Tabac Manil Réserve du Patron

It has the classic characteristics of a Tabac Manil offering, a dry tobacco with a herbal smell and a cut suitable for a Pot shaped pipe. A tobacco that smokes fast but with proper packing in a large bowl, it can be slowed down. The nicotine level is gradually from medium to medium to strong especially by mid bowl.

Flavor wise, I get hay and earthy, musty truffles for the main profile. It smokes very mellow even when puffed fast but then I get a mineral flavor akin to ammonia and salt. So sipping is in order to get the maximum from it. The body is very cigar like and so is the aftertaste.

I' m not a Burley smoker, but I like European Burleys a lot as each country offers enough variety in taste to keep it interesting.

Virginia lover

I have been a devotee of semois tobacco since a good friend of mine from Amsterdam used to send me Joseph Martin Semois Lux No. 3 many years ago. We were both DJs, and I used to send him records (that should date that pretty well right there) and in gratitude he would send me a block of semois, as his family lived in the Ardennes valley. This was a local tobacco, usually smoked by the older relatives, and apparently inexpensive, the Belgian version of 5 Brothers or some other OTC variety. At the time I was also a cigar smoker and I very much used to enjoy these blocks of very dry, very distinctive Belgian tobacco. I believe some of the Joseph Martin tobaccos had been imported to the US a few years back, but now Vincent Manil seems to have cornered the American market for this varietal. There are currently three straight semois varieties easily available here in the US from Manil, and also a blend that contains a high proportion of quality Virginia as well as the semois (my guess is it's Virginia, as Vincent Manil keeps the makeup of that one a closely guarded secret)

The Reserve is the finest cut of the pure semois, and may be my favorite. I keep all three straight varieties on hand here, and what's remarkable is the difference in flavor according to the type of cut. Due to the dryness of the tobacco, they all require very firm packing, more firm than any other variety of tobacco I can think of. Once correctly packed, they all burn well, and maybe a bit quickly compared to other tobaccos. No chance of tongue bite and certainly nothing left but fine Ash in the bowl. I generally use Semois (along with Five Brothers) to break in all new pipes, and keep a sizable Nording reserved strictly for semois.

Semois has really a remarkable, distinctive flavor, on first lighting it is somehow like a cigar, but not cigar like, if that makes any sense, and the taste evolves during the course of the bowl. By the last half of the bowl, it has a sweet, almost vegetal quality. Throughout the smoke, it gives you a very rural, agricultural sort of flavor, which seems about right as the tobacco is basically grown, air dried, and then processed into each cut, without casings, flavorings or humectants. It is in some ways a simple tobacco, but the way it evolves through the smoke, is utterly distinctive. The middle cut, La Bremeuse, may be the one to try first, as it gives the most representative demonstration of the tobacco's charms. My preference for the finer cut is simply because I sometimes like to have a quick smoke in a smaller bowl, and I think the finest cut works well in a variety of pipes. The newest variety is a very coarse cut, called La Volute, and it verges on almost being too powerful in the initial lighting, in first third of the bowl. Not harsh, but like a cask strength single malt, it may not be to everyone's taste. Semois itself doesn't seem to be to everyone's taste either, the only thing close to it I can think of is Five Brothers, which I have seen described as American Semois. Five Brothers packs more of a nicotine punch then the Belgian tobacco, but be aware, the Belgian tobacco does have a moderate kick...

I've been thinking with the new La Volute cut, there may be some potential here for making an interesting new blend, using it in a blend like we would use Burley, which was the ancestor of Semois, Burley seeds having been sent over to Belgium early in the 19th century. Interestingly, the Ardennes valley, cut by the Semois river (hence the name) , would not seem to be the most propitious tobacco growing area; however, tobacco has been grown there for almost 200 years.

When I used to travel internationally, I would occasionally come across Scaferlati, which was the classic French pipe tobacco. If you've ever had Galouise or Gitane cigarettes, you would have some idea of what French rural or working class pipe tobacco is all about. Semois is the Belgian analog of that tobacco, but with a far milder and sweeter flavor profile. Any of the Manil tobaccos are worth a try for the adventurous pipe smoker. I almost feel like I'm writing a promotional brochure here for the Semois area, but since it's such a distinctive tobacco, all natural and unprocessed, with a fairly long history quite apart from the mass produced tobacco we mostly have today, I don't mind coming across as a cheerleader for this tobacco varietal.

Presentation: Unique packaging. It comes in a foil wrapped brick wrapped again with the paper label. I like the art on it too. Only available in 3.5oz size though.

Cut: Comes in a standard sized ribbon cut. However this tobacco is bone dry -- crunchy leaves dry. But don't let this fool you, the dryness does not subtract from the smoking experience in the slightest.

Tin note: Sweet, earthy, nutty.

Tasting notes: Mainly nutty, woody and a cigar-like earthiness. Though at times you will get a tinge of spice or sweetness. Sometimes a bit bitter (a sign to slow down!).

Mechanics: This blend packs and lights SO easily. Because it is so dry, it does burn well; but remember, this means you will need to tamp more often than normal to smoothly continue its burn. This blend is more forgiving than wetter blends if you pack it tighly.

Extra Remarks: Some say this blend is strong in nicotine, be weary if you are a lightweight with that. Full of flavor and burns from top to bottom, never forcing you to waste tobacco at the bottom of the bowl. This blend taught me that dry tobacco is not necessarily a bad thing. This is a simple, beautiful blend -- everyone should try this blend. 4 stars!

