Robert McConnell Red Virginia

Red Virginia is a tobacco I actually like. Yes, there is a top note that reminds me of chocolate, but there seems also to be some cherry and even something floral as well. But it never really lasts more than a few minutes upon lighting up. Then, what I am smoking is Red Vas that are better, IMHO, than Wessex Classic Virginia. You see, Red VAs, on their own, are rather unidimensional, just like BUs. So a little bit of topping helps toawards enhancing the taste. RV burns fairly well and will bite if one is not careful. Overall, it is more towards the medium side in strenght than mild. As the tobacco is really on the moist side, I recommend you let dry out in the tine over a period of about 4 weeks before contemplating smoking it. Too moist, it is rather bland and tends to bite significantly (as with all moist tobaccos). I have another tin that I will let age for a year or two and revisit. Will I rebuy? Yes, I think so. It has its interest.

Excellent, superb tobacco. The best Virginia I have never smoked. It is without any doubt Straight Virginia. Perhaps, at the biginning, there was a hint of Perique, but now I can't find any Perique in it. I heartily recommend this tobacco to the Virginia lovers. Mark 10!

UPDATE 2021-3-1 Not the same as 7 years ago or maybe my taste is changing. The doubt about Perique remains, probably there is a pinch. But actually this straight Virginia is flavored with chocolate and it is not the wonderful tobacco I remember. At the moment it is a good Virginia, slightly flavored, but nothing special at all. One less star, three stars is a correct rating.

Really disappointed by this I thought it was a tobacco VA/PER instead it is an ARO.It smells of cake like danish tobaccos.Buy it if you like ARO not if you like VA/PER

This was my first meeting with VaPer. And i must say i was a little "scared" of the perique. But as many other have stated, it has very little perique in it. You can feel it but it will not take over. There is also a small taste of some red-berry-thing that i really liked. It becomes a threeway where the fine red virginia is in center and the other two plays wingmen. A perfect balance! I smoked most of the tin in an MM corncob and almost every bowl i smoked tasted perfect. I will buy this again and then i will take a 100g tin. I would like to call it a starter VaPer just because of its mild taste. The perique tickles the mouth but then the red-berry-thing comes a smoothens it all up.

Just try it and you´ll see what i mean.

The 'touch of Perique' is just enough to add some balance to the Red Virginia. A very nice, relaxing smoke, undemanding but (to me) very satisfying, balanced, and fairly full for its strength.

This is a subtle and graceful tobacco. Not at all aggressive, it is a refined, friendly, and to a certain extent delicate Virginia, rather easy to smoke. I do not know if McClelland had this tobacco in mind when they developed their Red Cake in bulk, but I detect a faint similarity in taste and aroma. Being both excellent tobaccos, RVS has perhaps a more consistent body, and IMO conveys a fuller, more emotional smoke. There is a certain wood like character that gives its simplicity depth, and, as it were, eloquence to its apparent plainness. This may be the result of that dash of Perique the blender purports in the tobacco's description. Non the less, RVS is a very mellow and smooth blend.

Tin aroma is inviting. I believe it is one which a new pipe smoker may find mild enough to be attractive, yet sufficiently rich to be appreciated by a seasoned pipe smoker. I ignore what the topping in this tobacco is. Yet it is applied with utter care and prudence, so that it does not interfere with the natural taste of tobacco leaf, but subtly enhances it, underlining the tangy sweetness inherent in red Virginias. RVS comes slightly moist in the tin, so a bit of airing is advisable just before packing in.

Lighting is quite simple and its burning rate is commendable. Without being a completely out of the ordinary smoke (personally, I can not think of this as a Perique containing blend) this Virginia is highly recommended as an enlivening change of pace, especially when in the mood for a slightly sweet natural smoke.

This isn't a tobacco that triggers deep thoughts on the first smoke. You don't think anything the second time you try it, either. As a matter of fact, this isn't a tobacco that will ever jump into your mind. Yet you will notice yourself reaching for it almost everytime you go to fill a pipe, almost unconsciously. An insidious tobacco.

