CAO Moontrance

This was my first pipe tobacco after transitioning from cigars. Overall a nice smoke. It was a little wet but dried out quickly and burned smooth. The taste is primarily vanilla with a hint of fruit almost as an afterthought. It was a good beginner tobacco for me.

Another hit for CAO. Very plesant smoke. The only drawback if you are a new pipe smoker (as I am)take care in packing your pipe too tightly.

My journey of the briar has brought me to explore aromatics. I tend to reach for non-aromatics most of the time. However, occasionally I'll reach for the aromatics and I've discovered many that I enjoy a great deal. Unfortunately, for my tastes. This isn't one of them.

Taste: Chemical factory. I didn't get any hint of the vanilla and the fruit notes came across as very artificial and chemical tasting. I understand that many aromatics have a tendancy to taste artificial. This particular blend is just a chemical taste to me. I didn't like it at all.

Room note: Pleasant. It smells nice enough, although I was a little disapointed here as well. The bargain bag of Smokers Pride Whiskey smells much better.

Final thoughts: I suppose they can't all be winners. The biggest turn off I had with this blend is the bite. It bites really hard. I truely expected this to be better. Maybe I got a bad tin? I suppose that is possible, but I'm not buying a second tin on the chance that may be true.

Smoking now;

The tin note is divine. It’s exactly what you think it smells like.

It is moist from the tin, I would dry out a bit. Sweet, vanilla, nougat, honey and yes some fruit. Reminds me of a Piña colada. Some bread and hay from the Virginia. My friend says it reminds him of a Fig Newton and I would agree. Smoke cool, it’s an aromatic so sip it gently and you’ll be rewarded with a great aromatic.

Does leave some moisture in the brown and required some extra relights. Pleasant after taste and I imagine the room note is very nice.

This was a gift from a friend and a huge thank you to him. Upon opening the bag I was greeted by the aroma of Honey, Light Vanilla and a whiff of Bourbon with a pleasant mild woody and light citrus in the background. The moisture was just about perfect for smoking in this blend of Black Cavendish and Virginia with some medium toppings. The ribbon cut loaded easily and lit easily. There were fewer than normal re-lights with this. Upon lighting the smoke was medium and the room note a very pleasant Honey and Vanilla. This burned consistent at a medium pace with no bite, no moisture and the casing did not block out the tobacco flavors. The flavor did not fade or become bitter. During the smoke this left a very pleasing light honey and vanilla sweet aftertaste and after the smoke it lasted for about 20 minutes.

Upon lighting I was greeted by a pleasantly sweet honey flavor with light Vanilla and a whiff Bourbon in close background. Backing them up were a nice light woody flavor with a slight citrus flavor and all the flavors played well together and created a pleasant smoke. The flavors stayed consistent in position and in taste the whole smoke. This doesn't appear to bite but I did find some rough edges if puffed.

This was a very pleasant bacca and I enjoyed this one very much. This joins the favorite list although not a regular rotation list, but it will get attention from time to time for I like it very much. A solid 3.5 out of 4 stars for this is a fine smoke that everyone should try if they like aros. It is a light aro and doesn't appear to ghost a pipe either. A pleasant warm or cold weather smoke.

I'm redoing this review after trying some more Moontrance from a new tin.

The tin note was vanilla to my smell. The tobacco needs to be dried out for my preference (I like it a little drier than some) but once dried out it will pack and light fine.

The taste in the charring and first part of the bowl is vanilla and whiskey. It reminds me a little of the "Old Grandad Bourbon" tobacco I tried once. It's a little artificial tasting but not horrible. The 2nd half of the bowl tended to be just dull with a slight vanilla taste.

I'm glad I tried it again as I'll give it two stars as its not in the 1-star (pitch it) territory.

I tend to smoke aromatics with my morning coffee, which is exactly what I'm doing now with Moontrance. After several bowls, all of which have given me a consistent pleasant experience, I think I can safely recommend this tobacco. The flavoring is not "in your face", but nevertheless results in a bigger taste than I expected (but not quite medium), yet refined. CAO also makes a Moontrance cigar, but since cigars for me need to be full-bodied, I'm not likely to buy one. Still, this is a fine morning smoke.

I've had the Moontrance cigars before and enjoyed them. The pipe tobacco is just te same. Not bad, but not as goid as the stick.

This blend is a very refreshing areo. It has a fruity flavor with notes of the woods on a fall hunting trip. A bit moist it burns well and has little or no bite. Makes me think of Blue Note.