Iwan Ries Three Star Blue

Iwan Ries - Three Star Blue.

I bought this solely because it was on offer from Smokingpipes.com: $4.57, gotta love a bargain! But, is it? Lets see.

The pouch contains a very neat looking coarse-cut mixture: all quite evenly sized and not too chunky. The aroma from the pouch isn't the best, it smells like a paint factory (I know, I once worked in one!). Once a bowl's lit I can't quite make up my mind about the smoke! At the beginning of a bowl I still get that weird chemical taste, this is a bit disconcerting. But after the initial few puffs have stabilized the burn I find it calms down a touch. The vanilla addition seems to become easier to recognise, this smooth's the flavour, and there's also a slight sweetness at the back. The licorice is very noticeable for the whole trip; I'm guessing it's this that's responsible for the paint taste at the start.

The tobaccos' give an ok flavour, with the nutty quality from the Burley leading the race. I also notice a slight sharp fruitiness from the Perique, but this isn't anywhere near as potent. I don't really get much from the Latakia apart from a slight wood/cedar note, and the Black Cavendish has the added vanilla to contend with. The Virginia also seems a little lost; there's a lot of flavour for the more phlegmatic Virginia to compete with.

The nicotine's just below medium, and the room-note's a winner!

Is it a bargain? No, it's got too many problems to score any more than two:

Somewhat recommended.

I was gifted a package of Three Star Blue by a friend recently. When I first opened the pouch, it smelled very similar to tobaccos that my father smoked back in the 1960’s. It also smells very similar to a tobacco that I used to chew 30 years ago. So based on those two things the scent conjures up fond memories for me. But in truth, based on some of the reviews I was expecting the worst. But that wasn’t the case. I found this to be a decent old time aromatic when smoked slowly. There is a casing that I am sure will bite if pushed, but taking my time there was no bite. I have to take issue with those that list the “flavoring” i.e. casing, to be strong, it isn’t, certainty compared to other aromatics. The only way to come to that conclusion is to have never smoked many aromatics or because they have confused the “flavoring” field with the “taste” field. The Burley flavor does come easily through the smoke. The downside with Three Star Blue is that we are currently living in an era where there are a huge number of well-crafted aromatic blends available to suit every taste at very reasonable prices. For me, this causes Three Star Blue to fall pretty far down on my list of choices. On the upside, compared to some of the OTC blends out there, this is a better choice than many of them.

This tobacco was free with a purchase I made recently. It wasn't good at all. I tried it and it smelled like Medicine. Had tongue bite early on tasted like cough syrup mixed with sugar and didn't smell very nice either. I would not recommend, but there will be someone out there that likes this... there always is.

This really is a decent blend, and it does have a very nice complex of 'old-fashioned' flavors when smoked.

My problem with this blend is that, in the pouch, the casing used makes the blend smell like what can only be described as 'captain black plied with cheap grape soda-pop,' and I have a very hard time loading anything with that scent into a pipe that I have any feelings for whatsoever.

All in all though, Three Star Blue smokes reasonably well, isn't too much of a biter if respected, and leaves a mystifyingly enjoyable but distinctly mayberryesque coffee cake, creme, and pine-sol flavor on the tongue and in the briar----making it perfect for outings to funeral homes, dirt malls (flea markets), bowling alleys, your in-laws' homes, and anywhere portraits of Mussolini, Stalin, or Bob Barker are still proudly displayed.

Presentation is a ribbon of blonde to light brown tobacco. Pouch note is is pure candy: cherry, licorice, candied fruits, a touch of green apple. Non-smokers will be won over by this pouch note for sure. Three Star Blue is relatively dry for a such an overt aromatic and can be smoked immediately, though a little dry time doesn’t hurt the burn. There’s a more than a bit of floral soapiness on the charring light that ligers through the first third of the bowl. The flavors seem unrelated to the pouch note as I get a light touch of molasses and a splash of vanilla over burley that delivers parchment and toast nestled up against some grass (rather than hay) Virginia that could bite if hurried. I don’t taste the Perique at all, and whatever Latakia is in here to provide some bass notes doesn’t stand out with its own flavor profile but rather serves to enhance the overall blend. The final third of the bowl is where you’ll pick up on them with just hint of earthiness, mushroom and leather as the flavoring agents dissipate and the tobacco asserts. There’s a tiny hint of soap and candied cherry that sticks around to the end. Straining for an analogy, TSB is what you might get if you mixed Half and Half with something like Uhle’s 00. And the result is not bad.

