Mac Baren HH Bold Kentucky

A beefy, rich bowl of pure baccy goodness with a big dose of nic kick, Bold Kentucky lives up to its name. I don't really pick up any sweetness, though. This one'll put some hair on yer chest. Personally, I'd recommend a smaller bowl after a good meal followed by a moderate cadence and you will be rewarded with a deep earthy flavor, spicy and slightly nutty, full and satisfying. As described, for the experienced pipe smoker.

The presentation is top notch with its compact elegant tin, its golden flake wrap, and the neatly seated 3 rows of flakes that demand your attention and respect.

This is a very satisfying smoke that will transfix you to your seat with its earthy/nutty Nicotine presence. It is a fair bit stronger than Irish Flake which is very strong in its own right so handle with care and enjoy the dizziness induced by this heavenly flake.

Irish Flake had been my favourite smoke since I started smoking pipe. HH Bold Kentucky seems to be its stronger wiser brother. If Irish Flake is Bruce Lee with all his exuberance, HHBK is an Aikido Master with his quite and grounded calm! Both mean business in their own way.

There is a hint of very subtle sweetness there because of the VAs but it doesn't show itself often. If there's anything missing in the blend (to my taste) is some more sweetness but this is my taste.

After folding a flake into thirds I cube cut it and gravity filled my pipe. It is silky smooth on the tongue without any tongue bite or irritation. Just taste and nicotine that has a commanding presence. Burns very well throughout fresh from the tin with a few relights due to me putting it down (upon relights, the subtle sweetness comes to the foreground.) Very enjoyable and satisfactory.

4 stars all the way. Tobaccos like this are the quintessential definition of satisfaction to me. Certainly buying more to cellar and enjoy on a daily bases especially in the morning with my black coffee.

HH Bold Kentucky appears to be another hit from Mac Baren, given it finds its target market of experienced KY fanatics (mostly grumpy old men, I suspect). This one kicks into gear right away, and – all in all - it is, in fact, a straight-up, bold pipe tobacco. Grampa might have smoked something like this, back in The Day - if Grampa was a bad-ass.

In the tin, BK presents 3 rows of dark, short-ish, narrow flakes. Tin note is “no nonsense”, mostly strong, smoky, spicy KY, rich “regular” Burly, and some fairly aggressive, piquant “bright” VAs. The blended leaf is hot pressed and aged, and it looks, smells and tastes it. Tin moist, it takes a couple of tries to light BK. Dried, it fires up like tinder. Either way, it burns down slowly and evenly, like a good cigar. I generally use 1 flake, which I fold, spindle, and dry just a little, then I stuff it fairly loosely for a satisfying bowl. Once it gets going, there is plenty of smoke. It is thick, “smoky”, spicy, and dry, not at all sweet, and it may well strike some as “harsh”, at least initially. As for tastes, the dominant KY is smoky, earthy and piquant, with a fatty, “smoked meat” quality like a combination of dry salami and beef jerky. The “regular” Burly is strong, tannic, and voluminous rather than soft and round. If it’s nutty, then it’s Brazil nuts. The always-present VAs are Old School, with some punch and some zing to offset what sugar they bring. The flavors are generally well melded and they are consistently deep and strong, with sharp-ish, spicy side notes. Smoked carefully, BK smooths out as it concentrates, as it is smoked down. Strength is strong, tastes are full, and I’d think twice before smoking BK around civilians. Aftertaste is the end of the smoke, dragged out. YMMV, of course, but it’s perhaps best to at least start out slow and easy with this one, and I further recommend using a “Kentucky pipe” or pipes, since BK leaves its ghost in its wake.

After a wobbly start, Bold Kentucky has grown on me, and now I look forward to it. It wants time spent, and when I take my time with it, I find it very relaxing and quite satisfying. I highly recommend it to adventurous lovers of strong KYs and strong OTCs of yesteryear. Not recommended for beginners.

