The Tobacco Barn Grandfather

(3.10)
Grandfather brings back memories of the burley tobaccos enjoyed in the 50's. This is a signature blend of The Tobacco Barn, discovered years ago by one of The Tobacco Barn's most knowledgeable tobacconist, Tom Cotton.

Details

Brand The Tobacco Barn
Blended By  
Manufactured By  
Blend Type Aromatic
Contents Burley
Flavoring
Cut Coarse Cut
Packaging Bulk
Country United States
Production

Profile

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

Average Rating

3.10 / 4
4

3

3

0

Reviews

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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jun 23, 2014 Mild Mild to Medium Mild to Medium Pleasant
A very pleasant burley. Cube-cut & a little quick, but not very hot. I was told by the blender, Tom, that in recent years the blends ingredients have changed from the original product. From what I hear the new blend is not quite as nice. In my opinion though, it is a tasty & nutty blend, even with a slight cocoa note, that most burley lovers will enjoy.
Pipe Used: Various Missouri Meerschaums
PurchasedFrom: The Tobacco Barn - Lake Forest, CA
Age When Smoked: 1-3 yrs.
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Nov 15, 2011 Mild Very Mild Very Mild Pleasant
i like this tobacco its not my everyday smoker but if your into burly pick some up. i like the cube cut it packs nice but burns fast it doesnt burn to hot. you can taste it but it is really light. its got a good taste to it, tobacco and thats it. its a nice burly blended right.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 02, 2010 Mild Medium to Strong Medium Pleasant
First I would like to respond to the "deer tongue" question. There is no deer tongue in this tobacco blend. It is not blended at tobacco barn, it is blended by someone local to that area (as per discussion with Tom). Like the description says: "discovered" by Tom. Pretty good discovery actually. My first experience with this blend was very good .. however, the last batch was extremely full of the flavoring that is used ... it is some sort of sugary mixture with a kind of maple flavoring. I'm thinking that the blender used too much topping in the last batch. My review will reflect this unless I order more in the future, and based on the last lb ... I may not be doing that.

Don't get me wrong, the blend as I tried it originally was wonderful. But there are too many other choices out there to take another chance with GF. Besides, I still have just under an lb which is not getting smoked.

The blend starts off with that "codger burly" though the sugary topping has much too large a presence. As I continued through the bowl it only got stronger. I could not finish the bowl as the topping turned to a combination of rock hard nuggets bound together by carmelized sugar .. bubbling in the bottom half of my bowl.

Still, I gave it 2 stars because the first experience was a good one.
1 person found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 03, 2009 Mild to Medium Mild Mild to Medium Very Pleasant
This blend was recommended to me last time I was at the Tobacco Barn, and I am liking this. Despite what previous reviews have said, this blend doesn't actually have any Deer Tongue in it. But after talking with Tom, you can have it mixed in if you wish (this is the way i prefer it, but i'll address this later in the review). In the pouch, Grandfather seems to be a cube cut with a maple-like topping. Packs and burns well and doesn't require to many relights. It has a pleasantly sweet taste, as well as a pleasing aroma. I found that it burned rather hot, but that can be my fault rather than that of the blend. I give Grandfather, 2 stars.

Now I bought a second pouch of Grandfather with Deer Tongue added to it, and this stuff is amazing. I found myself going through that bag in a few days as supposed to the original Grandfather, and that is why I rated it 4 stars. The little green flecks of Deer Tongue adds a herbal/vanilla-esque aroma to the smoke and the room note (which smells heavenly). I've been told that it smells like fresh funnel cake. This is a blend that others will enjoy, even non-smokers. I will be buying more Grandfather w/ deer tongue, as it is slowly becoming my "go to" tobacco.

As a side note, the Deer Tongue seems to settle to the bottom of the bag, so be sure to shake it up to redistribute it through out the blend.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Aug 14, 2009 Mild Medium to Strong Medium Tolerable
I was attracted to this blend by all of the positive reviews. I like Burley and I like cube cut tobacco, but this one doesn't shine. For me, it's just "ok". I ordered two 4 ounce samples. They each came in a thick zip lock bag - very sturdy as zip locks go. I stuck my nose into one of the bags several times and the aroma reminded me of a German chocolate spice cake with a hint of vanilla. The sample was the perfect moisture level and not at all wet. A very dark appearance to the tiny cubes I might add. It took to the match easily and required perhaps a relight or two. It burned to a medium gray ash every time, but always a hot smoke and a bit oftongue bite. I didn't much care for the ever present hot air on the palate experience.

