Carl McAllister, who started working at the Sutliff Tobacco Company in 1977, and became the chief blender and head of Research and Development in 2000, is retiring today. I don’t have an exact count of how many blends Carl created, and knowing Carl, he never counted them either. But I’m figuring the number is easily over two hundred. Carl’s creations include Molto Dulce and the entire Sutliff Private Stock line, a great many bulk blends like Voodoo Queen, Count Pulaski, Sambuca, etc., over forty Match blend recreations (one of the most difficult tasks a blender can undertake), not to mention tweaking many existing blends, and creating many for numerous brick and mortars.
Though Carl is known for creating many aromatics, he is also known for creating many popular English blends like Blend #5, and Luxury Balkan Blend 957, among others. His friend Russ Ouellette calls him “The King of the Aros” with respect and affection. I’m writing this post because I have gotten to know Carl pretty well over the last couple years, and consider him a friend. Carl’s very laid back and humble, never having been one to hoot his own horn, so I thought I would do it for him on his last day of work. He’s changed the way many people smoke by creating a multitude of blends in every know genre of pipe smoking, and I thought he deserved recognition for his body of work and diligent commitment to his craft, not just on this day, but for the permanent record of the gentle art of our pipe smoking hobby.
Good luck to you, Carl. Thanks for your hard work and dedication to the pipe smoking world. We’ll see you down the road sometime, my friend.
Though Carl is known for creating many aromatics, he is also known for creating many popular English blends like Blend #5, and Luxury Balkan Blend 957, among others. His friend Russ Ouellette calls him “The King of the Aros” with respect and affection. I’m writing this post because I have gotten to know Carl pretty well over the last couple years, and consider him a friend. Carl’s very laid back and humble, never having been one to hoot his own horn, so I thought I would do it for him on his last day of work. He’s changed the way many people smoke by creating a multitude of blends in every know genre of pipe smoking, and I thought he deserved recognition for his body of work and diligent commitment to his craft, not just on this day, but for the permanent record of the gentle art of our pipe smoking hobby.
Good luck to you, Carl. Thanks for your hard work and dedication to the pipe smoking world. We’ll see you down the road sometime, my friend.