(As this is a slightly thicker cut version than Le Petit Robin, I reproduce part of the review I did for that tobacco)

Semois tobacco originates from seeds of the Burley variety. After harvesting, the tobacco is dried by curing it in the air, moistened again, cut, cured with heat, the humidity is adjusted and it is wrapped, giving rise to a brown and dry tobacco. It is sold in packages from 100 gr. and it can be bought in tobacconists throughout Belgium, although the supply is limited. Semois tobacco is 100% natural and burns much faster than regular blends.

It is difficult not to mention its presentation, which seems to transport us to another era. It reminds me of the tobacco packages that were smoked during World War II and that I could see in the Omaha Beach Memorial Museum, in Normandy (France). The packaging is quite rudimentary, in golden aluminum foil, and as it is not sealed it does not retain moisture, so the tobacco is very dry. I switched the tobacco to a glass container, where I inserted a humidifier bag and it worked perfectly. Once the tobacco absorbed the moisture it needed to do its best, everything was so much better than when I smoked it dry the same day I opened the package.

I would recommend giving it several chances before making a hasty judgment as you could miss out on a tobacco that is very original and natural, compared to the many blends on the market that look like each other. However, if you are one of those who flee from cigarettes or you do not like that type of flavor with some mineral nuance, I will understand that it is not for you.

Dry as a bone, but don't despair. Pack it very tightly and sip gently. It is lovely, but strong stuff. I get all Maigret whilst smoking it, but I do have to take care. The pipe I have dedicated to this blend is very small and that's more than enough. Smoke it sitting down as it does pack a bit of a punch.

Everyone should try one of the Semois blends, they are so different. I'm not a fan of straight burley. But this tastes like a cigar, not a cigarette. While it is more expensive than other tobaccos, it is VERY dry, so you're not paying for Belgian moisture. Be aware that this dryness translates into a faster burn rate. Obviously, it burns dry, no residual moisture at the heel. Try to sip slowly. The taste is earthy, somewhat mineral-like. I truly believe I am immune to nicotine, even when I inhale, I get absolutely nothing. No tongue bite experienced.

Wow, this tobacco is my new #2, fantastic flavor, earthy, nutty, light sweetness, slightly floral and oodles of creamy smoke, also kind of reminds me of a very tasty cigar. I bought the Reserve du Patron and there is a lot of tobacco in this package, very dry, wants to be packed firmly, very few relights and smokes like a dream. Beware the nic-hit on this tobac is on the high side, but that's another plus in my opinion. This is different from everything else and I love it, 4 stars! Bravo Mr. Manil!

Once you get by the fact that its dry in the brick when you get it, (Of course, I'm trained to think dry tobacco is bad tobacco or damaged) this is a very different but very interesting blend.

I'm not a big cigar smoker, but the flavor of this is similar. It is very earthy, nutty, and even a little bread taste to me.

Packing and lighting is a cinch. It takes off like a cigarette. I never get any tongue burn, but it can get hot in a smaller bowl. I love smoking this in thick bowled pokers, my Bones Pickaxe, etc... It also works great in my Radiator Pipe bowls. When traveling its a great quick smoke with a decent nic content.

This is something completely different from our normal blends and I have really enjoyed learning more about the history of the tobacco and how it is still processed to this day.

Reserve du Patron - Pure Semois came very dry in the brick. It appears that this is standard practice for all Tabak Manil blends... at least that was the way with the Le Petite Padron I've sampled. Le Petite Padron had a slight, floral, tea-like aroma & provided a semi-sweet floral flavor whereas Reserve du Patron's aroma was almost cigar like but doesn't burn with a cigar flavor but that of strong Burley. After about a third had burned down it smoked like a regular Burley tobacco with a minor floral, earthy, cool, unique flavor/taste. This doesn't appear to be a blend but rather a solid brick of pure Belgian Burley with a different flavor than an American/Kentucky grown tobacco. It is not as strong as say, a heavy duty cigar but still, a fairly strong smoke.

I found it similar in strength to Five Brothers but not quite as strong as Picayune... Somewhere in between. Rather than smoke it completely dry as packaged, I hydrated it as I would any tobacco. However, it had not quite reached the 69% level that I prefer. I was too anxious to give it a try prior to reaching that threshold & it still provided a good, fairly fast burning smoke even when sipped through a quality, Pete System pipe.

It may seem to have some bite about it but that is mainly due to its strength... like getting halfway down into a good, semi-strong cigar. It will deliver a quick Vitamin N blast with a flavor that goes beyond that of a cigar-like experience. As far as comparing it to the strength of a pipe tobacco, I'd say it's about like Irish Flake or HH Bold Kentucky but will burn down much faster unless properly hydrated. Let's just say it's a different kind of packaged Burley... flavor that's rather unique & enjoyable.

It's a quick preparation to stoke & smoke & is relatively clean without noticeable stems to be removed... an easy preparation, as it were, right out of the brick. Taste is rather slightly floral & smokes cool with a flavor of nothing more than that of the tasty Belgian Burley that is unlike anything grown in our country. I liked it for it's strength, unique flavor, ease of packing, preparation & smoking quality. There's a lot of tobacco crammed into one of these bricks once hydrated to a proper smoking humidity. However, smoked in its natural dry state is still a treat that is enjoyable & subsequent bowls might attract a Burley buff... like me.

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