War Horse Bar from the Late 60's - Group Tasting

[voorhees]

So, I’m smoking as I type. Took the plug and sliced into cubes and then broke it up. Loaded my Scottie Piersel pencil shank canted egg. It’s a small bowl, so the amount I had was perfect for it. Went to eat dinner.

Initial light gave that floral note I heard about. I was not sure I could go on. But I have pushed through and it has subsided. Flavor is lighter than I expected, none cloying. Almost clean smoke and light tasting. Not harsh at all. Through the nose has a bit of spiciness. Made me wince a bit.

I’m puffing lightly as to not create too much heat as this little pipe can get there quick. Couple of relights due to that as well. Slight gurgle, but it went away and I’m getting the nicotine now. Very tolerable. But I’m not pushing my luck.

This is a pleasant tasting tobacco now. I could smoke a bit everyday and see the allure. Doesn’t bite. Not sure if time has mellowed this bar but I’m sure it has.

30 minutes on now....Still very mellow, but the nicotine hit is increasing. I am sitting here for a while as getting up might just be pushing it. I even let it go out and contemplate.
Tiny puffs is where it’s at. Slowly, methodically.
45 minutes now. A bit of swimmy headedness is happening..don’t push it. Still great tasting. I imagine it will smoke all the way down like this. Very consistent.
Thanks to ash digger for the opportunity. It was a fantastic smoke. Hope I held up my end well.

 

[voorhees]

I’m done....down to ash. I’ve set it aside and am glowing. Think I’ll just sit here a while and pet my cat. It’s a ride.

 

[jmill208]

Received mine today. Thanks Ash!

This is going to be a sit on the porch and savor kind of bowl. Review to follow. ::

 

[pepesdad1]

Yeah, pet the cat...I know that feeling...just finished the tiny chunk I had left over from the first time I lit it...retrohale...whew, I'm sweating...this is a monster...gotta take the rest with me up to NC to share with a friend...he won't believe it...it is that strong....can't imagine having a whole brick of it...would last my lifetime.

 

[pitchfork]

War Horse arrived, today, and it smells GREAT. The scent has faded somewhat, I imagine, but the tobaccos are rich and earthy. Really looking forward to trying this out when I have the time to do it right.

 

[jmill208]

I used a cigar cutter to shave the hard cube and it broke off into slices that were easy enough to rub out and get into smoking condition. Surprisingly, I think I can get two bowls out of the cube. It was very compact.
The pipe of choice was a small Baraccini poker pipe that would usually not have been my preference, but happens to be one of the smallest pipes I own. It's been unsmoked for a few years and no ghost remained so it seemed like a good candidate. A small bowl because caution was in order. Because of other distractions, the pipe was packed for an hour or so before it saw a flame.
Upon lighting, a very floral earthy note came forward while an almost strong pungent (tar-like) taste lingered on the back of the tongue. After a few small puffs the pipe went out. Upon relighting I was again hit with the floral note but the bad taste was gone. An almost strong earthy tobacco taste remained. The anticipation of the nicotine hit had me treading lightly, but I was starting to actually enjoy the stuff. Difficult to keep lit for me, but that helped to slow the pace. The nic 'glow' did come, but I didn't have any sort of ill effect from it.
It's hard to nail down a comparison on the taste. Definitely reminded me of the G&H Irish X, but not really. Maybe if Condor and G&H Irish had a baby and it went rogue? I'm conflicted, but it was a fun trial.

 

[condorlover1]

Its an interesting tobacco. I have a bunch of these plugs in a glass jar and I will always buy any unopened stock that comes onto the market. In my humble opinion the nearest thing I can compare this with is my own 'Warridor' blend which is an mixture of Warrior and Condor Plug with a very small amount of Black XXX thrown in to amp things up a little. It is very enjoyable in a small bowl and delivers that perfect nicotine hit.

