Dunhill London Mixture

I was pleased to find 'London Mixture' in the tobacconist that i vist in our local town in Basildon Essex.i bought a 50g tin there and then and im quite pleased that i did,this is a nice tobacco to relax with but it did sting the tongue for the first 4 bowels.but once this settled down its a nice smoke,i like english tobaccos and this is a good one. nice tin aroma and once the old pipe gets going its just wonderful,im finding that Dunhill pipe tobaccos are quite nice and i will be buying LM again and again in the future..enjoy!! ps..another good thing with this tobacco is theres not very much wetness in the bowel,and i fined that a very good thing.

This is a smooth tasting, light flavoured blend. If you like Virginia tobaccos this is a blend to consider. It's latakia content gives a light hint of Oriental flavour that you don't of course get with pure Virginia. It's Turkish component only builds in flavour towards the end of the bowl, it's only slight at the beginning. This tobacco tastes better with a good moisture content so add a little when you get it. It's room note isn't bad but it wont get cheers either. The scent of the blend out of the tin is quite nice but does not carry to the room note or reflect on the flavour much. It is an even tasting blend that does away with creaminess and replaces with stark clean lightness. Not a heavy English blend at all so a good place to start. Give it a try about mid day, it is easy going down so you can go right through a tin of it with out realizing it.

I was introduced to London Mixture after a number of years of smoking both Dunhill?s 965 and Balkan Sobranie?s Original Mixture. While these two were?and at least 965 still is?amongst my favourite cold-day smokes, I usually reach a point in which I find them overwhelming. When I first tried LM, I was impressed by the elegance of its flavour, its rather ?toasty? zest, and the straightforwardness of the mixture as a whole. Not exactly an all day smoke, but closer than the other two. Initially I thought of it as a ?lighter? version of 965, and slightly stronger than Early Morning. However, after smoking it for a while, I have discovered LM stands completely on its own. It has a very particular presence, with a whole range of flavours gradually emerging from the bowl. Even when smoking a number of bowls, it is not overwhelming. For me, it is a meditative tobacco, with a wonderfully rich smokiness, at times spicy, at times slightly sweet and tangy, very rewarding always. Unlike 965 and BS, London Mixture tends to burn drier, and I find it easier to pack and light. If smoked slowly, it can really develop a potential that I have not found in other Latakia-Turkish-Virginia mixtures (save, perhaps, for Rattray?s Black Mallory). I wouldn?t have it as a first smoke, but once you light a bowl it is difficult to wish for something more. Yet, it is a tobacco that leaves the pipe clean, and the palate satisfied, without rendering it parched. IMO it is one of those tobaccos?very much like Light Flake, Brown Clunee and Old London 100% Virginia?that stand in a category of their own. Highly recommended!

Spicy, yet not harsh, this is the apex of oriental mixtures. Very English, full but not too pungent, a perfect blend. Enough has been written about it here, so I can only add that if you are into English blends, this one has to find a place in your rotation. Should it be too mild, Nightcap is the one to go for. I have made it part of my three favourite English blends, alongside Early Morning Pipe and - of course - Nightcap.

Addendum: I have packed my pipes straight from the tin (jar, actually) without any preparation and the blend has always burnt without any relights.

Well, I’ve opened the London Mixture tin a few days ago, after 2 years sitting untouched. I’ve smoked a few bowls and somehow created an opinion which I’ll try to describe as correctly as possible, because it is a classic, important and special blend.

Lets begin with.. the beginning. Upon opening the tin I felt the smell of leather and wet wood, very little latakia smell and more turkish, but nevertheless it’s a very pleasant, interesting smell.

The tobacco is just a bit wet, it can be smoked directly from the tin but I prefer to keep it between 5 and 10 minutes to dry (no need to leave it longer). It has a medium cut, with a few shorter ribbons. We have the three tobaccos, latakia, turkish and virginia in 3-4 colors, ranging from yellow to brown to black, all equal in quantity. From my point of view, this already denotes a balance in the tobacco.

Lighting it is very easy, needing only a flame, two at most. The taste, even from the beginning, is mostly oriental/turkish, but plays nice with the latakia, each of them coming in evidence one at a time, but subtle. It has a very balanced taste, very pleasant, very... elegant. Although it’s a balanced taste, this doesn’t mean it’s weak or medium, it’s actually pretty pronounced, somewhere between medium to full. In most part you feel the taste of burnt wood, smoky and sweet, but also a little spice that makes you think it has a little perique in there.

Burns ok, but it can ask for one or two relights. The taste however, remains unchanged to the end of the bowl.

Medium to full at taste, medium at strength, but what can we say about the room note? It is, in my opinion, a very pleasant smell, not something typical for latakia so it doesn’t bother.

Personally, I like it a lot. It’s a shame it’s no longer in production, it’s a special tobacco. A real classic.

P.S.: Goes great with beer!

Been on the road for awhile and made a stop at petro in norcal that happened to have a few tins of this stuff so seeing as Dunhill is going the way of the dinosaur I bought them all... grad the first tin popped it open and found this blend at the perfect moisture and the smell had a beautiful earthy woodsy leather note to the tin. When lit the smoke was cool and smooth and almost somewhat sweet.. the room note was earthy and sweet and very pleasant.. the mouth feel was cool dry and did not bite and left a sweet woodsy after taste. This blend imo has a very low nic level but was still a pleasure to smoke. I’m glad I have a few tins of this to enjoy...

I like to compare London mixture with Davidoff Royalty as follows. Both are V and O as theme. L is just for background and hardly noticed. London is more complex than Royalty. Each blends express themselves clearly. Especially, the salty O. Aroma is more natural. L is remarkable when you smell with your nose. Royalty is just like Dunhill Standard with larger amount of O that is said to be butter added. In other words, a butter taste of Standard. I suggested that You enjoy Royalty at first and then enjoy London just after that. You could get a complete picture of what O is. Strictly, London is more English style. London could give you more mature experience of smoking V and O.

London Mixture is a beauty. Possibly my favorite of the Dunhill line (Though their navy rolls are hard to beat). The real strength here is the mastery with which the parts are integrated into the whole. Oriental varietals are the highlight, but the va and more distantly the latakia are melded together as the pipe progresses. This is the high art and magic of Dunhill. I'm not really a dunny fanboy either, I have tried several tins of most of their offerings, but this blend along with EMP strike me as examples of where they showcase their craft. London Mixture offers a quintessentially British smoking experience. The oriental components are dry, musty, sour, and astringent. Tempered by the subtle sweet and tart of va, with modest but assertive leather and creosote from the latakia. Its a masterpiece, but an accessible one. Decent dose of nicotine for an english mixture. Flawless cut, burn, and smoking qualities. User friendly and eminently smoke-able. No chance of bite, but it shines at a slower cadence.

A wonderful blend that works perfectly with the afternoon cup of tea (black tea, not any of the herbal nonsense).

If it sounds posh, it's because it is.

Highly recommended.