Dark Star

[ltstone]

Ooohh I just rubbed out some Dark Star and can't wait to try it! Smells just like the Virginia tobacco I used to smell on my uncles farm here in Canada. It rubbed out surprisingly easy between my palms but I'm going to let it dry out a bit before i pack it. As a newer pipe smoker this will be my first pure virginia.

 

[jefff]

If I had to pick just one tobacco to smoke for the rest of my life, it would be Dark Star.
Luckily, I don't have too.

 

[texmexpipe]

Enjoy! It's a great smoke!

 

[mso489]

I'm aging a tin of Dark Star. I've heard good things about it, but also that it requires some attention, in terms of drying it out and rubbing it out to get more consistency in size, so it burns evenly. I look forward to it, eventually, but understand it may take something of a learning curve to get the best out of it.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Dark star crashes

pouring its light

into ashes

Good stuff. 10 for flavor, 3 for satisfying

Lacking in nicotine, it has a great beat, but you can't dance to it.

 

[jefff]

I have read many reviews complaining about how difficult it is to prepare. I just don'y get it.
I take a couple of flakes, let them air for maybe 5-10 min. and then rub them out between my palms.
Then I smoke the hell out of it.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

For me it isn't as easy to rub out, but I picked up several 100g tins that had quite a bit of age on them in a trade. Not ever having had it fresh, the aged is like rubber bark. The flakes are stoved whole, so they are more like nuggets when they cook.

I just put them in a grinder of a quick pulse, pack tight, and enjoy the heck out of it.
Kudos for finding them easy.

 

[jefff]

I have to admit, it is a tobacco I haven't smoke with more than 2-3 years in the tin. I have a few tins sitting now but I mostly smoke it fresh.

 

[ltstone]

Ok, So here's my first impressions.

I was real scared from hearing all the stories about how hard this stuff is to prepare, well actually it rubbed out fine, gave it a half hour of drying and lit it up. I used a briar with a narrow hole and it lit and burned down with no problems at all. Overall I am very surprised how tamable this tobacco actually is.

The room note is a more subdued version of the smell out of the can(which I love). But I must say I am a bit disappointed that the taste on the pallet is almost nonexistent to me and its not as sweet as I expected either. Still its only my first smoke and my pallet is still evolving. The smoke was full bodied, burned slow and I had no throat irritation or tongue bite which surprised me as well.

 

[danhester]

I've heard that Virginias tend to be one of the hardest types of blends for newish smokers to "get". I haven't found that to be exactly true, as I loved Orlik GS and some other VA flakes right from the start and early in my pipe smoking career. That said, I have tried a few popular VA blends that just didn't do it for me, though I don't know if my palate will evolve into appreciating them or if they're just not my thing.

 

[ltstone]

Well I have a sample of Newminster Navy Flake so we'll see if I can pick out a flavor profile. Maybe tomorrow as I still got a bowl of Molto Dolce to get through first

 

[tarheel1]

Sorry you don't get much from it. I love it. I get a great sweet flavor from it. It has taking me many years to enjoy Va blends and findout most quite bland. I do however love dark star and Blackwood flake.

 

[ltstone]

Well I've only smoked it once so far and I see the potential. Let me give it some time, try it in a few different pipes, let it breath etc.

 

[settersbrace]

Don't try to make it out for more than it is. Dark Star is very mellow and sweet from first light to the heel. I favor it as an all day smoke and it's my go to fishing blend. Enjoy!

 

[ltstone]

Settersbrace: Thats exactly it, at first when I tried some Virginias and va/pers I was underwhelmed but under the right circumstances for me they are great when you just want to enjoy a subtle ,simple pure tobacco experience.