 

[hawky454]

I was excited to have the release of Father the Flame coincide with the arrival of my sample of War Horse Bar so I prepared the sample to smoke while I watched the film that I’ve been anticipating for years now. The smell of the plug in the pouch was smoky and meaty, something stout for sure just sniffing it in the pouch sprouted a few new chest hairs! Lol. The sample I got was enough to fill up about 3/4 of a squat Bulldog that I picked to sample this blend. Again, I have experience with smoking some War Horse from the 80’s but this was an entirely different experience and to be honest, one that I wasn’t too fond of. Very harsh and unpalatable is how I would describe the charting light, left a bad after taste in my mouth. As I continued smoking it, against my better judgement, it did calm down some and some “not-so-bad” flavors emerged but I think that age was not kind to this one over the years and I believe it lost a lot of its natural oils from being dried out over the years (decades?). All in all I’d say this one was over the hill and passed the point of no return and if I had to choose, I’d smoke just about anything over that a second time, not the best experience on my end. It did have a nice boldness from time to time and if it were properly kept over the years I’d probably experienced a moment of ecstasy but this experience was more dysphoric than anything. This was the only time I’ve been glad I only had a sample large enough for one small bowl. Thanks for sharing Ash, I appreciate the experience and I’m sorry I didn’t have better things to say about it. The War Horse Bar from the 80’s that I tried was much better kept over the years and while not the beast it was made out to be, it was a pleasurable smoke.

 

[ashdigger]

Hawky, that's the roll of the dice with these blends. Your review is very good, for someone who smokes tar. Lol.

 

[hawky454]

Haha, thanks... I think. :rofl:

 

[trubka2]

So I just got done smoking a big black hunk of Horse that arrived in yesterday's mail from Vegas... It got me pretty high, sure enough, but I can still type no problem.
First of all -- Thank you, Ash! That was a really cool experience I never would have had were it not for your generosity and pipe-smoking comradery. I've never attempted to write anything like a tobacco review or verbally describe a tobacco with words other than "I like it" or "I don't like it," so bear with me.
I have to say that the main surprise was just how much I actually enjoyed smoking this. I thought it was going to be one of those capital-E "Experiences" that might not be pleasant, but build character. But no, it was a downright pleasant smoke. I'll address the nicotine content first, as that seems to be top of mind - and also because I'm a big nicotine hog, love the stuff, been heavily addicted to it my entire adult life. It's "definitely not an all-day smoke," as they say, but it's not a monster either. Of the stuff I smoke frequently, I'd put it somewhere in GH Dark Flake US territory. More nic than Irish Flake, for sure, but not by a huge margin. I've gotten more ripped puffing Doblones hard on an empty stomach.
Prep was a cinch. Just cut my chunk (NB: from the prime bar real estate of the "W") into 1/8" slices and gave it a quick rub. I put a little aside for a finer rub to top the bowl.

I chose a pipe that's not quite my smallest, but that seemed right given Ash's well-known partiality for Petes: a dainty little Peterson Deluxe 407 London Made with an orific bit. I don't know anything about the pipe, but it came from a southern English coastal town, and the way it smelled when I got it, and something about the way it was charred by a previous owner somehow make me think that it was no stranger to War Horse and other blends of the gnarly plug persuasion. I use it for the new War Horse (I'm a fan, btw) and various other heavy-duty smokes, so I knew it was up to the task. I gave it a week off in preparation for this vintage War Horse adventure. It did not disappoint one bit - it was a perfect pairing for me and gave me some great clarity.

After jumping around a lot and trying to twist out of captivity during the char, the Horse was very well-behaved in the bowl. Mild-mannered, even. It turned into a rock-hard pebble of smoldering goodness within a couple minutes, but then burned down into some of the finest, softest dark-gray ash I've ever encountered. Like dirty talcum powder. It left no moisture to speak of in the bowl, shank or stem. Like others, I had a lot of relights, but mostly because I kept forgetting what I was doing and staring off into the trees with pipe cooling in my hand. I tried out a fairly quick cadence a couple times, and I didn't get any real harsh, bitter notes, just some stinging of the gums. I certainly couldn't make it bite. Nice rich smoke. Retrohales were a little rough to take, but provided a nice rush. French inhales were like snorting high-dollar eau de cologne with some fiberglass mixed in - flowery and burn like hell and make you wonder why on Earth you just did that.
The thing that *really* floored me is how strong the floral toppings still are all these years later. The charring light(s) was a bit acrid, but after that it was all Tea in the Rose Garden. And these were real, honest to goodness floral notes, as in they actually taste like flowers smell (definitely rose, maybe geranium, plus something else) - as opposed to tasting like Tide Pods taste. I like Lakeland Essence in small, infrequent doses, but this was kind of a different animal, and the floral toppings they use these days taste fakey to me by comparison. War Horse was, in that respect, an eye-opener for me. The flowers kind of dominated the first 1/3 or so of the bowl, but they sat the sweaty horse of some very tough tobacco with aplomb and did just enough to keep it from rearing its moldy-tea-stinking head too much. I also detected a sweetness, but it was of the fruity variety (overripe plums, blood orange slice left out overnight, maybe barberries) - no idea what it is, and it surprised the hell out of me. The florals steadily died away in the second half and were replaced in the last 1/4 by that very pleasant fruitiness at front and center. The bowl went out on the fruit and a touch of bittersweet cigary-ness.
Overall impression - a fine, long, spaced-out smoke on a lovely evening. My only regret is that I didn't have a heavier meal beforehand, so I'll save the remaining hunk for our next steak night. Thanks again, Ash!

