Looking For Currently Available Holiday/Christmas Blends

[carolinachurchwarden]

I'm a big sucker for the holidays, once we creep into September, I'm already looking forward to fall weather, football, then my favorite holiday of the year, Christmas. I love the smells during those months. The pumpkin spice and apple and cinnamon air fresheners we stock up on for the time of year come out and it's pure bliss to walk in the front door and smell the wife baking cookies and pies. These sensations have brought me to begin my search for a great holiday blend.
I've been looking at these so far:

C&D's Autumn Evening

Dreams of Kadath (mostly because it sounds like it smells like something I'd love during this time of year)

Golden Days of Yore

Boswell's Christmas Cookie

Sutliff's Pumpkin Spice

Sutliff's Christmas Spice
I'm overwhelmed with choices and I can't reasonably afford to buy up everything I see, even though some of these sound so delicious. So, this leads me to the question of what holiday blends have any of you tried and enjoy and think are worth a go? Blends out of production like Christmas Cheer are off the table for me, unless I hit the jackpot and buy up all I can find on the bay. Just looking for straight up blends I can go buy right now that are still available and in current production.

 

[lawdawg]

"Sleepy Hollow" by Straus tobacconists in Kentucky (and Ohio) is a great seasonal Fall aromatic that tastes of pumpkin spice / pumpkin pie. They release it by mail order at the end of each summer. I am not sure if 2017 was the last year, or if they'll keep it going, at least for now. You'll have to email or call to see if they'll be making it this year.
+1 on the Christmas Cookie. It's an excellent aromatic. Two more I like from Boswell: Northwoods and Cupcake.
Cupcake is also a smooth and creamy aromatic, and just as good as Christmas cookie, if not a little better.
Northwoods is a latakia / slightly aromatic "crossover" blend that has a bit of a scent and taste of pine, and it feels very Christmasy as well. It might be Boswell's most popular blend.

 

[techie]

Oh dear Lord! I'm just learning about all the various tobacco families and myriad blends that boggle my mind, and now I hear there are special "Christmas" blends?!
My wishlist is getting very long.

 

[carolinachurchwarden]

now I hear there are special "Christmas" blends?!

I know what you mean. I just started finding more of them when I learned McC's was rolling up the sidewalk for the last time and I knew I'd end up missing out on Christmas Cheer. But you can't miss something you've never had, so I started looking up other good holiday blend choices.

My wishlist is getting very long.

Hahahahaha, sorry there mate, might as well spread it to others, because my SP's wishlist is about 5 pages long, and that's not even all of the ones I've been looking at.
I've had Northwoods on my radar for a bit now, just haven't bought it yet. Sounds like a great English, which I'm slowly feeling like is where my tastes seem to be. I'd pick it up to smoke just any time, but it works great as a Christmas-y blend, then I'm all for it.

 

[techie]

Not sure if you saw my response to you in another post about Northwoods, but I'm having a tough time distinguishing the "flavors" of different blends. I have five of Boswell's English blends and I can't tell the difference in taste. I do detect differences in the aromas of the tobaccos, but not while smoking.
I don't know if this is a common beginner thing, but I don't understand when I read reviews describing "nutty, fruity, chocolate, etc, etc". They all just taste like smoke to me. Including Northwoods.

 

[aquadoc]

Christmas Spice and pumpkin spice are good, cheap aromatics.

 

[carolinachurchwarden]

It's a palate thing. Your palate will adjust in time. I've been smoking pipes again for just the past year, and only seriously started finding out about all the good stuff out there, so my palate is still adjusting too. Take someone like JimInks, I think he came out of the womb clenching a pipe, but I respect the mans ability to sip a smoke and be able to break down exactly what's in it. Not sure I'll ever reach that same level of epicness, but I trust him on all his reviews. He's been at it a helluva lot longer than I have. Also, some people just have a more sensitive palate and can distinguish between flavors better than others. You'll get there, so will I, but for each person it's different.

 

[3rdguy]

I second Sleepy Hollow. One of the better aeros I have tried.

 

[morgansteele]

Try HH Egg Nog from P&C. Sure to sell out before the holidays so buy now and get a few months on it.

 

[sablebrush52]

Not sure if you saw my response to you in another post about Northwoods, but I'm having a tough time distinguishing the "flavors" of different blends. I have five of Boswell's English blends and I can't tell the difference in taste. I do detect differences in the aromas of the tobaccos, but not while smoking.
I don't know if this is a common beginner thing, but I don't understand when I read reviews describing "nutty, fruity, chocolate, etc, etc". They all just taste like smoke to me. Including Northwoods.

