Tobaccos Tabac Manil - Le Petit Robin (Pure Semois)

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DrumsAndBeer (217)	2016-09-23		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

Due to the extraordinarily thin cut of this tobacco, I prefer to smoke it in a pipe with a longer stem. Needless to say, my one and only formerly neglected churchwarden has been getting a lot of attention lately. As for the cut, Le Petit Robin is as shaggy as shag comes, so firm packing and a slow sipping cadence is a must, otherwise it does tend to burn hot.

For those like myself who found Manil's thick cut, pure La Brumeuse Semois a little too earthy, but simultaneously enjoyed certain aspects of its unique flavor, Manil's one and only semois based blend could very well be a must try.

The flavor of Le Petit Robin covers the entire spectrum. It's lightly sweet, earthy, grassy and full of fine subtleties. The side stream has a delicate floral quality and the finish is piquant and long. The semois flavor is very much in the mix, lending body and its signature mineral taste. The brighter tobaccos lend a sweeter, verdant & woodsy quality to the taste and provide a perfect counterpoint to the semois.

Altogether, this is an excellent, well balanced, natural blend that I can only describe as a real treasure from the Ardennes Valley. While I enjoyed Manil's La Brumeuse, Le Petit Robin hightlights Vincent Manil's skill as a tobacco blender and obviously he's an expert because this particular offering is superb.

34 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	moniker (220)	2016-12-12		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

The story from Tabac Manil is that it took Vincent Manil several years to develop his Le Petit Robin pipe tobacco. Though everyone knows LPR contains Manil’s signature Semois, M’s mum about the other tobaccos he uses here. After sniffing and smoking LPR, I suppose he uses selected flue and air cured VAs, including some lemon and some brown leaf. Le Petit Robin is an incredibly fine shag cut that is pressed into 3.5 oz. blocks and wrapped in “paper foil” that is over wrapped with a nice, retro, paper label. Pulling at the tobacco brick, the very fine strands of tobacco are amazingly long. The tobacco is dry but not dusty dry. Still, the super-fine strands ensure that tobacco dust is produced in quantity any time this tobacco is handled incautiously. The brick smells somewhat of Semois, which is to say like Burly and also mildly cigar-like, with musty, earthy, spices, maybe some cocoa and mushroom, but there is also a more pervasive, grassy, faintly floral aroma that wafts up. Overall, LPR smells more subdued than Manil’s La Brumuse (pure Semois), and I detect no topping (perhaps there is very light casing). Because of LPR’s propensity to turn to dust when it’s handled, I try to pull a small, continuous wad from the brick like I might pull a cotton ball off a larger wad of cotton batting. To smoke LPR, I pack it into a #3 – 4 bowl that has not been used for “dark” blends, including American KY. Then, I light it slowly and puff it as gently as possible while keeping it lit. For me, LPR is best sipped, which allows me to enjoy its ethereal secondary tastes and scents along with its primary VA and Semois. The smoke begins softly and gently, and I love to fill the air around my head with great, profuse clouds of this naturally, subtly aromatic smoke. The smells and tastes both move from lighter and mid-band VAs to Semois as a bowl is smoked down. The smoking aromas are myriad, including grasses, moss, herbs and floral spices, and the musty, cigar-ish spices are condimental if the burn rate is kept slow. Tastes parallel the aromas, along with some cashew and a little tannin, and it is just bitter enough to be bracing. IMO, it strikes a nice balance between interesting and relaxing. Strength is more medium than mild, and for all the delicacy of the side streams, tastes move from mild toward and finally a little over medium as one concludes a bowl. Room note is pleasant, and aftertaste is a nice trailing off of the smoke, providing one keeps the fine ash at bay.

Overall, Le Petit Robin is just what I’m hoping for when I try a new-to-me tobacco, namely well-bred, well-behaved, tasty, and unique, also quite satisfying. Four stars. Well done, Vincent Manil.

Pipe Used: Various briars; group 3 - 4 with an easy draw

Age When Smoked: right off a "fresh" brick

Purchased From: 4Noggins

Similar Blends: compare/contrast to well-aged and rested GLP Montgomery.

