Tobaccos Sutliff Tobacco Company - Man's Best Friend Blend (Sutliff Private Stock)

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3050)	2013-10-06		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is more or less a replacement for Barking Dog. The Cyprian latakia is smoky and woody sweet, and often competes for attention with the earthy, nutty white burley. The lemon Virginia that adds some tangy cirtus and a little grass. The mild rum topping is assisted by a complimentary raisin/stewed fruit note or two as well, none of which tones the tobaccos much. Has a mild to medium nic-hit. Won't bite, but does have a rough edge or two along the way. Mildly complex and well balanced, it burns a little slow with a slight inconsistency in the flavor. Leaves a little moisture in the bowl, and needs some relights. Has a pleasantly lingering after taste. Smoking it in a pipe with a wide bowl will enhance the experience, but any pipe will work for this mixture. Not quite an all day smoke.

-JimInks

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Capn Jimbo (24)	2014-12-14		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is a simple blend of lemon virginia, cubed white burley and latakia and is alleged to be topped with a bit of some non-descript rum. Few here - and I am one - don't find the rum; if it's there it's very, very modest. The tobacco can benefit from a bit of rubbing out - particularly the chunks of latakia. It both lit and burned well with minimal relights with Frank pack in my MM Cob.

So far so good. The blend is extremely well balanced with no one element dominating, but to the point that I find Man's Best Friend bordering on non-descript. Based on the cut, it's possible to get occasional whiffs of one element or another, but the modest latakia is always there. The light virgina seems mostly on retrohale. You are tempted to work harder to get something, but you risk a bit of burn. A bit more going on near the end of the bowl, but too little, too late for me.

Mind you, I'm a big fan of a balanced blend, but not to the point that the elements merge into a kind of sameness throughout the smoke. It's certainly not bad, it's actually quite pleasant, but it is not remarkable. I'd call this an understated pleasant all day smoke, comfortable and likeable but not particularly exciting. This tin will certainly be finished, but I don't see buying another at this time.

Pipe Used: MM cob

Age When Smoked: 4 to 6 months

Purchased From: Local tobacconist

Similar Blends: R-blend, but not as good..

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TallPuffO'Burley (633)	2014-03-03		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable to Strong

I did not like this blend and really can't think of any reason to recommend it thus the one star review. It is an American English type blend the is soaked in humectants like many of the sutliffe blends. My tin that is essentially of cardboard composition with a snug plastic cap lasted me two years. In that time the tobacco never got any drier than the day I received it. That said, it was never really moist rather the moisture content was right where I would want it.

I would say the fact that it is cheap would be a reason to purchase it, but even Sutliffe's own Fox & Hound is a more pleasurable experience than this and is just as cheap.

I would rather spend my time smoking on the 20 or so blends that C & D offers in this vein than this one. I will say that it was bite free like advertised on the tin, but many blends with these components are.

Pipe Used: various

Purchased From: local B & M

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2013-11-12		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

An internet pipe buddy who knew I enjoyed some of the old House of Windsor blends sent me a couple of Sutliff match blends to try. This one is supposed to be "perfect for fans of Barking Dog". As I was extremely underwhelmed by a similar claim for a Dunhill 965 clone, I was cautious, but then again, Sutliff did nail the old Edgeworth. So off I went! As luck would have it, I still have some of the HoW Barking Dog for comparison. Both had the mishmosh chop cut and the sprinkling of black among the woodchip color.

As a match blend, this one is a failure. The topping is too heavy, the latakia too faint. Didn't taste much like Barking Dog, which is a very tasty blend. This one was pretty bland by comparison and contained a somewhat chemical taste the HoW version did not have. As a standalone blend, this one was fine. No highs or lows, just a decent middle of the road American English. But there was no pizzaz. Perhaps that's the point. This one was ok but nothing I felt I needed to spend money on.

