Two Friends Bed & Breakfast

This is probably one of the most difficult reviews I've tried, as this blend is extremely complex and -- like the other Two Friends mixtures -- singularly offbeat. It's also one of the biggest disappointments I've ever had, but I'll explain that in detail in a moment ...

B&B seems to be a sweet American/Oriental mixture, for lack of a better term. I don't consider it an American/English hybrid like Epiphany or Bald Headed Teacher -- the latakia component is more muted and the intensity of the yellow VA and orientals is quite prominent. If you can imagine, say, GL Pease's Cairo artfully blended with one of the above mentioned blends (with VAs taking the place of burley), you'd at least be on the right track. Like I said, this one is hard to describe. As in other Two Friends mixtures, the cavendish seems to be a key player in holding the components together and supplying a soothing sweetness. This mixture is complex, subtle, and quite unlike anything else I've tried.

This blend has one of the most delightful flavors (and THE most appealing tin note) of any tobacco I've ever tried. So why not four stars?

Tragically, this blend is apparently a really bad mix with my body chemistry. Every time I smoke it I get horrible tongue bite -- as in tiny spots of blood welling up on my tongue. This isn't a heat burn, it's a chemical reaction of some kind. I've had this reaction to only a very small number of blends (Westminster and Cairo are two) and I suspect it's some kind of reaction a particular oriental or strain of VA. If it weren't for that, it would almost certainly be my "all day" blend.