Esoterica Tobacciana Stonehaven

This is my favorite pipe tobacco. I have smoked over 100 different blends and Stonehaven sits comfortably at #1.

This is a perfect tobacco in every way. The aroma, both tin and smoke, is just unmatched. A beautiful sweetness in perfect balance. The flavor is maturing and blending all the way down. It is really indescribable how good this tobacco tastes. And it smokes so cool. I am a relatively hot smoker and there is zero tongue bite.

There are many great tobaccos out there, but this is the one tobacco that has a special place at the top of my list. I save it for the perfect times.

For my third review, my favorite VaBur! As with FVF, this is already a well-documented classic and nothing more needs to be said, yet here I am. Again, similarly to FVF, this needs to be dried out thoroughly if the smoker wishes to glean all they can from this blend. As with most flakes, the moisture hides those flavors - or at least the depth of those flavors. This is a treacle/molasses topped burley/virginia blend with a depth most tobaccos can only dream about. I smoke this in small bowls because the flavors are so huge that they wear me out if I smoke too much at once. Even so, I've smoked 3 bowls of this during the same 24-hour period several times. I was fortunate enough to stock my cellar deeply when this blend was as common as dirt, although I'm always on the hunt for more.

Somewhat burley-forward, but the virginia plays an important role to help naturally sweeten the burleys heavy tobacco taste. The topping is, of course, the ne plus ultra of this blend. One would think that drying out Stonehaven would cause that topping to recede and it does in a way, but drying somehow balances the blend more fully. Again, dry it out thoroughly if you want to experience this blend at its best. It appears that the more knowledgeable among you are already fully aware of this, so once again I must state that I expected nothing I write is news. This is so highly recommended that it's a no brainer; buy as much as you can find, smoke it, or trade it. It's trade value is like money in the bank!

Stonehaven.

The lore. The legend. The hype.

How to review?

I’m relatively new to the world of pipe tobacco – only 5 years now – so, in no way do I profess to be a master of the craft; nor do I have the more sophisticated, discriminating palate of those more seasoned, practiced and knowledgeable connoisseurs of tobacco who have been at this pursuit much longer than I (in some cases, for many decades). I almost feel unqualified (unworthy) of even reviewing such a revered tobacco as Stonehaven, almost mythical in reputation and notoriety. With that being said, I am writing this review for the newest of the new pipe smokers in mind (basically, where I was at 5 years ago). This review is in no way meant to patronize or condescend to the more experienced brothers of the briar out there.

I have a little less than two pounds of Stonehaven cellared. One pound was produced in 2012 (purchased on ebay in August of 2015) that has been resting quietly in a very dark place these past 3+ years. The other pound was purchased from my local tobacconist (at retail cost) in May of 2018.

Appearance: Truly magnificent looking, dark brown flakes, 5-inches in length and 1-inch wide. (I riddle, or turn the mason jars once every 3 months or so, and as a result, the 2012 flakes have uniformly split down the middle, becoming 5-inches long by ½-inch wide). The flakes are quite moist (even after 3 years in a mason jar, the 2012 flakes still feel cool and quite damp to the touch). The 2018 flakes still look new and fresh, while the 2012 flakes look slightly more ripened, presenting some (barely perceptible) tiny blotches of white, which bear some resemblance to what a cigar enthusiast would call “must” on the wrapper of a well-aged cigar. (I hate to add to the already overly-hyped, but one final note on appearance: If you have never opened a pouch of Stonehaven before, I would suggest queuing Dmitry Shostakovich’s Waltz No. 2 as fitting background music for such an unveiling – the flakes are, in actual fact, that pleasing to behold).

Pouch note/aroma/bouquet: Dark fruit, fig, raisins; dark cacao chocolate. The 2012 Stonehaven has a more appealing/tempting/pleasing aroma in the jar than does the newer 2018 batch (but both smelling fantastic).

I’ve sampled a few grams of the 2012 Stonehaven over the past couple of years (at Christmas time, mostly). I also smoked a bowl of the 2018 batch just after purchasing. In each of those instances, I don’t think I gave the tobacco enough time to properly dry before smoking.

The following review is for the 2012 batch of Stonehaven. I sampled 3 different bowls, with varying degrees of drying time (one for breakfast, one for lunch and one for dinner).

