Mac Baren Blends

[matchstickman]

Symphony is very tasty. Good strong burley flavor with a hint of sweetness. Just popped a tin of Black Ambrosia today and am going to give that a shot tonight.

 

[lordofthepiperings]

Gave the Cherry Ambrosia a try this evening. It was a pretty good smoke. Lit well and burned very well just like Vanilla Cream and 7 Seas Royal did, but after a little bit the casing faded out and then back in eventually. My guess is the casing faded a bit because in the blend there's a bit of a broken flake , which I added midway, and I'm guessing the broken flake didn't take the casing as well as the ribbon cut. Within the next couple of bowls I'll try one without the broken flake and see if that is indeed the case. Overall though it was a great blend. Wonderful Jamaican rum and cherry flavoring. It burned a little hot in the bowl, but didn't give me any tongue bite. Definitely worth a try if you're into aromatics, especially cherry/rum flavored aros.

 

[damien83]

I have not had the biggest experience with them but I have smoked 7 sea's regular and really liked it, I think I still have about 4 mason jars ageing in my cellar, to me 7 sea's reg had a great flavor with little to no bite and a fantastic room note, it did need a bit of drying out but I can live with that. The other I have had is the Vanilla cream loose cut, I got it off a trade and when I first got it I was not a huge fan, so I mason jar'd it and stuck it in my cellar hoping with a little time it should be better, its been there for about a year so maybe one day soon I'll pop the top. Next on the block is another I have gotten form a trade and have yet to try but plan on fixing that tonight, its MacBaren Mixture Scottish Blend and it just sounds great to me so we shall just have to see.

 

[onemangang]

I am currently working on tins of Club Blend, Dark Twist, Mixture and Navy Flake.

I have tins of Mixture Flake and Golden Extra up next in the lineup.

I relly like MB stuff. Is it perfect? Nope, but I can live with it's misgivings!

 

[jcsoldit]

So far my favorite their Vanilla Cream Flake, now I like the loose cut but love the flake.
This is a little off topic but lordofthepipering as big a fan as you're of aromatic blends you should really try 4noggins Double Fantasy. IMO it smells and tastes great and best of all it burns very well... ::

 

[lordofthepiperings]

Gave the Cherry Ambrosia a second try this morning. Rubbed out the broken flakes and it kept the flavor a lot better. My advice would be to pick out the broken flakes and rub them out more yourself before you load your pipe. That way the flavor comes through better throughout the smoke. Might get around to that but it might be a while JC. I'm planning on ordering up some more Connoisseur's Choice with some of the Special Rserve and Summertime blends, if Cup O Joe's ever gets them in, and after that I'll probably be stocked up enough on blends for a while. Plan on just saving up for more pipes after that. But I'll keep that blend in mind though thanks.

 

[kcvet67]

My advice would be to pick out the broken flakes and rub them out more yourself before you load your pipe.

This is good advice for nearly any flake blend. It will release nuances that you didn't know were there. Generally speaking, I rub out flakes pretty well unless I'm smoking outside when it's windy. I start packing with the coarsest shreds and top it with the finer pieces to aid in lighting.

 

[thesmokindragon]

Vintage Syrian one of my favorite AM w/coffee and carve'in smokes

Vanilla Cream Flake and loose cut

HH Highland

Navy Flake
All above are really great smokes and I have enjoyed them, didn't are much for their choc/honey blend...to chem-like IMO

 

[tiltjlp]

Just had my first three bowls of Norwood, all in the same bent Pride. This may just be the best tasting burley blend I've ever smoked. It totally blew me away. Also tried Dark Twist and Roll Cake for the first time this evening, and liked Dark Twist better of the two, but it's too soon to decide. I doubt I'll like eiher as much as I do Club Blend.

 

[juozapas]

My fave is the Mac Baren Navy Blend "Plumcake". It's the most awesomest ever...never a sad pouch :worship: :clap:

 

[admin]

@lordofthepiperings & brewshooter

Any word on that 7 Seas Red Blend Kevin? That one sounds very good.

The new 7 Seas Red just became my new favorite Mac Baren Blend. They originally said Sept at the show, but I just double-checked with Mac Baren and now they are saying October. I'm glad I got a large sample at the show. Sorry for the wait guys.
I don't really understand it, unless they just want to build anticipation. At the show they had finished, tinned product of both Black and Red. I don't understand how Black just arrived in California and Red is 2 - 3 months behind.
You would think if they are going to run production, as they had to in order to have tinned product at the show, that they would just run it full bore all in one big shot and ship the stuff out.

 

[lordofthepiperings]

Yeah I'd think if they had a tinned version at the show it'd be pretty much well ready to go for the public. Ah well, good blends come to those who wait I guess.

 

[lordofthepiperings]

Ok I lied. I picked up a tin of 7 Seas Regular Blend this afternoon and this evening had my first go around with it. It's a very good blend. It has a wonderful blend of Black Cavendish and Golden Burley leaf that are very good together and a casing of vanilla and chocolate. The flavors of the casing and the tobacco intertwine and change up throughout the smoke. Sometimes it's the vanilla, others it's the chocolate, occasionally both, and every now and then I mostly tasted the Black Cavendish and Golden Burley more. The flavors interweave wonderfully. This blend is now my runner up to Connoisseur's Choice and my favourite Mac Baren blend. If the Black Cavendish in the Black Blend is anything like the Regular Blend I will probably become addicted to it from the first bowl.

 

[unclearthur]

Snag the regular in bulk LOTS cheaper!

 

[lordofthepiperings]

Is it typically around $35/lb?

 

[unclearthur]

Closer to 23

http://www.smokingpipes.com/tobacco/by-maker/mac-baren/bulk/moreinfo.cfm?product_id=70220

 

[lordofthepiperings]

Woa Nelly! I might have to stock up on some more mason jars and just by the 7 Seas blends by the pound then.

 

[unclearthur]

I am thrifty ( an ancient Celtic word meaning cheap ) so I look for my favorites in bulk.

 

[lordofthepiperings]

Yeah ya can't beat getting an extra 12.5 oz. for only another $8 (plus S&H).

 

[unclearthur]

With a 95 dollar order no S&H!