Mac Baren Dark Twist Roll Cake

(3.02)
One of Mac Baren's oldest blends, Dark Twist is made in roll cake style. Sweet, mature Virginias and Dark-Fired Kentucky are cased with maple sugar to enhance the natural flavors making for a robust blend with a soft, subtle note.
Notes: Introduced in 1955. Whole leaves are used as wrapper for the rope and the inlay is divided into two groups. The first group contains 100% pure Virginia tobaccos, meaning that the whole leaves are used as wrapper leaves and the leaves with small imperfections are used as the inlay. The second group contains whole Virginia leaves as wrapper and Dark Fired Kentucky as inlay, meaning you see the dark tobacco in the centre and the brighter Virginias around it. After the tobaccos have been spun into ropes it is stored for weeks and then cut into small coins. The blend of Dark Twist is broken down as follows. For every 2 coins of Virginia tobacco there is 1 coin with a centre of Dark Fired Kentucky. Like most of our spun tobaccos, water and maple sugar are boiled and added to the tobacco. This is all we add, so the taste is very natural with the interplay between the natural sweet Virginias and light sour and smoky flavour from the Dark Fired Kentucky perfectly blended to create a natural tobacco taste.

Details

Brand Mac Baren
Blended By Mac Baren
Manufactured By Mac Baren
Blend Type Virginia Based
Contents Black Cavendish, Kentucky, Virginia
Flavoring Maple
Cut Curly Cut
Packaging 40 grams pouch, 50 grams pouch, 100 grams tin
Country Denmark
Production Currently available

Profile

Strength
Mild to Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
Mild
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Pleasant
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming

Average Rating

3.02 / 4
77

86

34

19

Reviews

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Displaying 1 - 11 of 216 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 09, 2014 Mild Mild Mild to Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
First things first: This is a MacBaren blend, with the usual MacB casing (sugar water, mostly...as far as I know); there will be a certain pleasant sweetness to the VAs as a result, but the potential for bite is there, as well. I've had more luck taming that particular dragon with this blend than others, though - low and slow is the key.

Tin comes packed with two types of coins - VA/Cav and VA/Cav/Kentucky; the tin note is sweet, dark fruit, and a bit of sour tang (possible the result of 5 years' worth of aging). The smoke itself is pretty darn good. It has that subtle sweetness that a lot of MacBaren's blends have, but with a some spicy smokiness coming from the dark fired Kentucky, as well. In my mind, this is probably one of the three or four best blends MacB offers.

The blend lit easily and required very few relights when I fully rubbed the coins out; packed as roughly broken or folded coins presented all sorts of problems, though - it would burn hotter than a rocket then promptly go out, over and over and over. The flavor of the smoke was light years better when rubbed out as well.

THIS BLEND IS A WHOLE LOT OF FUN!!! To an extent, you can customize each bowl...with a tin 2/3 VA and 1/3 VA/KY, you can mix and match how much of each sort of coin you're using in each bowl. In a lighter mood? Heavy on the VA coins. Want something a little more stout or need some extra spice? Use more of the VA/KY coins. Of course it doesn't have to be that way - when I "just wanted to smoke the stuff" I'd pull out a few coins, rub 'em out, and go...if there's a certain ratio that doesn't do well, I never found it.

Three stars from me. If it weren't for the extra added attention required to keep it from burning/biting it'd be a Four.
Pipe Used: Briars, Cobs, Meers
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Oct 08, 2013 Mild to Medium Mild Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
A third of the coins have the spicy, woody, earthy, mildly floral, nutty, dryly sour dark fired Kentucky, and some don't. Depending on how you rub out the coins or stack them, you can get a variety of flavors as you go down the bowl, or from bowl to bowl if you want that to happen. At times, I've stacked the coins so that every other coin has the Kentucky in it. Other times, I've rubbed it out and codger filled the bowl. Btw, this is the same kind of light and mostly dark, tart and tangy citrusy, tangy dark fruity, earthy, woody, lightly grassy, bready and honey-ish Virginias that I've noticed in some other MacBaren blends like Scottish Mixture, though DTRC blend is fuller in taste and less sweeter, and has a different flavor profile. The light maple topping doesn't tone down the varietals much at all. The strength is a couple of steps short of medium, while the taste is medium. The nic-hit is a couple of slots past the center of mild to medium. Won't bite, but fast puffing will get you a little tongue tingle. Sports a few rough edges. Burns cool, clean and a little slow, and requires some relights. Leaves little moisture in the bowl. The pleasant after taste does linger as does the slightly stronger room note. Needs to be sipped a little. I really recommend smoking this in a pipe with a wide bowl for the full experience of what this unique mixture is all about. Can be an all day smoke.

-JimInks
102 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
May 12, 2003 Mild Very Mild Mild Pleasant
This is an aromatic, but a deep, dark and tasty one that employs plenty of fire cured Kentucky. No candy taste, but certainly a sweetened up Virginia that will be delightful if you smoke it slowly. I loved the presentation. The spun discs were fun to rub out and pack. It burned clean and dry to the bottom and left a friendly aftertaste on the palate.

74 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jul 13, 2014 Mild to Medium Mild Medium Pleasant
The coins are the size of Three Nuns and not a larger one like Escudo or LBF. As the desciption says about 1/3 of the coins have a dark center presumably composed of cavendish and DFK. The cavendish may contribute to the sweet or the spice, but there is no vanilla in the tin note or the taste. The solid coins would appear to be yellow and red Virginia.

Smoked, this is a delightful, slightly heavy, sweet and spicy blend. The sweet may have a little honey flavor in there, but it has a fairly natural tobacco flavor. I tried smoking this as folded coins and rubbed out, and had equal sucess both ways. The folded coin may have had the edge in that you would get a blast of sweet/spicy/smoking when the coal would hit a dark center.