At midnight I took one flake (which is really ½-a-flake, 5” x ½”) and laid it out on a leather tobacco mat overnight (on purpose). I didn’t get back to it until 8 hours later. The flake was completely dry (almost as if it had been baked in an oven). No moisture could be detected at all. There was no pliancy or spring to the tobacco. Thinking for sure that I had just wasted a strip of perfectly good Stonehaven, I carefully (gingerly) broke it up, being careful not to turn the brittle, little shards of tobacco into dust. I delicately packed it into a Dunhill (Chestnut, Group 3 size) and lit up. I was expecting a structure fire inside my Dunhill, but the tobacco behaved flawlessly for something so utterly parched. Yes – Stonehaven is a Virginia-Burley blend (and I’m guessing there is more Burley than there is Virginia) – but methinks the Burley in Stonehaven is not your run-of-the-mill Burley. (This is top-quality leaf -- and I don't like to compare tobaccos -- Irish Flake and Old Dark Fired are both great tobaccos in their own right, but neither IF or ODF are Stonehaven, and the same is true in reverse). Despite the tobacco having suffered the brutalization of such a tortuous desiccation, Stonehaven tasted great and performed flawlessly, burning cool and even (no relights), leaving only fine ash and no dottle (and obviously, no moisture) at the bottom of the bowl.

Stonehaven is a full-flavored tobacco, but I find it to be medium in strength (I like my VaBurs strong). The predominant flavor (from this ultra-dry bowl) was earth; earthy, wood, nutty, some malt (couldn’t detect much chocolate or sweetness, though the Virginias did come through). This driest of dry version of Stonehaven confirmed my earlier suspicions that I had not given the stuff enough time to dry, as this bone-dry version was far superior to what I can only call “the wet stuff” I tried to smoke on previous occasions.

Lunchtime: 1 whole flake (two of the 5” x ½” flakes). Drying time, 3.5 hours.

I didn’t intend to dry this for so long – I was planning to dry it for 2 hours, and then keep a close eye on it – but an unexpected, emergency trip to the store wrecked my plans. I wanted some moisture left, enough to fold-and-stuff the tobacco, but after 3.5 hours, it was no longer “foldable”. I lightly rubbed it out, and packed it into a Peterson 03 spigot. Again, the tobacco performed flawlessly, smoking cool and even the whole way, from beginning to end (no relights). The smoke was a little heavier/creamier than the extra-dry version was. The flavor was still earthy, more nutty/malty than woody this time, and sweeter than the ultra-dry version, with some of the dark fruit and chocolate coming through, but just barely (the latter flavors being largely MIA in the ultra-dry version).

Dinnertime: 1.5 flakes (three of the 5” x ½” flakes). Drying time, 75 minutes.

This could have/should have dried for another 30 minutes. I was able to fold-and-stuff this into my Jeppesen Ida smooth bent Dublin (basically, a big hunk of briar, with a chamber large enough to accommodate 1.5 flakes of Stonehaven). This third trial – the one with the least amount of dry time – was the one that tasted most like the tin (pouch/jar) note of the tobacco itself. The Burley still dominated, but the Virginias came out more, and I detected more (fermented) dark fruit and some fig this time, along with some molasses that I did not detect in the previous two trials. (I must admit, my palate is not experienced/sophisticated enough to pick out what flavors the treacle topping contributed to or was responsible for – I’m guessing it accounts for at least some or perhaps all of the molasses taste; I was hoping the sweetness was coming from the Virginias as opposed to the topping – and for this I will take a wild stab and rate “mild” for the flavoring). Burned cool and even, but it did leave some moisture – and hence, some dottle – at the bottom of the bowl that I didn’t encounter in the breakfast or lunch bowls. (3 successful relights; a 4th relight wasn't going to work -- too much moisture).

Stonehaven is certainly worthy of four stars. Is it my favorite tobacco? No. Is it my favorite tobacco blend? No. Is it worth the outrageous prices being charged on ebay? As I’ve said before (as with Penzance, for example) that is a normative, value-laden choice that is most easily decided by one's personal tastes, preferences, and the amount of disposable income one has at one’s disposal. But Stonehaven is definitely worth a try, and – for me, personally – worth cellaring some as well.

