Hearth & Home Fusilier's Ration

I recently recieved a small sample of this blend and I have to agree with what has been said about how hard it was to rub out. I almost put it through a coffee grinder. That said , the taste is interesting, I mainly get Latakia with a hint of vanilla. I've never been a fan of the vanilla and Latakia combination, just me, I find this taste similar to 4 Noggins " Bald Headed Teacher". As I smoked this ,it also started to get bitter about half way down the bowl ,even at a sip and it also seemed to burn hot.

OK ,so let's recap: Hard to rub out, Vanilla topping, Turns bitter, Burns hot . I'll be generous and give this 2 stars!

Bordering on an 'Aromatic' - which I usually dislike intensely. This is a rare beast in that the predominant sweetness ('topping'?) does not, for once, ruin the smoke overall. It IS sweet, and sweeter than I normally smoke, but it just remains within the bounds, and so can be used as a full and very creamy smoke now and then when you fancy a change. There is a good deal going on in this one apart from sweetness, and you may have fun trying to pick out all the ingredients, which I find work quite well together to give a full and reasonably satisfying smoke. This one is a four-note chord in which you can hear all the notes; something dark, something spicy, something creamy (very) and something Turkish-like - and they are in harmony with each other, for once! For me, it's too sweet for everyday use, but nice once in a while.

Fusilier’s Ration

I purchased a sample of this as a part of a special offered by an online retailer in conjunction with a YouTube piping channel. A lot of the blends that I see reviewed are not sold in brick and mortar stores in Ontario so I am forced to run the USPS/Canada Post gauntlet and get dinged with duty about 1/3 of the time. The ability to purchase these samples made it more economical to try a blend like this that I’ve been mildly curious about. I’ve found that I’m partial to English/Balkan blends thus far, with Dunhill’s London Mixture being my favourite of those I’ve tried.

Opening the tin (ziplock bag) I get a familiar seeming scent. I can definitely smell latakia and what I’m convinced is Oriental tobacco (my nose and palate are not experienced enough to say that’s what it is for sure) and a bit of incense.

The tobacco is cut into slices in a “crumble cake” which is fairly dry and breaks apart easily enough. I find this type of cut to be difficult to pack. Once lit I get a very powerful floral scent especially on the retrohale. The tobaccos are there and do taste good – it tastes a lot like London Mixture to me but the incense note that I get from that blend is replaced by something I’d liken to potpourri. The latakia is there but not overpowering and the Oriental seems to take centre stage.

I think I get what they were going for with this one and it is enjoyable, but I am not a fan of the potpourri scent as I find it distracting even though it does not drown out the tobacco flavour. I also have come to despise the crumble cake cut. Decent enough but I would not purchase again nor would I likely recommend this to others.

I received a sample in my latest TinSociety box. The crumble cake in the bag seemed the perfect moisture. it was easy to break up and load into a smaller Belge pipe I use with stronger Englishes and Orientals.

The smell was smoky and spicy to my senses. Once lit it burned smoothly only requiring one relight. The flavor was good with a nice combination of smokiness from the latakia and spice from the orientals. I didn't get my taste of any flavoring nor too much sweetness.

It provided nice creamy clouds of smoke which my wife objected to the smell of, much like she did with my sample of Bengal Slices that I had a few months ago.

I found it to be similar to Plum Pudding Reserve in my book. A good smoke which I'd recommend and definitely smoke again in the future given the chance.