Borkum Riff Mixture with Bourbon Whiskey (Bronze)

After years, I tried this stuff again for a bit of nostalgia. Bad decision. It is sad that this is one of the main offerings to newer pipe smokers.

This gunk, packed into a Dr. Grabow, touched off by a match produces a blowtorch effect that could cut a rusted bolt off of a battleship anchor.

The room note is o.k., but what would you expect from boiling caramel? I like my wife's Yankee Candles too, but I have never felt the need to dump the molten wax on some Burley and light it in a pipe. I rated the flavoring as strong, only because it is unrestrained topping dumped on Burley. I have no clue as to the quality of the Virginia because all semblance of tobacco is eclipsed by the cheap flavoring.

My only regret, aside from trying this stuff again, is that I actually have to give this stuff a star. There should be a no-star catagory for assaultive sugared-up goop.

Produced in Denmark for the Swedish Match Company, Borkum Riff Whiskey is an easily accessible and low cost tobacco mixture that is not necessarily favored by dedicated pipe tobacco smokers.

The pouch aroma is of flavored figs and is certainly one-dimensional. There is little doubt that Borkum Riff Whiskey has a medium strong casing. This blend is comprised of lower quality Virginia and Burley tobaccos. The color of the blend has an even distribution of dark brown, light brown, and orange/yellow shades.

The cut is somewhat crude and resembles a refined shag cut. Packing is simple and the initial moisture is not overwhelming, but nonetheless it needs some drying. Borkum Riff Whiskey, if allowed to remain exposed to the open air, will not dry completely but instead remain slightly spongy. The heavy addition of a humectant to this tobacco blend is responsible for the aforementioned characteristic.

Lighting of this blend is simple enough and the burn of Borkum Riff Whiskey is quite rapid, uneven, and leaves dottle in the darker colored ash. A good amount of gooey resin is always present at the bottom of the bowl by the end of the smoke. The room note tends to be somewhat ashy.

The whiskey component cannot be detected easily in the flavor of this mixture. Instead, a bland and at times sour ashy taste remains painfully present in the flavor. Little true tobacco taste makes itself know while smoking this blend. Even when forced dried, Borkum Riff Whiskey still bites and tends to leave an unpleasant aftertaste in the mouth.

Although Borkum Riff Whiskey may certainly not be the worst of the convenience store pipe tobacco blends, it still falls short of being a decent tobacco.

One of the first tobaccos I ever tried. I'm amazed that I still smoke a pipe.

There are good tobaccos out there. This isn't one of them.

Leaves your tongue feeling like you licked sandpaper and poured hot sauce on it.

Burley and virginia fine cut. The whisky flavoring isn't that good. It doesn't do the tobacco much justice. This blend was good when you could of purchased the cognac flavor or rum flavor. I don't care much for the cherry or whisky. If they brought back the other flavors I think some of the reveiws on this would be more positive. Especially the cognac. There's alot of good tobaccos that were discontinued and alot of lousy tobaccos still sold. Go figure! Thats the case here.

Another pipe ruined.

Would someone be kind enough to put a bullet in my head?

This tobacco offended me on a spiritual and emotional level. I was left with an acrid taste in my mouth, a fouled pipe (thank God for the disposability of corn cob pipes!) and a confused, melancholy realization that there are people out there that made this tobacco.

I find myself questioning the very goodness of humanity when tobacco like this is allowed to be sold to the public and not relegated to back-room torture chambers.

I purchased this to give some variation to my other tobaccos. I too had no problem with the stickiness or goopy residue although it does tend to bite the tongue if you are not careful. I am learning to smoke slower than I used too and have gone from a staight to a full bent pipe. Havent decided if that changes much other than the way I hold the pipe. It is kinda ashy tasting near the end but overall, not bad for a cheap store brand. Not a bad choice if out and about in the countryside, but not for relaxing on the back porch. My wife said it didnt smell bad, but I have to smoke outside anyway.

I am an Extreme Novice to Pipe Smoking and much like many of the Reviewers this was my first smoke. I don't exactly remember the texture, but i do think it was a bit sticky. I had to relight a few times, but at the time i just thought it was because i didn't know what i was doing. Like most people have said it does burn your tongue and leaves a nasty after tasty in your mouth sometimes for a couple days, but all in all i tried other Tobaccos. So i guess i would say it isn't amazingly bad as your first tobacco, but i would deffinitly recommend Captain Black Royal or White over any Borkum

I'm new to the world of pipe smoking (I've been smoking only a few months), but I don't think I would recommend this tobacco even to new smokers. I originally made a slightly more sympathetic review than others here, but had to come back and correct myself after smoking this crap for a while. It's flavor is really pretty bizarre, and doesn't have much of the "whiskey" taste stated on the label. The whiskey flavor it does have tastes like Wild Turkey that has been left out overnight. The pouch I bought was fairly dry, not sticky as is stated in some other reviews. It's better than some other drugstore tobaccos, but not by much. It does have more of a tea-like flavor than anything else. This stuff will bite the hell out of your tongue, and it smells pretty rank. This was actually the first tobacco I tried, but I have now tried it twice and haven't been able to finish a pouch either time.If you are a new smoker on a budget I would recommend Captain Black instead. If you smoke this, you may never want to smoke again. Oh, and another warning: the flavor this stuff leaves in your pipe will make you wonder if someone has been burning dead grass and newspaper in it. If you insist on smoking this stuff, don't do it in your favorite pipe.