Robert McConnell Scottish Blend

Curious… I bought this from a shop in Edinburgh in rode rot try Scottish from Scotland (whatever that means 🙂

Spicy smoke. And under notes of rose and strawberry jam.

Hard to keep lit.

Not as moist as people suggest on opening tin.

Its ok… Ive had better. I will finish it up and try other blends.

UPDATE: 2nd go…. much nicer. Dried fruits and spirits flavors. Smoother and still moist in can 2 weeks after opening as the can has super tight seal.

UPDATED AGAIN!! 😛 Smokey, yummy, delicious. Acacia honey, BBQ, brandy, dried fruits. Its goooood! Will buy more

Growing on me.. Enjoyable.

I recently decided to get back into English Blends after a 10 year hiatus, having switched to smoking only pure VA's, VA /Burley and VaPer's.

At this stage I'm looking for lighter to medium English blends; not the Latakia forward tobaccos I formerly smoked such as Charles Fairmorn Lancer's Slices, Esoterica Margate & Penzance, etc. So I ordered various tins based on some reviews here.

My goals above have been met, and my take on this tobacco is pretty much in synch with DenizBeck below. However I do not detect any Dextrose or flavoring.

This is a very, very nice English blend, with nice balance, restrained Latakia, and the VA, Orientals and Cavendish are well balanced and all contribute with no one leaf dominating the experience. It is complex, smooth, very easy to smoke and stays lit really well.

Honestly, other than not being a strong mixture, the back tin label description summarizes it well. The contents on my tin's back label states "a rather strong mixture in the English style, made of full Bodied Black Cavendish, naturally sweet Virginia, smoky Latakia, exotic flowery Orient Turkish and a pinch of spicy Perique, which is very balanced and rich in aroma".

Highly recommended from my perspective.

Robert McConnell - Scottish Blend.

One of my first reviews that I didn't think much to so have decided to re-post.

A mid-size ribbon, with an equal quantity of brown, yellow, and black pieces. I usually find the moisture good.

Scottish' has lots of flavour. The Kentucky adds a definite character, but doesn't rule the smoke. This is prevented by its counterparts. The Turkish and Latakia form a buttery, woody, support, with the Cavendish and Virginia sweetening the smoke. The smoke has a fairly thick texture, and is of medium a temperature. I've never had a bite from it.

Nicotine: medium. Room-note: pleasant.

I can see why this has been around for over a century. Highly recommended:

Four stars.

Scottish Blend, this is the only real Scottish mixture from Robert McConnell. The other two, Scottish Cake and Scottish Flake, are not Scottish at all. Both don’t have Latakia and both don’t have unflavored Black Cavendish. Scottish Cake is a Virginia/Kentucky mixture and Scottish Flake is a Virginia/Perique mixture. That said, Scottish Blend is a good and tasty mixture, even if a typical Scottish mixture contains a little bit of Latakia and in Scottish Blend there is a lot of it. Black Cavendish is correctly unflavored and Virginia is of good quality. Kentucky and Turkish feel less but they blend (mix) the mixture very well. In my personal rating system (from 1 to 10) my score is 8 and three stars.

UPDATE: 2017 – 11 – 05: At the moment I think this is the best Scottish blend you can find in the market. For this reason I add a star. 4 complete stars.

Musty. That is the recurring theme I get, from first light to the end of the bowl. Earthy, modestly dark, a bit smoky and intermingled with occasional notes of spice and pepper. Musty.

But in the right setting, like New England autumn and winter, this is a most agreeable blend. It does not demand much attention, is not very strong, but is a fine accompaniment for contemplation on crisp, grey days alongside a cup of coffee. It provides enough slight variations and body to satisfy and stay interesting in the background of one's thoughts. It required little to no drying, burns at an easy pace and leaves a fine ash.

That said, I can see where Latakia fans will be potentially underwhelmed, as will those looking for bolder spice or intensity of flavor. Indeed, the mustiness I enjoy may come across to some as flatness.

For me, this blend works much, much better in a tall pipe than a low, wide one. The former seems to lend more concentration of flavor, whereas the latter dissipates most of the nuances.

UPDATE: I keep being drawn to this, and enjoying it, so I am upgrading from Recommended to Highly Recommended. Also, I notice that one of nice things about this blend is that unlike many Latakia blends, this one leaves a toasty nutty spice flavor on my tongue, rather than a heavy Latakia coating.

Very pleasant smoke of complex and elegant tobacco, with round flavors, and harmonious notes of Latakia. The moisture of the mixture is correct and very well balanced. You can obtain a nice slow smoke without any bite at all.

Highly recommended as simple and well-balanced tobacco.

Parliano di una miscela originale, preparata dal 1848, rivista più volte ma sempre grande prodotto.