 

[pitchfork]

OK, I finally found some time to sit down and try my sample of War Horse Bar.
The topping/scent is faded somewhat, of course, but I can still taste what seems like heliotrope and probably valerian, too.
Oh my. This is a stout, earthy tobacco. Really catches the throat, like burley. The first few puffs are bracing (in a good way). Even though it's stout, and a little rough around the edges, it's fairly smooth at the same time. The flavors are all really well integrated. The room note is AMAZING.
I can see the resemblance to the STC War Horse reboot, but the underlying tobaccos are somewhat different and the steam pressing of the original seems to have melded the flavors together in a more unified way.
The smell is different, too. More of a cigarettish kind of scent, less cloying and play dough-like. The tobacco smell is more prominent than the marshmallowy scent of the valerian.
Just the same, the STC boys got the flavor mix pretty darn close. I mean, it's really close to the original. I think with a different mix of tobaccos and a slightly different pressing process, it would have been a near perfect match.
There's a touch of underlying sweetness along with the stout earthiness about midway through the bowl. In that respect, it reminds me of Warrior Plug, but less sweet, not quite as smooth, and a bit more stout. In other words, way better than Warrior. And yeah, this is a strong tobacco, but not much stronger than lots of Lakeland flakes, and definitely no stronger than brown ropes (at least for this smoker).
I haven't been this excited about trying a new tobacco in a long time. Thanks for sharing, Ash!

 

[pitchfork]

Getting a touch of tar here towards the end of the bowl. Damn, I like it!

 

[pitchfork]

I take it back -- this might be stronger than brown ropes. :mrgreen:

 

[ashdigger]

This is why I do this. I love these reviews.

 

[wyfbane]

Warhorse Bar: From a Nic-Wuss's Perspective.
Holy Shit.
So I have been waiting for the best opportunity to try this, having heard the warnings. I dropped my kiddo off at school and had a few hours before I needed to meet up with my co-author and continue final revisions on out master's thesis.
I ate a large meal of bisquits and gravy with ketchup and tobasco, accompanied by coffee with cream. I went home and loaded up my 1976 group 2 Dunhill with 3/4 of the smaller cube of Warhorse.
Pipe:

Warhorse is a great name for this tobacco. If it were made anew, I would name it Fragrant Freight Train, Scented Steamroller, or some such.

Puffing on it before I lit it was wonderful. The flavors spoke of a magical event with the addition of fire.
The initial puffs from the first match carried that flavor that some old tobaccos have. Spiciness and that taste that is a palatable and enjoyable form of something that vaguely reminds me of my mom's aquanet (I know that sounds bad,but I am still a rookie at flavor profiling. It was yummy). Still, the spice of the first few puffs were super spicy, but not overwhelming.
The next match had that all fall away and just give that fragrant, aged yumminess that I was hoping this would be. I made it about 1/3 of the way through that bowl, enjoying every puff when I could feel the edges of my reality starting to warp (Nic-wuss alert!). I stopped and will have a little more of it after lunch. I expect to enjoy each iteration as much as the first.
Thank you so much for the opportunity. I will weigh in again.

 

[prairiedruid]

Hooray!!! My package arrived today. Looking forward to sampling it tonight after dinner.

 

[pitchfork]

In case you were wondering, even the dottle and ash has a good amount of nicotine. Looking forward to my last little bowl of this stuff.

 

[ashdigger]

In case you were wondering, even the dottle and ash has a good amount of nicotine.

I knew this stuff was jacked with nicotine, so when I handled it I wore exam gloves.
DEAD SERIOUS.
I should have photographed my gloves. They had this road tar-like substance on them.

 

[spartacus]

I love reading these reviews. It puts a smile on my face thinking about it.