Holy crap this is good tobacco!! Tin note is a strong burst of straight-up tobacco goodness without all the fruity fireworks. The flavor is as robust as the scent and the nic hit slaps you right across the ol bearded yap without turning your tongue into a dried up chili pepper. I set the flakes out for a 30 minute rest before firing up since they're a bit damp but well worth the wait. A great companion to Old Dark Fired. 4 Stars and a thunderous round of applause for Bold Kentucky!

The pouch aroma is of a smoky, deep dried fruit, pure tobacco with an hint of sweetness and on opening the little plastic tray of tobacco the smell that greeted me was very reminiscent of the now defunct Digger Flake, the smoke too was also very similar, I should add that the long gone Digger flake was my favourite smoke of all time. From the very first light of my pipe the Bold Flake brought a nostalgic tear to ones eye, in that this tobacco as ended my personal search for a digger flake substitute. The smoke is sweet, satisfying, cool and the burley, Virginia mix is a marriage made in tobacco heaven. Nicotine content is strong and not for the faint hearted nor indeed would I recommend smoking this tobacco on an empty stomach, for the potency of this blend is about on par with Irish Slices. I smoked this in a brand new Nording Sailor pipe and the tobacco never bit back or smoked hot, which surprised me given that the pipe was straight out of the box and this was my first encounter with this magical blend. I was rewarded with about an hour of smoking Nirvana on just the one thin slice, which burnt down to a very fine ash with no hint of dampness or trace of dottle. Kicking myself that I only bought the one pack, because from now on this tobacco will be my number one smoke. I cannot recommend Bold Kentucky enough, try some and I can assure you that you too will be suitably entranced.

HH Bold Kentucky - Part 4 of 6 - MacBaren HH Flake Reviews

In honor of the just released MacBaren HH Rustica Flake (that I have jarred and is currently reintroducing oxygen and smelling wonderful) I will be reviewing the five previous HH Flakes leading up to a final review of that new release. I feel all tobacco requires a “Cool Down” period after you open the tin. A minimum of a month so the prior five HH Flakes will give me enough time to get Rustica ready for my liking. With that said: here is Part 4 of 6 . . . of my MacBaren HH Flake Series Reviews.

I have a friend. I know that may be hard for many of you to believe, but I swear it is true. Someone enjoys my company occasionally besides Dorothy. This friend and I first met at our local tobacconist. He was predominantly a cigar smoker at the time. Dorothy and I were smoking our Missouri Meerschaum Shire Cobbits that day. He informed me that he was a fisherman and a woodworker. He loved to fly fish and he liked to make boxes. I was immediately drawn to him because he has a genuine intellect. The guy is smart. He may not look it, but he has a great head on his shoulders. Loves the state of West Virginia as much I do. Left-handed just like myself. Soft spoken and polite, but also easily able flip that switch and let his inner “trailer trash” out if the situation calls for it. Him and I are like two peas in a pod.

As time progressed my friend took up the pipe. I do not know for sure, but I like to think that Dorothy and I may have made a bit of an impression on him. Regardless of why he started one thing remains obvious and apparent . . . he took to the pipe like a babe on the teat. My friend was born to smoke a pipe! So much so that he used his talents with wood working and made some beautiful pipes. He is a Morta smoker that swears by the bog-wood. He has gifted two Morta pipes to Dorothy and I. Dorothy has a Poker with a white stem and I have a Tomato Author dubbed “The Nauthor”. Both are great smokers!

We visit my friend and his wife from time to time. Those days I regard as some of the happiest times of my life. We eat, smoke, laugh, and simply enjoy each other’s company. We talk about our pasts as well as current events and even future possibilities. During those conversations we are almost always smoking. He seemingly always smokes something with Dark Fired Kentucky in it. If the blend doesn’t have DFK in it, he will pinch a bit in his pipe. Heavy nicotine blends are something that he, Dorothy, as well as myself have always welcomed in our pipes. I have always enjoyed HH Old Dark Fired, but in order to understand my friend a bit better I delved into the stronger Dark Fired blends that offer a bit more of the Vitamin N. That journey eventually led me to HH Bold Kentucky.

