Tobaccos John Cotton - John Cotton's Smyrna

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3046)	2015-08-19		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable

The Cyprian Latakia is smoky, woody, earthy, musty sweet as a team player. The Orientals and Turkish are fairly buttery sweet with a touch of sour, and are very woody, herbal, floral and mildly spicy with a deep smoky earthiness as it takes a light lead. Obviously, you can credit the Smyrna for most of that. Playing back-up is a citrusy sweet, lightly grassy, slightly earthy, woody brown Virginia. You can taste all of the inherent tobaccos flavors in every puff. Burns clean and cool with some complexity, and has a refined creamy, spicy sweet, campfire smoothness that makes you think there might be a little less Latakia than there is. Has no dull or harsh moments, and won't bite. The flavor is consistent from top to bottom and translate to the pleasantly lingering after taste. One might think all the spice would nip at your tongue if you puff fast, but that doesn’t happen, nor will it bite, though I do suggest smoking it at a moderate pace. This is the spiciest blend in this company’s line up. The strength is just past the center of medium to strong, and the taste level is full. The nic-hit is medium, and it seems to get a little stronger in the last quarter of the smoke. Burns at a reasonable pace, and requires an average number of relights. Virtually leaves no moisture in your bowl, and produces volumes of smoke as you go along to that fine white ash. The room note is stronger than a camp fire; very pungent. Not an all day smoke.

-JimInks

34 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2015-09-13		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

At first view and whiff of the sample baggie, this appears to be a more latakia-heavy version of #1/#2. A little more black in the blend with a heavier latakia aroma. Lighting it up takes it to another level. That level happened to me a lower one for me but it was different.

First of all, this one had one of the best room notes of any tobacco, and it beats out the venerable Dunhill EMP for me in that regard (a tobacco I do not smoke). An aroma so delectable I wanted to eat it! In the smoke, this is a spicier, heavier taste than #1/2. It tasted latakia-heavy but not a "lat bomb", those blends which leave me cold with their dusty, monodimensional flavor. This has a nice shot of Smyrna which both spices up the proceedings and makes the blend kind of creamy as it melds with the latakia. This one is well rounded but with latakia at the forefront and might be a nice change of pace for those who are used to tasting nothing but latakia. The perfect balance of #1/2 was missing but I don't think balance is quite the point here, as this leans towards the smoky leaf. As a result, I found this one less complex than it's lighter stablemate. This blend, while not a rotation-maker for me, is just too well done to merit anything less than a three. I never got a chance to smoke the original but if it was this good, it earned its reputation.

19 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SteelCowboy (685)	2016-03-03		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

The prior version of John Cotton’s Smyrna was the only in the line I never had the opportunity to enjoy. The new version, blended by Russ Ouellette offers a tin scent that is a little musty, smoky and a bit sour in a good way. Like a lot of Russ’s blends, I find the moisture level less than many other blends which is something that I appreciate. I was somewhat surprised, based on the scent that more Latakia comes through the smoke than I had anticipated. With that said, there is plenty of Oriental/Turkish flavor to satisfy. Smyrna starts out spicier than I prefer, but it quickly settles down as the flavors come together offering a fair amount of complex flavors. There is body, depth and what I would describe a richness to Smyrna too. There is no bite, but being a bit of a “puffer” it does burn warm for me when pushed. There is a nice interplay between the musty/earthiness of the Orientals and the sweetness of the Virginia. Smyrna nicely fills a unique space in a crowded field.

Age When Smoked: New

17 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	fr_tom (393)	2015-10-03		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

The pouch note is smoky latakia and some sweet/sour. The tobacco itself looks like roughly equal parts of light yellow, brown and black chopped narrow ribbon. It came at a good moisture level for me and the short ribbon is easy to load. I smoked it mostly in a Cayuga pot or a a GBD Prehistoric pot. They smoked it about the same.

Smoking it brings out all the flavors in the pouch note. It has sweet and sour. The campfire smokiness is there and gains and loses strength. The Virginia is a little grassy and has a fruit note now and then. The spiciness is always in the background. The description here sounds complex, and it is. The tastes play nicely together and make for a great combo. It might take some practice to smoke this absent-mindedly while doing something else, but it might be worth setting some time aside too.

