Paul Olsen English Virginia g965

Poul Olsen 'English Virginia' (base blend g965), is a dark Virginia with Perique and dark fired Kentucky. The smell in the tin is sweet, dried fruit, raisins, figs and bread. It is a loose cut plug, which is not particularly moist, perhaps a little more on the dry side. The general colour image is dark, brown and black. The pipe weed was easy to fill and stuff softly as I like it, with a generous amount of air. Subsequently, I stuffed my pipe in my pocket, myself in some boots and went into the forest to find my favourite tree, where I usually like to sit and hang around with my pipe.

The tobacco lit just fine on the flame of a match, even though the weather was on the wet side. After I let my pipe go out, tamped and lit again, the tobacco demanded virtually no more maintenance, the tobacco burned just fine, regular and cool to the bottom. Required just a simple pipe cleaner - in the fog all tobaccos make sauces.

The flavor is rich and complex enough as not to be boring. The Virginia tobacco is a good matured and broad-shouldered one at that, here are lots of fullness, sweetness and dried fruit flavours. Along with the spicy notes from the Perique tobacco, I got a taste probably best be described as good rye bread with fig spreads. Throughout the smoke, the Kentucky tobacco added a good solid base in flavour, notes of charred hay and earthy notes.

The smoke differently have volume to it, but is not fat and creamy like ex. Samuel Gawith's full Virginia flake.

The room note is sweet, whit a sharp edge from the Kentucky, pipe smokers will know to appreciate it, but non smokers will probably not like it.

Here's vitamin N enough for most and too much for some. I just had time to think; "Oh dear it tastes good! This dos - in many ways it resembles the Viking Blend". Before I started to sweat like a pig, was dizzy and had ringing ears. This tobacco is to be enjoyed sitting on one's ass and with 15 minutes to recover.

English Virginia is pure gold, a man's tobacco for the late afternoon pipe or after dinner, and along with a good beer or good coffee - Give me my pipe and fuck off world! I will smoke – piss off! It is just that kind of tobacco.

"Ow ow, too much nicotine" - well, okay, so you just ad 20% oriental/cavendish (from the sweet end, without flavouring added), and perhaps a little lakatia, you will still have a good and rich tobacco, but with a little less humph. Or you could add 10% good Burley, and I bet you, that you will be as close too 'Brown Capstan', as you can come whit out actually having a tin of 'Brown Capstan'.

All in all this is good tobacco on it's own and an excellent tobacco for blending, I have no option but to give a definitely must try, if you get the opportunity. However if you are an aromatic fan, get your hands off this proper man's blend and go find something else for your pipe.

Update: Smoked two tins now, still in heavy rotation. Even the sauce taste good, at bit like what we in Denmark refer to as English raw liquorice. That would merit an extra star, if I could give it that.