Quality-wise, the tobaccos, particularly the burley, in this one seemed to be higher up the ladder than Barking Dog. Then again, I'm more impressed with a blender that can create more from less. This one seemed like a creation of less from more. I'll take the Barking Dog any day.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2011-10-08		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Very Pleasant

I know this blend was created to imitate the flavors of the old Barking Dog blend. Frankly, this one is better due to the strength (which I appreciated). It has been years since I smoked Barking Dog but I sure don't remember that blend being as sweet as this one and the rum flavoring is easily detected. The content's cut also makes for an easy pack/smoke. Hey folks, I believe this one is a blue ribbon doggie!

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gentleman Zombie (729)	2015-03-28		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is a winner in my book. Never had Barking Dog so I can't compare. I get all three components contributing near equal amounts of flavor. Earthy, sweet, smoky, woody, fruity and all with a wonderful creamy texture. Can only pick up the rum on occasion and mostly in the first half of the bowl. I've really been enjoying this one.

Mild to medium in body. Medium in flavor. No burn issues at all. Woof! Woof!

Pipe Used: MM General, MM Country Gentleman

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: pipesandcigars.com

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	fr_tom (393)	2014-04-11		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Presentation in the tin is cubed burley, fish flakes of light colored Virginia and ribbons of latakia. The tin smells of latakia and something slightly sweet. There is no smell of rum or chemicals others have noted. Moisture level is excellent - maybe a little drier than some might like. It is just right for me. Due to the cubed burley, I gravity fed to fill and tamped lightly.

I found the blend easy to light and a smooth, tasty smoke. The lemon Virginia was more prominent in the first half of the bowl. The burley came into its own with some depth after that. Throughout the bowl I found the latakia to be present,tasty and there without being dominant.

I found this to be an enjoyable medium strength blend that is not especially complex. It only hits a few notes but it hits them pretty well. This one is easy to recommend.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ColonelStJames (14)	2013-05-06		Mild	Mild	Very Mild	Tolerable

Well, that was disappointing! I stopped by my B&M tonight and picked up a tin of MBF. Sutliffe makes one of my favorite aromatics in Molto Dolce, and I was really looking forward to trying another one of their blends. The smell in the tin was nice and I got a little of the rum in the nose. It disappeared in the smoke. It didn't bite, and that was good because I had to puff the daylights out of this to keep it lit. I gotta say, I understand MBF's place in the tobacco world, though. If you, like me, mostly smoke aromatics,but wish to make the move into more of an English blend, the maybe you'll like this. I didn't.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	King Weed (228)	2018-10-13		Extremely Mild	Medium	Very Mild	Unnoticeable

I should have known that something was up with this blend when two of my long term pipe smoking buds dismissed it on sight; one with a wave of his hand and a "yech" utterance and the other with the exclamation "it says its Barking Dog, but it isn't". So, I put the poor pup on my table this last August at our NASPC show and nobody paid any attention to it at all. Searching for a rum laced mixture for blending purposes, I ripped it open. Now, I have some positive things to say about this blend; however, they have to be said upfront as that is where they all are. One, I like the tin art with the attractive red-headed retriever. Two, I was pleasantly surprised by the wonderful tin appearance of this blend. With a color range from lemon yellow to black, it's roughish appearance and an aroma of an aromatic English: I was impressed. That impression, unfortunately, did not translate to the smoke and was short lived. Not tepid or weak, but, practically unobtainable is how I am describing the smoking quality in the top half of the bowl. I couldn't get enough out of M'sBF to even understand what this tobacco was all about. As to the rum flavoring, I couldn't identify my tin's aroma as such. It was, however, present in the smoke to some extent. At the half way point of the bowl, a very small amount of backbone began to appear and I craved more of it in the smoke, but, to no avail. These very sentiments, and more, are in reviewer Capn Jimbo's review of 2014-12-14. His second paragraph sums up my feelings about Man's Best Friend. Just as I was contemplating a one star review, I decided to use M'sBF in blending and was pleasantly surprised by how positively it worked with the other tobaccos in use. This emboldened me to go to two stars.

Pipe Used: Becker 1/4 bent yacht-2003 NASPC year pipe

Age When Smoked: seven years old

Purchased From: Ebay seller

Similar Blends: We're down, now, in the very light English range. If you've ever smoked Hearth&Home's Admiralty, its weaker than that. If you've ever smoked Davidoff Royalty, its stronger than that..