The Burley taste and strength wasn't what I expected compared to other Burleys I smoke - mild on both counts - which is not a bad thing in and of itself. I wasn't expecting not to be able to adequately taste the Burley. What I didn't like was the flavoring. I smoked several bowls of this in different pipes and there was no difference with each trial. I couldn't exactly taste any vanilla, rum, or maple as had been suggested in a previous review. I did from time to time get some very nice whiffs of sweetness and that was pleasant. At times it tasted like burning dung and that wasn't too pleasant. There was a bit of a gurgle with every smoke, but not so much that there was a wet mess in the pipe. Now back to the taste. There was an ever present taste of - oh, I don't know - kind of like a burning twig or a raw leaf. Too disagreeable for me. Now it goes without saying that tobacco is a plant, and in all its various incarnations, a pipe smoker knows what to expect from something that was grown from the soil and subsequently made for smoldering. I had no green flecks in my samples so I am not inclined to say it was the deer tongue (which I never had before). Whatever it was, I didn't much care for it. It was like a German chocolate cake that was left in the oven a bit too long and the bottom came out tasting burnt and metallic. It's odd that the overall smoke was mildly sweet, but ruined by the other taste I described, and this lingered as a disagreeable aftertaste to boot. This is something I would have to get used to to include this in my daily rotation. It is not a bad blend - just not to my liking to want to have it readily available. Others obviously have raved about it, but I honestly can not join in with them.

Will I smoke it again? Not any time soon. I can see this one sitting in my cabinet for years and therefore doubt that I would order any more. It's a "don't call me, I'll call you, and don't sit by the phone waiting for my call" type of smoke - and pricey to boot! For me, a push to give it 2 stars and no more.
1 person found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jul 19, 2009 Mild to Medium Very Mild Mild to Medium Very Pleasant
I read somewhere that this blend is not artificially flavored, like your typical aromatic, but that it has an aromatic perennial wild herb common throughout North America called "deer tongue" blended in, which gives the blend its distinctive aroma in the pouch and wonderful old-fashioned room note when smoked. Whatever. Grandfather is what pipe smoking is all about. Comparing it to a "drug store" blend is a sacrilege. Four stars.

Note: The course cube cut means you will want to gravity feed this into your bowl and just very lightly tamp, or it will pack too tight and burn hot. Keep it loose and cool, and it will smoke sweet to the end.

UPDATE: 11/20/2009 - The review above was based upon my initial 2 oz. sample. I enjoyed it so much, I ordered a half-pound. For some reason, it did not seem to be as enjoyable as that initial sample, so I am reducing my rating from 4-stars to 2. Please understand that I still believe this true "codger burley" beats anything off the drugstore shelf. Still has a wonderful room note. But the last batch just burned hot and gurgly in the pipe (an Savinelli Estella EX) and had a bite. Admittedly, after letting the pipe go out and re-lighting about an hour later, it seemed to smoke smoother, but I must say I was disappointed overall.
1 person found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 15, 2008 Mild to Medium Mild Medium Very Pleasant
This seems to be a cube cut burley reminiscent in appearance of House of Windsor's "Field and Stream". This is indeed the penultimate example of what has recently come to be known as a "codger burley". Strangely, while "Grandfather" has an absolutely magnificent room-filling traditional aroma, I do not consider it an aromatic because the tobacco itself is quite full, satisfying and minimally sweet. I would guess that it is heavily imbued with maple, rum and licorice , but I'm not sure because I cannot identify a single flavor with certainty. All I can tell you is that this blend tastes and smells really, really good. I give this a grade Of "A".
1 person found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 13, 2008 Mild to Medium Very Mild Mild to Medium Very Pleasant
This is a very nice blend. I'm not sure if what I got was different (I thought there was only one), but it was kind of in-between cube and coarse cut. This has perfect moisture content, and doesn't take forever to dry. Not sure what they mean by bulk packaging. I was able to order it in 2 oz. It does have a very nice aroma. Smokes best in longer-stemmed pipes.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 05, 2008 Mild Very Mild Mild to Medium Very Pleasant
Grandfather is actually cube cut, not course. I've been smoking primarily burley for 49 years, and Grandfather is very special indeed. It starts with good quality burley, and from what I have been told, has a fair amount of deer tongue added. What results is a smooth, mellow, and very flavorful blend, with a vanilla-like undertone. The room note must be amazing, since an anti-smoking friend of mine has asked that I most nothing other than Grandfather when he's around. Carter Hall has been my regular blend from the start, but I could easily make Grandfather my one and only blend.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 23, 2019 Mild to Medium None Detected Mild Pleasant
A good relaxing burley for every moment. The cub cut is easy to manage and offer a mild, cool and flavorful smoke with an easy sip. Not sweet but smooth and a hint of spice with the nutty and cocoa (not chocolate) note. Also good to cake a pipe (gravity pack + not hot + no need to relight). No Nic-hit (for me)

You can add the "Tongue deer" option.
Pipe Used: Briar, morta
PurchasedFrom: Tobacco Barn
Age When Smoked: Few months
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