Extremely pleasant. The light flavoring agent really takes the bite out of the virginias, and you really won't find the perique a major player at all.

Good, plain tobacco with a pleasant sweetness. An all day smoke if it had more strength--but if it had more strength it wouldn't be as pleasant.

The manufacturer claims that this is one of the old recipes that have been preserved since 1848, but based on the review, I’d rather not to believe that.

Appearance: the jar I opened had a "Q4 2019" excise stamp. There were no other date stamps on the can. The jar turned out to be an almost monochromatic light brown blend of rather bright hue, with occasional flecks of light Virginia and even more occasional flecks of darker perique. The tobacco is frankly damp, the manufacturer didn't spare glycerin - the mixture didn't dry out in the open air even after half an hour. After waiting some more time, I still achieved what I think is an acceptable humidity (or rather dryness) of tobacco to stuff it into the pipe.

Flavor: dense note of baked fruit, some fresh strawberry and caramel (what?), faintly noticeable allspice, and over it all - very dense bittersweet chocolate smell, which obviously has an artificial origin. After the tobacco sat in the air for ten minutes, the caramel evaporated, the roasted fruit lost a lot of intensity, there was a slight note of muffins, but other typical Virginia notes were not catching because of the powerful chocolate topping.

Taste: calm and very unassuming. Virginia woodiness obviously dominates, especially after the chocolate topping makes way for it, fading away by the end of the first third of the pipe. A sweetish fruity note lingers in the background, but there are no hints of bread, floral or herbal tones. The initially noticeable, but obviously faint, soft perique spiciness almost completely disappears by the middle of the pipe. The tobacco is a little harsh to the taste at the beginning, about the end of the first third of the pipe it calms down and turns into a very mild blend, but remains demanding to the rate of smoking until the very end, immediately giving off a bitter taste when overheated. If you take your time, the tobacco burns quite cool and slow, but leaves some moisture in the pipe, burning out into gray ash with some dark lumps. The strength of the tobacco is below average, and if you take into account the leisurely pace of smoking - nicotine hit is not a threat. The aftertaste is woody-sweet, not persistent.

The tobacco smoke has a slightly spicy aroma with a woody base. It is not persistent and wears off quickly, not disturbing others at all.

What's the bottom line? I have mixed impressions. The blend is frankly good, in general, as an everyday tobacco. But its cost in our market for a long time was higher than the competitors. Now the situation has improved, the tobacco is on sale at a decent price. Its taste, of course, can hardly be called bright or outstanding. Personally, I prefer Carolina Red Flake, and if you want a blend with more perique, its sister, Carolina Red Flake with Perique. But this tobacco is frankly not bad. By the way, if you have pure perique on your shelf, try adding it to this tobacco - it becomes brighter and more interesting. My mark is 2.5 of 4.

I had found RV intriguing for a long time and had heard variously different assessments over the last decade. I finally took the plunge and was quite excited I did. The tin art depicts a Native American and random white devil, the former smoking a pipe and the latter appears to be enjoying a pinch of snuff. They seem to agree on tobacco, while not necessarily the method of ingestion.

Leon is right, this tobacco smells lightly of strawberry candy when first cracked. I would suggest a combination of chocolate and sour fruit after some air. The strawberry dissipated and the chocolate topping became more evident.

This is a ready rub preparation of red and quite a lot of orange leaf. It is very basic when smoked. You get a Muzak version of your favorite Virginia flavors, but they are all fairly muddled and mild. There are some quite clear black tea notes late in each bowl. I could not readily identify the Perique in the tin or on the smoke itself. The chocolate topping can be tasted mid bowl, and the strawberry comes and goes, barely notable in the retrohale. The strawberry is quite strong on the room note which is why this blend was pleasant to bystanders.

This would be an excellent blend for aromatic smokers to broaden their horizons with. I would also recommend this blend to any and all who fear Perique, because there basically isn’t any there. I found that while the combustion qualities were attractive, this one could irritate my tongue a bit