23 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3050)	2017-09-26		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

As this is a thinner cut version of Le Petit Robin, I’m essentially repeating that review here. The semois burley is very nutty, very woody, mildly spicy, earthy, lightly floral, mildly dry, and cigar-like with a little cocoa, and a few drops of molasses. it also has a touch of cigarette. It is the main component by virtue of its strength, if not by its composition status. The very grassy, hay-like, tart and tangy citrusy, bready vegetative bright Virginia has a bit of power as well. The brown Virginia provides a little tangy dark fruit and a bit of earth and wood as a condiment. There may be another varietal in the mix, but it’s hard to define what it could be. There’s a sugar note that either comes from a casing or perhaps the brown Virginia. The nic-hit is a step past the mild to medium mark. The strength and taste levels are medium. It won’t bite unless you exercise freight train puffing. Being a very thin shag cut, it will burn fast and very warm, so I recommend a sipping pace and tight pack in the bowl. Has a couple rough edges. Burns clean and quickly with a very deep, consistent range of sweet and savory flavors from start to finish. Easily burns to ash with very few relights, and leaves no moisture in the bowl. Has a rich, pleasantly lingering after taste. Not quite an all day smoke, but it’s very repeatable. Four stars for the flavor, three and a half stars overall.

-JimInks

19 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	eon (12)	2017-04-22		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Now here is a blend that caught me unawares. Having smoked close to forty blends over the past decade, I was not expecting something to redefine what a pipe tobacco can be. Yet that is precisely my impression of Le Petit Robin.

As others have noted, the cut itself is almost a category of its own. It is extremely thin and fuzzy in a very pleasant, bohemian way. I tend to pack Le Petit Robin quite light, and consequently, the burn rate is pretty much doubled compared to my regular Virginia-Perique and Latakia blends. Strangely enough, I cannot say I detected any negatives from this, despite having a palate prone to bite. The bowl ends faster and that is all. It burns very dry and clean, and I admit sinning against one of my ground rules by refilling the same bowl immediately once or twice. That this brought no noticeable ill effects to taste or moisture only proves how well behaved the little Robin is.

The taste is even further apart from anything I have tried before or since. I find it hard to pin down the flavor but what it reminds me of the most is malty bread. The smoke is rich and creamy with hints of sweetness throughout. Overall, the flavour is not something I have ever found myself craving. But that is probably down to the fact that it is really quite unlike anything else and is thus an acquired taste in the true sense of the term.

I can easily see this as an everyday smoke for someone who likes its unique taste profile. Whether you do or not can only be ascertained by filling a bowl - which is something everyone should do at least twice or thrice. If only to take a path less traveled. It will be an adventure worth the detour.

Pipe Used: Hilson Barbi dublin

Similar Blends: A class of its own!.

13 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	FreePancakesForAll (10)	2018-04-01		Strong	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

I'm going to keep this one brief.

Vincent Manil's Le Petit Robin is absolute perfection. Grassy and sweet virginias (maybe?) with a subtle addition of earthy and floral semois. The fine shag cut guarantees an effortless smoke every time.

This is hands down one of the easiest blends to smoke. I take a smaller pipe (clay works best), wad up a ball of Robin, and stuff into the pipe. No three layers, no Franks, etc. Just wad up a ball and stuff it in. It burns quick so be sure to smoke slow and gentle. You'll be rewarded with a flavorful, strong smoke.

I wasn't a huge fan of the original release from Manil. Even as a lifelong cigar smoker, it just didn't do it for me. Just too much. This is a perfectly balanced blend now.

Pipe Used: Clays

Age When Smoked: 1 year

Similar Blends: Gawith Kendal shag if you threw in some shag cut burley. It's really a beast of its own..

11 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pryhosm (248)	2018-03-21		Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Now this is the most unique pipe tobacco I have tried to date. The presentation merits a comment in a review. This comes in a very neat gold brick with very nice (IMO) "old school" paper labeling. I comes as a brick of peat moss...well it is tobacco but it looks just like peat moss to me. It is a solid mossy brick and is unlike anything I have put in a pipe. It is also dry, according to Webster dry. I actually took some and put it in my survival kit to use as tinder, it is that dry. I have not smoked the pure Semois version from Tabac Manil, disclaimer. This is a cool blend. Tin note is a light floral and packaged cigarette like. It also has a light cigar note: like a Macanudo or Ashton Connecticut shade mild cigar. Very earthy "tobacco" notes. This tobacco is very pleasant, it is a light vegetal smoke, earthy, woody and dry. It also has a lot of tannins, like a black tea or Chianti in body. The flavors are reminiscent of Burley, but not a direct comparison. I do not get the nutty flavor I get with most Burley blends but it has that woody quality that is not quite Oriental and quite unique. The other tobacco's are not named but I would guess that they are Virginia based, a light sweetness and very grassy hay like. Not old damp hay but more like fresh cut dry hay bales. The parallel to cigar that I have read in other reviews is certainly there but not the cigars I enjoy. I am a Maduro fan and Nicaraguan cigar fan. This is more like Mexican leaf. Very straight forward with little nuance. There is a noticeable nic hit. I do not inhale and toward the end of the bowl I got a little light headed and felt that not so pleasant feeling in my stomach (I am a nic light weight). I enjoyed this smoke, it is not an all day or even an every other day smoke for me but I do find myself going for it every few weeks. prior to the review I smoked it every day for a week to get a good feel for it. Pack this tight and smoke it slowly. I noticed that in a cob it has a bit more sweetness and is a bit more flavorful, especially in my Cobbit Churchwarden (a bit more forgiving if you puff more frequently than suggested). I would give this a try, especially if you like mild cigars.

