Sutliff Tobacco Company Match Ready Rubbed

Well, it's been almost 40 years since I had the original, but this "match" brings back nice memories, it's close. I'm typically not a Burley fan, as it's hard on my tongue, but this was no problem. It smoked cool and easy. As I smoked , the flavor brings back memories of "Pencil Sharping's" , it's actually very pleasant. This was a nice moment back in time , but,......I do have other blends that I crave more than this today.

Update, 04/01/2015: I have settled on this as a daily smoke. I have found that it needs to be smoked in a dedicated pipe to get the full flavor of the tobacco. The chocolate/molasses taste only increases when you do. Although I'm not ready to increase my rating to four stars, I am able to whole-heartedly endorse it as a throughly enjoyable smoke for when you have other things to do than wallow in a tobacco's complexities. Really good stuff!

Original review: I have been casting around to find a replacement for Sir Walter Raleigh regular since I have been disappointed with the current production of that blend. Somewhere I read that this is similar.

The cut of ERR Match is similar to SWR, but the flavor is not. I cannot entice an earthy tone from ERR like used to come from SWR. The burn of this ERR is very much like SWR, but the mouth feel is lighter, less substantial.

I do not mean to imply there is something wrong with this blend in and of itself. It behaves well, burns relatively slowly, doesn't bite, and has a pleasant flavor. I like the cut of this blend. It is mild enough (the nicotine level is fairly low) and has enough interest to be an all-day smoke for some but not for me.

I will not allow my disappointment at this being no replacement for what I remember of SWR influence my rating. Certainly this is a worthy blend and could appeal to many who like a light burley, lightly flavored. Recommended.

If I smoked Edgeworth back in the day, I don't remember it. In general, though, I agree with SopwithCamel's review -- basically a decent generic burley mixture, with hints of cocao upfront and a little anise towards the bottom. Burns a little on the hot/fast side for me, hence two instead of three stars, but no bite.

The bag is filled with broken up pieces of soft reddish brown tobacco. Like a granola cereal size consistency. Fun to put into a large sized bowl. Moist, soft, maybe requiring some dry time. Rubbing out more makes it easier. Harder to light and keep lit if not. Smelled like vanilla/molasses sugar cookies more than cocoa. Smells rather sweet. Very mild. The taste isn’t as sweet as the smell and I don’t get a vanilla type flavor. It’s a grassy woody earthy vegetative smoke that’s mildly sweet. Some baked chocolate biscotti flavor sometimes. Kind of reminds me of a sweet granger, if you added molasses to it. The large size of tobacco makes for a low and slow smoke. With morning coffee it hits the spot. Nic hit is mild. No nonsense old time burley tobacco flavor. Mild if any after taste. A very mild and fun product to work with. I found that rubbing it out more and giving it some dry time helps.

Smells sweet, of tobacco - specifically burley - with some cocoa. This is nowhere near as wet as I'd expect from a flavored tobacco. The nic is not too high, this smokes mild, smooth, and pleasant. It has a cocoa flavor and is reminiscent of Bob's Chocolate Flake without the Lakeland flavor.

You can view my video review of this blend here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ugUV9FfV6A

So I don't have a clue where I got this but I was cleaning out some of my ancient tobaccos and found a one ounce beat up old baggie that had a hole in it with about half the tobacco spilled out. I started to throw it away but thought I would just smoke it up. Baggie said "Sutliff Ready Rubbed Match" so I assume this is the blend. Opening the baggie I got not much aroma other than perhaps some molasses and even a dab of coconut. I will say this was totally dried out and lit very easy. I have no idea if this is an aromatic or not but it certainly taste like one. It appears there is very little cavindish in this blend. There is a nice slightly sweet taste (molasses) with a hint of coconut in the background. It will burn a bit on the hot side if not sipped slowly. The taste, while not overwhelming is tasty. Near the end of the bowl I lost most of the flavor. The room note is nice with a hint of coconut. This is not a bad blend at all and I expect I will now purchase a little more to smoke from time to time but not in my full rotation. Overall this is a three and a half star smoke and I am glad I found it hanging out in the bottom of my cellar.

This blend was so so. It was very dry, and stayed lit well. I understand this was Norman Rockwell's favorite blend. It has a burley taste, and thats about it. If you are a burley lover I recommend this blend.

small cubes and a few crushed plugs. smells lightly of cocoa in the bag. very easy to pack and simple to light. burns cool even when puffed quickly. first puffs tastes a little like sir walter raleigh but the the mild topping burns off fast. one third of the way into the bowl you are rewarded with the taste of light molasses and plain old burley goodness that stay with you until the end. i did not pick up on the anise that some users stated. i do recommend this but i am not sure if i would buy a large quantity of this or a big ol' tub of sir walter raleigh. it would depend on which one was cheaper.

What I am about to say is probably tantamount to heresy…I hated this blend. I am clearly in the minority, but my observations are quite similar to the few haters out there.

The pouch note is a pleasant melange of prune, raisin, and molasses. The cut is almost like a crumble cake that has been partially crumbled. Ribbons mix with cubes, larger chunks, and dust. I can see the comparison to grape nuts with the chunks and cubes. I have found that many Sutliff blends are dusty. Unfortunately, this dust and tiny flecks make their way through the stem and into the smoker’s mouth.

The tobacco is a little sticky to the touch. The molasses topping is detectable and I did not find it pleasant. The smoke tastes of plastic and chemicals at times. There are some notes of toasted marshmallow and some pleasant bitter notes. Smokes wet and needed way too many relights.