Hearth & Home Chatham Manor

Another foray at the pipe club and I was able to try a few new blends. This one is supposed to be a Carter Hall clone. Medium blonde ribbon, fairly dry, and very mild tasting. In fact, I got very little taste but that may be more to my jaded palate than the tobacco. Another than adding another notch on my belt this review will be brief. It has been some time since I have had Carter Hall but as long as Carter Hall is around, I would just stick to CH. If my friend brings it in again, I will give it another shot.

This was a gift from a friend. 10 years old and I have heard a lot about this being a Carter Hall Match. Upon opening the bag I was greeted by aroma that was of rich tobacco, a stronger cocoa smell than CH, stronger bourbon than CH, with a similar background of a similar nuttiness, stronger earthiness and similar light grassiness as CH.

This tobacco was ribbon cut, was drier than I usually smoke level and looked very much like CH. so far, I liked what I was experiencing. But the true test was coming.

Upon lighting I found the first few puffs to be like CH but the cocoa and bourbon were a bit stronger. Then the cocoa came to the forefront. It was deeper and stronger than CH. it does not have the sweet taste like CH but is not unpleasant. The bourbon was close second in flavor and it was deeper and stronger than CH. both blended together pleasantly but this definitely is not a match but a similar blend to CH. the wonderful blend of nuttiness, earthiness and light grassiness was there but was a bit more in the background with the exception of the nuttiness which was a bit stronger. A very pleasant blend that burned very consistently and had very, very consistent flavor to the end of the bowl. CH fans know that CH fades at the end.

This left a nice aftertaste that was not sweet like CH but very pleasant with it cocoa and bourbon flavors. Left very little moisture in the bowl. Burned down to a nice gray ash and had a very pleasant room note that was stronger than CH. while this is not a match for CH it is similar and not a sweet in flavor. It is deeper and fuller and a very well put together blend that I enjoyed immensely. As a match it doesn’t make the grade but this is a fine tobacco that burley and OTC lovers will enjoy! I highly recommend it unless you are looking for a CH match. Fine quality tobacco and a unique blend of CH flavors that is a excellent blend in its own. I like CH better since it is sweeter and the smoke creamier and thicker. But, this is much deeper and fuller flavored than most OTC and is a mighty fine blend. 3.8 out of 4 stars.

Chatham Manor is a great tobacco. It burns evenly. No goop left in the bottom of the bowl. I get some mild tastes of cocoa in this blend with with a little bite and harshness if not sipped. Makes a good all day smoke for me.

I won't spend time going over the flavor profile of Chatham Manor as several reviewers before me have so eloquently told it all by now. IMHO this blend shares a few similarities to Carter Hall (a great Codger Burley blend that has withstood the test of time) but only a few. As much as I like CH as a regular, no frills, just load & forget it smoking blend with great tobacco flavor ... I like this one too but not quite as well as CH. This blend is different enough to warrant standing on its own merits without being dubbed a CH copy cat. The flavor is quite good ... but its "impotent" in my opinion. Puff it slowly or you may get more "steam heat" instead of the nutty flavor. After 40+ years of smoking everything "legal" under the sun ... I'm finding that my tobacco palate nowadays prefers great tasting monochromatic blends without a ton of "jump up and slap you in the mouth" complexity of flavors. Sure I still enjoy a myriad of complex blends on occasion .... the so-called boutique blends. However, more often than not, for the times when I want just a good, clean, mild, easy to smoke blend with great natural tobacco flavor ... Chatham Manor does the job well and it's a nice slight change of pace from some of the other "just good ole Codger tobaccos" ... just wish it had more depth. I recommend packing it rather tightly (to help increase the depth of flavor), sip it slowly, and I think you’ll find some nice clean flavors there to enjoy. This one gets my 3 star vote.

I finally found an all day smoke that I don't get tired of. An aromatic that won't bite, Chatham Manor has overtones of cocoa and is very smooth. Plus, this tobacco is very affordable.

I was pretty excited about trying this as Carter Hall is, perhaps, my favorite of the American OTC blends and this, of course, is Russ' Tribute? to that blend. I think Tribute is a good term, because I did not find it that similar, so as a match, IMO, it definitely misses the mark.

While Carter Hall is sometimes described as chocolatey, I think that flavor is more a result of the interactions between the other toppings and the natural chocolate notes of the burley; whereas, with CM, the chocolate is taken too literally and it is full on topped with some chocolate topping. I, personally do not like chocolate topping on tobacco, so this was a turn off to me.

The good news is the topping does tend to lift a bit and, for the most part, you are left with an easy burning flavorful VaBur. In further comparison to CH, I don't think this is as strong in the nicotine as CH although this is not by a large margin.

On its merits, it packs easy, it smokes easy, doesn't bite, can easily be smoked all day. Its positive attributes do resemble CH, but the taste, and even the texture and color of the leaf, does not. So it is kind of a split review in that I would not recommend this as a substitute for CH (mostly because CH is available and cheap), but I would recommend this as a VB on the chocolatey side. I am somewhere between 2 and 3 stars, but I will round up since two of the nicest pipe friends I have love it.

Just a very enjoyable smoke. The liquor flavor is subtle, but enjoyable, and doesn’t overwhelm the flavor of the good quality tobacco. I could very well smoke this blend all day. In my opinion, this is a contender for the best OTC blend available today. If I had nothing else but a supply of this for the rest of my life, I'd be a-ok.

4**** for it's class. this is totally underrated. i love this mild aromatic with a well balance sweetness. a must try those who love it light. flavour: bourbon is mild.(should be improve) sweetness:med.(just right) creamy: mild (should be improve) chocolate and cocoa too mild. leafs comes dry. burns: med-fast. take a slow sip and you can taste the wonderful flavour of sweetness. it is no good if it burn hot. it is worth the aging. smooth like butter. if it is a little more creamy and sweet it would be heaven.

I love this blend. Higher quality leaf than Carter Hall, and a slightly different topping. This is my go-to when I'm not certain what I want to smoke.