Pipe Used: Cobs and briars

Age When Smoked: fresh from brick

Purchased From: pipe's and Cigars

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2018-12-28		Strong	None Detected	Full	Pleasant

There's a lot of tobacco packaged in this brick-shaped, gold foil, wrapped container. It didn't feel like it weighed 3 1/2 ounces when I received it but I didn't put it on a scale. I concluded that it had dried out some so I hydrated it within a zip-lock bag with a pouch humidifier for a couple of weeks. Afterwards, I could feel that it had gained a little weight. It is not packaged to retain moisture & the folded ends are not sealed. It will inevitably contain a moisture content of its environment. I had read reviews prior to purchasing & pretty much knew what to expect & it is very tightly packed within the brick.

I unfolded the end & gave it a whiff and noticed the unmistakable aroma of tea & Belgian Burley. I don't believe it's a topping note... hard to tell. I've smelled this tea-like aroma in another blend before. I think it "may" have been the Peterson's Sherlock Holmes blend. Anyway, I immediately noticed the extreme fine cut of this mixture... even finer maybe than a steel wool pad but it works. The moisture content at this point seemed just about right for smoking but maybe still just a tad on the dry side. I pinched off enough to fill a size three bowl & stuffed it fairly tight as other reviewers had suggested which turned out to work very well for a proper burn rate. It quickly takes to the match & instantly glows cherry red all across the bowl with just a brief touch of the flame.

Upon the charring light I got a burst of flavor that improved considerably after about 1/3 had burned off & provided more flavor & a better taste without any harshness. I loved this Belgian Burley flavor combined with the VA from the very first puff but the third ingredient or ingredients seem destined to remain a mystery but whatever, the varietals play well together. I've never seen or tasted anything like it before. Very unique indeed & fairly strong. It must be packed tight & drawn lightly to get the best flavor & won't bite if puffing cadence is properly controlled. It has a tingly sensation on the palate & leaves a pleasant aftertaste. I liked this well enough to reopen the package & load up again. I'll be keeping this in my rotation as long as it's available & ordered another brick & will be filling up my Mason jars & try to retain a proper moisture content. From my experience with cigars, cigarette & pipe tobacco, they all seem to smoke best with the proper moisture content & I suspect that Le Petite Robin is no different.

This tobacco possesses a unique flavor & aroma that I really enjoy & tempts me with the desire to smoke subsequent bowls. I can't possibly explain the flavoring of Le Petite Robin but JimInks's review probably pinned it down. I never noticed the slightest cigar taste & I'm thinking there may be some Turkish mixed in. It doesn't produce any condensation while smoking & quickly burns down to a fine gray dottle & oddly enough, only leaves a mild tobacco smell/odor or room note behind that is fairly pleasant & seems to quickly dissipate. I've previously mentioned that my olfactory glands may require some maintenance or fine tuning but regardless, this is my take on Tabak Manil's Le Petite Robin. Great stuff!

Pipe Used: D. S. Huber Bent Dublin/Pete 312 Sterling

Age When Smoked: Fairly Fresh Brick

Purchased From: Smoking Pipes, Pipes & Cigars

Similar Blends: Only mixture like it on this planet...

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	B Short (6)	2018-03-25		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

When it first came out in 2016, (or at least that's when I bought some) I smoked about half of the brick and put the other half away. In 2016, the blend was sweet, nutty, and a bit harsh. Very enjoyable but just had to take it slow. Back then (fresh) I would have given it a 3 star rating. After jarring the other half and aging for 2 years, this blend has mellowed out and balanced its self. This now tastes like a va/bur/or blend with maybe some cigar leaf. The description doesn't mention orientals or cigar leaf but after some aging I swear i can taste them. There maybe none in the blend but this blend after 2 years tastes more like pebble cut by mcclelland mixed with maduro. Still nutty, not as sweet as it was when fresh, and a bit tangy from either the Virginia's or aged burley? If there are no orientals in this then I must be crazy. Give this time to age and settle, you'll be pleased. It Really does now taste like a high quality mcclelland blend or something. Bravo Vincent at tabac manil.

