Lane Limited BLWB

A mild and pleasant smoke. A little nuttiness and earth from the Burley. A semi-sweet topping of chocolate/cocoa. And yes, no bite. A simple, enjoyable, all day kind of blend. I really can't find any faults with it.

Mild to medium in body and taste. Topping is mild. Burns perfectly.

Okay, these reviews of tobacco are amusing to me. Having several certifications in wine, spirits and beer service (Certified Specialist of Wine, Certified Specialist of Spirits, Certified Beer Steward), I'm classically trained in Culinary Arts, have consulted for professional coffee roasters, and I've taught college-level courses in Brewing and Distillation Science, Wine & Spirits, and Food and Culture. Formal, systematic and method-based tasting and evaluation is something I've spent 20 years at.

So...

First: Smoke what you like, and don't be intimidated by the so-called sophisticates who look down their noses at anyone who likes aromatics and simple mixtures, or doesn't relish Nic/Lat/Per-bombs.

Second: Taste is very individual, and varies in the population based on the number and type of taste buds you were born with. Some of us are more sensitive to bitter, while others are less or more affected by sour-tart. The unfortunate terms used in the literature to describe these individuals (super-taster, non-taster) and their tasting sensitivities apply not only to wine and beer, but to tobacco as well.

Third: Some characteristics that reviewers attribute to the tobacco are more dependent on packing/smoking techniques than the tobacco itself. The ubiquitous phrases "requires an average number of relights," or, "leaves no dottle in the bowl" are related to packing and airflow, air direction through the draw, fire management, and whether you choose to smoke to the tarry bottom sludge or not. I pack using the air-gap method, only tap once after initial development of the coal when the bowl is 2/3 smoked, smoke using the breath method, and really don't ever have to relight any tobacco, once pre-dried to the desired state. I dump the bowl when it tastes bad- just like throwing out a cigar when it gets tarry. There's no glory or pleasure in smoking to consume the tar and dregs at the bottom.

That being said- don't fret if you don't taste what others describes as the flavors during the smoke. Taste is very individual. If someone describes specific flavors, those flavors certainly are there for that smoker. They just might not be there for you, or you may taste completely different flavors. That's okay, and valid.

Smoke what you like, and be confident enough to resist apologizing for liking aromatics, economy tobacco, or other mixtures the smoking culture might classify with derogative labels like "tasteless," "candy," or "goop."

I look at tobacco reviews a lot like beer reviews. To some folks, beer just tastes like beer. Like tobacco varieties, within the larger classifications of beer styles associated with types of malt, there are common taste characteristics associated with the individual tobacco types. A skillful blender can bring out these in the mixture.

In the case of BLWB, the characteristics of burley express themselves. It's a simple, pleasant, enjoyable experience. The things I like about burley are here- smooth, dense clouds of creamy smoke, a perfect match with coffee, relatively ph-balanced, a nice aroma, both in the bag, and in the room. While it's not like a Founders KBS (Chocolate Coffee Bourbon-Barrel Aged Imperial Stout), it's more like a Pabst. It's smooth, simple, and is that nostalgic "grandpa's pipe" experience you sometimes want.

Frankly, my "GO TO" Burley...I find it not as "goopy" as it use to be and I always keep a pound or two around as I sometimes will smoke only this for a few days...

Smokes well in any size pipe and any time of day/night...

The aroma is unforgettable... and no other Burley has that specific trait...

As others have noted..."Light .. NO bite...

This blend took me by surprise; I wasn't expecting to enjoy it so much. Picked up an ounce at our local Smoke Shop (in an electronics repair shop), looking for a bland burley to blend with. Today I smoked a bowl of it and was amazed at the fine smoke this stuff makes. I'm on my second bowl just to see if I was dreaming. I wasn't dreaming, this tobacco is tasty! It's a relatively mild blend in terms of nicotine intensity. And there's not a lot of depth or complexity, just smooth, mild Burley flavor. The smoke is rich in body and flavor yet mild in terms of nicotine impact. What I've got is not a ribbon cut but more of a mixed cut with some short ribbon pieces and mostly irregular oblong pieces of small-medium size. The tobacco feels light and soft and packs into the bowl readily. It's not really sweet but is smooth and kind of nutty in flavor. The room note is pleasant but not overbearing. Both times I smoked it in an Orlik Captain Black billiard. This tobacco burns cool and relatively dry and stays lit easily.

I know this blend is claimed to be an aromatic, but it didn't strike me that way. I feel this blend is more of a straight burley. Admittedly, the cocoa and vanilla comes through, but these additives are pretty low key, for me. What I get is more of the nuttiness often found in a good burley. This is a good thing! The blend is relatively light and, for those who don't like a heavy handed blend, like me, it's almost perfect. Lane does burley well, good job.

Keep on Pipin'!

Straight up Burley a little on the mild side. Short on Vitamin N. Nice aroma. I enjoy smoking this in a cob as is, also mixed it equal parts with Lanes Black Cavendish.

Lets start by saying a straight up burley is a little tough to describe. There is little to go on from available blender information, but from its flavor there appears to be a light casing involved. True to its name it does not bite – whether or not this is the defining characteristic of this blend is arguable. The taste of this tobacco is not objectionable and I like to give it the occasional try just to keep things interesting. It has a discernable sweetness to it and is a nice backdrop to those times when one doesn't want anything more nuanced than just a simple pipe of tobacco.

Lane-BLWB

Nice coarse cut burley blend, with a fantastic chocolate/vanilla aroma, a great OTC type blend, some will say more so aromatic than OTC, but it smokes well and tastes great, primarily get the aromatic flavor for once, vs hot air.

Easy to gravity feed out of my tobacco pouch, something I’ve been smoking on my drive to work, purchased 2 oz for a great price online and would add this down the road.

Great room note, smokes cool and have not gotten bitten yet. Two dimensional, although I really have to prolong my sips to get more nutty flavor.

*6 months later - I have smoked a fair amount of this now, and have broken in some pipes with it. Whilst I don't want to change my original review, I think it is worth pointing out that I have noticed some ghosting, and thus I wont be using it again to brake in a new pipe.

I'd been wanting to try this for a while after seeing it ranked on Smoking pipes top 11 best selling Burley's. Now I can see why it sell's so well.

Let me start by saying I'm certainly not a Burley aficionado, so this new territory for me, but I am very impressed. Essentially this tobacco does exactly what you'd expect. Looks like I expect, smells like I'd expect, and most certainly tastes as I was expecting.

Taking a good whiff from the bag, this smells great, nutty with vanilla and almost cookie dough (which I'll come back to). It has a good moisture content out the bag, packs great and lights exceptionally well. It burns well and continues to throughout the bowl, I imagine this could be good for breaking in pipes.

It tastes great, as I said, exactly as you'd expect. You get a great rich nutty flavour almost, really reminds me of hazel nuts. The vanilla comes through a little, but what I love I can only describe as cookie dough. I don't know if it's the nutty cookie dough, but I find this tobacco very moreish. If you really puff on it, you get a bit of spice, but it doesn't bite at all.

Overall I'd highly recommend this tobacco. I only got 1oz, but I'll be back to buy more for sure.