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Stinkypipe (155)	2017-01-21		Mild	Very Mild	Mild	Pleasant

This blend is almost like a mild English blend. It has some light flavor of umm....well I don't know exactly. Perhaps smoke (Latakia) and perhaps a whiff of dark rum. This is simply a nice smoke that does not overwhelm in either room note or taste. It is most enjoyable to smoke. Just don't expect a lot of taste. It says discontinued but this is still available at a lot of web stores at this date.

Pipe Used: Coby

Age When Smoked: Fairly fresh

Purchased From: Smoking Pipes

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Coda (33)	2015-01-06		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is a pretty simple blend. It is a full flavored, all day blend. Mild, but flavorful. A little sweetness combined with some smokiness that makes an interesting combination. The rum flavoring adds a nice shade of flavor. This could easily be smoked all day with no ill-effects. If you don't like latakia, this blend may not be for you. A nice, middle-of-the-road tobacco that should please most pipe smokers...

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ROTHNH (11)	2013-05-03		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

A few weeks ago, I Emailed Altadis to let them know I'd made two requests, 4-6 months apart, yet I'd never received a free promotion "non-aromatic" tin of Sutliff pipe tobacco. I received a reply the very next day, saying Altadis had had problems with the Pipe Auction promotions and they were going to do them on their own Sutliff website from now on. With an apology, I was also informed I would receive "complimentary samples" via UPS in a few days.

My box from Altadis arrived yesterday -- four 1.5 oz. tins of assorted non-aro Sutliff blends. Of course, I had to open one! I am a Sutliff virgin LOL. I chose the Man's Best Friend (MBF).

MBF is supposed to be Altadis' match for Barking Dog, a House of Windsor blend, which, like HoW itself, is long gone -- so long gone, in fact, that I really don't remember Barking Dog much at all, thus I can't compare the two.

Popping the tin of MBF, there's a potpourri of colors -- black, yellow, a few shades of brown -- and a potpourri of scents as well -- latakia, burley, rum, spices. The tin note is so pungent, I first thought this MBF was actually an aromatic, and while quite pretty in appearance, this MBF was mistakenly included in the non-aromatic samples I had specifically requested.

The MBF blend is course cut and this tin is just slightly moist, so I let a bowlful dry about 10-15 minutes. It packed easily in my Group 4 Pipa Croci dublin using my preferred drop-feed method, and the charring light/true light was non-problematic.

The rum is there, upfront in the first few puffs, but it mellows out, though never totally disappears, as the latakia's smokiness comes in play. This is an "American English" blend, similar to Walnut, but with more complexity. While certainly a mild blend, MBF delivers a very tasty smoking experience. The nuttiness of the white burely is there, and also helps cool the smoke. The bright virginias -- definitely playing a condiment role here -- adding some lemony goodness.

With all the stuff going on here, MBF, IMO, verges on being a crossover blend, but I say that because of the rum, which, as noted, is prevalent in this blend. Otherwise, it's a mild English. It smokes cool, stays lit with few if any relights, smooth, zero bite, and the very pleasant flavors hang in there throughout the smoke, burning completely to a light gray ash with no dottle.