It was an easy smoke, and it burned cool, stayed lit, etc. It did not leave any moisture in the pipe. While it did not smoke to a fine gray ash since there were some black cinders in the bottom of the bowl, it was pretty close to achieving this legendary state o' combustion.

I am claiming strength is medium and taste is medium to full. This blend was very good, and it is in a crowded category with a lot of competition for the tobacco dollar. This is a solid 3+.

15 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TallPuffO'Burley (633)	2015-09-24		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

My third of the five review samples I received. I must say I had low expectations for this one as most blends that call out Smyrna, or iszmir as it is also known, usually don't do a lot for me. Well this one shattered those expectations. It is fantastic. Smooth, cool, spicy and sweet with a fantastic side stream to boot.

This is one of the better Balkan type blends I have tasted and I will certainly be putting up a few tins of this when they become available to the public. This one seems to let the Smyrna shine while keeping a respectable balance between the earth sweet Virginias and the smokiness from the Latakia, which is lightly applied.

This one is fantastic, so much so, that I have even started bidding on old tins of this on ebay in hopes of scoring one at a not to obscene price.

13 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2017-01-18		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

I actually think STC's rendition of Cotton's Smyrna is stronger (in the nicotine department) than the original. The Smyrna is of good quality, but of course, totally different in flavor and presentation than the original, which had some of the finest small center cut Smyrna leaf that the world had to offer (and back in the "good" old days, there was a lot more variety and grades to choose from). The way Russ O. put together the various tobaccos was masterfully done and this is a quality smoke that I believe will be really good with some real age to it.

12 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	tabaco (112)	2016-02-02		Mild	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant

An excellent blend, complex rich and not too heavy with some mild Virginia sweetness, Nicotine not overly noticeable, thankfully. A slight cigarette note albeit 'good European cigarette' thanks to the Smyrna (lzmir), a very nice room-note as well. The quality is right up there with JF Germain and a very similar cut too. I don't collect empty tins; however, the classic logo is great.

My tin was a tad dry, added a few drops of water, let leaves balance themselves out for 4 or 5 days. There's no casing apart from water not even Propylene glycol; nice to see, akin to JF Germain's King Charles.

I adored this one cellar worthy without question, with extra thanks to Russ, Larry and the rest of the gang for their attention to detail, virtually a dead-ringer.

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	afiddler (1)	2015-12-15		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

John Cotton's Smyrna is an oriental blend comprised of mostly longer thin ribbon cut tobacco. The components are visually some light tan, mostly brown and some short black ribbon. The moisture level is perfect out of the tin and ready to smoke. This blend is medium in flavor and is smooth and fairly creamy. The dominant flavor is toasty like a heavily roasted nut with a moderate musty pungence. There is a constant interplay between a sour note and the sweetness of the virginias. The sour note is usually present with the sweetness sometimes coming forward and replacing it. There is a sustained constant level of sweetness to the smoke. There is often a spicy and floral flavor that punches forward, but usually stays in the background. There is a slight smokiness that fills out the foundation of the flavor profile and comes with a slightly woody taste. Towards the end of the bowl the flavor mellows out and becomes a bit more smokey. Overall I found this to be a pretty complex blend and very enjoyable. I would highly recommend this blend since it is flavorful and interesting without any harshness or overbearance.

Pipe Used: Briar Clay Cob

Age When Smoked: Fresh

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Phonomet (44)	2015-10-04		Medium	None Detected	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

I'm a bit biased as I am typing my review while smoking the heavenly bottom half of the bowl where the sweet latakia and sour Smyrna leaves are working their magic. To risk unfair comparisons, JC Smyrna is not as floral as Whiteknight, nor as leathery as Black House, nor as zingy as Magnum Opus, but woodsy with a cedar-y tang. Highly recommended.

