4noggins Down by The River

A basic no-nonsense, no frills burley blend with some nuttiness, light cocoa, and a mild molasses/maple flavor. The nic-hit is mild. Burns clean and well with few relights, though it needs to smoked at no more than a moderate pace or it'll lose a little of its taste, especially toward the finish. Will burn hot if you're a fast puffer. Leaves very little moisture in the bowl. An all day fairly innocuous smoke.

-JimInks

Nutty burley gently suffused with quality maple. Excellent flavor all the way down. Not a complex smoke, but quite delicious. Definitely more an aromatic than a straight burley.

4noggins - Down by The River.

The ribbons appear uniform and finely cut. There's a very subtle sweetness emanating from the pouch, but it's slightly ambiguous as to what it's from. The moisture in Down by The River looks perfect.

It lights easily, giving a consistent and steady burn. That's good, but the temperature and bite aren't: hot and nippy. The tobacco doesn't taste particularly 'bad', but I find it boring. At first the topping seems very light, but by halfway it becomes clearer. Nowhere near 'strong', but it's a more definite added sweetness.

The room-note: nice. The nicotine: medium.

Down by The River? It's alright, but no better than two stars.

Somewhat recommended.

A high quality burley from 4noggins. From the charring light down to mid point of the bowl you get the nutty taste burleys are known for. About mid point I started to pickup hints of chocolate here and there till the end. It did burn a little hot and after noticing the burn I adjusted my cadence and the smoke remained cool.

I'm a believer that your mouth PH is a major contributing factor if a tobacco will bite and I did not experience any bite at all.

I am working my way through some of the 4Noggins blends. Down by the River has to be the finest aromatic I have ever smoked. It is the only aromatic I have found that actually tastes like it smells. Yes, the maple flavour is there, all the way through, but without dampening a great burley taste.

I am a relatively late convert to burley, having wandered like some lost soul in Balkan and VaPer country for many a year. I used to sneer at aromatics, but DBTR is not like any other aromatic. Call it a flavoured codger blend -- the boutique version of an OTC. I still like the Balkans, and this blend gives a great contrasting alternative.

No bite, but I wouldn't say it can be smoked without attention. Puffing too hard seems to weaken the maple notes and reduce the fantastic burley essence. Another thing is that unlike most aromatics, DBTR does not lose its topping taste half-way down and turn to ash. Clearly, 4Noggins is using very high-quality leaf and genuine flavouring, not some sprayed-on synthetic casing.

I don't know how it will age. I have jarred about a pound and a half, and will be ordering more. It is said that aromatics do not cellar well, but with this one, even if the maple casing fades one will still be left with a fantastic burley.

I just stumbled onto this one and had to try it, being a Burley lover. This one shines in a very specific way. The description provided is dead on and gives the reason for its greatness...absolutely tolerant of pipe and how it's smoked. I've tried it in three very different pipes and it's the same - start to finish - great nutty Burley flavor, medium strength, burns readily...smoke it down without any particular atention being needed...shoulda called it "Brainless Burley Blend" in a good way. All of the above go toward making it one of the great all day Burleys out there. Add to that the amazing service provided by 4-N's and it's a winner. I'll second the "check out their website" comment - LOTS to choose from. One of the very few sites I've ever found "Kendal Kentucky" in stock. 🙂 A solid four stars for this blend and it's source!

Nice cut and moisture level from the bag. Smells like a sweetened burley, with cocoa and nuts leading the way, with a bit of maple topping. Smells pretty natural. After packing and lighting, you are greeted with a traditional burley profile of nuttiness and a nice sweetness, aided by the maple topping. As the bowl burns down, a bit more cocoa flavors develop. It has a tendency to burn a bit hot, and if pushed, can get very ashy, although it is hard to get to bite. Overall it is a good, simple blend, but does take a bit more conscious effort to truly enjoy than the description would lead you to believe. Good, but not great.

I really like this Va/Bur blend. I agree with CountryDoc's comment, "Definitely more an aromatic than a straight burley." For me, after a time, its sweetness can get old. But there is some kind of delightful spice to it- not latakia- that adds to its complexity and keeps it interesting. If you like Va/Bur blends on the sweeter side, this one is at least worth exploring.

The Burley is nutty and mildly earthy. The maple flavoring is lightly applied and mildly sweet. This Burley's flavor tastes a bit thin to me. Can also burn a bit warm. It's not terrible, but I'd take Carter Hall or Granger over this.

Mild to medium in body and taste. Flavoring is very mild. Burns a little too fast.

**Original Review:** From the first puff i loved this blend!

Excellent tasting Burleys, with a slight flavouring. I would describe the flavouring as "christmas cookies" mayba a little maple-ish. Paired with the very nutty and slightly sweet Burley its a 10/10 pointer for me.

Id guess even natural Burley fans would find joy out of smoking this. Aromatic Fans MUST try it, even tho the flavouring is in the background.

---

**Re-Visit:** My palate must've changed, as I perceive this rather as an aromatic nowadays! And I'm puzzled how it is categorized as "Burley Based", as this is what I'd call "aromatic" ! But "very, very good aromatic!!" the kind you rarely find out in the wild! The kind that leaves a bit of spiciness on your tongue to remind you "it's tobacco you're smoking!".

Nutty, with a flavoring that reminds me quite a bit of "W.O. Larsen No. 32 Curly Cut", as I find it to be "Butter-Cookies"-ish! Caramel, Maple and a hint of Vanilla. Paired with the nuttiness of the Burley..... perfect aromatic blend! Great for the morning hours or for times you have/want to mind the room note - which is excellent!

One thing from my past review holds true: "I guess also natural Burley lovers will like this" - these days I consider myself a "natural Burley lover" (C&D Burleys mainly... Pegasus, Burley FLakes, Haunted Bookshop, Big N Burley) and: YES, it's a treat for me, really! It packs the essence of burley in it, but mixes it with a distinct flavoring that matches the tobaccos well - albeit for me it could be a tad more spiciness in this blend... still...4 stars!