The Beauties of Burley

[Parsimonious Piper]

@mso489 Pretty similar here. I like the occasional Va or English, but my go to blends are all either burley or Ky dark fired, or blends that include them as more than just a minor player: HH Burley, Bold Ky, ODF, OJK, etc. And any OTC codger blend.

 

[danimalia]

It's nice to see Burley has gotten it's due in recent years. You can actually see a shift in tone on Tobacco Reviews. Many early reviews treat the leaf with scorn. Though people may not like it, it seems fewer are willing to condemn it as inferior.

Anyway, my favorites are:

MB HH Burley Flake
Solani ABF
Watch City Slices
C&D Burleys #1 and #3 (still working on #5)
H&H Classic Burley Kake

And quite a few more... I alternate between the Solani and MacBaren as my current top choice. It's a good time to be a burley aficionado!

 

[theloniousmonkfish]

Burley is coffee's best friend.

 

[danimalia]

so far my favorite is burly flake #5 it reminds me in some odd ways of an English but not quite. In some certain weird way I kind of find burly to be a more comforting smoke then other tobaccos. Kind of like snack food where I don't suss out all the nuances but find it incredibly enjoyable.

Yes I agree. it is sort of a wholesome smoking experience if that makes any sense. Sort of satisfying like a nice chunk of bread at a restaurant when you walk in hungry as hell

 

[Papamique]

Carter hall and Prince Albert were staples for years and I still enjoy them from time to time.

I have some Dark Burley from C&D that is very strong and enjoyable both as a blending component and smoked pure. It reminds me somewhat of G&H brown twist.

 

[elasmo]

I smoked some Briar Fox today in honor of this thread

 

[kschatey]

I have only very recently dipped my toe into the burley waters, but enjoyed Watch City Slices. I also have tins of Mac Baren HH Burley Flake and Orlik Strong Dark Kentucky in the cellar and high on my list to pop open soon. I am a lightweight, so try to find blends at strength 3 of 5 or less to investigate!

 

[trubka2]

At least 2/3 of what I smoke every day has at least some burley in it. I love a lot of different burley blends for different reasons. To me, burleys are at least as variable as VAs, so I don't think of them as a monolithic category. I'm currently really into the ultra-rich Malawi burley in HU blends like Makhuwa, as well as other European houses. But I also really like the American range of burleys that C&D uses - including the somewhat bitter and dry ones. Pegasus is probably my favorite one from them because it balances the bitter, earth, sweet and spice just right for my tastes, but I also smoke lots of OJK and enjoy an occasional bowl of many other C&D burley blends. And then the quasi-burley DFK is a whole 'nother story, and I love it too, especially when blended with burleys, as in Peterson Irish Flake, which I smoke every day at least once. And then you've got the more old-school burley blends with a bit more casing and some flavorings, and my favorites there are from Uhle's (especially 300 and 00) and Watch City (WC Slices and Deluxe Crumb Cut). At the moment, Golden Extra is my favorite MacBaren burley, and Match Ready Rubbed is my favorite from Sutliff. VABurs with a real presence from both kinds of leaf really hit the sweet spot for me: Gawith Hoggarth Brown Flake Unscented is the one I smoke most often. But if I get started on VABurs, I'll never shut up...

 

[troyniss]

I've been enjoying the codgers lately. I just finished a pouch of PA and was sad when it was down to the crumbs. Mixed the rest in with CH. I bought a 14oz tub of PA a few days ago after I ran out.

I enjoy the no-fuss smoke PA gives and it definitely took a while to get used to, but has since become the 'just light up and go' tobacco.

I do enjoy McB HH Burley Flake for a higher end smoke. I don't have too many burley blends in my rotation as I don't care for them that much, but would love to find a higher end Burley other than McB HH BF to smoke. Perhaps I should open my tin of Briar Fox.

 

[tradition]

Always have a tub of:
Carter Hall
Lane Limited Ready Rubbed
Sir Walter Raleigh Aromatic

 

[Chasing Embers]

Angler's Dream

 

[judcole]

I am at the point that I am starting my day with burley, usually in a cob. The regulars in the morning rotation are
HH Burley Flake
MacB Golden Extra
Lane Ready Rubbed
Amphora Original or Amphora Burley

 

[gervais]

Only true burley blends I've tried are Pegasus and Amphora burley. I find I have to sip burley nice and slow to appreciate them, or else I just get an overpowering bitter-walnut flavour burn in my mouth. They are nice with a coffee. I also smoke HH ODF, but don't classify it a burley

 

[gervais]

Do any of you have any experience with C&d three friars? Is it similar to Pegasus?

 

[mityahicks]

I smoke 3 Friars as well. I find it much more potent than Pegasus. Still tasty though.

 

[bent1]

Top three: Prince Albert, Haunted Bookshop, Five Brothers.

 

[dog_park_piper]

Since this is a burley thread, I feel I should acknowledge Cornell & Diehl for their role in bringing along burley from the OTC codger blend category to a fine array of blends, with burley as base or condiment, that awakened the pipe smoking community to the range of possibilities of burley. Burley has been present in blends forever, but C&D made it notable and respectable in a way it hadn't been and still brings forth new variations on its use. GLP, Mac Barens, D&R, Lane, and Sutliff all contribute and have for decades, but C&D really advanced the cause from its Pennsylvania and North Carolina days, before being bought by Laudisi, which has intelligently and ably carried on the expanded and elevated use of burley.

I think this is a great thing to say about C&D. I am smoking C&D variants almost exclusively, with the addition of Daughter's & Ryan and 5 Brothers. C&D is a solid American flavor. Which blends from C&D? Old Joe Krantz on the daily and Haunted Bookshop once in a while. Virginias rip me open in the mouth.

These three companies do it for me.

 

[Grangerous]

Granger of course is all Kentucky burley and my favorite blend.

Pegasus is burley based and a real winner of late.

Crooner I find interesting. Quality burley with a lot of extra flavor from the deer tongue. I like the ease of the cube cut as well. Fascinating burley change of pace.

I suppose I’ve always loved burley. MacBarren Norwood, BLB, Golden Extra and Symphony/Harmony were my mainstays in the past.

Yes Burley and Coffee are a match made in heaven.

I simply do not look for citrus or hay or grass or bread or the like in tobacco. To be fair, I no longer seek out cocoa as was prevalent in MacBarrens blends as well as in Prince Albert.

There’s something about the creamy depth of nuttiness inherent in Pegasus and the molasses casing in Granger, a subtle sweetness that I identify as pipe smoke.

I can taste the flavors in VA. But straight Va blends are whispy, light and are a high note without base. I enjoy Va when mixed with burley.

All the rest, the Latakia, Perique, Aromatics, Dark Fired et al. I’ll leave those for you. More for you all.

 

[Ocam]

Wessex Burley Slice is a really good one!

 

[krizzose]

I’m a Virginia smoker first and foremost, but I’ve gotten into a few burleys in the last couple of years.

Stokkebye 702 burley. Simple, satisfying, plays well with others, inexpensive

HH Burley Flake, for something dark and smooooth

Stokkebye Cube cut, utility infielder

WCC Stubb’s Pipe, a bit more aromatic

WCC Watch City Slices, also simple, but with a bit of depth

GLP Barbary Coast, stout and complex