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Rustedrailsmokes (293)	2019-01-18		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Received a sample of this to try in my tin society box. Never had a chance to try prior versions of this, but they are now on my "hope to find someday list".

In the bag/tin had a spicy, smoky smell. I enjoy Turkish tobaccos and used to smoke camels, so I packed the bowl with the easy to pack ribbons and was able to fire up my Castello Bulldog without even a charring light.

First thing I noticed was lots of creamy smoke. It burns cool and produced clouds of smoke. I know we're not vapors.. but its nice to get white clouds sometimes too..

Taste was a combination led by the Smyrna and complimented by the latakias. Consistent through each bowl from start to finish with no major changes. Very consistent and stay lit without any major relights, except when I set it down for 5 minutes.

This is a blend I could see smoking all day as the nic hit was mild to my taste and there was no bite. I'm going to be getting some of this to cellar and add it to my normal rotation.

Pipe Used: Castello Bulldog

Age When Smoked: Fresh from Tin

Purchased From: tinsociety.com

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Philo Beddoe (221)	2018-11-19		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I’m kicking myself in the ass for not getting to this sooner, John Cotton’s Smyrna is terrific! The taste is very similar to the current iteration of Smokers Haven’s Our Best Blend, which is one of my favorites. Spicy, smokey, rich and very satisfying, if you enjoy full English or Balkan style tobaccos this should make you quite happy, highly recommended.

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Uban (60)	2018-10-28		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant

My impression seems a bit different from what I've read; opening the tin let loose a huge aroma of "C" stuff: cinnamon, cloves, cumin, caraway, camellia, chrysanthemum - I thought that someone had been fooling with it. It came in the tin dry enough to light right up, so I loaded a Duke and got on with it. First impression was all those lovely spices layered over some smooth base. That quickly showed itself to be Va and Lat in beautiful proportion. I really don't remember the old stuff, but this is TOP CLASS. The tin note is unusually floral and the first few puffs the same. The base darker leaf kicks in soon, rounding the flavor. Then it settles to a mild sweetness for the nearly incense-like smoke. Then it's over too soon.

Pipe Used: Dunny

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: p&c

Similar Blends: rajahs court, other o's, but this is the stuff.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gentleman Zombie (729)	2017-03-27		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

A pretty nice smoke. The Turkish leads with some sour wood, a touch of butter and a hint of florals. The Lat isn't far behind with a nice smoky note. The Virginias add a little sweetness and only a smidge of flavor. Has a bit of spice, mostly from the Turkish. It's smooth, but can burn quick with a little heat. Tends to dry out the mouth so a drink to go with it is a good idea.

Medium in body and taste. No added flavoring. Burns a little too well.

Pipe Used: MM Little Devil Cutty, Little Devil Acorn, Marcus

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	dixcreek (184)	2015-12-20		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Have waited for this one for a while. The wait was well worth it! This tobacco has a lot going on in the bowl and they are all good things. Slightly sweet with sour, smoky fire side aroma and taste. No bark, no bite just pure smoking pleasure. Arrived in perfect smoking condition, packed well, lit well and smoked like a dream. Grey ash with little to no excess moisture. Not a great deal of nicotine detected. This tobacco is a must try for those who like an oriental type tobacco. Good Job Russ!

Age When Smoked: new tin

Purchased From: pipes and cigars

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pryhosm (248)	2018-03-12		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

tin note is woody/sour and rich, smokey latakia. The first 1/4 of the bowl is spicy and woody with the sweet smokey Latakia in support. As the bowl progresses the sweetness of the VA comes through and a buttery sweerness plays nicely with the still spicy and woody Turkish leaf.I get a buttered popcorn note around mid bowl...every time in every pipe. Interesting. Nicotine is medium and aftertaste is pleasant. Smokes best on the dry side.