Three Star Blue burns very well, and behaves when sipped. I tamped but did not relight this blend in a series of cobs. There’s not a lot of moisture for an aromatic and I would place this somewhere between the old school American blending house burley aromatics and today’s modern cavendish messes, in flavor profile, burning characteristics, and tobacco taste. TSB burns down to ash and leaves absolutely no mess in the bowl, a testament both the high quality tobaccos and high quality flavoring agents used in this blend.

This is a mass market attempt at one of our cherished American boutique blending house’s old school burley aromatics (think Uhle’s, Peretti, Wilke, etc). And in fact, it’s a pretty good attempt. The reviews here are wildly mixed, and I’m rather surprised that so many are unfavorable. While not one to rush out and buy, I would say it definitely deserves a try for those who enjoy the style of blends I previously referenced, or for aromatic smokers looking for an alternative that provides a more dry-smoking, subtle and tobacco-based flavor profile. Could definitely be someone’s favorite all day smoke.

This is one where the sum is greater than all the parts. This has a really sweet licorice, vanilla extract (alcohol) smell to it with a lot of light brown tobacco consisting of finely chopped up pieces and some ribbon. When I review certain aromatics, I tend to lower the bar some, not because of any inferiority but this is not Esoterica, Dunhill, McClelland etc. This is a blend that comes in a zip-lock type pouch which one normally equates to something you would buy at a drugstore or truck stop. Does not mean it is bad but just a different type of tobacco. It was really warm today in my smoking room (front porch) and I had just received this and decided that it was a perfect day for an aromatic. About the only thing I taste is the casing which reminds me if my memory serves me well of Mixture 79 which is a licorice blend. I found this actually quite good and contrary to some reviewers I did not detect hardly any bite but I did try to smoke this slower than normal. This blend has been according to the page in continuous production since the 1950’s by Iwan Ries, blended by Sutliff Tobacco Company, which is owned by Mac Baren. Go figure. According to Iwan Ries’ website, “Since 1857, Chicago has been home to the oldest family-owned tobacconists in the country. Now in our 5th generation…” I guess the reality is there aren’t that many real local tobacconists that do they’re on blending anymore, probably not commercially viable. I was not around in the 50s to try the real deal but it still is a seller which surprises me with the overall 2-star rating. I would recommend this one if you like aromatics where you taste the aro and not much tobacco. One last thing I noticed they referred to this as Old Colonial, maybe the original name?

A family friend died suddenly early this year, and I was gifted his pipe (which he never used really), and as it happened to be an older Iwan Ries pipe, I figured better get some of their shwag for a remembrance smoke. It is a great store if you ever get the chance to visit, and I was a fan of their tasty King's Oriental, so how did this mainstay stack up?

Well, the pouch let out a whine of drug store aroma (think Half & Half) of tangy topped spice. Not as licorice forward as Mixture 79, possibly a sharp cherry licorice, certainly not a sweet Vanilla, but the kind of mixture you could imagine a no-nonsense grandpa puffing on. The soft mix (with some rogue sticks), packs like putty and lights without issue. The initial few puffs offer a bright taste, that quickly turns to an icky sharp smoke that bites back, which by bowls end you get used to... and that is when you've earned your stripes to smoke another bowl [like a cheap cigarette with an addictive hook].

This sits among other $5 pouches (made partly of shredded cardboard) you don't expect much from, so why go out of your way to order it when a few bucks more gets a quality tin? Good question.

The smell of latakia immediately hits you. I had this tobacco shipped with a lot of summery aromatics and upon opening the box I immediately smelled this blend. It put me off initially because I happened to be in the mood for a light spring smoke, however I was pleasantly suprised. Some say it is dry but it is perfect for me as I smoked the bowl fairly quickly and cooly. There are nutty notes and it stays steady through the bowl. It is a cool and refreshing smoke despite the tin note. The latakia and perique are there, but just a whisper. This is a nice all day blend for me that has just enough to make it a pleasure to smoke but not too much.

One of the few aromatics I like. A nice spiciness. Yes, it can get hot. Yes, you need to slow down and learn to smoke this.

My Savinelli, with a balsa filter, helped tame this through my learning period.