Borkum Riff Original

(2.01)
A natural tobacco, strong but soft to smoke with a neutral light aroma, Borkum Riff Original is a specially selected and processed Virginia and burley tobacco flavoured with the lightest touch of vanilla. It is carefully prepared and offers unique smoking pleasure. Pouch Description: The original recipe consists of 60% Black Cavendish from the Philippines and Africa mixed with 40% Virginia from Brazil, India and Africa.
Notes: Formerly called "Borkum Riff - Ultra Light", named changed due to tobacco regulations.

Details

Brand Borkum Riff
Blended By Scandinavian Tobacco Group
Manufactured By Skandinavian Tobacco Group
Blend Type Aromatic
Contents Black Cavendish, Virginia
Flavoring Vanilla
Cut Ribbon
Packaging 50 grams pouch, 250 grams tin
Country Denmark
Production Currently available

Profile

Strength
Mild
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
Mild to Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Pleasant
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Mild
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming

Average Rating

2.01 / 4
6

20

21

31

Reviews

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Displaying 61 - 70 of 78 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Aug 07, 2010 Mild Mild Mild Pleasant
Given the number of bad reviews this tobacco has received I was keen to try it for myself and I have to admit it is not as bad as I thought it would be. It did not bite like a rabid ferret. It is not a vile demon weed, but it's not exciting either. There are no highs or lows, no hidden highlights or subtle surprises awaiting midway through the bowl, no symphony of complex flavours dancing around each other.

The pouch aroma is lovely - it could make a wonderful pot pourri - and the wife tells me the room note is pleasant. In Falcon pipes and corn cobs it smoked reasonably dry and I didn't encounter any bite. So, to my tastes, it's okay. But there's a whole world of wonderful tobaccos out there that are far more than just okay.

If it was the only tobacco I had left, it might tide me over for a day or so until I could get something better. But it does not soothe the soul. It may suit others, but it's a bit too dull and boring for me.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jul 30, 2009 Mild Very Mild Very Mild Pleasant to Tolerable
This blend was sold to me at a tobacco shop as something that everyone loves. What a bunch of bull. I was looking for an aromatic that still had a solid tobacco flavor and this is what they came up with?? This stuff is terrible. There is no flavor, no good tobacco taste, in fact, there is no taste at all. I do not recommend this tobacco to anyone. It basically is like smoking air; hot air that bites.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Feb 24, 2009 Extremely Mild None Detected Extremely Mild (Flat) Unnoticeable
I tried this mix because it is easy to find, it will never be in my pipe again. For one is overpriced for what I find at the grocery store at 7.99$ a 1.5oz pouch. I rather by Carter Hall or Velvet at 4.49$ a 1.5oz pouch.

I had to power puff just to feel like I was smoking something, which in turn burnt the heck out of my mouth. Give me sawdust it would taste more like tobacco then this. I seldom dislike a tobacco so much to say things negative about but yuck, I rather smoke a weasel for my health. My Personal notes give this a .01 my lowest rating of any tobacco I have ever tried.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Feb 07, 2009 Mild Medium Medium Pleasant
Upon revieving this tobacco and my first ever pipe from a friend for christmas i was eager to try this out. Smelt good out of the pouch, but thats where the good news stops.

First bowl was ok, but every other bowl and i mean EVERY other bowl has been of foul taste. Far too 'flowery' for my liking and bites hard. This was with both pouches i had obtained (6 months apart from each other). The tobacco quality was ok in the first puch, but six months on and I found stems and other parts of the tobacco plant in the pouch.

Not worth the time or money and almost made me give up. Definitely better (and easier) tobaccos to start off with and smoke.

