Newby News - English Wars

[jiminy]

Although I'm not a frequent English lover, my brother is. I believe that two of the ones that he loves the most are "Presbyterian" and "Shepherd's Pie" from The Country Squire. I've actually had neither, but I do trust his judgement on English blends. In fact, he was the one who introduced me to Nightcap and Balkan Sasieni

 

[mso489]

C&D Tuggle Hall is a pleasant burley-based English blend. It might be a little strong at first, but it grows on you. Their Stratfordshire is also nicely balanced.

 

[Old_Newby]

C&D Tuggle Hall is a pleasant burley-based English blend. It might be a little strong at first, but it grows on you. Their Stratfordshire is also nicely balanced.

BTW love the hat. Does it have a cultural or religious relevance?

 

[Meerly John]

An interesting one to consider for the LatPer battle could be Sunset Harbor Flake. It's LatOrPer, no VA.

 

[mso489]

The hat: My sister bought this for me in Istanbul. She and her husband are significant travelers. It's referred to as a fez, but not the Shriner tall red fez with a tassel. I'm a hat collector. I have a beaver top hat, a derby, many brimmed hats, felt and straw, many caps including a Missouri Meerschaum door prize (high quality) I got at the TAPs pipe show, the last one they had. Some hats look pretty good, others have a comic edge (on me). You decide. Thanks for mentioning.

 

[CoffeeAndBourbon]

I personally like Quiet Nights, Spark Plug and Engine #99

 

[kcghost]

Back when I was deep into English blends Nightcap was just to die for. Frog Morton was right up there.

 

[LotusEater]

I like my English blends on the light side so my faves are EMP, Presbyterian, and Balkan Sasieni.

In my opinion you can’t go wrong with these blends. They are easily obtainable and they are three of my favorites hands down.

If you want blends with more latakia then the ones @CoffeeAndBourbon suggested are a great place to start.

 

[Old_Newby]

Update: After lots of feedback I realized I do have 3 blends I left out because they had either Cavendish or Burley or Turkish in them instead of just Oriental. So I am adding these to my English War for this week. These 3 blends are Big Ben Match, 965 Match, and Balkan Supreme. 3 bulks I have in my cellar. I tied 965 this morning and like it a lot. Tomorrow I will try Balkan Supreme, then Big Ben, then Balkan Sasieni. As several have stated (anotherbob), I think I am going to like most every English I try. I will try to identify my top 3 but may take a while.

 

[Old_Newby]

Final Update: We’ll just as anotherbob stated they are all good. Unlike the Virginia battle this English War was more difficult. In past few days I tried

MM 965 Match - ****
Balkan Supreme - ****
Big Ben London Match - ****
Balkan Sasieni - ****

I am no longer sure that EMP is my favorite. It was my first Latakia so maybe that’s why I favor it, but a few of these others just might be smoother with less bite or more sweet. Big Ben was just yummy and I dont know whether coffee, or before food, or after food, etc does anything but I loved that smoke yesterday, but I don’t think I smoked a bad English yet. Maybe this is normal for English but I have a good variety to last me.

Next on my trials is VaPer’s.
I will start Saturday …

 

[FLDRD]

I may have misinterpreted, but it seems like you might be seeking one you like at the least cost. I've tried a large % of all blends mentioned above and haven't found one I dislike. I'm smoking some of them daily and some I have multiple tins.

That being said, I purchased a # of Best of the Rest - English, jarred up most of it and left a smaller amount in a container for current smoking.

There are no glowing praises for any of it's characteristics, but sometimes I go to it as a sort of palate cleanser / baseline / reset. It is pleasant enough for it's purpose and cheap at $17 a pound.

Hence it's recommended for the bargain price, and I've read (and would presume) that each purchase will be slightly different than others. Sort of fun.

 

[Model 29]

For me,the differences I taste between,say, Nightcap, EMP,Kramers English,etc,etc, is the difference between eenie and meenie. I simply cant tell that much of a difference. Proper English, Heavy English are of course stronger. But the lighter English blends are like women,turn em upside down and they all are the same. Lol

 

[Old_Newby]

After stepping away and mixing in VaPer and Virginia and coming back to English I again love EMP and Match London (Big Ben). They are my 2 favorite English for now. I think I love them because they are mild and sweet. Last night I had some Balkan Supreme again and its not as sweet and a little more Lat forward so I am cellaring it. I probably will love it more as my palate matures. It’s a slow process but I am getting there. My plan is to jump around and keep trying all in each type. Below is my top 3 in each for now. No order.

English - EMP and Big Ben, ?
VaPer - OGS, Ann Cake, De Luxe Roll
Va - NM400, Derringer, 3 tied for 3rd
Burley - NM 80, Amphora, Edgeworth
Aro- Autumn Evening, Van Roll Cake
LatPer - holding off on these until I get more experience and above solidified.

Of course Stonehenge and Elizabethan and lots of others I like but just can list all in top 3.

If I had to choose a desert island choice I would have to go with EMP because it can be every day and includes sweet, sour, and Smokey elements.