Apriamo la latta dall'inconfondibile colore verde e saremo accolti dall'affumicato del Latakia, ma non spaventiamoci, ad annusare bene sentiamo sentori terrosi del Virginia e il cuoio del Kentucky. Il ribbon è ben preparato, solo occhio a qualche occasionale costola della foglia. I colori hanno una bella tavolozza varia dei toni del marrone. Il tabacco è però umido, non da rendersi infumabile, ma questo è un tabacco che va sedotto, mettiamolo ad arieggiare un oretta o due, bello aperto, portemo poi apprezzarlo al massimo. Personalmente lo preferisco quasi secco, ma andiamo nel personale e fuori dalla degustazione.

La pipa migliore deve essere bella profonda, ampia; non deve essere una fumata breve. Accesa alla maniera antica: fiammifero lungo, osserveremo la vita propria del tabacco che si gonfia alla fiamma, si muove e crepita. Questo essere dinamico, mi affascina sempre, il nostro amico tabacco è un qualche cosa di vivo, dinamico che si agita, vive al repiro del fumatore e col respiro del fumatore regala aromi diversi, appaganti e diversi.

Il Kenticky appare subito, domina, carattere virile, maschio e deciso, ma questo sa essere controbilanciato dalle altre componenti, il Virginia subito addolcisce questa tonalità, un Viginia quasi mai fruttato, terroso ed erbaceo, gli Orientali fanno da contrappunto un contrappunto molto strutturato, corposo alcuni lo chiamano burroso da come l'amaricante avvolge la miscela, Il Cavendish è la parte dolce che sa fare il giro di danza giusto nel costruire una voluttuà unica, diverse da altre EM (si sempre nella famiglia delle EM siamo).

Il fumo, nonostante le componemti non è mai troppo caldo e respirato a fil di fumo riesce a donare ua fumata intensa, mai volgare. Occhio a non forzare il fumo la miscela si scompone e diventa aspra, volgare e non più piacevole. Va meditata, fumata per il gusto della fumata, non per compulsività, anche perchè non perdona e la botta ti arriva quando meno te l'aspetti.

Un tabacco invernale per antonomasia, non necessita per forza il pasto lauto per essere fumato, lo fumi per meditare, accompagnato o da un buon distillato secco (quello che ti piace di più) oppure un tea scuro.

Se si ha avuta la fortuna di assaggiare la Scottish di Davidoff, si nota un carattere più marcato, più English.

Il Kentucky fa la differenza, rende sicuramente un tocco in più che è quel sentore ci concia che fa maschia la miscela. A chi dedicarla? A quel fumature maturo che cerca la fumata meditativa, da estraniarsi dal mondo, dagli stress e poter essere accompagnato ed avvolto da una dolce compagna che sa sedurti, abbracciarti e avvolgerti in un amplesso sensoriale inebriante. Non è arrogantem ma è seducente.

Una nota negativa? Il prezzo, al solito che in questa nostra bella penisola il fumatore è un esssre da speremere.

Il voto? 4,8/5

This is the kind of English blend I love...Scottish......not too heavy on the Latakia, a little Cavendish to sweeten things up, nice and creamy...another great blend from K+K in Germany. A little too moist in the tin but that's no major fault. This goes along with Solani's Eng Lux Mix as a great middle of the road English. That said it's sometimes closer to an oriental than a English Latkia, and also a bit too peaty to be called a true Scottish. A great subltle, creamy and sweet oriental/latakia blend.

Scottish Blend: An English blend with Cavendish, a light English blend, an English blend with burley, an English blend with peat, an English blend made from floor sweepings of various English blends, or wha?eers thrufty. Take it from me, even though it is farmed out to Sassenach, McConnell?s IS Scottish Blend - hey, there?s a thistle right on the tin, for Peat?s sake. If the pipe world let this blend settle the confusion, it could do no better.

Scottish Blend is a beautiful mix of thin ribbon cut reds, blacks, and cream colored tobaccos packed neatly in its oil stained paper doily inside a somewhat compact 50G tin (I hate the sickly avocado green pseudo-toile label). The aroma that emerges on opening the tin is intoxicating. If you like Latakia and Turkish, you are in for a treat, my brother. Moisture content: ideal. Almost packs itself.

The charring light releases a glorious mix of oriental tang, soft mesquite campfire, and, surprise! sweet black Cavendish, (which just occasionally pops up once or twice early during a bowl). By mid-bowl it has settled into a wonderfully smooth, balanced groove of lataturkish with the Virginia starting to work.

By the home stretch the sweet is gone. The Turkish and Cavendish have left the party, and your old pals the Virginian, the Cajun, and the Cypriot stay to finish the last few drams with you? cool, mellow, smoky, joy.

This tobacco probably won?t satisfy the true ?Balkan Vampires? as one genius reviewer put it, or the diehard clubmen who regularly bathe themselves in Nightcap and wake up every morning to a bowl of Early Morning, but it is a great walk on the wild side for just about anybody else. In fact, if you don?t really crave Latakia, but occasionally enjoy Early Morning, Aperitif, or Presbyterian Mixture, give Scottish Blend a try. Certainly one of the best of the mild Latakia blends.