Dunhill Ready Rubbed

Tin Aroma: I don?t know how to describe this. It is without question a tobacco aroma, but there is also a top note here. It is a sweetish, berry/citrus aroma. It is an aroma I associate with Danish tobacco blends.

Appearance: Dark tobaccos, mostly medium cuts, but some long ribbons here as well. It needs a little drying out before smoking. The Cavendish is the most obvious component.

Initial flavor: The first thing I tasted when the flame touched the leaf was a Virginia-type astringent sweetness, but that was quickly followed by the dark, rich taste of the other tobaccos. The topping enhances this dark flavor without being overwhelming. Overall, this is a mild but very interesting mixture.

Mid bowl: I wish I could be more specific about just what the taste is here. It has many Virginia-style qualities, including an obvious need to smoke slowly, but there is also something more here. I can only assume that it comes from the smoke curing of some of the tobaccos included in the mix. Oddly enough, there is nothing that I would call ?smoky? about the flavor. The tobacco flavor becomes richer as the bowl burns down. The topping plays a part, but is not intrusive. This is a very slow burning tobacco. I have had to re-light several times.

Finish: Toward the bottom of the bowl, the flavor of the topping disappears almost completely, leaving a definite Virginia-and-Cavendish flavor. The dark notes are still very evident as this bowl winds down. There is some sizzling at the bottom of the bowl. I probably didn?t let this dry out enough. The tobacco burns down to a small amount of dark gray ash, and leaves a pleasant after-taste.

Summary: This is a mild-but-flavorful tobacco. The nicotine content seems to be in the medium-to-high range. Unlike most aromatics, the tobacco flavor is full throughout the bowl. I had to re-light several times in the first half, but I finally got a good burn going. I enjoy a small bowl of this occasionally, and would recommend it to beginners and to die-hard Virginia smokers as a change-of-pace.

Edit: This is actually a review for the re-release, didn't realize there was two separate entries until I had already typed all this hot air. Also, after completing the tin, I think I'll bump this up a star. Pretty good tobacco, IMO.

I was recently recommended a tin of this by my tobacconist at one of the local B&Ms in my town. Knowing I enjoyed virginias and Virginia/Periques, and that I have tried many heavier Oriental blends, he thought that this would be a great blend to introduce me to the "other side" of the spectrum. I would have to agree. This blend has a classic tobacco taste that doesn't sway to far from the main component. Sweet Virginia with just enough condiment tobacco to make it interesting in a different way than I am used to with my Va/Pers. It's not a multi layered blend that revels the hidden secrets of the universe, but is a great everyday, regular old pipe tobacco you don't have to think about too much. Just sit back and enjoy a bowl while fiddling with whatever. There may be other, better tobaccos of this type. I would still recommend this.

This is a nice everyday smoke, nothing that really stands out. As far as English tobacco goes, I consider it a bit unusual. It is mildly sweetened and has a mild fruity flavor, but also a bit of tobacco body. It is not a heavy blend in terms of strength; it is somewhat mild for this style of English tobacco.

The dominant flavor is a flue-cured tobacco zest and sweetness with a bit of a undercurrent of darker tobacco flavor, and there is just a hint of a cigar-like flavor sometimes. The top casing is often present, and again it's a citrus/berry flavor. The overall flavor for this blend is somewhat on the mild side but it's not devoid of flavor altogether.

First of all, this tobacco is absolutely unsmokeable when first opened. It?s too moist and worse, the casing kicks you like a cheap vodka hangover. I bought a tin of it and was horrified at the frou-frou, Smurf-berry casing that attacked me when I first opened it. I was shocked. I was so disappointed. I was almost insulted ? Dunhill, makers of two of the greatest blends of all time (Nightcap and 965), had made resorted to making lollypops, I thought. Still, something in me whispered, "Don't write off old Alfred so easily." I left it out to air for a week or more, then tried it again. Better, but still nothing memorable: a nice, sweet Cavendish with a noticeable Virginia presence. I closed it up and forgot about it.

Time passed.

Rummaging in the tobacco cupboard for something light and non-English, I found the long-lost tin of Ready Rubbed. Nothing special the first time, I thought, but I?ll give it a shot. I took the lid off only to discover I hadn?t adequately closed it. The leaf was as dry as could be, and the odor of the casing had all but disappeared. Maybe, I thought. . .

