Mac Baren Virginia No. 1
(2.78)
In 1955 Virginia No. 1 was introduced to the world’s pipe smokers, and today Virginia No. 1 is one of the Mac Baren Classics. The natural sweetness from the carefully selected Virginia tobaccos, are to be enjoyed every time you light up this magnificent blend. In addition to a slow, cool smoke this ready rubbed blend gives you the slightly sweet smoke. Try the Virginia No. 1 and find out for yourself why Virginia No. 1 is reckoned as a Mac Baren Classic Blend.
Notes: Introduced in 1957, according to Mac Baren's website. Introduced in 1955, according to the tin description.
Details
Profile
Strength
Mild
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
Mild
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Pleasant
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Mild to Medium
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming
Average Rating
|
2.78 / 4
|
Reviews
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Displaying 21 - 30 of 71 Reviews
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 13, 2017 | Very Mild | Very Mild | Mild to Medium | Pleasant |
This was one of the first blends i smoked. One of them. I mean, it wasnt my very first bowl of borkhum riff original, and it wasnt one of the myriad aromatic house blends i picked up from the tobacconist when i asked for something "smoother than borkhum riff original" either. It wasnt even frog morton (mind=blown). So, come to think of it, i guess it wasnt one of the very first blends i smoked. What i mean to say is that i smoked this blend in my very early piping days, back before i knew my castellos from my caminettos (or comoys, for that matter). Before i had a pipe or three dedicated to my favorite blends, before i knew you should dedicate pipes to similar genres, or that there were genres of pipe tobacco. So i mean, a while ago. At that time, i thought that this was a cigarette like, hot, bitey catastrophe. Into a mason jar it went. Life went on. I kept smoking my latakia bombs and reading pretentious reviews of nightcap here. Suffice it to say, that if one is lucky, with time and experience comes growth. I learned to smoke so not to scorch myself. I learned that sometimes simple and inexpensive are not synonymous with crap. I learned to follow my interest and tastes where they led me. I tasted Carter Hall! Long story short, i picked up the jar again. So glad i did. I find it now to be fairly cool burning for a mac baren va product. Certainly it could bite if puffed, but i have not been bitten. It is very nearly my favorite straight virginia to date. A mild, hay like plum and spice experience. Perfect moisture content, very easy to stuff and light, very enticing odor in the jar. It is quite sweet, but i feel some of these reviews overstate its sweetness by a good deal. It is not cloyingly so, overall the spice note seems to balance the sweetness nicely. There is a sourish fresh piquancy that i adore, like the dryness in one's mouth from biting into a tart crab apple. Its not an over the top smoke, it is subtle, sweet, pleasant. A year of age makes it a thing of beauty, so much so that i have a pound aging presently. If you appreciate such a classic offering as Orlik Golden Sliced, i cannot imagine you would not be satisfied with this. I will hopefully never be without it.
Pipe Used:
Cobs, meerschaums, briar
PurchasedFrom:
Smokers Haven
Age When Smoked:
New to 3 years
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Apr 15, 2014 | Mild to Medium | Very Mild | Medium | Pleasant to Tolerable |
Very good VA. A touch of sweetness, particularly when sipped, with the spice most noticed on the retrohale. VA/brown notes more pronounced than Royal Yacht, which comes across as consistently sweeter, more full, and stronger. VA No. 1 burns clean and smooth through the bowl. 4-*.
Pipe Used:
Italian Basket 35+ years old, MM
PurchasedFrom:
CI
Age When Smoked:
Tin dated SEP 2013
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Aug 09, 2006 | Mild | Mild | Mild to Medium | Pleasant |
This is just what I've been looking for in a summer smoke- lighter than my usual red Virginias but still tasty. Virginia #1 has a similar citrus tanginess as the Mac Baren's Scottish Mixture, but the golden Virginias are much lighter than the Mixture. I also find this to be less sweet than the Mac Baren Virginia Flake, and haven't had problems with either of them biting. For me, this is a perfect smoke on a summer morning.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 16, 2019 | Mild to Medium | None Detected | Mild to Medium | Pleasant to Tolerable |
I guess the critics of this blend might have smoked it too fast, hence reports of its burning tongue and palate. It is good, but not exceptional, which is no reason not to smoke it. A solid if somewhat one-dimensional blend. Its taste lingers on, quite a pleasant sensation.
Addendum, 6 Nov. 2019: You have to try this one in a corn cob. A perfect match, in this pipe it is really sweet and very tasty. Upgrading my rating by two notches.
Update, July 2022 I have been smoking this tobacco for a while now, in various pipes and it is excellent and bite-free. One of my favourite VA blends.
Addendum, 6 Nov. 2019: You have to try this one in a corn cob. A perfect match, in this pipe it is really sweet and very tasty. Upgrading my rating by two notches.
