Dunhill Standard Mixture Mellow

Alas, I must strongly disagree with some other reviews found here. This blend is certainly for those who favour oriental tobaccos, and light Latikia. But if you do, this is an absolutely exquisite blend, in its present (2015) incarnation. It must, however, be smoked very slowly and frequently let go out until the pipe cools. Smoked in this way, I absolutely adore this blend in my Peterson Sherlock Holmes Meerschaum. Not only is the taste of the orientals wonderful, but the smell of the bowl is divine. Truly.

On the other hand, if you puff hard and want a powerful punch then this blend is not for you. Try a Pease blend, or Peterson's Irish Flake. This blend is not an insipid Pino Grigio, not at all, not if you sip and savour. It is extremely flavourful and delicious. But the key is to spend several hours slowly, very slowly savouring the bowl, preferably a meerschaum bowl. Then SMM may become your favourite blend too.

matured virginias with a nice balance..almost a caramel flavoring..for a supposed mild blend it brings home alot of flavor closer to a medium blend...love this blend and i find it world class in the world of blends...love it

This Dunhill blend is a light english mixture.when you crack the tin you detect bright and brown virginias combined with a small dose of latakia and turkish tobacco.the smell comes mostly from the virginias combining grass,citruses and fruits.a woodsy and spicy smell also is detected from the οther compoments.the moisture is just perfect.packs nice and lights very easy.while smoking the virginias are the main player offering you fruits,grass ,citruses in a very natural way.some spices and a hint of woods are detected in the background also.burns medium to hot so you should go easy on that.leaves very little moisture.the nicotine level is low to medium.to me this is a very pleasant all day blend that every virginia or light english blend should try!!

I smoked Dunhill Standard Mild for years. It's now called Standard Mellow. I find the new tobacco to be very good. The ribbon cut is a little thinner now and the color isn't quite as light yellow. I've only smoked three bowls, but find it be be of a high quality. I used to also smoke EMP because it was available in bulk and I love it. I have a new tin of that and will probably get that in bulk if it becomes available. I like to stick to one tobacco as a rule. If I switch around, I lose my ability to savor the subtle qualities of the milder English blends. Standard Mild/Mellow is subtle, but very tasty and easy on the tongue.

Just right for those in the mood for an English, without going overboard on the Lat.

As a confirmed Lat lover, it must be hard to believe I like this stuff. In fact I decided to open this dubious tin of SMM with the idea of getting my need for an English blend taken care of but without risking Lat burnout. Voila! Good job well done.

I always have to have a nice EM on hand, but I tend to over do it on the Latakia and felt I needed a break. Surprisingly, ever since I popped my tin of SMM I just can't seem to put it down. I'm not saying it's about to bump my current EM favorite "London Mixture", but it is certainly more flavorful than EMP.

Standard Mixture Mellow will not likely become a "go to" blend for me but I would buy another tin or two just to have it on hand for when I need a break from the heavier Lat blends. However, I doubt this tin will last long as it keeps me coming back for more, bowl after bowl.

I would also recommend this blend to newbies, as this blend is far more forgiving on the tongue than many blends on the market. Furthermore, there is no noticeable Nicotine hit which for me is a good thing. No, this will never make the grade for a true Lat lover, but for me it makes for a perfect alternative when the tongue needs a break.

Bought several times in mid '80s as Standard Mixture MILD, recently I tryed again as MELLOW: 3 tins in a box, at Ben Gurion Airport Duty Free in Tel Aviv, at a really interesting tax free price. At opening you can see nice ribbons, perfectly cut and a little thinner than other Dunhill mixtures, with a typical EM aroma, but really not strong: more Virginia and less Latakia than usual. Little moisture.

Aroma: classic EM aroma, but quite light.

Taste: I love good EMs, and this is quite good, even if I think that now it's lighter than in '80s, and I usually prefer more strenght. It goes better a couple of days after opening, by me.

Room note: maybe not the women choice, but light and honest, not intrusive or sticky.

Burning: it lights very easily, and burns a bit faster than usual preferred rough cut EMs, but is OK. Silver ash only, at the end.

Best briars: all; EM/balkan dedicated briars too, but this weaken a bit that wonderful strong ghost scent inside...

