Mac Baren 7 Seas Gold Blend

A nice aromatic tobacco. I get a sweet maple and brown sugar taste when smoking it. About 3/4 through the bowl, the maple and brown sugar flavor fades and is replaced by a sweet natural Virginia tobacco flavour. Room note is of tasty baked cookies or pancakes. No artificial taste. But as with most aromatics, it should be properly dried before smoking (~30 seconds in the microwave is the quickest and most convenient way). You will also get a nice little nicotine hit at the bottom of the bowl. Complements MacBaren's Seven Seas Regular nicely. Beginner and veteran smokers alike really can't go wrong with this delicious and affordable tobacco.

** Minus one star because this blend really isn't an all-day smoke. Even after proper drying, it still starts to burn my tongue after 3 or 4 bowls. It would be better if they put less propylene glycol on it like Amphora Red. **

Proper dryness and air flow is the secret to getting the most out of this tobacco (and most aromatics). Here's a step-by-step guide on how I recommend smoking it:

1. Properly dry it out. Upon first opening a new pouch, the tobacco will be quite moist. It should be dried some before smoking. I dump the full pouch out on a large plate and spread it thin. I then microwave it on high setting for ~30 seconds. After that, I remove the plate from the microwave and let it air cool for about 45 minutes (more humid conditions will require a longer drying time). Then back into the pouch it goes. This drying out process only needs to be done once for each newly-opened pouch.

2. Gravity fill your pipe just below the top of the bowl. (I recommend unfiltered half-bent pipes for a cooler and more flavourful smoke). When I say gravity fill, I mean dumping the tobacco into the pipe. No packing or pushing. None. Zero. Now after the first gravity fill, lightly tamp the tobacco using only the weight of the tamper. Now gravity fill again a second time to just below the top of the bowl. By filling the pipe this way, you will get maximum air flow. The tobacco will burn better, and the smoke will be cooler and more flavorful.

3. Light the bowl. It will require two or three charring lights. After the second or third charring light, lightly tamp the tobacco down only using the weight of the tamper. Don't push it. Now light it again and it should stay lit for quite a while. I find that matches work best for the charring lights.

4. Dump ash as needed, but don't push down hard with the tamper. Only use tamper weight.

5. Stir it. Near the bottom of the bowl, you may need to stir the tobacco up a bit to burn the last of it.

Pipe4ever is so right in stating that the 7 Seas blends are perfect for new pipers. They have none of the gloppy PG mess that the Captain has and are very forgiving of a fast over puffing. The Gold has the least topping of the 7 seas blends I tried and has the most tobacco flavor. Mildly sweet Golden Cavendish with a light Vanilla topping make this a great choice and for a topped Golden Virginia, this has to be provoked to bite. Really a 3.5 star blend in my opinion, not quite worthy of 4 stars, but very tasty though!

Nice burning tobacco with a mild aroma. Try this blend instead of spending money on Aromatic-Cherry- Vanilla Choice blends...

My first ever tobacco. This tobacco made me in love with this thing. I believe this is a great starter tobacco. If you never smoked pipe before this is what you get. Compared to the next I smoked it was still decent. Highly recommended if you are a beginner pipe smoker.

Good, very delicate with lovely honey/caramel notes. You won't be able to find many things higher than this in an affordable price in brazil. The "sweetness" makes it almost like a dessert tobacco, so not pleasurable to smoke all day long. My favorite 7 seas blend.

It is the first Mac Baren I've ever tried, and it tastes good! Its flavoring is, in my opinion, very discreet, evident not so much during the puff as in the 'aftertaste'. It indeed lights easily, but it is also put out easily (I repeat, I am a beginner, so it might be me- however, other blends I've tried burned more ). I liked the fact that it is almost natural flavor (it says 'with notes of vanilla'), and I might buy another pouch in the future. For the time being, I think I'm still a Borkum Riff 'fan'. 🙂

although people might compare it to captain black gold (which is similar in the color and cut) however i found it to be more similar to the lane 1Q cavendish as oppose to taste however the latter have more flavoring to it (which is more appreciated by me). the blend is very light and have smooth sweetness to it and the flavorings are not overwhelming, it burns perfectly and the room note is pleasant indeed.

Nice solid, standard, entry level aromatic. Moist, ribbon cut very much like Capt. Black. No problem with tongue bite. I'd rate this 3 stars for a new pipe smoker. I'd give it 2.5 stars for a veteran smoker because 7SGB is too similar to a decent drugstore blend: not too interesting but pleasantly smokable.

Another homerun from Mac Baren in their 7 Seas American-style aromatic line. Upon opening the tin I was greeted by another vanilla and butterscotch smell. The tin note carried over wonderfully into the taste, as all MacB 7 Seas blends have for me. It burns very well, but is a bit moist at first. Drying time will probably be welcomed by most. Though on the moist side, this blend didn't give me any tonge bite. After having so many MacBaren blends not bite I'm perplexed as to why they're "known for their bite". All in all a great aromatic. Definately one to keep in an aromatic smokers rotation.