Sutliff Tobacco Company Match Country Doctor

In my quest to explore all the OTC blends I can I came upon Sutliff's Match Country Doctor. With Burley, Latakia, Perique, Virginia and a flavoring of Liquor I thought this might be a good one to explore and explore I did.

Upon opening the bag my nose found the aroma of a light smoke with light woody, musty earthy and raisin that was pleasing. It seemed about right in moisture but received 45 minutes on a paper towel to dry and air out.

The cut is called a coarse cut but I found it to be some long, long thin ribbons, coarse and chunks. I rubbed it out a bit to break it down to make for easier loading of the pipe. I would recommend a shallower wider bowl for this. I used my 70 year old MM Bent Shank Cob because all my shallow wide bowls have been smoked very recently and while it took a bit of effort it filled well. Country Doctor lit right up and needed the average amount of relights. The smoke was medium and lasted in the air for a while. The room note is pleasant and this doesn't bite, but if pushes I believe it could give a tongue tingle. This burned very cool, medium and consistently and the flavor stayed very consistent also. No moisture. Burned to a gray ash. This could be an all day smoke.

Upon lighting it was clear the nutty, woody, musty earthy and a slightly sweet tangy flavor were the main features here. Very pleasant. Dancing in the background were a very light smokiness, with a very very light grass, a touch of citrus and a dash of raisin. Overall a very pleasant combination that played well with each other. If pushed I did find the tanginess would take center stage and become a bit heavy and I used that as the key to control how slow I sipped. The flavor stayed consistent and has enough flavors to keep one's attention but none of them rush to the forefront or retreat. Steady as it goes and there is no receding of flavors at the end of the bowl and no bitterness creeping in. Very pleasant from beginning to end.

Country Doctor is a bit more complex than most old OTC's with a variety of flavors. It isn't going to match the newer blends with all the flavors dancing in and out, or even Match Holiday with it s complexity. But, it is a more complex OTC with the flavors being pleasant and steady and can be smoked in any situation since it has a pleasant room note, can keep your attention if you desire to focus on the smoke or be a smoke you work, read or have discussions with for it wont draw your attention away from those things with a complex constant taste change. I enjoy Country Doctor and it is on my favorite list and will be part of my rotation. I give it a 3.5 out of 4 stars. Give it a try if you like a smoke with a variety of flavors in a consistent way.