Lane Limited Captain Black Original (Regular)

Reading some of the other reviews of this well-known tobacco, I am reminded of the collegiate of up-nosed avant-gardes who populate the pipe-smoking community. It's no wonder that when many peope imagine a pipe-smoking chap they envision an snobbish demeanored 18th century English wasp textile-baron archetype.

"Lovey, I shall dine in three quarters of one hour, alert the staff!" "Yes, dear!" "Hmmmhmmm...yes, yes... and then after our dinner of baby seal snouts and braised elephant ivory I shall retire to a puff of smoke in the drawing room to plan the company budgets and sign yet another stack of dead-peasant filings... then perhaps murder an orphan child for sport."

Yes, Captain Black Regular or "White" IS an aromatic tobacco. Yes, it IS a "pharmacy-blend". It's also what half of our fathers, grandfathers, and uncles smoked. And for good reason. Captain Black Regular is smooth, mellow, and satisfying. This coming from someone who has tried many tobaccos, from your Prince Alberts and Carter Halls to your Reserve 1928s and your Revelations. The Captain packs quite nicely, lights without a fuss, and then ALWAYS burns down to the quick producing a fine white ash. It's also extremely easy to find, is faily priced, has absolutely NO tongue bite, and comes in a rather air-tight canister that makes for a consistent smoke.

The room-note is, in my humble opinion, unmatched in any tobacco out there. My significant other is quite fond of the smell as well. Trust me, it's hauntingly good. It's the kind of smell that, when smelled, reminds you of things past. Personally, I think of puttering around the yard raking leaves, mowing the lawn, roofing the garage, and detailing the GTO.

As for the taste... heh. Well, it's all a matter of taste isn't it? To me, the taste is light and airy with some more brutal undertones at certain times throughout the bowl. It tastes of sweet vanilla with a nutty undercurrent at times (especially at first), and then evolves (or devolves if you wish) into more of a toasty marshmallowy taste. It is best sipped with something sweet to accent it (such as a diet mountain dew or sweet tea) and not such a "coffee-paired" tobacco like say... Hal'o the Wynd. Certainly an all-day tobacco though, never wearing on my taste and forming the backbone of my rotation of favorites.

One caution though... DO NOT BUY THE POUCHES. The tobacco inside is dry and flavorless. ONLY BUY THE CANISTERS. You probably won't regret it.

So, this is MY opinion on the famous old pirate. Take it or leave it, but certainly consider it.

Lots of vanilla and a little honey are the flavors that stand out. I never really got much nuttiness, earth or wood from the burley though I have noticed a little grassiness from the Virginia. The sugary black cavendish is infused with a moderately deep vanilla. A bit of PG keeps this tobacco moist. The strength is a couple of steps past the mild mark. The taste is just past the center of mild to medium. Has a mild nic-hit. It can get harsh and bitey if you puff fast, so a slow cadence is recommended. Requires few relights. Leaves too much moisture in the bowl, and slow puffing will reduce the chance of goop. The flavor is mostly consistent. It smells great and back in the days of smoking in public, you could get a date smoking this brand because women love it. A decent beginner's aromatic.

-JimInks

Say what you will (and I know you will) Captain Black Regular is about as stable as your going to get when "large scale" aromatics come into play. Seriously guys, after all the bellyaching and whining I've heard (read) concerning this lowly and trusty tobacco, you'd think it was made by some company in China using the worst products available. But from my experience (4 bowls tonight while sitting on the front porch with my wife) I'm seriously considering ordering a 12oz can for me to keep in my study. This isn't some "Chemically Laden", "Vomit Inducing" tobacco that many pipe smokers would lead you to believe it is.

Captain Black Regular is exactly what everyone knows it to be, a pleasant aromatic with light strength and an aromatic room note that will please the most sensitive nosed passersby. It's not trying to be a complex and detailed tobacco harkening back to the days of old tavern smoking and high dollar drams of scotch. It's a drug store tobacco, don't try to make it something it's not. Easiest way for me explain it is as follows: When I want to have a beer with a friend at the pub, and all I want is something that will satisfy my tastes, I'll most likely grab a cheep beer and enjoy my conversation not thinking twice about the drink I'm partaking in. Why(?), because I came to enjoy the company of my friend, not critique and rate the beer on its malt content or the percentage and type of hops used to craft the drink in my hand. I wanted to taste beer, so I got a beer. On the contrary, when I get a flight of beer or go to a beer tasting, I'll tell my friends to shut up and focus on actually tasting the beer in hand. When I want a to smoke a bowl of tobacco and tinker with fixing my lawnmower or repair the tail light on my car, I don't want to smoke something that demands to be studied.....I want something I can just "smoke" and not think too much about. That's the way I see Captain Black Regular, it's always there, it's always faithful and it should be seen for what it is.....a light smoking, pleasant smelling tobacco that's not meant to be taken too seriously. (Chances are, if your reading this and getting hot in the head, you should probably try not taking yourself too seriously for starters.....)

All pipe smokers have to try this one at least once. And I mean ONCE. From the pouch the initial smell was nice but not in a natural way. Take a deep sniff and you will easily detect the chemicals. The tobacco (if it really is tobacco)was very moist and sticky, as expected.

It burns hot and tastes like burnt cardboard that was dipped in anti-freeze, a nasty smoky sickly sweet taste if you will. The room note is the same very sweet. Its pure poison if you ask me. Blah!!!!!!!! It also funked up my pipe.

After about half way down the bowl I dumped it out and tossed the pouch into the BBQ. You should have seen the flames!!! Crazy!