Pipe Used: Clays and churchwardans

Age When Smoked: 2 years

Similar Blends: When fresh? Nothing. When aged? Pebble cut by mcclelland.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gentleman Zombie (729)	2016-10-26		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

The Semois is earthy and a little nutty and has a lot of body. The "blond" taste a whole lot like bright Virginias to me and I suspect that's just what it is. Sweet hay. Altogether this is more or less a VaBur and a pretty good one at that. As Drums said you need to pack this firmly and smoke slow or you'll create an inferno. Flavor is good enough for 4 stars, but I'm deducting one for the heat.

Medium to strong in body. No added flavorings. Taste is medium. Burns very well, perhaps too well.

Pipe Used: MM Marcus, Country Gentleman, Mark Twain

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	dixcreek (184)	2016-11-28		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Sweet grassy with an earthy nutty roasted grain taste. Very shaggy, could say beyond shaggy! An interesting mixture to say the least. Can burn hot due to the cut, so pack it pretty tight and keep the tamper handy. Easy to the match and a consistent flavor profile throughout the bowl. The nose out of the package put me in mind of the tobacco barn when we had booked down several sticks of good red tips and let them mellow for a year. I think this is one you should try if you like burley and bright leaf mixtures. Am interested to see how it ages, if I don't smoke it up too quickly!

Pipe Used: MM devil acorn

Age When Smoked: New brick

Purchased From: Smoking pipes

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Rustedrailsmokes (293)	2020-10-10		Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable

I had tried the Reserve Du Patron, so when I ordered more of that I also picked up a brick of Le Petit Robin to try.

When I opened my brick, I was a little taken back at the appearance of the tobacco. Its a very very very short shag. Dry like I expected and it clumps together when handled. The note from the jar I moved it to was hay for sure.

I smoke this is smaller bowls and the thing I had to learn was to really pack it in tighter that I'm normal too. It lights easily and doesn't require relights. The taste is bready/nutty to me with a sweetness on the top.

With my nic tolerance this isn't something that I smoke multiple bowls in a setting of as it packs an unexpected punch. I've learned that it makes a nice morning smoke along with my coffee to start the day.

I think I prefer the longer shag of the Reserve but this is a great tobacco which is not like anything else on the market that I've found. I found a book which has photos of the process by which this is made which I found fascinating even if I had to translate the descriptions on GOOGLE.

the room note is close to cigar/cigarette according to my wife who forbid me from smoking it in the car with her.

Pipe Used: smallest bowls

Age When Smoked: Fresh from brick

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tim D (12)	2020-08-22		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

WOW! This ultra fine shag is truly phenomenal! Never smoked any Semois leaf, but im glad I saw a review many months ago with great reviews. It comes ultra dry, but it is meant to be that way coming in the brick that it does! It’s taste is very unique and i love it! Bought 3 more bricks and stuffed in a large mason jar! Very exceptional and a must try at minimum!

Pipe Used: Old Dominion Williamsburg clay pipe

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Smokingpipes

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Doctor Willet (13)	2018-09-01		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I have a very broad palette with regards to what I like, and I've found "Le Petit Robin" to be pure pipe smoking bliss. Whenever I get a new blend, I always like to see when I'm done with the first pipe, will I want another; with "Le Petit Robin", I smoked three. Since I got it two days ago, I haven't smoked anything else.

This is a very smooth, flavorful, and unique tobacco that is unlike anything I've ever had before. From what I've been told and read, I would guess that "Le Petit Robin" is the mildest of the three offerings from Tabac Manil. The shag cut makes for a wonderfully behaved and even-smoking blend. The flavor, tin note, and room note all have these wonderfully complex notes.

I can only get caught up in using bizarre adjectives, and echo others' words. It has the smoothness of a well-aged Burley, with wisps of the characteristic sweet, grassy flavors of a Virginia, along with that distinctly flavorful aroma and flavor of an Oriental such as Katerini. As many have admitted, it is so incredibly difficult to put a finger on precisely what Semois tastes like. The fact that "Le Petit Robin" is blended with other tobacco from the region makes it all the more complex both in its flavors and aromas, and in trying to describe this unusual profile. I suppose that's all part of the beauty. What I can be absolutely certain about, is that it's delicious beyond description. At any rate, this is most definitely a unique gem that is not to be ignored by adventurous pipe tobacco aficionados.

Pipe Used: Ropp Vintage apple (1.4" x 0.75" chamber)

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: SmokingPipes

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	HabaneroHardy (403)	2021-01-19		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Unnoticeable

This is a mild hay smelling shag cut that smokes cool, ever so slightly sweet with low nicotine, just to let the ones who require a jolt of vitamin N. This is a nice smoke, packaging is great. A nice 3.5-ounce block of tobacco wrapped in gold foil. Glad I was able to sample this one. I admire the Man’s craftsmanship that produces this and the others he crafts.