With any legendary, generally well regarded... Well anything, there will always and forever be those who will claim to dislike it based strictly on principal, although never would they admit it to be so. They wil act as though it is somehow beneath them, not wishing to be seen be seen as fanboys or girls. Sure, some will genuinely either dislike or think average, but there are a great many "haters". This is a hall of fame, top of its game tobacco. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. Get if/when you can. $100 a bag is steep to be sure, but try scoring world class anything for less.

Blend Name: Esoterica Tobacciana Stonehaven

Description on Tin: "A marriage of air-cured leaf and Burley with selected dark Virginia. Hard pressed and aged to produce brown flakes with dark undertones. A traditional English flake favored by experienced pipe smokers."

Leaf: Virginia, Burley

Tin Aroma: Fresh baked cookies

Taste: Good virginia flavor with burleys there, and molasses in the background

Smokability: I rubbed this out. It does take a few relights at times. Burns to a white ash. Can smoke all the way to the bottom of the bowl with no change in flavor

Room Note: Pleasant

Thoughts: This tobacco is one of the few that I think live up to the hype. It is very delightful to smoke

Recommend to: People that prefer a darker virginia or kentucky flavor, molasses flavored. Very stout.

Summary: I very much enjoyed smoking this. No tongue bite. It does have a nicotine kick so I could only smoke half bowls. Great tobacco to sip on and still get that great flavor.

My Background: Been smoking pipes for about 1 1/2 years. Started out on aromatics, then moving on to Virginia and English. Not a big fan of Latakia, but I really like Perique and Kentucky Dark Fired.

Based on a one ounce sample. This is an interesting if contradictory blend. The leaf aroma does have dark cocoa overtones, which doesn't come through in the smoke. The flavor is mild, yet deep, dark, and somewhat complex. For me, this cool smoke doesn't taste of either burley or Virginia, just slightly malty tobacco, just barely on the sweetish side. While excellent, it's not so great I would pay a premium price on the secondary market, but on the off chance I ever see it listed other than as ‘out of stock,' I would snap up a bag to cellar without a second thought.

When I opened this package the heavy sweet aroma almost knocked me out of my chair. Barley wine is what this heavy hitter reminded me of. I cut two flakes into thirds let it dry some and rubed into half inch strands. I then reached for the triple k greatline and packed it loosely. The charing lite really got me excited about what was to come, I found it difficult to keep from jumping right in. Yahoo, time to fire this baby up! Flavor in abundance, fig, spice, annise, leather all woven together with an underlying sweetness. As I smoked this bowl the flavor devloped into a rich full bodied banquet of tobacco love, bringing so many flavors to the table I would look forward to every draw with excitment. I enjoy big fat billowing clouds of smoke and stonehaven was very coopertive in this respect, the bite of this gentle giant is nonexsistent. My love of Dark Star will always be true but Stonehaven has provided me with the most satisfying, elegant, relaxing smoke of my life. Available in eight ounce packaging I suggest buying two. Put some age on this and who knows where it will take you, heaven I figure. Overall one of the best dark flakes I've ever smoked.

I recently opened an eight ounce bag of this dated 01/04. The experience was sublime. Rich notes of fig and raisin. The Virginia component brought a deep sweetness to the experience and the burley became the star of the show as not much nuttiness (as a newer tin, bag may be) but mostly the reason for this smoke being sublime.

The other day I was looking through reviews and realized I had bought some of this years ago. I dug through my two foot lockers and finally found it. I had bought 3 ozs of this around 2013 at a tobacco store I have frequented. Probably not recommended but I had left this in the small zip lock and jarred it. I opened it up and was greeted with a very pleasant smell which I have no clue as it what it is. I took out a black beef jerky looking strip and I swear on a stack of bibles it still felt somewhat moist. I rolled it up like you might do chewing gum, stuffed it in my pipe and pinched off the top. This is one delightful smooth tasting blend with just a faint taste of cocoa. I smoked three bowls and since this is as rare as gold and just about expensive, I decided to revisit this in about another 7 years, 😊. With over 200 reviews what more can I add except if you can get a hold of some of this at an affordable price, grab it and if you do not like it believe me there are plenty of takers out there that will take it off your hands.