This was an easy smoke to keep at a smoulder, and this was the best way to get the most flavor. I got best results in a pot with a wide bowl. This one is easy to recommend. It is really a 3.5. It does not quite rise to the "everyone should try," but it is close.
32 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Feb 19, 2007 Mild to Medium Very Mild Mild to Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
Other reviewers have said it all, in fifty and more articles.

I have just concluded a 100grms tin of DT, smoking it as my everyday tobacco - like I do with other Va or VaB or VaPer flakes (read McB's Navy Flake, or Marlin Flake or Capstan, just to name few). It simply works fine for that.

DT is a mild to medium smoke, just a tad sweet and spicy (yes, I do think there's some Perique hidden in the famous "Modern Cavendish"), not so complex and very user friendly because of the shape of the discs, which I used to smoke as it is with no problems.

As for this last pipeful - a Parker medium black sandblasted chimney - no tongue bite at all and this is very noticeable for a McB.

I reconfirm DT just follows Navy Flake in the list of McB's worth to smoke on regular basis, and deserves the same three stars.
28 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 24, 2016 Medium Mild to Medium Medium to Full Pleasant
This is a tobacco that I remember back in the late 60s (im old) when i first started smoking pipes. It is still much the same...at least as far as I can remember. It is a classic medallion cut, a semi aromatic, but most of the flavor is really the quality leaves -- but the maple/brown sugar taste is certainly there throughout. It smokes cool and clean. And actually has a nice just a notch below medium nic hit. It is a great everyday smoke and one I smoke a good deal actually. Its not an elite five star sort of blend...but its a very very good mass produced smoke. Im a bit surprised at many negative reviews. I will say you have to smoke slow...like all the best macbaren blends. Macbaren is to pipe tobacco what Macanudo is to cigars. Or omega is to lux watches. But there is a place for this, and Im glad its still around.
PurchasedFrom: 4noggins
23 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 28, 2003 Very Mild Mild Mild to Medium Pleasant
Red Virginia twisted with some "specially spiced" black Cav. The whole thing looks very pretty in the 3½ ounce shoe-polish tin. The twist slices are like nickel-sized Three Nuns roundelets, not like half-dollar Escudo. As always with Baren, the presentation is unimpeachable.

Mac Baren is a bit like Jane Austen: their range runs the gamut from A to B, but within it, they are high artists. I personally have no interest in Cavendish-and-Burley milketoast, yet their Virginia use can be interesting. For one thing, it will teach you to smoke slowly! Also, this brand can be useful to know if you get stuck in Fly-over Land: Mac is the only quality baccy you're likely to encounter in mall-type territory.

I can't tell you anything about the "special" spicing: I wish they had used plain, lovely Périque; the Cav does tickle the tender old glotis after a bit, and together with the sweet Virginia works itself up to a fine, darkish climax?well, café-au-lait, anyway: pretty intense for Mac Baren! But for this, you must get the pipe smoldering slowly and steadily; over-puff this baby, and it will SKIN your kisser. (I am thinking in French, you understand.)

So this is probably the best Mac Baren I have ever tried, an interesting morning apéritif for the Classic smoker, and a self-recommending treat for the aromatic fancier.
23 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 26, 2003 Mild to Medium Mild Medium Pleasant
Mac Baren Dark Twist is a beautifully made roll cake that delights the eye. On the tongue, it is mild and sweet with just a hint of Virginia snap. Unless I rub it out thoroughly, I find it hard to keep this tobacco lit, but otherwise it is an easy smoker, one that you could easily smoke all morning.

NB: If you do smoke this tobacco all morning, as I have the last few mornings, you may find your tongue rather scorched by lunchtime. No matter how easily and slowly I smoke this stuff, if I smoke more than one bowl, I always wind up regretting it. For that reason, this tobacco, despite its many fine features, will never be more than occasional indulgence for me. I also find Dark Twist's mildness becomes a bit monotonous in repeated doses. All that said, this is my favorite Mac Baren Virginia, and not a bad one, at least one bowl at a time.
20 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 23, 2008 Medium Mild Medium Very Pleasant
The best MB and one of the best tobaccos I have ever smoked. Not a flavor bomb, but a subtle, intoxicating smoke... molasses sweetness balancing citrus virginias.... and the room note is perfectly pleasant.

As with all Mac, you must dry it and smoke slow.
18 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jun 27, 2014 Medium Very Mild Medium to Full Pleasant
This is a rather spicy and very tasty tobacco. Very distinctive smell and taste.

However what I found really interesting about this tobacco is, how you load it into the pipe, makes a huge difference on whether you will like or hate this tobacco.

First bowl I loaded is like every bowl else. I got the rolls in my hand, rubbed it just a little, and loaded the pipe in three phases. That is how I usually do. And the result...The tobacco got so hot while puffing smoking became a torture and I could not finish the bowl...

Second time, I loaded it like this : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XHYPso7TXs without rubbing the tobacco at all. Then it became a delight.

Pipe Used: Comoy's mg
Age When Smoked: new
17 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 14, 2016 Medium to Strong Mild Full Pleasant
I've been smoking the pipe for more than 40 years and I'm always on the lookout for tobaccos from yesteryear. DTRC is one of those tobaccos which reminds me of the nice, strong baccy I used to smoke while I was a youngster. Sweet with a tad of spice, easy to light and keep going, strong enough to satisfy completely. I do agree it's not an all day smoke 'cause it can rub up your tongue the wrong way. Not because it's a MacBite but due to it's strong, full body taste. I've got 5kg of DTRC in the cellar and keep on adding monthly. Don't ever want to be without it
Pipe Used: Various briars
PurchasedFrom: The Tobacconist
Age When Smoked: +3 years
14 people found this review helpful.
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