UPDATE: Now that my skills have developed, I have revisited this one and found to be ok. Doesn't burn as I remembered and stays lit ok now. Still will never buy it again though.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 16, 2008 Mild Mild to Medium Mild to Medium Pleasant
Hay~Rookie, you need to try it. Cool Smoke! Easy light.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
May 27, 2008 Mild Mild to Medium Medium Pleasant
For my first review, I would say that this tobacco is very sweet but very pleasant for a danish tobacco smoker. I feel a little taste of hazelnut and vanilla. It is a very soft and mild smoking. I recommend it as a good danish tobacco !
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 09, 2023 Strong Very Strong Very Full Very Strong
This is like captain black only stronger when I was younger I liked this better cause it was cheaper but as time grew on it got stronger and I would not recommend this blend to anyone unless they liked captain black which is now about cheaper then this so but other then that nothing else to say
Pipe Used: Several
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 26, 2022 Mild Mild to Medium Medium Pleasant
Una mezcla danesa natural, lograda a base de black cavendish y virginias, con un muy leve topic de vainilla y un aún menos perceptible chocolate. La humedad estaba perfecta. El corte es en cinta más bien gruesa. La intensidad es suave pero es.un tabaco ligero pero sabroso, ideal para fumar todo el día. No requiere reencendidos y es aconsejable la fumada lenta.
Pipe Used: Brebbia
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 08, 2022 Mild Mild Mild Pleasant
Pouch notes of strong vanilla and mild chocolate liquor. Tobacco cut is mostly shag with a little fatter ribbons mixed in. Further it looks like 3 different leaves of mostly medium brown and a smaller amount of black and tan. Tobacco is soft, no prep needed. Burns is moderate with few relights. The strength is mild and nic is mild. Flavoring is mild, with notes of vanilla that continues to wane as I smoke it. Taste is mild and consistent, with notes of spicy, very woody, mild sweet grass, dry earth, toasted slightly bitter nut, a mild lemony background note, and a very peppery retro. Burley is leading with Virginia and Cavendish supporting. Room note is pleasant, and aftertaste is good.
Pipe Used: 2015 XXX Ashton Brindle Author
Age When Smoked: 3 years
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 05, 2021 Mild Medium to Strong Mild Tolerable
COMMENTARY BORKUM RIFF ORIGINAL: Sometimes Okay Makes For A Passing Grade

Ironically here I sit once again penning yet another write-up on a Borkum Riff OTC pouched mixture. Having sampled their flagship Bourbon Whiskey mix which turned out to be a disappointing exercise, I’m not sure why I decided to pick this one up to be honest, but I did. My official review of the former was rather unfavorable but candidly honest. Subsequent, the image I formed on the brand was, let’s simply say, not impressed. Admittingly my leading expectation of this Original mixture was, therefore, somewhat tainted by that cheapening experience.

Initially when I glanced at the packaging, I mistook Original for my old chum Mixture 79, ah no. Perhaps there was some subliminal force associated with the mis queue that compelled me to fork over six-plus dollars for this probable dud. Such were my thoughts as I exited with the dubious specimen in hand. Having now smoked most of the pouch, I am in a more informed position to assess my perceptions, or rather prejudices, on this Scandinavian Tobacco Group offering. After more thoughtful retrospection, this trial exercise reminds me of the need to maintain a fair objective mindset when donning the coat of an impartial reviewer.

In reference to the base statistics, Original is a simple, but arguably global, recipe. Officially the mix is said to be constituted by a lightly vanilla topped mesh of two-thirds Filipino African Black Cavendish with the balance being a three-strand Virginia assortment originating from strangely enough South America, India, and Africa. Hailed as a strong but gentle fair, Original’s touted renown is made distinctive by the deployment of diligent and unique craftmanship.

The flashy marketing description holds that the mixture separates itself from other OTCs by using highly selective leaf varietals. Yeah, time for a reality check. Not that they are awful, but they are not stellar by any means, largely ordinary by the results of my sampling assessment. Perhaps the definition of selective in this case is the tobacco suppliers market their leaves dirt cheap giving the blender a lower direct cost to manufacture, (i.e., higher margins) as the price per pouch is relatively elevated compared to participating OTC brands. This statement may seem a little harsh, but I do question the righteousness of the product positioning and the cost posed to the customer given the market sector in which Borkum Riff mixes compete. Yet there is clearly a market for the brand, so kudos to STG on that accomplishment.