I like this MBF a lot. I'm on my third bowl of this stuff since I popped this tin yesterday afternoon. I'm thinking this would be a very good choice for someone looking to expand their horizons from aromatic blends who wants to try a mild, flavorful American English. An added plus is price: The 1.5 ounce tins cost just over $6 and the 8 ounce cans of MBF are about $16 on line.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DrT999 (318)	2013-03-14		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Many rum-topped blends are (for me) too sweet, burn too hot, are bland under the topping, or any combination. The rum is lightly applied here, and the Latakia balances it off nicely, nor does it burn too hot for me. The underlying tobaccos are also pleasant to puff through.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Clive Moses Apikouris (41)	2013-01-31		Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Bow-Wow! I'm wagging my tail over this treat. I'm again surprised by such a fine tobacco coming from the Sutcliff line of Altadis. I was a bit apprehensive about this blend upon ordering it. I have previously tried their Revelation knock-off, and while I enjoyed it as as representative of a nice "drugstore blend" of the past, I rarely smoke it as it tastes too "drugstore" and I have so many blends available that are tastier. I never had the opportunity to smoke "Barking Dog", but the name alone may have made it seem an unattractive choice to make when selecting a tobacco for purchase. Because of having no experience with the blend "Barking Dog". I can't offer an opinion on if the copying effort of Altadis was successful. However I can tell you that in my opinion this tobacco is simply a pleasure to smoke. Pop the tin and you will be greeted by a salad composed of a variety of shades of tobacco ranging from gold to black. The cut is kind of chopped, so salad is a apt description. The aroma is a sweet smokey, raisin like scent shared in common with many blends featuring similar ingredients. The moisture is on the slightly sticky side, which actually I prefer. It helps with packing and lighting a pipe in the Frank method. It does light up easily and will burn through your smoke very nicely. Now the flavor, marvelous. The tin aroma is matched by the smoking flavor. slightly sweet, nice smokey but not overpowering Latakia, a tasty Burley cereal flavor adds a nice touch and the you get a bit of Virginia tongue tingle. I don't register any noticeable rum flavor but perhaps the noted rum topping contributes to the overall mild sweetness. In some regards Man's Best Friend is reminiscent of a less rich milder Benjamin Hartwell Chesdin Mixture also made by Altadis. This a very tasty American Latakia mixture that could be for some a regular or all day tobacco. Most highly recommended.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Joeluka333 (1)	2012-05-10		Mild	Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Maybe there is too much going on the allow anyone flavor or weed dominate. After reading about all the trouble keeping it lit, I decided to let at least four bowls air dry for a day. Smoked all four bowls in one day and the biggest problem was keeping it lit. Otherwise it was a mellow all day plain smoke that bit only when puffed too hard. ( Which with the trouble keeping it lit, seemed to bite quite a bit) If you're looking for a cross between a cased ARO and a minor English/Balken then give it a try.

Nothing special but nothing wrong with finishing the tin either.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2012-02-22		Medium	Medium	Medium	Tolerable

I don't understand some of the negative reviews, while this is not a full English blend, it is not meant to be. Latakia jumps up front upon opening the tin, with a pleasing touch of burley and sweet Virginia to round the senses. I did not detect an overpowering flavoring of Rum, but is sneaks it's way in later during the bowl with a delightful smoothing, just enough to keep you wondering, or was it a different flavor? anise? almonds? Whatever it is it works for me. No trouble lighting or keeping lit. No bite at all. This would be a good start for someone to ease into English blends. Can be smoked all day. Thoroughly enjoyable.

Update: finished the tin and ordered the 8 ounce

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Philo Beddoe (221)	2012-01-04		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild	Tolerable

Not my bag, too little punch, the burley can't shine because of the casing and the Latakia is too weak to come to the front for long. I was hoping for a nutty burley with some Latakia smokiness, but this puppy didn't bark for me.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	zwolanek (21)	2011-10-28		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable to Strong

As with all reviews, please read several. For me, Mans Best Friend is a disaster.

I've smoked about 3/4 of a can I got at the Chicago Pipe Show. The cut consists of huge soggy chunks. I expected a dog chasing a covered wagon through my kitchen any minute.

My first two bowls would barely light and left more than 50% doddle. I dried it for a day. Same thing. Two days. Same. Three MORE days in a sunny window. Only then would it light and burn. But it still left about 25% doddle. So I rubbed it to the consistency of large grind coffee, but even after that I faced continuing burning issues.

The flavor was the same soggy or dry. It gave me the impression that the blender really didn't have anything in mind, or changed his mind, or lost his mind. It's all there - aromatic, latakia, burley, rum - kind of "something for everyone." But that is code for "nothing special here."

Most tobacconists offer "floor sweepin's" at a discount, and other than the chunky cut of this, that's what this is. But as one reviewer noted, it all mixes together to a single flavor, which he appreciated but I do not.

The room note was disappointing. I cannot tell room smell when I smoke, but note it upon entering the room the following morning. This dog needed a bath.

