Presbyterian Mixture - What do you guys think?

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deathmetal

Lifer
Jul 21, 2015
7,714
32
You win "Necropost of the Year" award, I think. Good work -- bringing up these old threads keeps continuity and I'm really glad this forum allows it.
Here was my commentary on Presbyterian:
Summary: a light English that de-emphasizes Latakia for Orientals and aged Virginia, paradoxically bringing out more of the Latakia flavor.
Latakia can be an overwhelming taste. "Presbyterian Mixture" solves that by making Latakia a condimental ingredient, focusing instead on a spicy mixture of Orientals and a subdued, aged Virginia that is less sweet than hay-like. The result makes the pine flavor of the Latakia pop to the fore, framed in sweetness and spice, where it can shine but not overwhelm the others. It is easy to see why this blend has endured the test of time: it is nuanced and yet functional, perfect for distracted sipping while poring over old texts.

 

recoilrob

Starting to Get Obsessed
Apr 16, 2011
179
133
I have a tin of PM from the late 1990's, says it was Made in W. Germany for William P Solomon London. Is that the same as current production?

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
I haven't tried it. I know Presbyterian Mixture has been around for many years, and that suggests that many have tried it and many have continued to smoke it. There must be a reason. It sounds simple and straightforward, tasty and dependable. Likely I will eventually try it, but I'm not impelled to order it soon.

 

huntertrw

Lifer
Jul 23, 2014
5,224
5,350
The Lower Forty of Hill Country
Here's my take as published back in 2011 on tobaccoreviews.com. I am of the same mind still:
To paraphrase "The Most Interesting Man in the World" who appears occasionally in television commercials for a certain brand of beer, "I don't often smoke English blends, but when I do I prefer Presbyterian Mixture!" To me, it epitomizes the phrase "classic English pipe-tobacco."
The aroma in the tin is delicious: wet leathery, smokey, late fall-woods musty sweet, and cow-barn-like ripe. It's one that, if it could be transubstantiated, I would happily chew on for hours in the same manner that my dog worries her favorite marrow bone.
Presbyterian Mixture's appearance is pleasing, too. Remove the cardboard cover beneath the lid, peel back the clear plastic inner wrap, and you will find substantial strands together with ponderous pieces of light-to-dark brown Virginia leaf, intermixed with Latakia tips that are almost black. It's typically moist, not overly so, but does benefit from some drying prior to use. This is a hefty-looking amalgam that promises solid smoking pleasure.
It does not disappoint. Using the Frank method to fill the bowl of a favorite Savinelli Oscar, it provides me with a good hour of English ecstasy. I find that this tobacco is at its best when smoked SLOWLY, but then aren't they all? I don't mean that you should sip it. Rather, take a deep draught every minute or two and let it drizzle out of your mouth. Take your time as you contemplate its manifold charms and it will reward you. Become distracted (or simply give in to gluttony) and puff too fast, and it will both bite and kick. Nicotine is here in abundance, but will behave if you treat this mixture with gentleness and respect.
Without drying I typically need only two pipe-cleaners per bowl; with drying only one. This tobacco reduces to a fine grey-white ash with little dottle. The room note is comforting in the same manor (pun intended) as that of an old, familiar, and favorite hunting lodge, cabin, or library.
This is a fine English tobacco mixture, and I give it my highest benediction. Amen.

 

mortonbriar

Lifer
Oct 25, 2013
2,653
5,663
New Zealand
Yes this is a very fine blend, I would comfortably have this as my only english (scottish though?) blend although I do rate highly a few others in the same genre.
I agree with the longer reviews and notes above, and would add/emphasise that this is a blend to be cherished, sitting. It loses its charm if you take it jogging or water skiing.

 

josephcross

Part of the Furniture Now
Dec 30, 2015
963
93
I dont know, if you cant take it waterskiing then it may not be for me.

On a serious note, I may have to grab a tin next time im at the baccy-shoppe,sounds like my kind of blend.

 
Jul 28, 2016
7,565
36,060
Finland-Scandinavia-EU
Still keeping away from anything which contains Latakia, nevertheless yes I can smoke most any latakia containing mixture but eventually This latakia+ orient addition tends make blends taste a bit too acridy-spicey yet smokey to my current like.

 

smansewer

Lurker
Mar 30, 2017
1
0
a favorite of mine for over 30 years. i keep at least 15 different tins with me at all times depending on my mood but Presbyterian is always among them.

 

tslex

Lifer
Jun 23, 2011
1,482
13
I like the mix well enough, and like very much the tradition associated with it. (And I'm an elder in the PCA, so, really, how could I not like it.) All those intangibles are meaningful to me. Let's face it -- ephemeral considerations aren't foreign to a group of guys who'll spend hundreds of dollars to burn old leaves in in wooden bowls. (They are part of, for example, why I like Peterson pipes a bit more than perhaps they deserve.)
Back in the day, before the internet made it so easy to obtain so wide a variety of tobaccos, Pres was much more of a staple for me, as it could regularly be found in B&Ms.These days, though, for me there is just too much competition for Pres to be much in my regular rotation. I've become so fond of lat-heavy blends that Pres tastes a bit one-dimensional to me compared with so many other readily available choices.

 

gmjabsky

Starting to Get Obsessed
Apr 3, 2015
152
0
I enjoy it, a pretty mild blend that suits me sometimes. The packaging is brilliant, with the Baggie in the tin...more should do that

 

pancakejake

Lurker
Mar 22, 2017
15
0
I like presby well enough. Its been a few months but I remember it being a mild English with some complexity. Medium to weak in chemistry, no bite. A good light English for a change of pace from heavier blends. I got it on trade from a guy in Texas and enjoyed the smoke but I probably won't buy any. There are a lot more interesting bowls out there.

 
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