John Patton Storm Front

This tastes like Admiral’s Choice with added cigar leaf. People who like cigars should probably avoid this, and cigar leaf blends in general, since they never really taste right … in Storm Front the cigar and the pipe blend might be fine separately, who knows? Together they don’t do much.

The name is kind of offputting as well - maybe don’t name a blend after the biggest white supremacist group on the internet? I mean it’s an American style but not *that* American.

Anyway, if I’m going to smoke an OTC burley, I’ll just smoke an OTC burley. No need to confuse stuff with cigar leaf, bells and whistles.

A smoky, nutty blend with a hint of sweetness from a master of the use of cigar leaf. Wonderful mouthfeel from the burley with rich cigar notes. Agree with JimInks that this is somewhat reminiscent of C&D burley blends. Arrives fairly dry as intended by John himself. Burns perfectly without too much ashiness. MrPatton suggests this blend is best in a cob, though it does well in every pipe I've tried it in.

I'm a traditionalist. I like pipe weed in my pipe blends and cigar leaf in my cigars. So I approached Storm Front with a bit, a tiny bit, of trepidation. But its touch of cigar leaf just adds zest and a bit of sweetness without making a big deal of it, making SF a natural aromatic--not at all like the kinds produced by adding casing or toppings. To me this one has a figgy, almost plummy tin note on top of the naturally nutty Burley, or would, if it came in a tin.

This is good, really good. It is highly rated, and should be. It comes a bit on the dry side for some but just right for me. This is what tobacco can be when not loaded down and sopping with humectants, anti-funguals and the like. I download my bulks directly into Ball jars so they stay just right, and it's so much nicer when the moisture level starts just right.

(Naturally) sweet burley flavor at the match and all the way through. I don't find SF to be one-dimensional in the least, but a nicely evolving smoke that never gets too alkaline (bitter) and smokes down to a lovely ash. I don't find it that smoky in the hand or when on fire, just honest Burley goodness with a hint of sweetness. I don't get as much earthiness as some reviewers, but that assessment is especially personal.

You won't need a handful of matches for a bowlful of this blend, either. Easy to pack well and light, easy to smoke--and no tongue bite, something to which I am way susceptible. Thick, creamy smoke lovers, check this one out! And friends and loved ones won't suddenly need to run errands or cut the lawn when you fire it up. Smoke this one all day, every day. A new favorite for me.

EDIT--9/18/15: Yup, still 4 stars. If you like this, John Patton's Dark & Stormy is Storm Front with a bit of Latakia added.

This is a fantastic blend that I could smoke all day long. Woodsy, spicy, and a hint of something I cannot put my finger on at the back end. Perhaps a citrus note? This one is one to add to the everyday and it is a bulk buy- which makes me happy. Smooth and easy to load that comes not too moist and not too dry.

Wonderful and excellent Burley blend. No doubt this is classic! After a dozen or so of bowls, it becomes my favorite burley blend. Smooth, no bite. I could not taste the cigar but it should be strengthen the back bone of the blend. Highly recommended!

This is a very very very good smoke. I dare say one of the best from the John Patton stable of tobacco's. Do not let the name fool... there is no storm going on here... just one of the best natural and slightly sweet smokes going on in town. Full mouth feel from the smoke... nice presence of the burley and the cigar leave just gives you that creamy YUM factor. Not much more can be added other than you can buy it in bulk, 4Noggins has a great price and even better customer service.. so as we say in Chicago... Waddaya waitin for ?? Enjoy .. I know I did Happy Smoking Cheers Mike

As I wander around a recent shipment of Pattonia I like to get one of my favourite poems out of storage -- the Song of Hiawatha -- and leaf through it while puffing. There is something in these blends redolent of forests, streams and, if not wigwams, certainly remote and wild places.

With Storm Front, JP has hit several notes, as far as my experience is concerned. I have taken time in shopping around this blend in some of my pipes, and so far it works best in one of my old Kaywoodie hand made super grains -- a largish billiard, with no stinger. Whether or not that is relevant is another matter, but I always find it is the combination of wood and leaf, not just the leaf, that gives the taste and experience.

What taste! This is several steps up from Moe's Confetti, and comes fairly near to Granger and Half-and-Half. I have not tasted any cigar in it so far, and it may be the pipe or just me, but I wonder how much is in there. I just get burley, a nutty, slow burning burley taste that delivers the goods without a bite. This is quite unlike the other JP blend I reviewed recently -- Smoked Burley. This is more like what one gets in the OTC burley products.

It produces a lot of smoke, and is never monotonous -- that could be the cigar leaf, playing around with the burleys. I would guess there might be a bit of Virginia in there as well. Whatever it is, the combination adds up to a remarkable achievement -- mild but tasty, with a slight zing every so often.

The Song of Hiawatha is a long poem, good enough for at least several pipes full of Storm Front. Mini Ha Ha has not yet complained of the room note, which is a positive sign. All well in the wigwam of this puffer.

If you like Prince Albert or Carter Hall, you can try this, don't be bothered by the name, real cigar smokers will understand that the cigars mentioned here are just a similar flavor, no real power, no chemical things to damage your tongue, great work! For me it can be a whole day's smoke, which my wife says is a very normal tobacco smell.

I'm afraid I find this blend somewhat overrated. There is absolutely nothing WRONG with it, but it was, to me, pretty-much, a ho-hum smoke. Perhaps I demand too much of a burley blend.

The tobaccos used are absolutely first-rate. There is no bite, neither are there gurgle nor dottle. And many will find this blend rewarding. But I just didn't.

If there was cigar leaf here, it was undetectable. What there was, was predictably acceptable burley...but little else.

I could smoke it contentedly if there were nothing else available...but there IS!!!