Okay, the best thing you can say about this blend is that it's a babe magnet. Women fall all over themselves trying to get their hands on the man smoking Captain Black. I guess in that regard alone, this may be one of the finest blends ever bestowed upon mankind. (-;

But, on the other hand, I am already married to a beautiful woman (she even likes the smell of latakia, can't get any more beautiful than that), so, I can forego this blend.

Is there a pipesmoker who has not tried Captain Black? It is mild, tastes like vanilla flavored prunes and will not bite no matter how hard you puff. It stays lit well, and is even cheap enough for Jack Benny. If I am out and about and find myself without any quality leaf for my pipe, I don't mind taking the Captain for a cruise...as long as it's a short one.

The captain sailed back into my life after a long and not much maligned absence. Its nice to know in such a chaotic world that some things remain everlasting. Indeed the Captain is just as vicious of tongue and tastelessly boring as that girl I knew in college. A true bedrock of banality filled with not but regret and remorse.

There are only three reasons to smoke this blend; 1.You bought it and feel bad now that you spent so much on it and are obliged to finish what you started 2. You want OTHER people to enjoy the smell of your pipe and not ask you to smoke outside whilst you suffer in dumb agony wondering if you'll ever taste anything ever again. 3. Your into self degradation and have found this blend as key to expanding your choice of self flagellation.

There is no flavor worth commenting on. There is no Nicotine worth commenting on. The only way to enjoy this smoke is to cut it 50/50 with something that adds some kick and flavor and to use you nose to try and squeeze something of value from the vapid grey smoke.

The Captain will however teach you (with the alacrity of a cruel schoolmaster) to smoke 'cold molasses' slowly as you must remove yourself from all distraction and turn you full faculty to regulating your draw and burn temp such that you avoid suffering confusion as to whether you're enjoying your evening smoke or have in reality grabbed the business end of an acetylene torch.

For all of those that call this a terrible smoke with a taste of cardboard and on and on and on, I say you lack the palate to back up your griping. I am an avid fan of G. L. Pease and Mac Baren tobaccos. I smoke Mac Baren's 7 Seas Royal Blend as my every day smoke and am a fan of all types of Virginia blends, my favorite is probably the straight Virginia No1 from Mac Baren. Having said this Captain Black Regular is in my pipe every morning with my first cup of coffee. It is a quality aromatic with just the right touch of virginia and nicotine for the first smoke of the morning. This tobacco in an expensive tin would get rave reviews from you tobacco snobs out there. It's not complex, it's not intriguing, it's not mysterious, it is a straight forward, well blended, consistent smoke and should have a place in all educated pipe smoking aficionados rotation.

Wow, smells like a candy store, always catches one admiration in public. Tastes like I've eaten a badly constructed chemistry set from the most dysfunctional RadioShack in the backwoods. Bleck...Double bleck!!

Smoke in peace, brothers and sisters of the leaf.

An American friend suggested I try this as a change from my usual non-aromatic English/Balkan and Virginia blends. He smokes aromatics and swears by it.

I was a little wary, because I've always disliked aromatics, but gave it a try.

What can I say? It's "tobacco" for people who don't like tobacco. It's like the "aromas" you can get for the "electronic pipes" that produce a mist of nicotine and assorted chemical-laden fake flavours, only without the nicotine or flavouring. If this were music it would be played in elevators.

Quite pointless.

This tobacco deserves much more respect and appreciation! Maybe it's snobbery, maybe it's just people who don't like smoking aromatic pipe tobacco, idk why this tobacco gets rated so poorly!! If you urchase Captain Black White be aware you're grabbing a full-grown, sauced aromatic - but one of the better ones out there!

Now THIS is the taste and smell of "Pipe tobacco" as I'm thinking of it, when a old man was sitting next to you smoking his pipe. I do like that this tobacco has some tradition and was probably smoked by my/your grandfathers and even their grandfathers 😉 Back in the days, there weren't 10.000+ blends - there were 5-6 blends, that was it. (At least I got told so) People smoked this, enjoyed, and loved this blend for decades.

Now to the review: The tobacco smells great. A sweet nutty smell it gives, paired with a whiff of vanilla I can smell. It reminds me (almost) exactly of the smell of "Down by the River" by 4noggins (which btw. has execllent reviews......and its 99% the same smell and taste...) From the pouch you can clearly say "this is an aromatic" - but its a good one, with pleasant flavour!

Easy to pack, easy to light, easy to enjoy! The taste is somewhat like a sweet nut flavour. Caramel-ish. A bit of Vanilla in the back, but only very decently to me. Also by imes I get a strong, but tasty licorice taste, which is 100% like real licorice. But this flavour only pops out by times, sadly!

The tobacco gives it a bit of spice, which makes this a very delightful blend. I love this sweet, very nutty flavour, it is almost the same as "Down by the River" by 4noggins - but even more refined. Captain Black has just got more soul to it, at least I think so.

The nicotine isn't weak at all and much stronger than with most aromatics. So I personally love smoking this in the morning, to get my N-Addiction satisfied - AND enjoy a excellent aroma. Usually I used to smoke 1 cigarette in the morning, because a pipe diddnt serve my addiction. But this one is just perfect for that. Good taste, good nicotine - literally a "all-day-every-day"-smoke.

It has soul, a refined taste and it has a history to it. The room note is excellent and is just what everybody thinks of, when thinking of "a pipe smoker".

|| Personal rating: 3,5-stars | Rated for what it is: 3-stars ||