Both blends go on sale this Tuesday, October 21 at 6 p.m. EST.
Watch City Jim’s Golden Ticket:
Full disclosure: I am the co-creator of this blend, and Ernie named it after me. The various gold Virginia cavendishes provide a wealth of tart and very tangy citrus, sour lemon, fragrant floralness, bread, vegetative grass/hay, sugar, spice, herbs and light acidity as the lead components. The Izmir produces plenty of floralness, incense, herbs, sharp, bitter sourness, earth, wood, vegetation, tangy citrus, spice, smoke, light buttery sweetness and nuts. It offers secondary support. The strength and taste levels are a notch past the center of medium to full. The nic-hit is a step short of that center. Won’t bite or get harsh. Has a few rough edges due to the casing being very minimal and the lack of toppings. I suggest a moderate smoking cadence for those reasons. Well balanced, deeply rich, zesty, and mildly savory, it burns cool and clean at a reasonable rate with a very consistent tangy fruit, floral, spicy, herbal, grassy, moderately sour, lightly acidic, slightly smoky, nutty flavor that extends to the pleasantly lasting after taste. The room note is sweet, floral, spicy, and a tad more potent than tolerable. Barely leaves any dampness in the bowl. Barely requires a relight. Not an all day smoke, but it’s certainly repeatable, and those experienced in smoking Oriental blends may consider it to be an all day smoke. I recommend a medium bowl at most. Will ghost a briar, and eventually a meer. Has excellent age potential. Four stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
Watch City Simply Gold:
Full disclosure: I am the co-creator of this blend. The various gold Virginia cavendishes provide an abundance of tart and very tangy citrus, sugar, bread, sour lemon, floralness, vegetative grass/hay, spice, light acidity and herbs as the lead components. The Izmir supplies very mild floralness, incense, herbs, sharp, bitter sourness, earth, wood, vegetation, tangy citrus, spice, smoke, light buttery sweetness, and nuts. It offers strong support. The sugary citrus casing moderately tones down the varietals. The strength and taste levels are full. The nic-hit is a couple of notches behind that mark. No chance of bite or harshness. Has small rough notes. Burns cool and clean at a reasonable pace with a very consistent tangy sweet, fruity, floral, mildly spicy, herbal, sour, slightly smoky, acidic, deeply rich, zesty, savory flavor that extends to the pleasantly long lasting after taste. The sweet, floral, spicy room notes are pungent. Leaves light dampness in the bowl, and hardly requires a relight. May be an all day smoke depending on your personal preferences. I recommend a medium bowl at the most for this blend. Will eventually ghost a briar, and a meer in time. Should age well. Four stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
Watch City Jim’s Golden Ticket:
Full disclosure: I am the co-creator of this blend, and Ernie named it after me. The various gold Virginia cavendishes provide a wealth of tart and very tangy citrus, sour lemon, fragrant floralness, bread, vegetative grass/hay, sugar, spice, herbs and light acidity as the lead components. The Izmir produces plenty of floralness, incense, herbs, sharp, bitter sourness, earth, wood, vegetation, tangy citrus, spice, smoke, light buttery sweetness and nuts. It offers secondary support. The strength and taste levels are a notch past the center of medium to full. The nic-hit is a step short of that center. Won’t bite or get harsh. Has a few rough edges due to the casing being very minimal and the lack of toppings. I suggest a moderate smoking cadence for those reasons. Well balanced, deeply rich, zesty, and mildly savory, it burns cool and clean at a reasonable rate with a very consistent tangy fruit, floral, spicy, herbal, grassy, moderately sour, lightly acidic, slightly smoky, nutty flavor that extends to the pleasantly lasting after taste. The room note is sweet, floral, spicy, and a tad more potent than tolerable. Barely leaves any dampness in the bowl. Barely requires a relight. Not an all day smoke, but it’s certainly repeatable, and those experienced in smoking Oriental blends may consider it to be an all day smoke. I recommend a medium bowl at most. Will ghost a briar, and eventually a meer. Has excellent age potential. Four stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
Watch City Simply Gold:
Full disclosure: I am the co-creator of this blend. The various gold Virginia cavendishes provide an abundance of tart and very tangy citrus, sugar, bread, sour lemon, floralness, vegetative grass/hay, spice, light acidity and herbs as the lead components. The Izmir supplies very mild floralness, incense, herbs, sharp, bitter sourness, earth, wood, vegetation, tangy citrus, spice, smoke, light buttery sweetness, and nuts. It offers strong support. The sugary citrus casing moderately tones down the varietals. The strength and taste levels are full. The nic-hit is a couple of notches behind that mark. No chance of bite or harshness. Has small rough notes. Burns cool and clean at a reasonable pace with a very consistent tangy sweet, fruity, floral, mildly spicy, herbal, sour, slightly smoky, acidic, deeply rich, zesty, savory flavor that extends to the pleasantly long lasting after taste. The sweet, floral, spicy room notes are pungent. Leaves light dampness in the bowl, and hardly requires a relight. May be an all day smoke depending on your personal preferences. I recommend a medium bowl at the most for this blend. Will eventually ghost a briar, and a meer in time. Should age well. Four stars out of four.
©Jim Amash 2025.
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