When you open a tin of HH Bold Kentucky you are greeted with a bit of vinegar, a bit of sweetness, as well as a mildly savory and earthy smell. Folding and stuffing Bold Kentucky is a must in my book. The char-light can be a bit difficult, but once you char the tobacco . . . it smokes perfectly fine with little issue. When you smoke this blend you immediately get the Dark Fired Kentucky in all its earthy, spicy, tart greatness. You will also be reminded of barbecue every now and then as you smoke. If your cadence is true, then you will even taste the grassy Virginias. Obviously adding sweetness to the blend, they also add a bit of citrus and dried fruit to the observant piper. The Nicotine is GLORIOUS! If you can handle your Vitamin N, this tobacco will never disappoint you. The calming effect is quite lovely. A friendly PSA to those lovers of HH Old Dark Fired that crave more strength . . . look no further than HH Bold Kentucky.

Due to the worldwide pandemic I have not been able to visit my friend for quite some time. We have kept in contact via text, telephone, and even the occasional video conferencing app. I am not sure if he has ever had the pleasure of smoking HH Bold Kentucky himself. If not, that will be remedied the next time I pay him a visit. I honestly think that I am able to understand my friend’s taste a bit better due in large part to this tobacco. As I type this and smoke a final bowl of this blend for quite some time (due to the fact that I smoked quite a bit of it this past week for this review) I realize that it is truly a wonderful blend that is great to smoke alone . . . but will be even better when smoked amongst good friends.

~ Barry

Well. Having smoked quite a number of Toscano cigars over my long smoking life, I consider myself as a Kentucky aficionado. Nice that Mac Baren – a brand getting my appreciation even if in alternate phases… - has put on the market a couple of Kentucky flakes.

Thanks to a friend I’ve put my hands on a couple of 50grms tins. I’m working the first, but it’s a job slower than expected. This is not calling me very often, and I don’t know the reason, since it has all its features in the most perfect order. It’s considerably milder than some Lakeland beasts (say a GH’s Dark Flake) and sweeter than a Peterson’s Irish Flake, due to some Virginia. Smokes cool and steady.

I thinks it depends on the fact that lately my preference goes to Kentuckies (or, in general terms, dark fireds) in ribbon form (say DBE or our italian rustics). Just like I prefer the Virginias in flake form. It’s a matter of personal preference.

In terms of flavour, balance and quality, HHBK is top notch. Out of question.

This is a strong flavored blend of dark Kentucky and Virginias hot pressed into uniform flakes roughly 3/4 x 3 inches. Beatifully presented n a square tin wrapped in gold foil. The count is very generous and I was impressed by the sheer volume of tobacco in this tin. The smoke is wonderful creamy and voluminous. It was moist in the tin and so I dried it for a while in the sun whilst I watched my beloved Yankees take another drubbing at the hands of the evil Red Sox. A few glasses of red wine and a few relights later and I am sitting here writing this review with a nice satisfying nic hit after a nice flavorful enjoying smoke. Great stuff! I will have this tin to enjoy for a while as it dries out a bit and mellows. The meer was a precaution that was not necessary and I look forward to enjoying this fine blend in my regular briar rotation. Not for the faint of heart. Needs time to fully enjoy this delicious tobacco.

The KY is the star of the show. It is earthy, spicy, slightly nutty at times and has a small note of molasses. The bright VA's have a slight citrus note that comes with the normal and expected notes of hay. The casing seems to have a little anise note which is subtle and perhaps a subtle hint of vinegar as well. That said, this is a good straight tobacco but it lacks the complexity of a four star rating. When I think of great VA/KY blends I think of GH's Dark Flake, and Dark Bird's Eye, or Solani's 660 Silver Flake (which has more VA's than this), and all are way more complex than this one. Overall, however, a good tobacco and worth a look if you like VA/KY blends.