Mac Baren Burley London Blend

This is good burley. I like to dry out MacB's or they tend to bite. I dry this a bit and its a keeper.

Nice tobacco; chocolate and a very subtle honey which is present in many MacBaren burley-based blends. Puff judiciously to avoid tongue bite.

I certainly would recommend this blend to anyone who enjoys Burley, but if you don't like burley, step back.

Like every MacBaren, don't bother filling your pipe carefully with this, it will only waste your time. Put some of the ready rubbed stuff in the pipe and light up. It keeps lit very easily with a slight tamp now and then. And also, like most MacBarens, this one can bite so be careful. I find that smoked slowly, this blend gives gives the smoker an enjoyable taste. The smoke is nutty and sweet. The honey like casing gives a nice topping. If it begins to bite too much, I set it down and light it up again about 5 or 10 minutes later. Although many of you like to smoke this in corn cobs, I prefer a cheap basket briar. The aroma is delightful. If you enjoy burley and are not an absolute MacBaren hater, this is definitely worth your time. But, if you find Burley boring and MacBaren to be poor quality, do not bother lighting this up.

Update 10/12/2005:

Well I have almost finished my pouch of this and I must say that I have changed my opinion. I really like this blend. After smoking it a bit, I found that the bite was really not that bad. Especially considering some other aromatic blends I have tried. I love the taste, aroma, and body of this tobacco. It is my favorite burley blend, and once again has proven to me (along with Virginia No. 1) that MacBaren makes good quality tobacco that is different from everybody else. Four Stars.

I could swear I reviewed this a couple of years back. Who knows, I have had a tin of this a long time. A very nice Burley but I prefer MacB's Golden Extra as my rotational Burley. Anyway, three big stars for Burley London Blend!

A classic Mac Baren blend, good presentation, mild flavor, easy to light and burn, sometimes harmfull to the tongue, with a nice aroma to the public. Is the blend ideal for the day and the social reunion. A litle "boring".

I tried this rubbed out blend as a change of pace from my normal VA flakes and was not disappointed. I didn't rub it out any further from the tin and still felt it burned rather quickly although evenly. It packed and lit well and a smooth, cool smoke without condensation resulted. The flavor was consistent both within a bowl and from bowl to bowl. Each must decide if this is a + or - but the important thing to me is the natural, tobacco taste. In a head to head match, I'd pick MacB's Navy Flake, that is also burley based, since it is stronger, sweeter and denser but London Blend is another enjoyable smoke.

Too bad this isn't in production anymore. I'm slowly going through my last tin. While burley isn't my cup of tea, this is about as good as it gets for burley. It has none of the harsh notes that I associate with many burley tobaccos.

Lots of earthy notes with some light cocoa. Moisture in the tin is terrific and it is aging well!

2022 version, Tin 1513 of 5000 has notes of dark chocolate and mild vanilla. Tobacco is a mix of brown, dark brown and tan ready rub. Some larger pieces may need a little rubbing. Moisture is ok but could probably use a little drying. Burns slow with a few extra relights. The strength is mild to medium and nic is mild. Flavoring is mild, with notes of chocolate, which hangs out in the background. I smelled vanilla in the tin note but couldn't detect in taste. Taste is mild to medium and consistent, with notes of very wood, musty vegetation, bitter dryness, leather, molasses, cocoa, nuts, mildly spicy, toasted bread, earth, mildly grassy, a semi-sweet background note, and a peppery retro. Burley is leading with Virginia and Flavoring mildly supporting. Room note is pleasant, and aftertaste is great.

Easy smoking, nice flavor. A winner for the money.