Pipe Used: Briar, meerschaum and cobs

Purchased From: P&C

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	LannarkGent (145)	2016-12-18		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Strong

To me, this is a latakia blend of this first order . I Enjoyed it greatly and will soon buy more of it. The smoothness of the latakia surprised me as I do not remember such maturity in a Cyrpian based latakia.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	King Weed (228)	2016-05-21		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Very Pleasant

I enjoyed this blend more than it's two stable mates, #1 and #1&2, and here's why: it is more like its namesake from the past than they are. This current iteration of Smyrna is, to my memory, fairly accurate. In the old days (60's and 70's) I smoked this tobacco every now and then, as I preferred #1&2 because of a perceived greater latakia content. That's why I feel that the current #1&2 is too light. The current Smyrna is stronger than the current #1&2 and I don't remember that being the case in the past. None the less, I found this blend to be satisfying with a somewhat exotic smoking aroma and I agree (once again) with reviewer tobacco 2016-02-02 that it is a bit like smoking a richer European style cigarette. This is a blend I can strongly recommend with four stars; with this proviso - don't smoke it too fast as it flattens out and becomes more Euro cigarette like. Also, I didn't find it as enjoyable toward the end of the tin as it also flattened out with the normal loss of moisture and essential oils. So, smoke it up and share it with other pipe smokers!

Pipe Used: Ashton ELX Quarter Bent Yatch

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: pipes and cigars

Similar Blends: I've only smoked a rare number of Smyrna forward blends and can't recall specific names.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mr. Big (321)	2016-04-28		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

Revised 6/24/16- This same tin has greatly improved, as I sadly, get to the last of the tin. The two months of breathing and drying has made this a 4 star blend, any harshness is gone.

Original review- John Cotton Smyrna- Remake- comes ready to smoke and has that "Dunhill Like" ribbon cut that's easy to work with. The Smyrna Oriental shouts out loud on the initial light and then moves quickly to the background as a good quality Virginia takes over. I don't get much Latakia, it's definitely not in the real smoky category. A no bite, but spicy tobacco that tends to burn hot ,with some harshness that I attribute to needing some aging..

I basically agree with "Steel Cowboy 2016-03-03 "in his assessment of the heat and potential harshness. I wonder if some of the more favorable reviews had some age on their tins?

I don't find this a complex blend but rather a sweet Virginia with some Oriental interest , nothing more , 2 1/2 stars, never smoked the original and this is better than JC #1 remake.

Pipe Used: cob and maple

Age When Smoked: fresh tin one week open/ rev. 2 months

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Trout Whisperer (3)	2018-06-17		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

This is Russ Oulette's recreation of the old John Cotton's blend. I have no experience with previous iterations of Smyrna. I purchased a tin at a local tobacconist, though it is widely available in the United States. As the name suggests, this is an oriental-forward blend with a touch of Latakia.

Wood is the dominant flavor in my experience, followed by spice and a slight sourness. The smoke is astringent, which adds to the spice flavor. Smokiness from the Latakia is evident in the background, and occasionally asserts itself, but only slightly.

It burns at a cool temperature, and I rarely had to relight it.

I smoked this while hiking a few weeks ago. A moment after passing a pair of women hiking in the opposite direction, one of them interjected, "That smells great!"

So, there you have it...Trout Whisperer tested, random-hiker-woman approved.

Pipe Used: Amphora X-Tra, Missouri Meerschaum Legend

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: B&M tobacconist

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	canvas (337)	2017-03-30		Strong	None Detected	Very Full	Tolerable

I try to capture, in a word or two, the initial smell of tinned tobacco when freshly opened. Putting my finger on it can be a challenge at times, but with Smyrna, I can safely say it smells of freshly cured leather.

The cut is fairly crumbly, and I was often packing the bowl with pinches of "seasoning" rather than wound together ribbons. This may or may not of added to what is already a strong (nicotine) tobacco. Lights up easily to a very dry charcoal tinged smoke. With even a puff or two, the taste will stick to your mouth for the rest of the day.

My smoking habits are often once a day, but with 2-3 successive bowls and Smyrna takes a lot out of me after the first, so it doesn't fit style.

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	pinko (52)	2016-07-20		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This is the good stuff right here - smoky Latakia, perfumed Turkish, and deep, sweet Virginia all balanced together to play to their strengths. This is what I think of when I think of an English blend, so maybe “full” is the tag I should be looking for.