Update, July 2022 I have been smoking this tobacco for a while now, in various pipes and it is excellent and bite-free. One of my favourite VA blends.
Pipe Used:
Ser Jacopo Oom Paul, Missouri Meerschaum
Age When Smoked:
1 year
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Nov 16, 2015 | Mild | Mild | Medium | Pleasant |
Fantastic, ready-rubbed straight Virginia with something in addition to Mac Baren's standard maple sugar casing. I will readily admit that your temperature regulation technique must be on point before Virginia No.1 makes sense, but the payoff is excellent if you will smoke it cool.
If I were running a pipe smoking school, this would be the final exam.
If I were running a pipe smoking school, this would be the final exam.
Age When Smoked:
4 months
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 29, 2022 | Mild | Mild | Mild to Medium | Pleasant |
I used to get puzzled at reviews of MacBaren products that refers to the company as “ MacBurn” as I I have a sneaking suspicion that the problem lies more with a smoker’s technique than with MacBaren’s tobaccos……As with all my tobacco, I immediately un tin it and put in Mason Jars . This Virginia #1 is dated 4/2020, I bought it 2/2022 and jarred it and am smoking it now, 7/22. That time was apparently enough to mellow any “ so called” rough edges. Virginia tobaccos also benefits from a slow smoking cadence to keep the temperature at bay……..it takes some patience, but we’ll worth it. I’ve smoked several straight Virginia flakes over the years and have enjoyed them all, this one is no exception as it’s mild yet satisfying, slow burning, slightly sweet, as complex as a straight Virginia gets. Grassy, haylike, caramel like, smooth, earthy, I would call that description complex so I would disagree with a reviewer that calls this tobacco one dimensional….. Anyway, buy it, jar it, age it, and enjoy the tobacco that so many consummate blends are based on.
PurchasedFrom:
Smokers Discount World in N. Windham Ct.
Age When Smoked:
April 2020
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Jan 07, 2022 | Mild to Medium | Medium | Medium | Tolerable |
This is one of my favorite VA blends! It smells like honey on dried cherries and smokes dry with a fruity sweet flavor.
It's a great blend for anyone who likes VA tobaccos but is okay with a light aromatic, even though I wouldn't categorize it as an aromatic.
I wouldn't consider this a complex blend but it's a wonderful one-note smoking experience. Highly recommended after years of experience with VA #1.
It's a great blend for anyone who likes VA tobaccos but is okay with a light aromatic, even though I wouldn't categorize it as an aromatic.
I wouldn't consider this a complex blend but it's a wonderful one-note smoking experience. Highly recommended after years of experience with VA #1.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Sep 24, 2018 | Mild to Medium | Mild | Medium | Pleasant |
Nice broken flake out of the tin, light yellow with a few darker strands included. Age makes the color darker all around. Tin note is of raisin toast and butter. Sweet honey bread notes dominate, but there is some cinnamon and a touch of dark fruit. Needs a bit of drying time, I find 30 minutes works well. Then I simply break it up a bit more and stuff and light. After a couple expansion inducing chars and tamps, it remains lit very well, usually requiring only 1 or 2 relights. Initial taste is sweet bread, and a bit of grassiness and hay. As the bowl progresses, more notes of butter fade in and out, along with some raisiny and cinnamon depth. A good Virginia tang is present throughout, and varies in intensity from barely noticeable to quite tart at times. With a more aged bowl, some pumpkin pie flavors develop by the end of the bowl. If smoked with patient pacing, I experience absolutely no tongue bite or burn. I can see how, due to the sugar content, it could bite and burn hot if puffed with vigor, but is really a tame blend if you take time with it. Pleasant room note, quality leaf, and wonderful light VA flavor makes this an easy 4 Star blend. I’ve smoked this fresh, at 3 years, and at 12 years, and It just keeps getting better with age. I like it so much I just purchased two more pounds to add to my cellar for aging into buttered raisin toast perfection.
Age When Smoked:
Fresh, 3 years, 12 years
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Apr 23, 2018 | Medium | Very Mild | Medium | Very Pleasant |
Great virginia for a great price. It's very, very sweet with some sour, citrus notes. Excelent choice, for new smokers, as well as those more experienced.
Pipe Used:
Mr.Brog - Churchwarden
PurchasedFrom:
Smoke Shop, Gdansk, Poland
Age When Smoked:
Fresh
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 04, 2015 | Mild | Mild | Mild | Very Pleasant |
This wonderful tobacco is one of my favorite blend that always should be present at my home, once tried it like it so much, its burn fine, the test and aroma are very delightful ,sweet, mild and tasty, this the best mild golden Virginia in the shop, I like smoke this excellent tobacco for all the time
Pipe Used:
Dunhill root DR* - Dunhill shell
PurchasedFrom:
Davidoff shop Brussels
Age When Smoked:
39
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