These blends go on sale Tuesday, September 2 at 6 p.m. EST.
Legacy Collection: Brothers in Arms (Per Jensen):
The Saint James perique supplies some lightly sweet and rather sour dried plums, dried figs, spice, floralness, bread, earth, wood, light dried raisins, and smoked mesquite. It takes a very slight lead due to its potent plums, spice and floral qualities. The dark fired Kentucky provides an abundance of earth, wood, spice, smoke, barbecue/mesquite, herbs, vegetation, floralness, toast, sourness, some nuts, and mild sweetness. It mostly co-leads. The Turkish Orientals offer a fair amount of floralness, spice, herbs, incense, vegetation, smoke, earth, wood, bitter sourness, and light buttery sweetness as a secondary supporting player. The red Virginias produce a little tart and tangy citrus, grass, bread, some sugar, floralness, mild spice, vegetation, and light cream. They are a couple of steps behind the Turkish. The nutty, earthy, toasty, woody, mildly sweet burley is in the background. The strength and taste levels are filling with the latter being just a touch more so. The nic-hit is a couple of notches past the center of medium to strong. No chance of bite or harshness. Has a few rough notes. Burns cool, clean and slightly slow with a mostly consistent sweet and sour, floral, smoky, fruity, spicy, herbal, mild barbecue, nutty complex flavor that extends to the pleasantly lasting after taste. The sweet and sour, floral, spicy, smoky room note is pungent. Leaves little dampness in the bowl, and requires a couple more than an average number of relights. Not an all day smoke. I recommend no more than a medium size bowl for this blend, and a round one to capture the obvious and subtle complexities. Will ghost a briar in time. Four stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
Legacy Collection: Harbour Dreams (Per Jensen):
The aged, rugged burley provides a lot of nuts, earth, wood, bread, some sour, bitter sharpness, floralness, spice, mild sugar, cocoa, and a touch of anise and molasses as the lead component. I think it’s white burley. The various Virginias are mostly bright and gold as they offer plenty of tart and tangy citrus, grass, bread, sugar, floralness, spice, vegetation, sour lemon, and light acidity as important supporting players. The chocolate additive lightly leads the almond. Both have a fairly mild effect on the varietals. The strength is a couple of steps past the center of medium to strong. The nic-hit is rung short of that center. The taste is just short of being full. It won’t bite, but it does have a few rough edges, and I recommend a moderate puffing cadence to avoid a harsh note. Deeply rich, it burns slightly warm and clean at a reasonable rate with a very consistent nutty, sweet and bitterly sour, floral, spicy, fruity, mildly acidic, rather zesty flavor that extends to a lasting after taste. The nutty sweet, floral room notes are tolerable. Leaves little dampness in the bowl. Hardly requires any relights. Not an all day smoke, but it is repeatable. I don’t recommend a big bowl for this one. Will ghost a briar in time. Two and a half stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
Legacy Collection: King’s Watch (Per Jensen):
The bright and darker gold Virginias provide an abundance of tart and tangy citrus, grass, toast, sugar, floralness, spice, mild vegetation, sour lemon, and a touch of acidity. A light sugary citrus seems to be a casing. The strength and taste levels are medium. The nic-hit is a couple of steps below the medium mark. Won’t bite or get harsh. Has a few small rough notes. The mildly moist broken flakes don’t need any dry time. Burns cool, clean and slightly slow with a very consistent flavor that extends to the moderately lasting, pleasant after taste. The sweet room note is fairly pleasant. Barely leaves any dampness in the bowl, and requires an average number relights. Can be an all day smoke. Four stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
Legacy Collection: Port Guardian (Per Jensen):
The various grades of red Virginias provide a wealth of tart and tangy citrus, grass, bread, sugar, floralness, some vegetation, spice, mild dark fruits, sour lemon, earth, wood, and touches of vinegar, cream and acidity. The strength and taste levels are medium. The nic-hit is a couple of steps behind that mark. No chance or bite or harshness. Has a few very small rough notes. The mildly moist broken flakes easily break apart to suit your preference. I did not dry them for this review. Your mileage may vary on this point. Burns cool, clean and a little slow with a very consistent flavor that extends to the moderately lasting, pleasant after taste. The fruity room note is a tad stronger than pleasant. Barely leaves any dampness in the bowl. Requires a few more than an average number of relights if there’s no dry time. Can be an all day smoke. Four stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
