Mac Baren Black Ambrosia
(2.25)
Ambrosia is just savoring the word elevates your expectations, because ambrosia was the food of the gods and goddesses in Greek mythology. In 1983 when our tobacco masters first tasted the new, mild cavendish that they had developed, ambrosia was the only proper word to use to describe the taste experience. They had been experimenting with a variety of raw tobaccos for a long time before they finally came up with the right blend. Virginia tobaccos from the third world were selected, each with its own unique qualities. Each one was an excellent tobacco in its own right, but only when they were blended together into a mild cavendish did the pipe smoker experience something out of the ordinary. A rounded taste composed of the finest taste nuances, the natural sweetness supported by a completely new Mac Baren taste. This cavendish was truly something extraordinary, and from its completion in 1983 right up to today it has been used in numerous new Mac Baren blends. The rounded, slightly sweetish cavendish is widely known as: Modern Mac Baren Cavendish.
As the name suggests, Black Ambrosia contains a very high proportion of Modern Mac Baren Cavendish, with only a little loose cut light Virginia added. This blend consists solely of Virginia tobaccos, which is rather rare as the majority of blends contain a little burley tobacco. But not Black Ambrosia, which is made of 100% Virginia tobacco and yet the taste is still exquisite. As the last person to add to the taste, the tobacco master has been no less genial. Of course, the precise composition of the tobacco is a secret, but here is a hint: to complete the Modern Mac Baren Cavendish, the tobacco master has carefully added a blend of different fruit oils, and topping the finished blend is a touch of [?}. Taste it for yourself and discover what an extraordinary taste experience it offers. With a little prudence, Black Ambrosia could almost be described as: food for the soul and the tobacco lover.
Details
Profile
Strength
Mild
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
Medium
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Pleasant
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Mild
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming
Average Rating
|
2.25 / 4
|
Reviews
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Displaying 31 - 40 of 114 Reviews
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 20, 2008 | Mild | Mild to Medium | Mild to Medium | Pleasant |
nice pace of change with a nutty and sweet jet black cavendish taste to it. straight burly cavendish is what you are going to get in this blend. burns dry and clean to the last bit, packs very well and the room note is acceptable but not as good as other mac baren offerings aromatics.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Sep 11, 2008 | Mild to Medium | Medium | Mild to Medium | Very Pleasant |
I had to re-hydrate my packet, it'd been on the shelf for a while and even longer in my cellar. I'm on a bit of a rediscovery of aromatics at the moment...I find they have a crucial space in my daily selection.
Why do so many people say..it's Yuk!...its bites because it's a MacB? Well MacB have a long solid reputation. They know about their reputation for a wee bite. But they still choose to blend the blends the way they do....and...they still sell very well over many decades. It's a little self-inflating and somewhat carping of us smokers to say it's 'crap'.
B.Amb is a lovely soft, good, tasty aromatic, very similar to Vanilla Cream but with only a touch of vanilla, it's fruity and and salty, it dose not bite much for an aro, and... is a great in between smoke throughout the day. It is NOT soapy, NOR is it overly sweet. It is mild yet with a good natural baccy taste...all the way to the bottom. It is a stroll in the park aromatic, a hot sunny day or a nippy winter's afternoon aromatic.
And lastly it reminds me that I should never pay any attention to pipe smokers on TRev's that say stuff like; "this is total crap and a complete waste of money"! If you are a pipe smoker worth anything...it is never a 'waste' to purchase a new packet of baccy...particularly from a top Danish company like MacB. 3.5 stars for a solid aromatic. Yet again another MacB to add to my cellar.
Why do so many people say..it's Yuk!...its bites because it's a MacB? Well MacB have a long solid reputation. They know about their reputation for a wee bite. But they still choose to blend the blends the way they do....and...they still sell very well over many decades. It's a little self-inflating and somewhat carping of us smokers to say it's 'crap'.
B.Amb is a lovely soft, good, tasty aromatic, very similar to Vanilla Cream but with only a touch of vanilla, it's fruity and and salty, it dose not bite much for an aro, and... is a great in between smoke throughout the day. It is NOT soapy, NOR is it overly sweet. It is mild yet with a good natural baccy taste...all the way to the bottom. It is a stroll in the park aromatic, a hot sunny day or a nippy winter's afternoon aromatic.
And lastly it reminds me that I should never pay any attention to pipe smokers on TRev's that say stuff like; "this is total crap and a complete waste of money"! If you are a pipe smoker worth anything...it is never a 'waste' to purchase a new packet of baccy...particularly from a top Danish company like MacB. 3.5 stars for a solid aromatic. Yet again another MacB to add to my cellar.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Dec 07, 2007 | Mild | None Detected | Extremely Mild (Flat) | Tolerable |
I guess this blend would be ok if you did not have anything else but I would not spend money on it again.
Just plain blah when smoking and then a stale aftertaste.
