Orlik Tobacco Company A/S Dark Strong Kentucky

Given the way the different tobaccos are combined in the flake, I was not surprised that the flavor experience changes several times during the course of a bowl. I occasionally get a deep tang, presumably from what Red Virginia is present. The lighter Virginia takes over at other times providing a grassy flavor. The Kentucky is the other prominent flavor, and its earthy spice is fairly consistently noticeable. As far as the added flavoring is concerned, my palate tends to side with those claiming licorice. That said, the licorice is never the lead flavor to my taste. Indeed the flavor sometimes seems to disappear. The Cavendish is not obtrusive; rather, I pick it up more as a smoothing, body-boosting component.

The strength in terms of nicotine is probably midway between mild and medium. The taste is nearer medium than mild but certainly never more than medium. This burns well and requires fewer than my high average number of relights.

I think of this as a milder and usually cheaper substitute for Peterson's Irish Flake or Rattray's Stirling Flake. DSK is not as good as either, and they are only somewhat similar, but sometimes this Orlik blend is for me a passable stand-in. When DSK is on sale I consider it a three star blend. At full price it gets only two.

This one has a licorice smell to the Tin with a very nice presentation. Upon smoking this blend you pick up a slight sweetness from the virginias and then towards the middle and last half of the bowl the Kentucky fire cured tobacco comes through. While I prefer golden sliced this one is a pretty good blend as well. I would recommend this pipe tobacco especially if you like Kentucky fire cured tobacco.

The name Dark Strong Kentucky is a bit of a misnomer, since in no way would I qualify this a strong blend, Kentucky or otherwise. But it is very pleasant, nonetheless, and there is a good amount of dark-fired to qualify the blend as burley based. It's an interesting variation on the stronger burley/dark-fired blends I normally gravitate towards. As a footnote, I never had the pleasure of trying this blend in its original glory, so the review is based only on its reintroduced state.

Tin note is beautiful and packed with rich anise and molasses. The tan and black striations reveal golden virginia sandwiched between layers of DFK. The flakes rub out easily, which I advise you to try, since getting these flakes to light without doing so is an almost hopeless endeavor. Flavor seems about the same either way. Interestingly, the anise scent doesn't really carry into the flavor profile. I get a predominance of that patented Orlik bright Virginia, sweetened only mildly by a delicious molasses sort of flavor. The Kentucky waxes and wanes in strength, sometimes just a bread-like accent giving the blend body , other times right up front with its spicy smokiness and tea-like sweetness. I do get the anise from time to time, especially on relights. In my judgment, the topping is excellently done, since there is a great deal of tobacco flavors present while just subtly seasoned with topping flavors.

My only complaint would be the tendency to burn hot and gurgle. I've had no issues with bite, however. There is the inevitable comparison to cousin Heinrich dark strong flake. I agree it's fairly similar, but I disagree that it's the same tobacco with different topping. I found Heinrich's all but unsmokable in any conditions, preparations, or pipes, while DSK is quite enjoyable when treated nicely. I would grant somewhere between 3 and 3.5 on this one. It's unique and interesting, but I don't yet know that it will be a permanent member of my rotation. If you aren't into much heavier Kentucky blends, this may be right up your alley.

I think, if you've tried Mac Baren Old Dark Fired and find it to be too strong with not enough sweetness, then this is your tobacco. It is sweet and full in taste but remarkably light in body (nic) considering the dark fired component.

It gets 3 stars for being delicious and SMOOTH but I'm leaving off a star because it doesn't deliver the N I want, but that may not be a negative for most people. It is reasonably priced and I can see this being a real bell ringer for many pipers wanting a full, non English blend, with some sweetness but no annoying nic hit.

Very nice blend. The anise/licorice is noticeable, but never overwhelming. It has a nice nutty sweetness that balances with the Virginias. An enjoyable, relaxing smoke when you desire more than a straight Virginia, and less than a full burley.

This is an amazing tobacco.

Beautiful presentation in the tin. Dark and bright flakes pressed together in a nice square cake. The smell of sweet virginias, hay, and licorice sting the nose upon opening.

The tobacco is easy to load in flakes or rubbed out into your pipe. Lighting can take some effort if you haven't let the flakes dry a bit. Once lit it behaves well and produces good amounts of smokes. The sweet typical flavor or Orlik's golden slice come out in the smoke with a heavier and richer flavor, probably from the kentucky. Very sweet, robust, deep, rich, strong flavor is present with a perfect balance of sweetness. Hints of licorice and anise are present around mid bowl til the end, but not overpowering. A good N kick to this tobacco but not too much. Great smoke in the morning with coffee to get one going.

Excellent tobacco and one of my current favorites.

I am not usually one for the VaBur type of smoke, but the Dark Kentucky adds an element to this one that brings me into that folks.

Very rich and deep taste, and very well behaved.

I really do think its the same stuff Heinrich's Dark Strong. I put them side by side and could detect no difference smoking one immediately after the other.

True to all Orlik its very easy to pack and light, smoke is rich and deep, took very little maintenance.

It starts off with all elements coming through. THe VA gets pushed aside somewhat by the other elements which are strong from the off, and once its all warmed up they all come through very even and smooth.

No criticisms, a very nice one and glad its back.

I like to try new tobaccos so when I saw this one on sale at P&C I had to buy some. I got the 50 gram tin (1.76 oz). I've not had many burly based blends, actually only a couple, Mac Barens Golden extra and London blend. So this was a gamble. The dice came up in my favor! I opened the tin and was greeted by an excellent aroma (I really like black licorice) and a gorgeous appearing flake. Resisting the urge to eat the contents I peeled off a couple of slices and rubbed them out and left them to air dry for about 15 minutes. Using the 3 stage method I packed my pipe and lit up. Well! Sure was tasty and kept on giving throughout the bowl. The flavor delivered was delicious and of a medium strength profile such that there was never a temptation to puff harder to get more. A good dose of our Lady nicotine but not over powering. It went very well with a cup of Darjeeling and on another occasion with a nice cappuccino. I would not pick this as an every day smoke as I liked it too much to risk getting accustomed to the flavor. I want it to stay in the treat category. I'll be getting more of this to cellar.

I thought I'd like this one a lot more than I did, though I did like it. Tin note is classic VaBur, light sweetness with notes of raisins and perhaps hay, very enticing for a VaBur smoker, though--admittedly--the VA was not very pronounced. At the match, I definitely get the Virginia up front, but the taste is primarily Burley. I'm a Burley man, though, so no problem there. Flavor does not change much through the bowl, but the flavor is delicious and rich. The very last of the bowl gave me an incredible burst of flavor (rubbed out) that I cannot categorize, but that sort of mind-blowing taste is one of the things I smoke pipes for . Didn’t detect the licorice or anise noted by some reviewers.

This is strong, probably not for beginning tobacco smokers, but smokeless tobacco adherents probably won’t be troubled by it. Moisture level is good right out of the tin. Smoke volume is moderate, but nice and thick enough. Smoke this slow. Hot=bitter. Got much better results by rubbing out the flakes than stuffing them into the bowl. Burns down to a nice ash. This is a really fine tobacco for Burley lovers, not so much for others. If you like a stout tobacco and good Burley flavor, DSK deserves a try. Realistically, this is about a 2.6 on the scale; it gets a 3 from me because it's better than a 2.