John Cotton John Cotton's Smyrna

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.

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.

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!

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.

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.

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!

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.

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.

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.