Patience, grasshopper. With time you may pick up the different flavors. I say may because not everyone has the ability to develop a sensitive palate. But everyone has the possibility of maximizing what they're born with.
Jim's got one hell of a palate, but he's also served a long apprenticeship, becoming acquainted with the subtleties of the different kinds of tobaccos over the years.
One way to learn to pick out the different flavors is to pick up some blending tobaccos and smoke the various kinds of tobaccos individually. You will become familiar with the flavor characteristics of each varietal.
Smoke slowly, just the barest wisps of smoke and expel it slowly though your nose. You have more flavor receptors in your nose than in your mouth. Slow help you catch the flavors. Focus on the flavors while smoking. Very slow in and very slow out.
Smoke your tobacco when it is well dried, not completely dry, but dry to the touch when lightly squeezed while still pliant. Too much moisture masks flavors. Do these things and chances are that you will discover more nuances in what you are smoking.

 

[techie]

Thank you, sablebrush52 (are you a painter?). I do plan to pick up blending tobaccos, as you suggest. And I will follow your advice.
I didn't mean to take this off topic. Sorry about that.

 

[lordofthepiperings]

My all time favorite seasonal blend is McClelland's Holiday Spirit. Luckily I have about 20 tins stored up, so I'm good for a while with that one seeing as how I have one tin during the Christmas season. When Peterson was releasing their Holiday Season blends in America I ALWAYS picked up a tin, because they were wonderful aromatics that changed up every year. The tin art was very detailed and made for great coffee table or pipe cabinet pieces. Sutliff's Christmas Spice is a really good one. Very much that cinnamon, gingerbread kind of Christmas notes. The Country Squire does a yearly Christmas blend called Figgy Pudding which is another delicious one.
I do pick up some Sleepy Hollow from Straus and some Sutliff Pumpkin Spice for the fall season. Very good aromatics. C&D's Autumn Evening and Stuliff's Maple Street are some really good maple flavored blends that call to mind the fall season in their flavor and room note.

 

[jacks6]

Another vote for Sleepy Hollow here. I also really love Golden Days of Yore. It was limited for a time but they put it back into regular production.

 

[brooklynpiper]

Kids these days are smoking nutmeg. Nutmeg!
These "holiday blends" seem like a gateway drug :P

 

[drrock]

Here are my recommendations:
Uhle's Christmas Blend 2011 is so darned good they made it a regular offering year-round.

Boswell's Christmas Cookie is outstanding.

The Holiday blends & Thanksgiving Day from Peretti are also great.

And +1 for Straus' Sleepy Hollow

 

[seldom]

I've some Peter Heinrichs Jahresmischung which I'll be giving a spin come December. I believe these "year mixes" are done with an eye toward Christmas/New Years. Translating from German for the 2017 year blend:

Exquisite mix of handpicked, naturally sweet Virginia tobacco from the year and tongue-friendly,

deep black Cavendish, which is processed separately and ripens for several days in peace.

Completed with bright Virginia leaf tips creating a visually interesting mixture.

Prepared in variant-cut, which ensures a cool and even burning. perfectly composed with sweet vanilla kipferln, fragrant cinnamon stars and spicy spekulatius, rounded off with bourbon vanilla. Hand-packed with love and care.

The 2015 is still available with the following description:

Two different types of Black Cavendish combined with dark and light Virginia, Burley and a pinch of Ready Rubbed Virginia Flake. An extraordinary, delicious aroma of mirabelle, vanilla and nougat completes this sweet, gentle blend.

I haven't read any reviews on it but I know Germans know how to do Christmas (notice the kipferln and spekulatius flavors). Time will tell.

 

[pylorns]

Yep, I have a crap ton of McClellands Holiday Spirit stockpiled like @lordofthepiperings. But I also enjoy Strauss' Sleepy Hollow, pumpkin spice, etc. I've been working on my own blend of Fall/Winter:
Take 1 lb 1Q, 1/2 lb Sutliff pumpkin spice, 1/2 lb Lane Limited Vanilla Black Cavendish, 4 oz of Sutliff Christmas spice, mix and enjoy.

 

[k9shag]

anyone know the exact names of the Perretti holiday tobacco's