Mac Baren Symphony

I tried this mixture over 40 years ago and I remembered it as being very bland but I tried it again recently and it wasn't as bad as I remembered. It tastes like straight burley to me and it's slightly sour as some burly mixtures tend to be. I couldn't detect the flavor of chocolate as some of the other reviewers have noted. It is similar to Plumcake except it doesn't have the rum and touch of Latakia so it is a bit one dimensional. It doesn't bite but it does smoke wet unless it is dried out a bit. I've upgraded my rating of it from one star to two.

I truly love the tin aroma, but it smokes hot. Reminds me of a Moravian bakery, baking spice cakes in a wood fired oven. Did I mention it smokes hot? Also, it had a similar aroma to Ogdens "Gold Block" but not nearly as flavorful or enjoyable because....... It smokes hot!

I only somewhat recommend this blend just for the sake of having a smoke, nothing special here. I will choose to buy Prince Albert in the future instead of this one. PA is more cost effective and works just as well. Symphony fills easily and lights easily. A SYMPHOHONIC revolution it is not. This one is TWO stars at best.

I purchased an aged tin (allegedly 10 yrs) at the Newark pipe show on 3/13/10. I have to say that while this baby bites a little, you can easily tame that beast by taking long and very slow sips to avoid the dreaded numb-tongue. This blend has character, a pleasant citrus flavor and a creamy feel to the smoke. I relit only once and it smoked nicely right down to the bottom of the bowl. I'm a new piper, enjoying the craft only about 6 weeks now and I'm having a ball experimenting with as many different tobaccos as I can get my hands on. Perhaps the aging helped to neuter this tin's bite. If so, and you've recently added Symphony to your collection, put it away and forget about it until you have grandkids. I think you'll be happy you did.

This is a review of a reasonably fresh tin. Upon opening, the aroma is of good burley with a light casing. I am a burley lover and this really appealed to me. The moisture level and cut were perfect for lighting. At this point, one might believe that the smoke is going to be great. It wasn't. The smoke begins with a Virginia taste that is not too unpleasant, but remains unremarkable throughout the bowl. The burley tobacco, of which Mac Baren is so proud, never really comes forward. The tobacco attempts to be all things and, therefore, becomes none. There is not enough Virginia to please the Virginia smokers and there is not enough burley to please smokers like me. The smoke is not bad, but for the price of tins now-a-days, a little more should be expected. The flavor does not change throughout the bowl. The ash is a bit clumpy, but acceptable. It only bites when pushed. The nicotine level is moderate, but not until you're almost finished with the bowl. This tobacco seems to smoke the same in many different size pipes. And, the aroma is not bad for a burley based smoke. In my opinion, the casing does little more than to heat up the smoke unnecessarily. The smoke might be improved if the casing were left off. In truth, some may appreciate the "balance," I did not.

First impressions: My 1 oz bulk order came a bit on the dry side. Really struggling to get past the bite and enjoy the flavor. Smells great on the light and I get some sweet cocoa and nutty notes. Regrettably I also get a crazy amount of BITE and a weird spicy thing going on all along the edge of my tongue. Not having fun. I've smoked a good amount of OTC blends recently and they were much, much, much more well behaved (in this same pipe) then lady Symphony. I don't know if it's a mouth chemistry issue or what but ... Thumbs down.

The first time I had this blend was many years ago and I hated it. I then bought a tin that was 30 years old and thought I would do a comparison . The first tin I tried I hated because I got a lot of tongue bite. The 30 year old ton can still be pushed to bite but was definitely better. Will I ever order more of this - no. If you are able to get your hands on an old tin it might be worth a try.

I used to like this, maybe 12 years ago, but either the blend or I have changed. Burley, honey, and cardboard. Can burn hot and the taste is as elusive as a bobcat.

The first time I tried it I kinda liked it but bowl after bowl (through the half of the tin) this tobacco became flat and boring. That's it. Flat and boring.