Because I gave some of these separate reviews in their own threads, I thought I'd add them to this list to make it easier for those who may wish to read them in one place. The last entry in this post, HH Highland Blend, is new.
MacBaren Cube Gold:
This is a ribbon cut danish aromatic with just a little broken flake, and hydrated to the perfect level for smoking. The tobacco smells stronger in the pouch than in the room or your mouth though it's kind of pungent. It's milder and creamier than the Cube Silver, and the sweet topping is slightly less fruity, more citrusy and berry-like, and just a little less perfumy. There are fewer sour notes here, too. The golden Virginia and cavendish are a little more obvious here than in the Silver, as is the vanilla from the black cavendish. Less complex than the Cube Silver, I find this easier to smoke more often with a darn near perfect burn rate with no goop. A sipping tobacco blend for sure.
MacBaren Cube Silver:
This is a ribbon cut danish aromatic with just a little broken flake, and hydrated to the perfect level for smoking. The tobacco smells stronger in the pouch than in the room or your mouth, though it's rather pungent. I get several tropical fruity flavors here, including some vanilla from the black cavendish. The burley adds a very slight nutty sweetness, and the Oriental/Turkish components are there to push a little spice to your tongue. The gold Virginia has some citrus, and I taste apricots and mangos, with light date and cocoa spots. Virginia cavendish also sweetens the pot. The topping is fragrant and sharply sweet, with a few sour notes, which is typical of many Danish aromatics. Best to sip this one or risk a little head rush.
MacBaren Cube Bronze:
This is a ribbon cut danish aromatic with just a little broken flake, and hydrated to the perfect level for smoking. The tobacco smells stronger in the pouch than in the room or your mouth. Mildly pungent; less so than the other two blends in this series. Mild and very creamy with several fruit flavors including raspberries, though the cherry note stands out slightly more. The vanilla from the black cavendish is light, and works well with a more prominent semi-sweet and smooth cocoa essence. Somehow, for some reason, this doesn't taste like a cherry-chocolate blend in spite of their mutual presence. Burns well, and even and is very consistent in its complexity. A great after dinner or all day smoke that leaves a very pleasant after taste. A well blended mixture with little of the fragrance of the Gold and Silver, it is the least sweet Cube blend.
MacBaren Halberg Green:
Presented within one of the classiest boxes ever designed for a tobacco product, it's mild with an extremely gentle, but full explosion of fruit flavor. The Virginias and burleys more or less take a back seat to the fruity, light citrus, and berry taste of this ribbon and cross-cut blend. The Virginias may add a little of the citrus, though I think it mainly comes more from the topping. An essence of cherry adds to the complex fruit profile, also including a bare hint of vanilla, and an occasional tart note. Smooth and creamy, burns cooly, evenly, and slowly without a hint of a chemical taste. In some ways, it's a better, more complex, deeper tasting, smoother version of Amphora Red. Perhaps the best fruit flavored blend I have ever smoked, it also reminds me of the kind of liqueur one savors after an expensive meal.
MacBaren Halberg Red:
The Virginias have a natural sweetness, and some earthy notes from them and the burleys, which play in the background. There's also a slight toast note to the burleys. The black cavendish chips in with an very mild vanilla that compliments the sweet, almost fruity topping. Ribbon cut with broken flake that burns smooth, even, and dry without much moisture. Not one hint of a chemical taste exists here. Presented within one of the classiest boxes ever designed for a tobacco product, it's a well crafted, mild all day smoke that doesn't wear out your tongue or senses with a full flavor that never quits.
MacBaren Halberg Yellow:
More cross-cut and broken flake than ribbon, but burns perfectly all the way to the end of the bowl with no harshness. Like the Red and the Green, it is mild with the full taste of various fruit flavors, including apricot, berries, cherry, lemon, and maybe a hint of mango. The black cavendish adds a very complimentary vanilla taste that provides a light bass note without competing for taste. The various flavors one normally expects from lemon yellow and brown Virginias are present, though subdued. The burleys are mildly earthy, mostly sweet and slightly nutty. I get a little less of the berry notes and more of the citrus than I do in the Red and Green entries in the series. Not one hint of a chemical taste exists here. Presented within one of the classiest boxes ever designed for a tobacco product, it amazes me that all three of the aforementioned blends are mild in strength, yet very full of flavor.
Mixture Modern:
There's a natural sweetness from the Virginias that comes through even with the topping and the cavendishes vying for attention. I get some honey, oats and nutty notes, the latter coming from the burleys. The gold cavendish provides some slight citrus while the black cavendish adds a mild vanilla flavor that doesn't dominate. It's a mild aromatic, very smooth and creamy. Light on the nicotine, it burns well with no bite, no dottle and makes a very pleasant all day smoke that won't bore you. Nice after taste and room note, too.
Mixture Flake:
This reminds me a bit of MacBaren's Scottish Flake with a few differences. I find this to be a little spicier and I get that in every puff, which indicates to me that there's a little more dark fired Kentucky here. The taste is more consistent here than it is in SF, too. I get a variety of flavors, ranging from nuts, a little honey, bread, earth, and a hint of grass. The sweetness comes from the gold and black cavendish, Virginias, burleys, and a light topping. Smokey, woodsy, tangy, and creamy notes play well with the tongue, offering a slow, cool and dry burn rate with very little moisture at the finish. I found it sweeter when I sip at a moderate pace. This is a blend that deserves more attention when you smoke it.
HH Acadian Perique:
The name of this mixture may imply to some that it's heavy in perique, but actually, it's a moderate amount. You will taste it all through the smoke, but it doesn't dominate, and the spice is intertwined with familial notes from the dark fired Kentucky and Turkish components. There is a pleasant, gentle sweetness from the honey flavored cavendish, contrasted with a very mild nuttiness, and sweet note from the burley. The Virginias are slightly sweet, but mainly provides some earthy body to the proceedings. It has a rich flavor that bears repeating during your smoking day. Burns perfectly smooth with no dottle, no bite, and a consistent taste - the hallmark of a well designed blend.
HH Highland Blend:
The Scotch whiskey is flavorful without dominating the other components, though it’s ever present. The burleys are nutty, oat-like and sweet with minor earth notes. The cavendish is bready sweet with a mild spice hit. Creamy at times, slight sour notes pop up here and there as a contrast to the sweetness. It doesn't bite, but it should be sipped just the same. I enjoyed the whiskey flavor better that way. It's good in a briar, but even better in a meer.
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