Smyrna starts good and stays there. I wouldn’t call it complex, it’s kind of the same throughout. Not all blends need to be a wild ride full of changing flavors, this one makes the most out of a classic combination of tastes.

I appreciate the quality of the cut and the apparent moderate use of humectant - it will burn clean straight out of the tin, and if you want to dry it to crispy it will get there quickly. No fighting an overwhelming dose of propylene glycol here, whatever they’ve done to maintain moisture is just perfect in my book.

Smyrna is this new blender's crown jewel.

Age When Smoked: fresh

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mesh (51)	2016-05-22		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This is a delicious blend of Smyrna (aka Izmir), a moderate amount of Latakia, and a base of hearty Virginias. Mine came at perfect smoking moisture in the tin, so you might want to jar it up upon opening to prevent it from getting any drier.

Russ Ouellette is the blender behind the re-creation, and although I haven't tried the original version of the blend, I can see why it had its fans if it was anything like Ouellette's. It's a rich blend of tobaccos that won't be a frequent smoke for an old VA head like me, but you don't get much better than this as far as Englishes go. Fully recommended as a great example of its genre.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JaWiBr (556)	2023-01-18		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Manufactured by Scandinavian Tobacco Group, Lane Ltd. Tucker Georgia.

4 yr old Jar note of sweet wine, smoky, and spices. Tobacco is tan and brown with a little black mixed in. Moisture content is good to go, no prep needed. Burns moderate with few relights. The strength is medium and nic is mild. No flavoring detected. Taste is medium to full and mostly consistent, with notes of sweet herbal spices, smoky, spicy/peppery, bitter wood, toasted bread, floral, lemon zest, earth, musty dry vegetation, incense, a peaty sour fermented background note, and a peppery retro. Latakia is barely leading over Oriental/Turkish, and Virginias are supporting. Room note is tolerable, and aftertaste is great.

Pipe Used: English Captain Black Sandblasted X188

Age When Smoked: 4 years

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	atomicbuster (79)	2022-07-19		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Says No longer in production. If that is right it’s a crying shame. This is damn fine tobacco. Quality blend that burns well, does not get wet, no bite, and maintains flavor over a long time, even after storing in a leather pouch for many days. It tastes very good, a little strong, like it would immediately cause a headache or upset stomach. But no, just good flavor, and no nasty aftertaste. Highly recommended. If this is gone, I hope it returns unaltered.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tomcat (221)	2020-02-26		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

Man , the pungent smoky smell from opening the tin was delightful! A beautiful ribbon cut that looks like equal parts of the 3 tobaccos . Perfect moisture ! The Virginias are sweet and bready . I don’t think i have ever noticed bready Virginias in an english mixture . The latakia is great ribbon type shape and not crumbly falling to the bottom . The lats are smokey sweet and creamy smooth . The orientals are outstanding and very spicy and buttery and fragrant. These seem to be high grade turkish and oriental leaf for sure . EMP and MM 965 can’t touch this baby . Great job as always Russ O ! You are the man . This is like no other blend I have tasted hitherto . Tremendous blend .

Age When Smoked: 4months on tin date

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	nkulk8r (90)	2018-12-23		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Well now, this is just some wonderful tobacco.

Never had the original Smyrna (which is probably a blessing in disguise), but this version of the original is simply grand -- zesty sweet, spicey, smokey, rich, smooth and creamy -- just delightful stuff. Plaudits to Russ Oullette and his forensics team for bringing this blend back to life. The first tin was long gone by the time a few dozen more were delivered to my door.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ELROD (6)	2018-04-16		Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Unnoticeable

I agree with PIPESTUD completely in his review of this blend. I also was fortunate enough to have smoked the original made by John Cotton. It was my favorite blend so I smoked plenty of it. When it was gone I was left aimlessly looking for a worthy substitute which to this date I have not found. I have even purchased blending Smyrna and tried to make my own substitute from scratch but to no avail. The unmistakable and mesmerizing aroma of the original has proven to be elusive and PIPESTUD'S review has provided me with an answer that I will accept based on the fact that he knows a lot more about pipe tobacco than me. I had also been suspecting for some time that the grade of leaf used in the original is just no longer available and that is why Russ Oulette's Smyrna is totally different in flavor and presentation than the original, as PIPESTUD puts it. Is it a very good blend? Absolutely. But I did not find in it what I was looking for. I do recommend it as a good blend in its own right but not as a worthy substitute of my all-time favorite blend, the original John Cotton Smyrna. I might add that I never found the original to have a latakia character or even presence but rather a refined oriental character with that mesmerizing aroma that I miss so much.