I loaded up a medium Sasieni and struck a match.

Flame met leaf and, to my shock and pleasure, I was in heaven. I sat in a deep armchair and listened closely to the blend, and I knew, by some quark, I?d finally found it: a truly amazing aromatic. A Cavendish aromatic with a true Virginia base, a subdued topping, rounded off with a late whisper of surprising Turkish.

And it's the Turkish that keeps this, an aromatic, in my, generally an English smoker's, semi-regular rotation. It's there. It's a quiet note. But when you concentrate on it, its sharp tickle makes this a memorable blend ? good for a lazy morning with a cup of tea or mid-afternoon break from heavier blends.

Now, I buy a tin (when I can find it ? it's increasingly scarce here in Poland), pop it open, break it up a bit, and don't touch it for at least three weeks, though a full month or more produces best results. Sounds like an exaggeration ? overkill, even. But it's worth it.

It's not available in the States, but if you have a tin of it from E-bay and were initially a little disappointed it in, air the hell out of it and give it another shot.

a VERY confusing tobacco. You think it's an aromatic , but the topping is so gentle that it doesn't really jump out at you with a distinct flavor. Maybe it\'s honey .. maybe figs.. maybe apricot .. damn if I know.

The presentation is solid... old-school tin art looks like something you could put down on a table when you attend a members-only club in London .. it's just classy. The ribbon cut is uniform and I didn't get bigger chunks or stems.

Tin note is basically sweetness and virginia ... that's it. Orientals are very faint.

Flavour solid virginia forward with incensey and floral orientals in the background. The virginias give you good grass and yeast, not a lot of citruses for me.

Mechanics. Really easy blend to smoke. The moisture level was fine out of the tin. Packing wasn't an issue. Lighting was quick, no relights were needed up until the end. Be aware, if pushed it will burn hot and will bite due to the topping. You need to pace yourself and sip.

For me, this is a summer tobacco you can smoke while strolling in the park. The room note is pleasant, so people won't be giving you the stink-eye.

Solid stuff and hard to come by now. Three stars all the way

I got my tin of this as a freebie with the purchase of a new estate pipe. The tin was missing the bottom half and the tobacco had dried out in the paper round. Still, the seller didn’t have to give me anything extra, and I grateful that I have this to sample. The tobacco is bone-dry, as I say, and mostly shaken out to a chunky ribbon now. If aging is not responsible for the darkness of its appearance, I make the blend mostly comprised of brown Virginias. I load up the bowl of my Brian Ruthenberg canted dublin and get a little moisture back into the leaf by breathing into the unlit tobacco through the pipe for a few minutes. Takes a match well and gives off a flavor of dried leaves, grass and a very mild fruit— stewed fruit. The flavor is fairly mild and remains consistent down the bowl. There is the slightest hint of vanilla or custard, and the overall taste is bringing back memories of the stewed fruit and custard I used to eat at this retreat center. Every night, we had the same dinner: French fries, burgers, and for dessert, stewed fruit and custard. The stewed fruit also reminds me of the taste of the late, lamented Blackwoods Flake, my all-time favorite tobacco. Not as refined or natural tasting, but in the same vein. The secondary notes of grass and dry leaves hang in the background, not enough to be a counterpoint, but adding a bit of interest. I don’t get either a nicotine hit or any tongue bite, but there is a little drying effect on my soft palate which becomes unpleasant if I puff too hard. Sip this one. This Ruthenberg has a wide-open draw, and that underscores the need for a measured cadence. The taste of the retrohale is the same as the flavor in the mouth, underlining how consistent this tobacco is.

It is a very nice blend. Soft and warm, sweet and comfortable. If I had more of a predilection for sweet blends, I could see this quickly making its way into regular rotation. I’m certainly interested in trying a fresher tin of the re-release, and will happily smoke all of this half-tin down. A more natural sweet tobacco, or a more aromatic natural tobacco: either is apt, and if you like either or both of those styles, you’ll like Ready Rubbed. I know I do.

I can't describe this tobacco better than Black Seamus did. I'll make his review my own.

A joy for the refinate palate. Great stuff.