Country Squire Middle Earth Tobaccos?

[Cyxelsid]

Just curious what folks think about these blends offered by Country Squire? Are they actually good blends, or just playing on LOTR hype?

I admit, as an avid LOTR fan (although I haven't been able to get through The Silmarllion), I WANT to buy them, and I probably will. I am just curious if it is a good line, or just a novelty?

 

[verporchting]

I ordered a sampler pack of all (except the new Mirkwood - it wasn’t out yet).

I quite liked Green Dragon and Kingsfoil, and Bag End was a nice mild English. Second Breakfast was okay but nothing special. I did not like Rivendale much (too sweet) and really disliked Old Toby because it was way way way too cloying and sweet for my tastes.

I generally like Country Squire non-aromatic blends more than their aromatic offerings but that’s not surprising since I’m more of a non-aromatic guy (yes, I do like many aros but non-aromatic blends are just my go to).

 

[Cyxelsid]

I ordered a sampler pack of all (except the new Mirkwood - it wasn’t out yet).

I quite liked Green Dragon and Kingsfoil, and Bag End was a nice mild English. Second Breakfast was okay but nothing special. I did not like Rivendale much (too sweet) and really disliked Old Toby because it was way way way too cloying and sweet for my tastes.

I generally like Country Squire non-aromatic blends more than their aromatic offerings but that’s not surprising since I’m more of a non-aromatic guy (yes, I do like many aros but non-aromatic blends are just my go to).

Thanks for the input!

 

[BarrelProof]

If you’re into aromatics, it’s just playing the long game of finding whose goop you like the most.

I’ve tried the Middle Earth blends and liked them. They weren’t mindbogglingly good, but they didn’t suck, either.

 

[anotherbob]

this all sounds a lot like what I've heard up to now. Decent nothing overly special. And more if you like that style it's good.

 

[trouttimes]

I like a lot of CS blends. Rivendale is good when I’m in the mood for an aromatic. Old Toby is ok in a small bowl but I do like it as a component in my home blends. Many of the others are fine but to me, not stellar.

 

[Hillcrest]

Just curious what folks think about these blends offered by Country Squire? Are they actually good blends, or just playing on LOTR hype?

I admit, as an avid LOTR fan (although I haven't been able to get through The Silmarllion), I WANT to buy them, and I probably will. I am just curious if it is a good line, or just a novelty?

I like Old Toby as a regular. My last batch of Rivendell had too much burley for me (allergic); Second Breakfast is a bit too floral, Green Dragon is similar to Newminster 400/Capstan Blue.
I liked them all but their non-LOTR blends are excellent too. Cherokee is a mild semi-sweet virginia cavendish blend they have been making for over 50 yrs. PS Blend is a Mild Latakia blend. Parson's Blend is a mild blend as well. They are not gimmicky and have a loyal following. They are threads on this forums discussing almost all of their offerings if you use the search tool above.

 

[SBC]

Don't try them because you think they make some connection to Middle Earth. They're not at all what Tolkien had in mind when he wrote about pipe weed. But if you like aromatics and want to try these, go for it.

The evidence points to Tolkien smoking more Capstan Blue than anything else, which is a straight Red VA. So, it seems reasonable to assume that when Tolkien wrote of pipe weed, he had Red VA in mind.

As for the CS's aromatics (ignoring the gimmicky marketing), they're of the conventional American sort. I didn't fall in love with any of them, but some guys who're partial to this sort of smoke like them a lot.

(I have not tried Green Dragon, which is certainly closest to Tolkien's sort of tobacco, and may be very good for all that I know.)

The best CS tobacco I've had is Shepherd's Pie. I've mostly moved away from English and smoke mostly VA anymore; but, for the times that I do feel like an English again, Shepherd's Pie is up there with some of the best.

 

[kcghost]

They do a decent job of blending things, so there's that. They do have a large following but that might end in a few years with the demise of their well-loved podcast.

 

[Pipingntrucking]

Old Toby was pretty good to me. Also liked Second Breakfast. Old Toby was actually a surprise because I love aromatics..unlike most of the crotchety standard "goopy this or that" responses you see a lot- usually by folks that are on the perique or latakia bandwagon. but I digress.

Old Toby was a little bit out of my normal sweet tooth range but found it quite enjoyable. The experimental 1 oz that I got didn't last the week. Second Breakfast is good. Nice and mild could be an all day smoke. Just don't expect a strong maple to be pulled out of it unless you are smoking very slow and have a sensitive palate.

