Dunhill Durbar

Today I sat in my barbershop with 4 buddies that were pipe smokers. Today I opened 2 tins of Dunbar. One old and one new remake. This is what followed: As the original tin was opened everyone was hooting and hollering for the tobacco code to be enforced. The smell of Dunbar was still strong. God I love that smell. I stood enough to load my pipe and passed it on. Each person followed and smell commented and loaded up as well. I was the first to light and a short quite moment followed. Smoke was strong. Taste was still the same. Just as it was in days of old. Thank god for having a great cellar of tobacco. As we smoked we swapped stories of blends past. With over 200 years of pipe smoking in the room it was deep. Taste a flavor lasted to the end. Room note was strong. Very strong with for all loaded up. Coffee was reloaded and the new tin was then opened up. On first opening you really could smell a different type of tobacco. Orders were different. The blend was different. The smell was different. All agreed the smell was not even close. New tin was loaded and lit. Char came quick. Smoke was lighter as was the flavor. Not as strong. Felt the smoke was more harsh in a odd way. Settling into the middle of the bowl the flavor changed to more of the real Dunbar. After sampling both side by side I still prefer the old. The rest felt the new was milder and more smokeable. I was encouraged to bring more but it was left that I was out voted 3 to 1.

What a shame that Durbar is discontinued. In short, Durbar is one of my all-time favorite Oriental blends. I do not find it to be particularly strong, just balanced between the Orientals, Virginias and Latakia, and quite "smooth." Durbar's the rare tobacco that never fails to please me and doesn't depend upon a particular pipe to excel, although large bowls probably bring out its best qualities. Just a terrific blend to me. 4 stars. The foregoing review was of the Murray version.

Update: I also recently finished an Orlik tin before it was discontinued. Pretty close, to my taste buds, to the Murray version, perhaps just a little less rich. Good, nonethless.

Balkan/English isn't my favorite, but this was pretty interesting. There were some intense smoky flavors. I would recommend it to those who like this style. As for me, I will save what I have left for a change of pace. That is what I usually use Balkans and Englishes for.

1-1-10 update: Well, dragged this out after a year or so, and have decided to upgrade. I smoked a bowl in a Marxman Jumbo for all of 50 minutes, accompanied by a tot of dark rum (Cruzan Black Strap). Made it taste a bit like Gawith Navy Flake! Maybe I am starting to appreciate the Englishes more. I'm sure my tin is the Orlik version-maybe I'll get to try the Murray's some day...

This stuff is manna as far as I am concerned. Along with Balkan Sasieni, this one has upped my appreciation for Orientals. By appreciation, I mean I understand a little more their role in making a good blend whole. In a lot of English blends the latakia walks all over the Orientals, and that's not to say that I dislike Latakia, for I would eat it if it were feasible and it remains my single favorite leaf. In Durbar, however, the Oriental leaf really gets its chance to solo at certain points.

Durbar is also one of the coolest burning smokes I've encountered, though it seems to burn rather quickly, which is something I've noticed consistantly over the course of several tins.

The can of Durbar I cracked opened today is over a year old and an original UK can.

Tin Aroma: I have yet to develop a taste for really supreme tobacco tin aromas. They all still smell like medicated lubricant, ketchup, soil and mulch etc. However, I have come to realize that usually means I am in for a pleasant ride. Wonderfully, such is the case with this tin of Durbar.

Start: Upon lighting, the first taste from this blend had me thinking that this could rise to be my favorite blend, which is a really rare and good feeling upon strike. As I progressed through the bowl I was enraptured with the full-bodied taste and aroma.

Mid-Bowl: I'm gone! I am seduced by this smoky treat and am in the wonderful hazy tobacco trance. Durbar has, at this point, encased my thoughts and I can do nothing but puff as I am in a smoky comma. Delightful!

Finish: Durbar smokes clean from start to finish. By the time I have set my pipe down my eyelids are pleasantly droopy but not overpowering. I am in full relaxing mode and pay my dues to the Durbar. Thank you Dunhill once again.