Just plain blah when smoking and then a stale aftertaste.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Jul 10, 2004 | Extremely Mild | Strong | Extremely Mild (Flat) | Very Pleasant |
It smells, smokes and tastes like cream but nothing else. Amazing room note though. It made the place smelling like a French coffee shop which just ran out of coffee and someone in the kitchen baking a some sort of nutty cream cake. One thing, mix some of this with a mid grade unflavored virginia, you get a pretty good smoke. Actually MB's Original Choice is just that...
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 05, 2023 | Mild | Medium | Very Mild | Tolerable |
Very mild in taste, and reminds me of some kind of liquor. I am able to enjoy it however it's not the best experience, no complexity, rather boring. I'm going to smoke it on the walk-on during some work from time to time until the end of the tin(in Poland it's actually sold in foil envelope) - after that rather not buy it again
PurchasedFrom:
local store in poland
Age When Smoked:
fresh
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 30, 2023 | Very Mild | None Detected | Mild | Pleasant |
Honestly, I don't get to experience that heavenly feel and wonderful taste every second pipe smoker preaches this blend for. For me, it tastes like nothing. But, literally. Burns fine and all, doesn't bite, but I just got the feeling "tastes fine, has it's mood, but lets just finish it soon enough". Sorry if I feel disrespectful, I'll try to give some respect by writing down the usual stuff. Despite it's rather bland taste it was pleasant in some way, the two factors you need is: absence of sunshine, and solitude. Not only do you need full attention to get to feel it's taste, but once you do, it feels right this way. Not advised to drink any fancy-tasty drinkie if you want to actually taste some of it, what worked for me was milk (not joking), clear, cool water, or earl grey, unflavoured. Another thing is, since it is about 95% black cavendish, makes up for a nice home blend, no surprise included.
Pipe Used:
Hungarian brand "Szabó" pipes
PurchasedFrom:
'Pipatórium', a small boutique in Budapest
Age When Smoked:
Haven't aged it (raw)
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Oct 02, 2021 | Mild | Medium | Medium | Pleasant |
I greatly appreciated the absence of Burley in this blend. This tobacco has a nice tin note and a good room note. In the pipe, it's not the "traditional", fully aromatic black Cavendish you would expect, but it's an interesting, good tobacco. It didn't thrill me to the extent of the fantastic (I repeat, fantastic for Black Cavendish lovers) complexity, depth, variety and fullness of Amphora Black Cavendish Special Reserve n.1. Mild, balanced sweetness, mild, smooth aroma. No tongue bite. Not very complex, but a quite pleasant, relaxing smoke. Ideal for beginners, or for an outdoors smoke in the summer. Good morning starter. The "modern Cavendish" by Mac Baren is probably cased and designed to enhance the natural sweetness of fermented Virginias, without much added. They surely succeeded, but without creating a "WOW!" blend. The flavoring -if any- is barely detectable, but probably that's the actual goal of Mac Baren blenders. The result? A mild, smooth, sweet, easy to smoke blend. I shall smoke it again, alternating it with the superb Amphora Black, or with the distinctively aromatic Davidoff Malawi Dark Cavendish.
Pipe Used:
Dai Mosi Caravaggio billiard "maresciallo"
PurchasedFrom:
Tobacconist in downtown Milan, Italy
Age When Smoked:
just purchased
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| May 13, 2021 | Extremely Mild | Extremely Mild | Extremely Mild (Flat) | Very Pleasant |
This smelled fantastic in the bag. I couldn't wait to give it a try. Cut is dry, coarse ribbons about 1/2 in long, up to a tad longer. Initial light was surprisingly good considering the coarseness. Flavor, is very mild to almost non existent. On the tongue and retro-hale. The closest thing I can think of is something in the vein of Carter Hall or Velvet. A hint of fruity-ness, and a whole lot of ok. Black Ambrosia will NOT knock your socks off I guarantee that. Now it isn't bad, actually, probably my favorite bulk Mac Baren purchase to date. It's just nothing that the name Ambrosia should ever be linked with.
PurchasedFrom:
JRs
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Oct 04, 2020 | Mild | Mild | Mild | Pleasant |
Eh. It’s okay. I was left a little underwhelmed if I am being honest. It burns warm, but not hot. Not too much casing. Definitely one of the more natural tasting aromatics.
Pipe Used:
Peterson army pipe
Age When Smoked:
Fresh
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 05, 2020 | Mild | Mild | Mild | Pleasant |
This was a surprising blend. Yes, it is an aromatic, but not a soapy type that smells good and comes out just tasteless steam. I do not find it to be very complex, or perhaps I didn't care to look too deep into it, especially since I only had about 3-4 bowls. A friend of mine gifted it, and since the aromatic casing does not cover the tobacco properties I may be buying some more. The aspect of the tobacco is black, with a nose resembling dried fruit, a bit citrus, but the most evident is fig. It lights easily, burns cool, and leaves little to no moisture in the bowl. Like I said, not very complex, a straight virginia and a lot of cavendish, with a fig tasting topping that stays with you throughout the entire bowl. Very forgiving on the tongue bite. It may be an all day blend, especially for the smokers that fancy a sweeter bacy.
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