My 2 most ordered from there is White Rose and Summer Breeze.

As a matter of fact- heading over there now to re supply!

 

[Elric]

Like many, I ordered a sample pack and enjoyed them all universally. I ended up gravitating toward Green Dragon and Kingsfoil and cellared a fair bit of each. I may revisit the others again in the future.

Outside of the Middle Earth blends, Cornishman is a fine English that I would cellar if I wasn't already so deep on blends in that genre.

 

[Briar Tuck]

If you are looking for a LoTR connection you might want to try Peter Stokkebye PS 24 Nougat, which is supposedly what they smoked in the LoTR movies. I haven't tried it yet myself, but I do have some on the way.

​

 

[Cyxelsid]

They are threads on this forums discussing almost all of their offerings if you use the search tool above.

Yeah, I am almost hesitant to start new threads, for fear that they have already been created. I haven't quite figured out how to efficiently use the thread search tool, but I will work on that!

Thanks for the input!

 

[Cyxelsid]

Don't try them because you think they make some connection to Middle Earth. They're not at all what Tolkien had in mind when he wrote about pipe weed. But if you like aromatics and want to try these, go for it.

The evidence points to Tolkien smoking more Capstan Blue than anything else, which is a straight Red VA. So, it seems reasonable to assume that when Tolkien wrote of pipe weed, he had Red VA in mind.

As for the CS's aromatics (ignoring the gimmicky marketing), they're of the conventional American sort. I didn't fall in love with any of them, but some guys who're partial to this sort of smoke like them a lot.

(I have not tried Green Dragon, which is certainly closest to Tolkien's sort of tobacco, and may be very good for all that I know.)

The best CS tobacco I've had is Shepherd's Pie. I've mostly moved away from English and smoke mostly VA anymore; but, for the times that I do feel like an English again, Shepherd's Pie is up there with some of the best.

Given your signature, I will assume that you have a better knowledge of Tolkien than I! I am very new to smoking and really have not discovered my palette just yet, so I am randomly trying new things. But just having the LOTR blends would be fun to break out when folks come around!

I also saw the Shepherd's Pie on their website, and it will go into the sample mix!

Thanks for the input!

 

[Cyxelsid]

Old Toby was pretty good to me. Also liked Second Breakfast. Old Toby was actually a surprise because I love aromatics..unlike most of the crotchety standard "goopy this or that" responses you see a lot- usually by folks that are on the perique or latakia bandwagon. but I digress.

Old Toby was a little bit out of my normal sweet tooth range but found it quite enjoyable. The experimental 1 oz that I got didn't last the week. Second Breakfast is good. Nice and mild could be an all day smoke. Just don't expect a strong maple to be pulled out of it unless you are smoking very slow and have a sensitive palate.

My 2 most ordered from there is White Rose and Summer Breeze.

As a matter of fact- heading over there now to re supply!

Thanks for the input!

 

[minerLuke]

I have tried quite a few of Country Squires house blends and some of them have made it into my regular rotation, Bag End, Old Toby, Cherokee, Ruins of Windsor and their Sweet Burley I buy in bulk regularly.

Great company with great service and they even deal kindly with us forlorn and forgotten Canadian pipe smokers!

 

[metalheadycigarguy]

I was gifted a small sample of a couple blends several years back, so I don't recall which ones they were, but I did enjoy them. I think it was Kingsfoil and Old Toby, but can't say for sure. The person I got the samples from really liked their blends, and during my time on YouTube I found that a lot of other people really enjoyed their blends. Never heard anything bad about them either. If that helps you at all.

 

[fMf Piper]

Just curious what folks think about these blends offered by Country Squire? Are they actually good blends, or just playing on LOTR hype?

I admit, as an avid LOTR fan (although I haven't been able to get through The Silmarllion), I WANT to buy them, and I probably will. I am just curious if it is a good line, or just a novelty?

I too am a LOTR fan, and was interested in these blends. Thanks for asking about these tobaccos, and thanks to all of the community members that responsed with your reviews/impressions.

 

[Cyxelsid]

I too am a LOTR fan, and was int

I too am a LOTR fan, and was interested in these blends.

Well, based on what I read here, I went ahead and ordered the 1 oz sample pack, as well as a 1 oz sample of the Shepherd's Pie. I can't wait to try them!

 

[minerLuke]

The sampler is a good call, I'm sure you will find at least a couple blends that you will really like.