Legacy Collection: Brothers in Arms (Per Jensen):
The Saint James perique supplies some lightly sweet and rather sour dried plums, dried figs, spice, floralness, bread, earth, wood, light dried raisins, and smoked mesquite. It takes a very slight lead due to its potent plums, spice and floral qualities. The dark fired Kentucky provides an abundance of earth, wood, spice, smoke, barbecue/mesquite, herbs, vegetation, floralness, toast, sourness, some nuts, and mild sweetness. It mostly co-leads. The Turkish Orientals offer a fair amount of floralness, spice, herbs, incense, vegetation, smoke, earth, wood, bitter sourness, and light buttery sweetness as a secondary supporting player. The red Virginias produce a little tart and tangy citrus, grass, bread, some sugar, floralness, mild spice, vegetation, and light cream. They are a couple of steps behind the Turkish. The nutty, earthy, toasty, woody, mildly sweet burley is in the background. The strength and taste levels are filling with the latter being just a touch more so. The nic-hit is a couple of notches past the center of medium to strong. No chance of bite or harshness. Has a few rough notes. Burns cool, clean and slightly slow with a mostly consistent sweet and sour, floral, smoky, fruity, spicy, herbal, mild barbecue, nutty complex flavor that extends to the pleasantly lasting after taste. The sweet and sour, floral, spicy, smoky room note is pungent. Leaves little dampness in the bowl, and requires a couple more than an average number of relights. Not an all day smoke. I recommend no more than a medium size bowl for this blend, and a round one to capture the obvious and subtle complexities. Will ghost a briar in time. Four stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
Legacy Collection: Harbour Dreams (Per Jensen):
The aged, rugged burley provides a lot of nuts, earth, wood, bread, some sour, bitter sharpness, floralness, spice, mild sugar, cocoa, and a touch of anise and molasses as the lead component. I think it’s white burley. The various Virginias are mostly bright and gold as they offer plenty of tart and tangy citrus, grass, bread, sugar, floralness, spice, vegetation, sour lemon, and light acidity as important supporting players. The chocolate additive lightly leads the almond. Both have a fairly mild effect on the varietals. The strength is a couple of steps past the center of medium to strong. The nic-hit is rung short of that center. The taste is just short of being full. It won’t bite, but it does have a few rough edges, and I recommend a moderate puffing cadence to avoid a harsh note. Deeply rich, it burns slightly warm and clean at a reasonable rate with a very consistent nutty, sweet and bitterly sour, floral, spicy, fruity, mildly acidic, rather zesty flavor that extends to a lasting after taste. The nutty sweet, floral room notes are tolerable. Leaves little dampness in the bowl. Hardly requires any relights. Not an all day smoke, but it is repeatable. I don’t recommend a big bowl for this one. Will ghost a briar in time. Two and a half stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
Legacy Collection: King’s Watch (Per Jensen):
The bright and darker gold Virginias provide an abundance of tart and tangy citrus, grass, toast, sugar, floralness, spice, mild vegetation, sour lemon, and a touch of acidity. A light sugary citrus seems to be a casing. The strength and taste levels are medium. The nic-hit is a couple of steps below the medium mark. Won’t bite or get harsh. Has a few small rough notes. The mildly moist broken flakes don’t need any dry time. Burns cool, clean and slightly slow with a very consistent flavor that extends to the moderately lasting, pleasant after taste. The sweet room note is fairly pleasant. Barely leaves any dampness in the bowl, and requires an average number relights. Can be an all day smoke. Four stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
Legacy Collection: Port Guardian (Per Jensen):
The various grades of red Virginias provide a wealth of tart and tangy citrus, grass, bread, sugar, floralness, some vegetation, spice, mild dark fruits, sour lemon, earth, wood, and touches of vinegar, cream and acidity. The strength and taste levels are medium. The nic-hit is a couple of steps behind that mark. No chance or bite or harshness. Has a few very small rough notes. The mildly moist broken flakes easily break apart to suit your preference. I did not dry them for this review. Your mileage may vary on this point. Burns cool, clean and a little slow with a very consistent flavor that extends to the moderately lasting, pleasant after taste. The fruity room note is a tad stronger than pleasant. Barely leaves any dampness in the bowl. Requires a few more than an average number of relights if there’s no dry time. Can be an all day smoke. Four stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
