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I used to love the smell of Condor but unfortunately it made me dizzy by the time I had smoked a third of a bowl! It was a nice smoke when mixed 50/50 with Erinmore Flake. Both brands are still around but neither taste or smell the same now.@Ron78 : Yep even Condor tastes different. I think it all went pear shaped when they started using Eastern European tobacco as opposed to the Empire Grown stuff from Africa!
Like many of us I spent my early smoking years searching for that elusive perfect tobacco. When working in Scandinavia some 30+ years ago I smoked MacBaren Scottish Mixture for a while. I have never been keen on American style heavily scented aromatics. Squadron Leader and Mahogany are in my rotation with Sam's Flake for a good satisfying smoke. I buy OAP Mixture loose in larger quantities and store it in vintage tobacco jars to use in rotation. By the time I smoke it the scented topping has disipated and it is a decent smoke for the price. Tobacco tax is outrageous now in the UK - a 50g tin costing around £20.@Ron78 : I have a stash of the Gallagher Condor Plug and a pouch of mid 1980s flake that I savor and mix with any of the unscented Gawith plugs to stretch out my supply. Like everything the do gooders touch they cannot resist fecking with something. Stopping using Rhodesian leaf and then letting the government of Zimbabwe trash the entire agriculture sector rendered us dependent on inferior Eastern European leaf. I always remind people we could have conquered the entire country with a platoon of army cadets and the locals would have thanked us for our efforts!
Welcome Ron, from Atlanta, Georgia! My wife and I have just returned from the UK (Oxford, Bath, Cotswolds, London) and had a wonderful time. I was able to visit Habana House but the real treat was JJ Fox in London. Much Sam Gawith and Germains was purchased.I've been a pipesmoker for over 40 years. I prefer to smoke mainly in the evening with a glass or two of Scotch. Many of the old brands have disappeared now in the UK and those that are left don't taste the same. My two favourites now are OAP Mixture and Sam's Flake from Gaworth Hoggarth - an old established firm based in the English Lake District.
Great Scott! Holmes, this flake tastes decidedly off!@Ron78 : Yep even Condor tastes different. I think it all went pear shaped when they started using Eastern European tobacco as opposed to the Empire Grown stuff from Africa!