Latakia is a very pungent, dominant tobacco. If there's enough of it to be called an English blend, it will trample everything else. Very few English blends taste appreciably different, and none smell different. The main difference is strength. I prefer strong tobacco, others differ. I like Dunhill blends because they always come at the perfect moisture for smoking, no fussing needed. All of their English blends except MM965 are simply weaker versions of Nightcap, the mackdaddy seek-no-further of English blends. EMP is the weakest of all. MM965 is the exception. It's not quite as strong or richly satisfying as Nightcap, but it has an interesting bouquet and a hint of sweetness that sets it apart. It's not enough different from Nightcap that I keep both in rotation, but if I couldn't get my hands on any Nightcap, I'd take MM965 as a second choice.
Trying Out English Blends
- Thread starter drumweezer
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McClelland Jubilee if you're looking for a blend where the Latakia doesn't overwhelm the other components. It offers a very nice balance between smokiness, red Virginia tang, and a mild sweetness.
I'll third, (or fourth) Dunhill's Early Morning Pipe. Definitely a venerated example of the genre, but not too overpowering. On the other hand, if you just want to go for it and slam your tastebuds with that latakia flavor, then Nightcap is it. It was probably the first latakia blend I tried. Hated it and didn't have any latakia again for years. But as I slowly tiptoed back into latakia I came to appreciate it. You won't be able to smoke either blend without coming away with an understanding of what latakia tastes like.
But if you're real interest is beginning to branch out from aromatics, you might want to try a pure Virginia or two next. It'll help you pick out the flavors in future tobaccos when the focus is the flavor of the tobacco and not the toppings. Another thing that some folks have success with is finding a non-aromatic codger burley blend or something like that, and mixing it with black cavendish - altering and slowly reducing the cavendish as the taste for naked tobacco increases. It's nice to be able to try a blend and pick out the flavors. "Hmm, that's the burley, that's the virginia, that's the perique..." etc. I'm not great at it yet myself, but as I learn it definitely adds a lot to the experience.
But if you're real interest is beginning to branch out from aromatics, you might want to try a pure Virginia or two next. It'll help you pick out the flavors in future tobaccos when the focus is the flavor of the tobacco and not the toppings. Another thing that some folks have success with is finding a non-aromatic codger burley blend or something like that, and mixing it with black cavendish - altering and slowly reducing the cavendish as the taste for naked tobacco increases. It's nice to be able to try a blend and pick out the flavors. "Hmm, that's the burley, that's the virginia, that's the perique..." etc. I'm not great at it yet myself, but as I learn it definitely adds a lot to the experience.
What? Ha ha, I get some that are sweet, sour, fruity, spicy, licorice-y, campfire-y, leathery, I think that each blend is as different as can be. In fact, I find less to actually taste like another.
But, as far as where to go from aromatics... Just take your pick. The range is huge in the latakias, larger than any other genre. But, as far as just learning about non aromatics in general, I would suggest what I did. I just bought one of each of GLP's Fog City Selections. Each one has a Virginia base that then explores different combinations of the condimental tobaccos. It really helped me learn to match taste to the leaf causing it. Besides, these are some awesome tobaccos made by an master artisan of what he does.
MM965 is the only one of the Dunhill Englishes that doesn't taste to me like a wimpier Nightcap. There may well be tons of other English blends that taste different, but when I elminate all from manufacturers whose blends I need to dry out, that leaves far fewer. Elminating ones that have so little Latakia you can't even taste or smell it (Edward G Robinson is a prime example), and "crossover" aros, that slashes the number even more (I know there's such a thing as bacon-flavored ice cream but I have no interest in trying it out
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Any of the Standard Tobacco blends such as War Horse, John Cottons No:1, No: 1&2, John Cotton's Smyrna or Bengal Slices are certainly traditional English blends!
Dunhill EMP and Standard Mixture; any of the Frog Morton series. Some of the people here just throw in a list of English blends that they like, not necessarily the blends suitable for a beginner in latakia. Anyhow start with some relatively mild to medium blends.
I agree with all of the above. I'd add Nat Sherman 536, one of the most refined English blends, mild but complex and flavorful, and I also greatly enjoy pipesandcigars Midtown series Chestnut, the only non-aromatic in the series, available either in a pouch, to sample it, or a tub, if you find you like it. An extraordinary sophisticated blend at a reasonable price that works best in a wider chambered pipe -- around .80 inches, to unfold its various constituent tobaccos.
I wouldn't shy away from more robust blends, even early on, if that interests you. My first experience with English blends was Nightcap and I loved it. When I was a beginner, I had trouble coaxing any flavor out of 965 and Early Morning Pipe, though. But I was a total beginner -- I'm not sure how it will work coming from having experience with aromatics.
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