Pipe Used: Various bent

Age When Smoked: Less than six months

Purchased From: pipesandcigars.com

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Darth 69 (117)	2018-03-22		Mild	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Despite how the blend is billed it's a disappointingly rather weak English in character. It may have a hefty component of turkish but the leaf is very mild with no outstanding character. The latakia isn't particularly hefty, maybe 30%. I couldn't notice the virginias against the rest of the blend. The most detracting issue was the mild casing which adds a bit of sweetness that adversely effects the latakia that is hard to describe but reminds me of a burnt marshmallow with a bitter herbal tone. One gets this sort of thing from Kohlhase & Kopp(i.g. Rattrays.) and I hate it. English blends were not like this 25yrs ago. This blend is best summed up as a weak and diluted smoking experience; There are just far better English style products to smoke, namely from Dan Tobacco, Samuel Gawith and C&D.

Age When Smoked: new

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	krg1000 (183)	2018-01-26		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Yet another fine addition to this line that has been reintroduced by Russ Ouellette's great blending skills. All the components come together to work quite well together. The nicotine level is a bit less than I would like but really can't complain too much. A freshly opened tin has the right amount of moisture to not need any drying time before lighting up. The tin note and room note are great. Overall highly recommended.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2016-09-27		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This was a very dry tobacco right out of the tin; perfect for smoking immediately. The latakia and turkish play off each other, with the virginia tying it all together. A very creamy taste, with a little spice from the Smyrna. Not being a latakia nut, I would have liked a little less in this blend. Never smoked the original on which this is based, but found this incarnation to be very appealing. It's not an all day blend for me, but certainly a late evening repast. Very cool smoking and somewhat delicious. I still prefer Cotton's No. 1& 2 which has less latakia and is smoother to my taste buds.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	crazy owl (74)	2016-02-23		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Yes,I love this blend.Yes,Mr.Russ Ouellette is by far the best blender of this century with Fred Hanna close up.But,honestly,brothers in briar,do you feel really any serious difference with,for instance,Dunhill London Mixture by Orlik?Not me.I´ll happily smoke this tin,maybe some more,but IMHO the increasing of price is not justifyed.In short,splendid tobacco,worth to try but some expensive and non so special.If were sold at the same price would be a little preferable to Danhills.

Pipe Used: dunhill 5

Age When Smoked: current production

Purchased From: smokingpipes

Similar Blends: dunhill london mixture.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Polseidon (2)	2020-05-30		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant

It’s sad to know that this blend won’t be produced any more, due to FDA regulations. It was one of my Favorites. It will be missed.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Indianapolis (49)	2020-01-27		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

This is my second favorite oriental, after Sobranie. Smyrna has all the incense-like notes from Sobranie, but just lacks a little depth of character. Hence the three stars.

Someone below posted that this is a "mild english." Sort of, I guess, but its not intended to be a straight english. This is very oriental forward with a mild latakia to balance. It does not have the spicy bite of Chonowitsch 17, nor the absurd "green apple" sweetness of Saisani. And the latakia is not overwhelming -- its there to smooth the orientals, not mask them.

All that said, when I want an oriental/balkan smoke but don't want to tap into my sobranie, this is a go-to. Lovely, balanced, and peaceful -- a great way to end a day.

Nic hit is low, moisture is acceptable out of the tin (but does better with a month in a jar). No complaints.

Pipe Used: Briars

Age When Smoked: Fresh - 3 mo

1 person found this review helpful.