Robert McConnell Original Oriental

Robert McConnell's Oriental is a blend that should be tried by all pipe smokers. I like oriental blends, and this one is no exception. Oriental loads easily in any size pipe. It lights easily, burns throughout the bowl with only the occasional tamp, and leaves a fairly clean, dry pipe. A smooth, tasty blend, the tobaccos meld into a well orchestrated, well behaved smoking experience. I was rewarded through the bowl with a nutty sweet and creamy smoke. IMHO, Oriental is the best blend of it's kind.

I love this tobacco and it's overall mildness. It has that classic Scottish/English character from light virginia, oriental and latakia but with a light to medium character. This reminds me of what Rattray's Highland Targe used to be like. Of course, it's all different these days but these McConnell blends still have that classic character to them. However, this is a soft smooth tobacco. Not for someone who needs heavy nicotine or massive complexity.

Great quality in the leaf, and an very easy smoking blend.

I usually smoke VA's flakes and I'm not addicted to English blends (I've tryed Dunhill's London Mixture less than a year ago, but nothing more than that), however after smoking it I can say this "Colonian" is nice enough for my pipe. I'm not sure about that, but probably half is Virginia and half oriental, with a small amount of Latakia and some other light tobacco (¿another kind of Virginia?). It smells rich and full without being boring. Packing it is simple explecially if you came from VA flakes. At first is very neutral, but after few minutes it gets interesting and you can smell various flavours (i.e. the nuances of a good virginia added to the classical oriental scent). The smoke is tasty but it never gets too strong and it always stays cool; this tobacco is definitely easy to smoke. The only drawback is that the mixture is quite simple (actually the taste does not change very much while smoking), but I think this is O.K. for an all day tobacco like this one.

I have smoked from two different tins of this, with a very different opinion. The rating given is for an older tin from the early 90?s. This is a spectacular smoke. Early flavor is somewhat sour and does well to set it aside for 20 minutes or so after smoking for 5-10 minutes. The result is a wonderful medium English that moves on to become a very tasty Balkan style smoke, with an increasing darkness and smokiness as the bowl progresses. (5/2002)

A subsequent in from 2001 smokes without the complexity, and is not the same blend at all. Further notes to come. (5/2002)

I recently opened a tin of this that had aged on the shelf a bit. It is labeled as made in the EU, but does not have a made in Germany label. I suspect that this is from approximately ?98-00..giving it 3-5 years or so in the tin. This was highly improved from the virtually unaged tin smoked in 2002, but not as good as the older tin. Whether this is a function of age or production, I don?t know. The flavor was much more complex, with a stronger presentation of the nutty oriental components in the midrang (March, 2004)

Not the easiest blend to find, Oriental reinforces my opinion that Latakia is not the most important component of an English/Balkan blend. Don't get me wrong- I love Latakia as much as the next guy, and probably more, but it's the other Orientals (and not just the women) that get my blood running.

If Virginia is the Cabernet Sauvignon of the pipe world- big, bold, and authoritative- then the Orientals are surely Pinot Noir- light, fragrant, and ethereal. They are aromatic, in the proper sense of the word.

McConnell's Oriental is a very nice product that's a wonderful alternative to the heavier English blends without sacrificing anything in terms of taste.

A real star, subtle and delicate. Has none of the sharpness of most balkan blends. A rich smooth smoke dominated by the orientals of course but rich and complex. A must try tobacco.

When trying the McConnell range, I had to keep in mind that the same guys do the Rattrays line. The tin had a strong aroma of orientals, hence the name. I packed this in an old Barling prince, and lit it up. Charring produced the acidic taste which one should expect, with the Va.'s keeping pace. Smoked cool and steady, a flavorful tobacco, which could be classified as medium, a little stronger towards the bottom, which is expected. Tasty, not in your face, to quote one, and could be an all day smoke. A good blend.

In the tin, this is a finely-chopped ribbon of blacks and dark browns with a little bright leaf. The tin aroma is quite pungently Oriental. Tin moisture is near perfect and the chopped ribbon is easy to load. First light gives a very cool, almost neutral smoke with just a touch of Oriental acridity to the flavour and aroma. As the bowl progresses, the smoke stays wonderfully cool, subtle, and lightly sweet with a hint of nuttiness. This is hardly an in-your-face full English, but it is a very nice quiet friendly blend with excellent breeding and manners. Recommended.