As a fan of London Mixture and My Mixture 965, this was an obvious choice when I decided to order some tobaccos from abroad! Many of the considerations made in my reviews for those two blends (and for Standard Mixture Medium) still apply, especially about the care of the leaves choice, the long ribbon cutting (rougher than in the above mentioned blends, though) and the burning qualities. In comparison to other Dunhill's English mixtures, this has a clearly lesser amount of Latakia. Think of it as a cross between the three I mentioned above, but with a higher percentage of spicy Orientals and a less-intense smokiness, and also some cigar-like hints. The result is a blend with less body, but brisk and pungent, rather overwhelming to the palate: the typical impression of (huge) shock effect vs. real meat (little, given the reduced presence of Latakia) that I get from other Oriental/Latakia blends which are geared towards the orientals. A good smoke, nice for a change of pace and full of subtle nuances that require dedication for being fully savored, but not as completely memorable (for me, at least) and "filling" as London Mixture or 965, and sometimes a bit "empty" (meaning that the lack of deep Virginia notes is sorely missed, in comparison to London Mixture). Probably I am not a fan of tobaccos with a dominating "oriental" presence. Room note is rather weird and unpleasant: some times I see people wondering what the smell is, until they realise that it's my pipe! ADDITION December 2003: This new tin has an emptier, more undefined, taste. It has become "heavy" in mouthfeel (not "tasty", just "heavy") like almost all the other Dunhill latakia blends have become in the last months. Strong in nicotine and a bit nauseating, but weak in taste: same thing happened to Nightcap in particular. A sign of a decreasing quality, or my tastebuds are changing?

Well, I finally came round this much talked about blend. I am glad I did. To begin with it lives up to the Dunhill name or, if you so wish, Dunhill seems to have kept the quality of the blend (something that lately, as the esteemed Eulenburg points out, has not been entirely the case with other Dunhill tobaccos). Secondly it is a wonderful, rich, deeply Oriental mixture, that smokes very well and has a long lasting flavor. I wouldn't compare it to My Mixture 965. For me this is more a Balkan type of smoke than an English (i.e. London Mixture, Standard Mixture) or Scottish type (965). In this context I am more inclined to draw a comparison with Balkan Sobranie or some of Rattray's Orientals. IMO Durbar surpasses both. It has that "mystical" depth that leads to a long, silent, contemplative smoke.

Medium to full, the tobacco is not as pungent in the tin as, say, London Mixture. After the first light, the peculiar flavors present in Oriental mixtures settle down to play their particular roles to perfection. I don't get too much of the Turkish taste. Rather, a bit like Black Mallory, I get the bitter sweet incense like richness of Latakia, a touch of Macedonian leaf (?) and the structural stability of the matured, unsweetened Virginias. It burns quite cool and produces a sense of density and plenitude that satisfies without becoming overwhelming or heady.

Though this is a type of tobacco I don't smoke constantly fro persona reasons, Durbar undoubtedly is a 5 star tobacco that should be smoked with care and attention to fully perceive all its wealth and dimension.

A Classic English Blend. Having tried this blend before, I was excited to receive several tins of this blend from the Dunhill store in London. My friend swears' that the blend that Dunhill ships to us here in the states is smoother, and theirs', a little rough around the edges. I had to disagree with him on that. The cut is long/stringy English style. The tin aroma lets one know that latakia is present, however in a non-overpowering manner. There is a subtle hint of sweetness also. I found it easy to light, one false-light, tamp, then off to some excellent "down-time." Usually I enjoy a higher percentage of oriental over virginia-not in this blend though. The virginia, what do they use? Maybe lemon-virginia? Maybe red-virginia? Maybe both. All I can tell you is, Delicious! A subtle sweetness the whole way through the bowl. I find the latakia to play a superb background supporting role; the orientals interplaying to a great overall effect. This is a true blend in the definition of the term. This is a blend that tells me I should be trying more Virginia types. A sophisticated latakia blend.

This is a beautiful tobacco. The delicate interplay of the Virginias and Orientals is evident from the first light and continues throughout the bowl. The Latakia makes itself known as well, but it is never overwhelming. Overall, this is such a delicate and flavorful blend, it is a must for the English tobacco lover. Very highly recommended.