As a former Minnesotan, I have to say something nice, so here are five nice things about Man's Best Friend: - It contained high grade ingredients. - The rum topping was not overpowering. - It didn't bite. - It was free. - The Irish Setter on the can looks like a great dog.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ruffinogold (112)	2011-10-18		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is Altadis/Sutliff Barking Dog Match . I cant say wether it's a great match or not , being the last time I smoked Barking Dog , was probably more than a decade or more ago . It is a very good blend and I have to say I was very suprised . I've thought of Altadis as an Aro blender only . I've read reviews of Fox and Hound being just so so . I figured not to get excited about their non aros and " English " style blends . Big mistake . This blend has little chunks of burley , lat and Va . It has a slight top note of rum but I wasnt sure it was there till I smoked it a little . The cut is chunks , cut strands and thin flakes [ not pressed flake ] . As any blend with burley chunks , it takes a little doin . Once well lit , the Latakia is there up front with the burley and Va behind it .The rum is kinda there in a ghostish way . This dosent last long ... after a quarter of a bowl it all melds into one flavor . All the componets are there in unison ... I really like when a blend does that . It's a cool easy smoke that builds at the end some . It never got hot or funky and the bottom of the chamber was dry . It is a medium blend in nicotine and flavor . When the blend reached the " sweet spot " , about quarter way down , my eyebrows popped up and I said .. wow ! It did this each bowl . Many times blends will have flavors side by side as the bowl goes down , which is fine ... this stuff " blended " just right and I really enjoy it . I'm picky about blends with Latakia . Theres a bazillion out there and not often does one jump out at me over my favorites . I'd dare say that SG SL smokers might enjoy this blend being it's a medium blend like SL though different .I will be smoking this stuff during winter ... and enjoying it !

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2011-06-22		Medium	Medium	Medium	Very Strong

Found this at a local B&M and bought it completely on a whim without having ever previously heard about it. The tin description is more than a little ambiguous. Basically there is no information on the tin even cluing you in to what is inside. It says "MAN's BEST FRIEND - NEVER BITES" underneath a picture of a dog.

Upon opening the tin you can detect the Rum casing, but the aroma is not overpowering, and definitely is not the driving force that you would expect from many aromatics. The burley cubes give this blend a unique look

Other reviewers have warned about the contents being moist, but being a new tin of something I have never tried I went for glory, stuffed the bowl, preceded to the charring light. Lighting was a bit difficult likely due to the moisture content. 5 matches were needed to get a decent start on the bowl. I am smoking this blend in a brand new block Meerschuam GBD Churchwarden style pipe. I am guessing in a briar it would be gurgling to high heaven as I am puffing vigorously to keep the bowl lit moderate success. Strangely I am not being bitten or paid back for my irresponsibility.

The initial taste was good. The burley and latakia were coming through strong with the "lemon Virginia flake" taking a back seat. Definitely something that I will go back to as I enjoy good burley and find it rather tasty. Definitely a little switcharoo from your typical English, and does not remind me much of and aromatic.

Other folks are claiming the Vitamin N to be rather strong; however; more that half way through the bowl I am not noticing anything that would prevent me from finishing the bowl purely n that basis.

Overall I am going to recommend this blend first because it is unique, and second because it tastes good. If you do not like burley you may want to steer clear of this nasal passage clearing blend.

=== The more I smoke of this tin the worse it gets. The room note is like rotten garbage, and it seems to taste nastier every time I smoke it. I have been trying to let it dry a little because it is so difficult to keep lit. I'm not giving up completely, but I may have to downgrade it again if it does not get better as it dries.===

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	PIE-EYED-PIPER (20)	2010-12-24		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Tolerable

I got a free tin from one of the pipe shows I attended. I'm not an advocate of aromatic tobacco, nor will one ever be a part of my regular rotation. However, since this is a free sample, I thought I might as well give it a try.

Upon opening the tin, one can definitely smell the aroma of rum mingling with the English tobacco. I find that the casing is not as strong, or as overly powering as some blends I've tried. Latakia is definitely present in this blend.

The tobacco was a little moist. However, leaving the tin open and constantly rotating the tobacco around [top to bottom] for a few hours helped remedy the situation. Packing the tobacco was never an issue.

