Robert McConnell Red Virginia

In the tin this smells like a chocolate souffle, spiced with tobacco. It literally smells tastey enough for dessert. It is similar in all respects to some Astley tobaccos I have smoked. The smoke is a very mild, sweetened Virginia. I do not taste the perique nor the topping. Every once in a while, I will pull a tin out of the cellar just to see if aging has added anything. So far, nothing new. After I finish up the supply I have, I doubt I will buy any more. Meantime, this is not a bad smoke. It could be an all day smoke for some or an introduction to Virginias for others. It is worth a try, but do not expect that distinctive Virginia flavor nor the tang of perique. Reservedly recommended. Paddy.

If I could give stars for the quality of a blend, and not just the frequency that I choose it, beyond a doubt McConnell's Red Virginia would merit all four stars, with clusters to boot.

A medium strength, and coloured, broken flake honeydew, it has been given a wonderful and subtle topping. Whoever formulated this blend in the bygone years truly merits recognition and accolades. I feel rather grateful that it is still available, no matter where it's from.

It is not at all strong, so wouldn't be my first choice for a cold windy day. But neither is the tobacco meek, counting on mere additives to save the day. Rather it is subtle, sure of itself, and if I had to choose one word to describe it, "clear" would be it. I'm ashamed to admit that the perique doesn't jump out...has too much "Escudo" ruined me?

It is not always my first pick, but whenever I light a bowl of this blend I think to myself: "this is why I smoke a pipe!"

Perique is present in small amounts and peppers it from time to time. This blend burns slowly and is semi-sweet with nice but discrete aroma.
Virginia is star here, very tacky, excitingly dark, earthy, woody, sugary red Virginia. Touch of chocolate from a topping but not very dominant. All day smoke, but in small puffs, it can bite if too aggressive, it can leave a little moisture at the end of bowl.

This is an interesting offering.

Red VAs are richer, stronger, sweeter and spicier than regular VAs.

With a bit of Périque, this mixture becomes something any pipe smoker would like to try.

I will rebuy!

A very good blend, solid 3.5 stars. I'm tightening up on my ratings and only give 4 stars to my top 5 blends that are in my core rotation of tobaccos. Those at this date are Escudo, Penzance, University Flake, Churchill & still deciding what the 5th will be.

I hope this is the right stuff. The tin I bought didn't say "superb". It just read "the original RED VIRGINIA pipe tobacco". And had a picture of an Indian and a white guy sitting and smoking.

I bought a tin of this yesterday, packed my GBD Rockroot and must say that i Enjoyed it. It reminds me a little of Davidoff's Oriental, but a little bit more "spicier". At first I thought it was toungue bite, but I think it was the perique. I will have to give i few more test puffs to give a really good analasys.

If you are wanting to explore the world of tobacco beond the regular standbys, then I would recomend trying a tin. And again, If you are ONLY into the Cpt. Black type mega sweet "Sundae-in-a-briar", then reach for the can of blue note on the next shelf.

As you can probably tell, I am by NO MEANS an expert. In my book, There are 2 kinds of tobacco. There's GOOD and there's GARBAGE. This is GOOD :-). That is only one man's opinion.

Apparently my style has changed from my original review, because I like this blend all round, including the cherry-something top dressing. The flavor is also a bit heavier than I remember it. BTW, my tin says nothing about "Red Virginia Superb". It reads: "The Original Red Virginia Pipe Tobacco," and was distributed by James B. Norman and blended in the EU. This picks up a star.

Original review from 2005: Good quality and all, but the cherry/licorice top dressing is not my style. Nice for an occassional aromatic diversion and a nice compromise if non-smokers are being considered. Real tobacco flavor is not covered by the flavorings. I wonder if this is anything like Rattray's Terry Red?

The tin aroma is very inviting. The tobacco packs and lights easily. Care must be taken while smoking this blend or it will bite. However, if you keep your pace slow you will be rewarded with nice tobacco flavor and the subtle sweetness associated with red virginias. The tobacco burned clean to the bottom. I would rate this tobacco somewhat higher if not for its tendency to bite when smoked inattentively.