Lane Limited LL-7

I've been led by the reviews here to assume LL-7 takes home the Blue Ribbon for Cavendish tobaccos. That may be true, I've sampled only a handful of such blends in the course of my pipe smoking career. It's certainly the best of the bunch that I've blown through--and that includes such hit or misses as Nat Sherman 509, Lane's other contender 1Q, and Captain Black White.

I've noticed while reading reviews for most "controversial" blends, that the greatest concern from die hard fans seems to be their intolerance for dissent. "Don't review an English if you hate Latakia" it is said. Or "Tell people your taste preferences before you review." Those are noble thoughts, of course, voiced to shoot for some degree of fairness in the review. Then again, do I *have* to say what I like and dislike before every single review? Doesn't seem very practical, on second thought. For those who believe that only fans of a certain artifact are entitled to voice an opinion, I say the input you receive will be unbalanced and skewed toward your mindset. Yes, your precious rating may see-saw, but do not worry. Those who buy tobaccos only for the number of stars probably aren't worth lumping into your fan base.

With that said, I will say LL-7 excels in the Cavendish group because it burns cool, provides a generous allotment of that classic "Cavendish" flavor without being goopy, has a nice thin ribbon cut for an even burn, and a price point to please the masses. Why do I dislike this? It's not a knock on Lane, but the style of blend. Cavendish tobaccos' intrinsic flavor tastes artificial, and the kick never exceeds anything beyond slightly greater than mild. That's an opinion.

Which is why I must ask myself, why do I still seek these blends out? As many have said before, the room note is spectator-friendly. But smoking this just to smoke when around others has its drawbacks. If a person finds their eyes wandering in the direction of my pipe, I'd rather not bother with the ensuing conversation.

For my last consideration, LL-7 has replaced MacBaren's Vanilla Cream in the aforementioned rotation category. That's right. I'm a hypocrite.

After a few bowls, I find this stuff pretty enjoyable. The room note is fantastic, reminding me of s'mores above all. I pick up the flavor noticeably from time-to-time, as it mingles with the room note. It's a pretty cool, productive smoke if you treat it right. I consider it a good "party smoke."

If you dislike aromatics, don't bother. If you want a mellow smoke that will please your company, this is for you.

Sold by the name "Pipe Dream" at my local baccy shop, I had to sneak a peak at the rubber tubs stacked against the wall to discover it's true identity. This is not a tobacco that immediately grabs your attention, but for a bulk it's smooth with some flavor and pleasant. I truly enjoy this tobacco.

If you enjoy bulk aromatic tobaccos, you'll probably like this one. Although a tad mild for my taste, it consistently tastes good and you'll get no complaints regarding the aroma it leaves in a room. Not a great deal of tobacco flavor here, but the caramel flavoring is a nice touch. Not particularly bitey, you could smoke it all day.

I am assuming the LL stands for Lane Limited and who knows what the 7 stands for, maybe the 7 times it took to perfect the blend. Guess I will never know. I was given a good solid one-ounce sample of this a few weeks ago and wanted to give it a whirl. It has a very sweet vanilla/caramel smell and is really moist. Not sure if Propylene Glycol is used but probably. I loaded it in a cob reserved for such purposes, that way I do not have to worry about ghosting. It is smooth, sweet and somewhat like a desert in that once I started puffing, I did not want to stop. I do not take the aro road very often but it is nice to relax sometimes with one. It does not stand out, and I have never really been a big super 1Q fan but in other reviews it seems to be the benchmark for comparison. Good but next time I am in the mood I will go back to my Captain Black White. I am sure the room note on this one is a crowd pleaser, but I smoke alone on the porch. Nobody opened their door and asked what stinks so that is always a good sign. And if they ever did complain, tough.

Lane Limited LL-7 is definitely a blend I will keep on-hand as long as I have a pipe. It is excellent. Flavor is complex, but not overpowering. I thought it was very balanced, easy smoking, mild-to-medium flavor, and pretty light on the nicotine. Nutty, soft vanilla, maybe a bit of chocolate. Maybe a bit of oatmeal. It reminded me of 1-Q, only better. No candy-coated flavor coming through.

Update 2022-07-26: I pulled this jar out of my cellar and loaded up my Peterson 314 System. My tastes have generally moved away from Aromatics, but this was still a very enjoyable smoke. It had flavors of cloves, cinnamon, toasted raisins, and maybe ginger. The first half of the bowl was good, but the second half was sublime. By the very, very end, the casing sweetness was getting a little much, and I dumped the last few puffs. This bowl never got wet. I was able to smoke a lot of it before I needed to tamp and re-light. After that, it was an average number of re-lights. I'll go back to non-aromatics in my next bowl, but I am glad I have this in my rotation.

Update 2023-01-23: My cellar is getting pretty overloaded and I am on the verge of needing to cull the herd. I tried this back-to-back with RLP-6, and I maintain that this blend is superior in every way.

I've never been a big fan of Captain Black (at least the white version) because of it's goopiness and overly sweet taste. LL-7 is a close relative, but with the sweetness and goopiness both toned down. I smoked this sample in an XL Boswell, a Duncan Hill Aerosphere (a yard pipe, but a good smoke, especially for aromatics), and a Gatlin-Burlier 1/4 bent apple. The pack and lighting were only fair, par for the course for many aromatics. The blend also required more than the average amount of relights.

The flavor of this one was surprisingly good for me. It started out with a toasted caramel type taste for the first 2/3 of the bowl, then faded slightly to a burley/Virginia sweet nuttiness. I found myself wanting another bowl after finishing one, something that is easy to do with this all-day smoke. It burned down to a dark ash with no dottle, except in my Boswell, which is bored a little high in the bowl. That's not the fault of the tobacco.

Price is the thing that makes this tobacco stand out in a rather crowded pack (vanilla aromatics). There are some great buys to be had on the internet. I found it at LilBrownShack (www.lilbrown.com) for $14.40 a lb. I don't buy my tobacco on price alone, but it is a consideration, especially for someone like a college student on a budget. The aroma will help attract the co-eds to him, too.

Now the ratings: flavor-14 out of 20. Lighting and burn-5 of 10. Price-10 of 10. Overall score-29 of 40. LL-7 gets three stars from me. Give it a try, it might surprise you.

Flavor profile is definitely light grass/citrus from the Virginias, very much the earthy cocoa (this particularly on retrohale) nutty notes from the Burleys, and just a slight vanilla/chocolate note from the top dressing. The top dressing is probably more subdued for me since this blend has about 2yrs age on it. It's a very well behaved aromatic. Not too hot or wet. Could definitely see this being a go to aromatic or all day for aromatic fans. If you're looking for an aromatic to enjoy around others pick up an ounce or two of this from a local B&M or online retailer.

Lane limited makes great mainstream blends. I enjoy RLP-6 very much and this seems to be similar except it is a ribbon cut. The cut makes LL-7 burn a little hotter in my opinion. The pouch note is sweet with a hint of chocolate. A little moist but not overly so. Upon lighting the nutty burley comes through and the smoke is on the mild side of medium. Very little nicotine. Can be smoked all day with no trouble. I would place it right between 1Q and RLP-6 on the flavor scale.