The smoky, woody, earthy, leathery, musty, sweet Cyprian Latakia is the lead component, thought it doesn’t dominate the experience due to the richness of the other varietals. The tangy, potent incense-like, very spicy Orientals provide a lot of earth, woody, smoke, herbs, floralness, pepper, vegetation, a little buttery sweetness with some sourness as important supporting players. One of the Virginias laying the foundation in this production is the tangy ripe dark fruity, earthy, bready, woody, rather vinegary/barbecue-like essence, light citrus, sugar, floralness and spice aspects from the red Virginia. That tobacco is a tad more obvious than the tart and tangy citrusy, grassy, floral, mildly sugary bright Virginia. There’s a light fermented quality inherent in the mix as well. The strength is in the center of medium to strong, while the taste is full. The nic-hit is a slot short of the strength level. No chance of bite or harshness, but there are a few small rough edges as you would expect from this kind of blend. This plug is really more of a denser crumble cake, and easily breaks apart to suit your packing preference. Burns cool, clean and a tad slow with a well balanced, complex, nuanced, mostly consistent, deeply rich, mildly sweet and sour and very savory, floral, spicy, tangy campfire flavor that translates to the pleasantly long lingering after taste and room note. Leaves little dampness in the bowl, and requires some relights. It’s not an all day smoke, but despite its robust character, it can be a repeatable experience during your smoking day. Four stars.