After the initial lighting, one's senses can definitely detect the rum. Others claim to continue savoring the rum casing from beginning to end. It is this humble reviewer's experience that as you go down the bowl, the flavoring dissipates and what is left is just good tasting English. Could there be a little inconsistency in the manufacturing process perhaps? The tobacco burned really well with only a few re-lights.

If your cup of tea is NOT an aromatic tobacco (or to be constantly bombarded with flavoring), then this may not be for you. However, if what I described is something to your liking, then maybe this is something you'd like to experience.

I haven't tried "Barking Dog" to make an educated comparison. Personally, I really don't care whether this blend barks like a dog, or purrs like a kitten. To me, this is just good English tobacco worth trying.

Based solely on the sample tin that I got, I will RECOMMEND this.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2010-10-11		Medium to Strong	Very Mild	Full	Tolerable

I dont know if i would buy this brand again purely based on my experience on this one. I found it hard to light and keep lit, the room note definitely received quite a few yells from outside of my den. The taste was a little to harsh for the average smoker. The second time i smoked it i found i had a little less problems with lighting. A friend of mine swears by it however maybe ill ask him to bring his tin over maybe something was wrong with my batch.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2010-10-08		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

I'll start by saying this one is not one that I would buy again. Too much burley to suit me with almost an acidic flavor that overpowered everything else going on in the bowl.

Packing was problemmatic and it refused to remain lit. I wanted more latakia but it was stomped on by the burley in this blend.

No bite for this dog, but it sure had a bark! Not my breed.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2010-09-18		Medium to Strong	Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Received this as a sample at my pipe club meeting 09.17.10. Smoky Latakia flavor, which dominated the entire smoke in my opinion. Not terrible, but not my favorite, either. Seemed to be a bit hard to keep lit for me. Will probably finish the tin off, but won't be tempted to try another.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2012-09-26		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

In the tin, this is sweet and smokey and with the fresh earthy notes from white burley. Wide cut bright VAs and light burleys along with chunks of burley cube and a solid helping of dark latakia make this mixture as beautiful in color as it is in cut.

This is simple, satisfying and extremely tasty. The burley sets the rhythm and with the variations of VA and latakia providing very bright highs and very dark lows, respectively. Neither grating nor tedious, the sweetness ties it all together and makes this just perfect for constant puffing. The effect of the rum is subliminal rather than showy.

Another relaxed and classy entry from Sutliff, Man's Best Friend is a true replacement for Barking Dog. If you like American Englishes, run, don't walk, and get some of this right now.

Chamber Gauge: Medium

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2012-01-13		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Smoking pipe for a little less than a year, I'd have to give a hardy thumbs up to this one. As a newbie breaking out of the aromatics, this "english style" (and I use that term loosely)is a very nice start for the beginner. The tin aroma reminds a little of Frog Morton to a milder degree. The cut is easy to pack, however, keeping it lit is a trail. I really try drying it out (hour plus) but it is still difficult to keep lit. The room note is quite pleasant; even my wife likes it. The latakia is present but not over powering. It's a smooth blend, tastes good and (like Inspector Cluseau's dog) it does not bite.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2011-12-16		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I like this blend. My only complaint is that it can be difficult to light and keep lit. I love the room note on this blend the burley and latakia really come out. I try to smoke this in my pipes with smaller bowls due to the burn time. This to me is a great after dinner with a glass of single malt blend.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2010-07-24		Medium to Strong	Mild	Full	Tolerable

Very nice, very typical English Blend, nice Latakia, and finish.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2010-07-04		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

This blend is another tribute blend to Barking Dog... It does not match it as closely as barking dog, but is good on its own merits. This blend is cased a bit too heavily with rum for my liking, but does provide a pleasurable smoke.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2010-04-06		Strong	None Detected	Very Full	Tolerable

For starters, the tine came extremely dry, but I just threw in a humidifier to help it. Afterwards though, it was a dream to smoke. Burned really well, stays lit fairly well. It was strong for me though, definitely couldn't smoke an entire bowl on my own. Taste was sweet, with a smokey kick to it. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Nobody has rated this review yet.