Boswell Pipes & Tobacco Apple Strudel

This mixed/ribbon cut combination of quality Bright and Dark Virginia leaf is punctuated with a minor contribution of blackened Cavendish. The balanced components project an affably shaded mesh of tanned/light gold finer strands and rich red-orange-brown twisted clusters.

Quietly surfacing from the pouch, a subdued fruity essence resembling apple shyly lifts to the surface. On the whole the relaxed forward aroma takes on more of a spiced creamy vanilla woodiness garnished by native zest, raisin, and a lower level of sour tart. Concerning a technical note, the existing moisture level is most favorable for immediate smoking.

I don’t think myself a false prophet by proclaiming that the listed top-coatings on this blend are somewhat understated, yet I believe that is by intentional design. Understand that Boswell touts this blend as a moderate tempered proposal. Upon that very objective they performed astonishingly well in making good on that delivery. Mainly, a quiet mocking of a tart-sweet, weaker apple much like a Grannie Smith varietal forms the forward push. A push folks that is earmarked with a very small “p”.

This featured apple whispering comes with the accompaniment of an insertion of a thinly veiled vanilla dressing. For the most part the vanilla is impressively faint actually bordering upon imperceivable, but at times suffices in overtaking the apple’s core, kind of a conflicting fluke. Overall, the intensity and the aromatic savor are categorically meager at best. One could foreseeably argue that Apple Strudel is more like an apple-vanilla cased non-aromatic mixture if it’s anything at all.

Plainly stated, for those looking for a more distinguishable taste of flushed fruitfulness my guess is this blend will not be the apple of your eye. Who’s to say, it may have been picked far too early? On the other hand, for you who prefer an exceptionally light dance of a simplified pleasing aromatic then there is perhaps more here for your liking.

On a further comment in relation to the additive seasonings, I did catch some evidence of cinnamon spice, dulled caramel, and darker sugar that provided a boost of tasteful amusement. In regard to any strudel affluence, I suppose if I stretched my imagination far enough, I could suggest to myself there is an inkling of a waning of something remotely crusty in the nuancing, truthfully subliminal at best.

Virginian stands as the master element within the taste profile’s prime rendering. With these strains the offering encountered conveys a well-rounded flavor comprising basic tangy, sugared Bright citrus, minor raisin bread, and some darker elevated wood tones from the Red component. The recipe, as published calls out a solitary ingredient, namely Virginia. However, I did record a bottom note of fundamental earthiness from the blackened Cavendish most likely Virginian-based in being consistent with the official billing. This stream does model some level of sugaring but is fairly mundane in the reckoning overall.

About half-way through the bowl the profoundly mild flavor really progresses to a common native wood with lesser citrus wealth and subsided sweetness. There is just a light hint of the sugary coatings that manages to peek through, but in general, the taste evolves to becoming more dimensionally flat. Not that I’m mean-spiritedly throwing a dig on Boswell, but the summation of what is written is an accurate reflection of the experienced registration. Nevertheless, Apple Strudel does impart a very nice residual impression of freshly eaten apple in the aftertaste which I found quite pleasing all the same.

Good performance on the essential mechanicals. Namely the blend burns with reasonably modest heat and ultimately provided a cool, dry experience altogether with no perceivable bite. I must admit that the room note produced by its rather thicker smoke is characteristically low key and pleasant in the main. The calm aroma is demonstrated by a softly sweet tart graced with an appealing note of darker wooded tang. Being principally of the Virginian sort you can count on a low to medium presence of nicotine. Finally, application-wise, Apple Strudel really shined best in this simple bulldog briar as well in one of my trusty MM Ozark cobs.

Much like Sutliff’s Apple equivalent, this Boswell offering is an easy aromatic/quasi non-aromatic mixture that could serve well as a thoughtlessly enjoyable companion whilst one goes about some daily busy work. To all intents and purposes, Apple Strudel does present a simple occasion of basic Virginia that fact should not be discounted. However, being the apple tobacco admirer that I am, honestly this blend falls a bit short on personal preferences of flavorsome intensity. Give it a try if you like “appley” things in general as Apple Strudel may lend itself well to your own palate.