D & R Tobacco Cockstrong Premium Pipe Tobacco

Blonde to light tan ribbons cut very fine with a tin aroma of light orientals in top of basic tobacco... which is a good description of the taste, although not a complete one. This came dry but it seemed to perform better with a bit of hydration added. The taste was purer and more defined in its dry state but a bit rounder with some added moisture.

Although it's hard for me to believe that this isn't cigarette tobacco rebadged to avoid RYO taxes, it proclaims itself to be pipe tobacco, and indeed the cut makes it seem midway between the two. The taste is pure tobacco, with the burley front and center, the orientals next up and the Virginia (if there is any) pretty invisible save for perhaps an attempt to smooth out the blend. There was little to no sweetness or tang. This was primarily burley with a sidebar of orientals, a lot like Camel cigarettes. There was also some cigar notes, along with some mildly floral and incense-like wafts from the orientals. No casing of any kind, The nicotine was around the midpoint, perhaps slightly higher, but no head spinning. The flavor was on the strong side but thin and the mouthfeel was thin as well. Edgy...uncertain...cigarette-like. I keep coming back to cigarettes with these D&R blends, and as much as it may make me seem unreasonably critical, it just strikes me that these blends would work better in a tube than a pipe. But do try it if you like the purer tobacco blends and need a nic fix. I just feel that there are other blends more suitable to the pipe smoker who wants pipe tobacco-type flavors. I don't have much experience with D&R but everything I've smoked from them so far tells me that I have more than I'll ever need already. On to others!