Mac Baren HH Old Dark Fired

I`m really surprised about Mac Baren. With the Old Dark Fired present MB an absolutly unusual product. But let me say, it is really a very nice surprise. The look of the Old Dark Fired is really great, dark stoved Virgina Flakes cut accurately. The pipe is easily to pack with and the taste is creamy, malty without any tongue bite or sharpness. The taste is not complex but the taste is constand till the end of the pipe.The Old Dark Fired is in my opinion not as strong and more creamy as the Ilsted Dark Fired Plug. But both tobaccos presenting the same kind of taste. Personally smoke not much such kind of tobaccos only sometimes, but when I smoke the Old Dark Fired I always enjoy this tobacco. Only 3 stars from me,because I`m not a fervent admirer of such tobaccos.

Nicely prepared dark flakes with some yellow stripes ~ 3"x7/8" and slightly thinner than many that I smoke but this just makes for easier packing with my fold technique. I thought the moisure content right from the tin was high and led to a harsh and bitter smoke. However, with drying, that improved although this is still the strongest McB that I've tried and I'm not sure if this is the result of the dark firing/pressing or high Burley content. I didn't sense and missed any of the sweetness of the VAs I normally smoke but this was probably designed to this end. High test nicotine so I'd only recommend for an experienced puffer.

Savory, smokey, tangy, spicy, robust and delicious. I can see why some who might sample this would assume that it contains Latakia. On opening the tin you are greeted by nice rows of of dark mottled flake, the welcoming aroma is slightly sweet and smokey, a bit of a muted dry fruit scent, perhaps a bit like brown sugar but also a bit like the whiff a Maple smoked cheddar cheese with a hit of black pepper. Nothing funky though, actually quite mouth watering. The flakes rub out easily, they are not overly wet or sticky. Like other Mac Barren products I've tried they have a perfect moisture content. I pack my pipe with a kind of a Frank method and once lit it burns perfectly until you don't want it to. I've smoked this marvelous tobacco in a variety of pipes, right now I'm pleasingly puffing away on it in a Barlings Garnet Grain and the experience is always just as enjoyable. HH Old Dark Fired has the signature Mac Barren Maple sugar in the background,and by the way I've never experienced the infamous "MacBite" from any of their blends I've tried; you just need to understand how to smoke them. I've already touched on the delectable flavour. It is very complex and while robust it is smooth in the manner of a fine Corojo cigar with not a single unpleasant note. As for the "N" level, it is a bit potent but not a knee-knocker. This is a tobacco that I crave smoking, not a blend I'll go to for the sake of variety in my rotation. HH Old Dark Fired pairs well with a variety of beverages from an old fashioned Johnny Walker Black and soda to what I'm sipping with it now, unsweetened Chinese Oolong tea. Most highly recommended.

Wow! Is this really from MacBarens? Smoked a lot of their blends 35 years ago. Never very impressed except for maybe Navy Flake. The past two years of pipe smoking (after a 35 year hiatus) have been spent mostly with VAs and VApers. My only ventures into VABurs have been 4Noggins Weybridge and ET's Tilbury. Oh, and 2oz. of Stonehaven I happened to score by being in the right place at the right time. Never been a big burley fan, but VABurs are another story. Read the reviews of ODF and thought I had to give it a try. An English style VABur flake...and from MacB...with 4 star reviews. So here goes.

Nice square tin with 3 rows of 3"x7/8" rather thin distinct flakes of dark brown with lighter stripes. Tin note: first sniff, teryaki beef jerky. Second sniff, heavy red wine. First bowl right from the tin, rubbed out, was way too moist and smoked way too burley-forward and very harsh. (Could this be the reason for a couple of negative reviews?) Advise to rub out and let air dry for at least a half hour, minimum. Whole different world! The VAs come out and play in that very smooth, round burley body. Nice stuff! Burns like a dream. Treat it right and it will give you a very satisfying, natural tobacco smoke. The flakes also lend themselves to fold-and-stuff, if that is your preference. But I will stick with the rub out method.

OK. Fantastic smooth, round, rather stout VABur flavor. The balance of burley and VA is extraordinary. Very nice flakes in a handy tin. And it's from MacBarens. I hope this is a harbinger of great things to come in the future. Oh, and the price...3.5oz for what you can easily pay for 50gr. 4 stars ! Enjoy!

Makes a great smoke. I found that drying it out a bit helps in cutting it into small cubes helps in packing it into your pipe. No bite noticed and the taste is quite good. I plan to make this a regular addition to my cellar.

I don't understand the terrible one-star review but everyone has their right to an opinion. I just really don't understand this one.

This beautiful flake has a very complex flavor profile. It is sweet, smokey, dried fig like and just all around one tasty blend. The presentation is first class and the 3.5 oz tins represent maybe the best valued tin on the market. It is a very high quality blend that lends it self to my favorite preparation of cube cutting it. It smokes extremely cool with absolutely no bite.

In regards to people who give this a one star review, I submit these people have no idea what constitutes a quality blend. It is one thing to not like a flavor of something, but to state in public that this has no flavor, means the person who says this has no idea what flavor is. There is so much flavor to this that you would have to be dead not to recognize it. As said before, it looks like a troll is just dissing this for the sake of taking a shot at Mac Baren. It makes all the other reviews by said persons not worthy of consideration.

This offering definitively remains the best from Mac Baren. I love DFK and seek every opportunity to buy tobaccos conatining this leaf.

But, in the case of ODF, the tin note and its taste do not agree with my tastebuds. I smoked about 8 pipefuls and cannot stand the taste. I find this really unfortunate but there is nothing I can do about it for now except revisit in a year or so.

First off let me start by saying to the guy that threw this away, next time before you get rid of tobacco, please send it to me I'll pay your shipping. I hate to see tobacco thrown out. Now to the review... I would say this is tobacco at its best. I love most of the hh blends. This is just good strong old fashioned tobacco. This tin note its grand. Recommend drying and then rubbing out this one, it's hard to get lit. The aroma is awesome and enough nicotine to give the seasoned smoker a good time. It really does remind me a lot of Irish flake. In fact I would say buy this over Irish flake. On smoking pipes you can get 3.5oz of this for 11 bucks but with Irish flake you pay 9 for 1.78 oz. It's a real bargain. If you love a good strong flake you gotta try this.

This was another hit for MacBaren! I bought 5 tins of this from my online tobacconist because I had heard so many good things about it and i love it.

This is master tobacco blending at its finest, the bold bitterness of the dark fired burley combines with the sweetness of the Flue-cured Virginia creates a sensory delight, This contains great burley which provides body and a woodsy taste to the smoke, fantastic!,Also, while this blend is very comparable to Irish Flake and Dark Fake, it is without a doubt superior in every way.

Just dont try to inhale the smoke as there is enough nicotine to kill a horse!

Superb stuff, 4 stars!