Within the classic Borkum Riff seascape pouch, one will find a dark matrix of extremely dry tobacco. Scant morsels of what appears to be Yellow, Bright, and stoved Red Virginia are engulfed in a flood of blackish Cavendish. Formally ribbon-cut, Original is rather a rough and coarsely textured sack of jagged shadowy granola. Given the presentation, I would be remiss not to state that the blend does project an intriguing preview.

Nosing the fragrance being released, a sprightly dance of the flavor additives spirals up with significant magnitude. Rich notes of vanilla-fruitiness with traces of chocolaty anise overshadow the forefront aroma. A very low bottom resonance of the Virginias’ bready grass and dark wood circulate from the Burley-based Cavendish, registering only with concerted sniffing effort. The overall nose of the blend is very pleasant, however, as it unquestionably promises a sugary Aromatic smoking encounter.

As expected from the noted pouch airs, the toppings materially dominant the base flavor as the native tobaccos are extremely restrained elements in the background. The blender’s claim of lightness in the application is not necessarily spot on. There is more happening here than just one sweetener as well. In specific, the heavy top note is personified as a smack of vanilla intermixed with an indistinct fruity berry-like flavoring, (i.e., blueberry/blackberry?). Intermittently, the taste accents impart a vague tinge of licorice as a soft spicy adder. Although this confluence of toppings/casings presents an agreeably sweet departure, it tends to be a bit uninspiring given the one-dimensional feature.

About halfway through the bowl, some of the natural tobacco registration does finally come through as tart-woody Virginia and the processed Burley brings light chocolatey roasted nuttiness as both are kept in check for most of the smoking session. The tone seems to be a tangy cedar-oak quality in the feel of native taste. On a positive note, this quality is pleasantly amusing but does materialize very subtly overall.

Furthermore, Original is very much a light bodied-mild strength affair not even being remotely stout in lieu of the manufacturer’s proclamation. Even so, I did experience some roughness in the blending quality and a bit of harshness in the texture but nothing too overt or hateful. The effects of nicotine are minimal if nothing to speak of at all. On the manufacturer’s suggestion of softness in character, yeah, I tend to agree with that statement based upon the complete trial exercise.

Original does produce a fairly hearty plume of smoky vapor. Given the level of top dressings and the inherent trait of Virginia, the mix does burn considerably hot and rather quickly. Consequently, there is ample room for tongue discomfort and stress if the drawling of the pipe is too earnest. From my experience a cob tends to get super warm roaring with profuse heat in short time. As such the more likely venue is a thicker walled briar for optimum smoking comfort.

Coming to the room note, I would dare say that its presence is pointedly light and airy. One does experience a warm softly sweet nutty-wood essence. The sweetness seems to be a creamy berry perfume with a dash of suppressed citrus. The permanency of the fragrance is rather short lived as the evidence of Original’s company peters off in quick-step. Nonetheless, the general strength of the smoke would be tolerable to most, of that, I am sure.

My final thoughts on the trial lead me to conclude that unlike Borkum Riff’s champion Bourbon Whiskey, Original surprisingly proved to be a reasonable diversion, being much more enjoyable than the supposed market leader. I would not rate this as a must have varietal but in all honesty being somewhat boorish, its generally “okay” by my standards. Once again, I did not find the quality of tobaccos, nor the processing used to be singular by any means.

As an even tempered casual all-day blend, I suspect that the Aromatic enthusiasts would rather appreciate the experience that it has to offer. Relative to other OTCs as it relates to quality and price, Original does have a few drawbacks in my opinion. Will I purchase it again? Maybe under the right circumstances. As always give it a try to see if Original is a welcome addition to your own smoking preferences.
Pipe Used: Cob & Briar
Age When Smoked: Fresh from pouch
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