I though I might just share my recent review of this excellent mixture with you, as I think this one still goes under the radar and deserves some more fanboys out there. It's a light English mixture in the best sense of the word - somewhat complex but not overly so with just enough body not to tire you out! It shares some similarities with Gawith's Skiff Mixture and one of my holy grails, McClelland's Arcadia.
As always, my reviews make no claim to be objective. Indeed, I am known to be quite an opinionated guy when it comes to my taste in pipe tobaccos. Take this as an invitation to share your own views on this mixture or light English mixtures in general, no matter whether they are in line with my view or not at all. Anyway, here we go:
There is something special and unique about the genre of "light English mixtures". If blended properly by the producer and smoked correctly by the consumer (as indeed they ought to be), they reveal a flavorful smoke that is incredibly smooth and fairly ethereal with just enough body to keep your palate ready for another bowl and yet another bowl. That being said, I do not think of these tobaccos as "beginner tobacco", as in my humble opinion, you need to know the individual flavor profile of the component tobaccos quite well and also need to have acquired the correct smoking technique. I am also convinced that you cannot properly find the true merits of King Charles Smoking Mixture by a sample in between your regular tobaccos. This tobacco can take some adjusting to, especially if you come from where I came from, being completely accustomed to a bowl of Nightcap or Special Latakia Flake with a cup of coffee early in the morning. If you seek to replicate that great pleasure and just switch from Nightcap/SLF to King Charles, you are bound to be disappointed. Maybe go for black tea with a splash of milk instead of coffee, smoke it inside at your breakfast table (instead of having breakfast in my case) and enjoy a great start into the day. I assure you that after maybe a dozen of bowls you will know what I am talking about.
This blend is sweet but in a restrained and elegant way. It has a touch of saltiness that makes it quite special and sets it apart. It also delivers a delightful taste of tactfully applied spices and has some woodsy nuances. I am astonished to find comments on this blend's monochromatic taste, as I think it is utterly complex and changes its character quite considerably throughout the bowl. Butterscotch and indeed porridge with honey and salt (as a previous reviewer mentioned) are the best analogies I can come up with - yet this tobacco never becomes overpowering or as filling or cloying as the culinary treats just mentioned. I love Samuel Gawith for their St. James Flake and Best Brown flake, but their light English mixtures are just no match for the best that JFG has to offer.
Perhaps you have to be a "light English"-fanatic like I am, but for me this blend is really one of a kind in the genre that I came to consider the pinnacle of tobacco pleasures.
As always, my reviews make no claim to be objective. Indeed, I am known to be quite an opinionated guy when it comes to my taste in pipe tobaccos. Take this as an invitation to share your own views on this mixture or light English mixtures in general, no matter whether they are in line with my view or not at all. Anyway, here we go:
There is something special and unique about the genre of "light English mixtures". If blended properly by the producer and smoked correctly by the consumer (as indeed they ought to be), they reveal a flavorful smoke that is incredibly smooth and fairly ethereal with just enough body to keep your palate ready for another bowl and yet another bowl. That being said, I do not think of these tobaccos as "beginner tobacco", as in my humble opinion, you need to know the individual flavor profile of the component tobaccos quite well and also need to have acquired the correct smoking technique. I am also convinced that you cannot properly find the true merits of King Charles Smoking Mixture by a sample in between your regular tobaccos. This tobacco can take some adjusting to, especially if you come from where I came from, being completely accustomed to a bowl of Nightcap or Special Latakia Flake with a cup of coffee early in the morning. If you seek to replicate that great pleasure and just switch from Nightcap/SLF to King Charles, you are bound to be disappointed. Maybe go for black tea with a splash of milk instead of coffee, smoke it inside at your breakfast table (instead of having breakfast in my case) and enjoy a great start into the day. I assure you that after maybe a dozen of bowls you will know what I am talking about.
This blend is sweet but in a restrained and elegant way. It has a touch of saltiness that makes it quite special and sets it apart. It also delivers a delightful taste of tactfully applied spices and has some woodsy nuances. I am astonished to find comments on this blend's monochromatic taste, as I think it is utterly complex and changes its character quite considerably throughout the bowl. Butterscotch and indeed porridge with honey and salt (as a previous reviewer mentioned) are the best analogies I can come up with - yet this tobacco never becomes overpowering or as filling or cloying as the culinary treats just mentioned. I love Samuel Gawith for their St. James Flake and Best Brown flake, but their light English mixtures are just no match for the best that JFG has to offer.
Perhaps you have to be a "light English"-fanatic like I am, but for me this blend is really one of a kind in the genre that I came to consider the pinnacle of tobacco pleasures.
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