Elegant, smooth, surely not overwhelming: maybe ideal for beginners or aro smokers to taste an EM. An all-long-day mixture, even if I usually prefer more latakia, orientals and a stronger personality (as, i.e., the Dunhill Medium Mixture...). Recommended.

Dunhill-Standard Mixture Mellow.

It's been a while since I smoked any of the other Dunhill Standard Mixtures so regretfully I am unable to comment on any similarities/differences in flavour, strength or anything else so this will be a review simply on the merits/failings of this blend.

The smell from the tin is a rich tobacco one. It's quite deep and full but the biggest aroma to jump out is a leathery one. It smells really traditional and old fashioned.

I find the flavours from the different tobaccos are blended together at a lovely weight. I find it interesting as the Latakia's smoky note is no where near as strong or acrid as I can often find it can be. The Lat' is easily the lightest addition to the mix. With that in mind it would be a perfect blend to enter into the field of Latakia blends with.

The other two tobaccos are balanced harmoniously with one another. The grassiness of the Virginia is complimented brilliantly by the quirkiness of the Orientals!

I find that this gives one of the best burns I have had in my pipe. The best for a few reasons. Firstly the initiation: it gets lit easy peasy! Then we have the consistency: the burn is even and requires only the odd tamp unless it's neglected. Onto the temperature: this gives a pleasing smoke on the palate in that department. Whilst on the subject of comfort to the palate that brings me onto bite: it's very mitigating in that department.

Nicotine next. I find it to be mild to medium with N. I think most people would enjoy it albeit N lovers would probably have to gulp down a larger amount of smoke to aid satisfaction.

This makes a perfect evening/after dinner smoke . A very laid back blend to unwind with.

At the beginning I said this was going to be a review on the merits/failings of this blend but as it transpires that was a lie; there are ONLY merits with Standard Mixture Mellow for me! Highly recommended.

Another superb mixture from Dunhill. Its perfect for starting off a nice quiet Saturday morning. Doesn't hit you over the head with boldness. And that's what I find so enjoyable about it. Just a subtle sweetness that will keep you puffing gently to bring forth the delicious flavor.

Burns easily and provides a nice lengthy pipe. Perfect for a tranquil, yet, very enjoyable beginning of the day.

It's one of the obscure Dunhill blends that are so good. Yet, thankfully, never received the notoriety of EMP, 965 and Nightcap. Therefore, still obtainable for the time being.

Get some whilst you can still lay your hands on it.

I must admit this is yet another tobacco blend with a slightly confusing name & packaging. My specific confusion was the tin not stating anything about Latakia anywhere - is this supposed to be an English or a Virginia?? Of course, Latakia is the essential ingredient bringing this blend together. Admittedly, I should have known Latakia must be present given this blend's relation to the gold standard known as Dunhill's Standard Mixture. This being said, the highlights of toasted Turkish & Virginia tobaccos on the tin are not without warrant; Standard Mellow is quite a flavorful smoke, while remaining much more mellow than the Standard Mixture and indeed many other English blends.

I was actually introduced to Standard Mellow while looking for a consistently cool smoking blend to break-in new pipes and build up a good cake - I was NOT disappointed. I find the smoky/woodsy flavors subtle enough, and the smoking cool enough, to keep this in my rotation for breaking-in ALL my pipes, whether they are destined to be English blend pipes or not. It's an enticing and calming smoke with fluffy, white ash. The pine/oak notes offset by citrus & spice as well as good, clean fire - likely a result of Dunhill toasting the leaves in this blend. Additional flavor notes in the bouquet include a cigar-like earthiness, and hints of bourbon, vanilla, and candied ginger for me.

Oriental varietals always help cool a blend down in addition to spicing up the flavor profile, and they are right at home here with the clearly articulate portion of Latakia. I almost feel as if the blenders wanted to hide the Latakia just enough to make the smoker go searching for it across their taste buds. Of course, it's clearly evident once you grab hold of the flavor, but it never hits you over the head like a stronger English or Balkan blend might. Standard Mellow is a lesson in reservation and savoring the flavor of each moment.

I recommend anyone looking to dip their toe into English blends try Standard Mellow - it doesn't need much dry time, it loads & lights easy, stays lit well, and smokes super cool. I also recommend strong English/Balkan smokers give Standard Mellow a try to break-up their rotation and/or break-in new English dedicated pipes. Enjoy fellow Latakia lovers!