have been thinking a lot about this tobacco and I believe it to be a batch of Acadian Perique that has been reprocessed and flavoured and put on the USA market. I have compared Acadian Perique with this Honey&Chocolate and the basic tobaccos taste the same, same strength, same flavour but shrouded by the chocolate in this blend of course. Perhaps a first batch was flavoured with honey and MB decided not to use a honey casing in the final version. Add chocolate to it, turn it into a "very special kind of cavendish" and voilà: Honey&Chocolate I find it a fairly strong tobacco,just like AP, especially near the end of the pipe, but tasty all the same and indeed not goopy or moist. Worth a try. Rob

As an avid English/Latakia/Oriental smoker, I thought I was firmly rooted in the "friends don't let friends smoke aromatics" camp.

I've been smoking some of the naturally sweet Mac Baren blends (Dark Twist Roll Cake, Mixture Flake, Navy Flake), and had smoked one of those in a pipe that I'd smoked aros in back in the day. The ghosted sweetness of the old aromatics I'd smoked whetted my appetite for aromatics, and since I was having good luck with Mac B blends, I decided to give this and "Vanilla Creme Loose Cut" both a try.

There are several qualities of the tobacco in the tin that struck me: 1) the aroma of chocolate and honey is very full and rich, but not artificial. This tobacco really does smell like they've sprinkled high-quality dark chocolate powder on it; 2) unlike most of the aros I remember from my early years, this tobacco doesn't feel sticky or greasy. If you pinch the tobacco between your fingers, it doesn't stick together, it stays loose.

It packs very easily, and takes to the flame well. After the first char light and the second full burn, the tobacco burns evenly and stays lit. The rich flavors of chocolate and honey are very evident, but somehow not cloying. Remember, I've been smoking strong Latakia blends like "Krumble Kake" and "Artisan Blend", so my palatte is accustomed to strong, spicy tobacco! I disagree with some reviews that claim that the flavors burn off quickly. It seems to me the flavors become a bit more subtle, but the sweetness remains and lingers.

I no longer consider myself a non-aro snob, and if you're looking for a high quality aro that delivers sweetness without the sticky, gooey mess in the bottom of the bowl, this might be worth your consideration.

Let me first mention I prefer sweeter tobaccos. This has a Dark Bakers chocolate taste to it. It is rather overpowered by the Honey though. The taste burns out about a quarter way thru the bowl. Was a bit disappointed in this myself. I would improve this by using a more milk chocolate casing and less honey. It is an opinion only and as mentioned I prefer more sweet tobaccos.

Let me start out saying I love MacB, especially Vanilla Cream, which I consider to be one of the finest vanillas I have ever smoked. I have never really noted the Mac Baren "bite" that people complain about in any of their blends - unless I puff like a freight train.

I hate to blast this one. I had very high expectations reading the reviews here.

First, at the tin: The aroma of cocoa leaps out of the tin. The mixture is quite dry for a MacB and fairly dark.

At the bowl: This tobacco packs easily and lights readily. It is not at all goopy and burns cleanly.

At the match: Um...

Almost no room note. No real flavor, either of cocoa or honey. Wife (a fan of tobacco in general and pipes in particular) says she can't detect any aroma at all even sitting right next to me.

The bowl actually gets a little harsh about halfway through. Unusual for a MacB blend for me.

I am only about a quarter of the way through the tin. Perhaps my tin is off. I will wade through the rest of the tin, but I don't expect it will get much better. I won't be buying it again.

This may be a good blend for beginners. It burns easily, stays lit, is very pleasant at the tin and entirely inoffensive in the room. As an aromatic fan however, I prefer to have some aroma (and some flavor). This one just isn't hitting for me.