Pipe Used: Peterson's

Age When Smoked: New

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sergius (5)	2017-12-21		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

This is exactly what I'm looking for in a Virginia/Burley blend, but unlike most such blends on the market, the Semois component in this just delivers so much more flavor. Not that I dislike other blends, but the Burley we're all familiar with is more one-dimensionally "nutty" and not as rich as Semois. The Semois offers a good nutty flavor as you would expect, but there is also more musk, more spice, and of course its signature earthiness. Combined with the Virginias, this blend comes together like the smells of a walk in autumn woods. It's truly a special, luxurious, yet simple and effortless experience. Hats off to Mr. Manil for developing this blend. It's my favorite of the bunch. I plan to get a very large mason jar and just stock up on Le Petit Robin to keep it long term.

Pipe Used: Ray Kurusu Billiard

Purchased From: SmokingPipes.com

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Blackhorse (96)	2017-06-21		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Mild	Tolerable

Eval'd. as a MYO cigarette using Zen king size full flavor tubes (red). This tobacco is perhaps the "very most" in two ways. First, it surely is the finest shag I've ever seen (handles being stuffed into a tube very well). Second, it is likely the most expensive blend I've ever purchased at $25 per 3.5 oz package. That's over $100/lb.! Yikes! Is it worth it? Well, in a way. It's not going to be an everyday smoke for me. It's special occasion stuff for sure. But it IS very, very good as a cigarette. For those that have never indulged in pipe tobacco cigs...note that blends that are super light and even boring in a pipe come alive smoked as a cig. Stokkebye Turkish, Norwegian & Amsterdam come to mind. As does Gawith Kendal Gold. Then there is perhaps the premier blends, Daughter & Ryan...esp. 3 Sails. I use a Powermatic Mini injector to stuff tubes and it does a magnificent job though it's one of the lowest cost machines out there at $17. Built like a tank. But back to the Petit Robin. It's notable as has been described in that it is the only Semois BLEND, using 30% Semois. It has a very distinctive cocoa burley lightly floral note. Very fine indeed. It stuffs well as it comes in the pack once it is pulled apart and fluffed to an even consistency. I can't recommend this as a pipe blend as I've never smoked it that way. But as a cigarette tobacco ( and let me testify that the hobbyist injector machines put out a "small cigar" that is so vastly superior to any over the counter smoke they may as well be from another planet...they're that good) this stuff is crazy wonderful.

Pipe Used: MYO with Zen full flavor tubes

Age When Smoked: Used as soon as purchased

Purchased From: Pipes & Cigars

Similar Blends: Other Semois Tobaccos.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Indianapolis (49)	2019-12-23		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Whoa..... what a cool smoke. If you're looking for something different in a nice, natural, every day tobacco, give this a try.

It really is different. Think the sweetness of a good virginia, a little nuttiness like a burley, and an occasional VERY LIGHT cigar-like ashiness. The cut is very very fine, it comes super dry in the package, and burns awesome. Since it is a little faster burn, use a slightly larger pipe and sip.

Its not an "in your face" blend AT ALL. It's subtle but highly complex. Every taste shows me a little different side. One taste will be a little grassier, then next a little sweeter, the next a little richer tobacco flavor. I'm going to age about 10 oz of this and see if those complexities develop or if it becomes more uniform, but after a few months it's keeping that "draw by draw" complexity that is fascinating.

Because of the complexity, I could smoke this stuff non-stop, because every draw is lovely, different, and fun.

Not big and bold and brash -- just lovely and evolving. What a treat. Oh, and a nice little nic-hit to boot. Yum.

Pipe Used: Briars and Meerchaums

Age When Smoked: Fresh - 6 mo

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2019-04-19		Medium to Strong	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is an extremely fine cut shag blend that is fairly dry due to the packaging. My first sniff noted a slight tea aroma which I noticed in another blend I once sampled... I believe it was Pete's Sherlock Holmes. The charring light produced a burst of flavor that improved considerably after about 1/3 had burned off & provided more flavor & a better taste without any harshness. I loved this Belgian Burley flavor combined with the VA from the very first puff but the third ingredient or ingredients seem destined to remain a mystery but I think it's an Oriental variety. Whatever, the varietals play well together. I've never seen or tasted anything like it before. Very unique indeed & fairly strong.

There's a lot of tobacco packaged in this brick-shaped, gold foil, wrapped container. It didn't feel like it weighed 3 1/2 ounces when I received it but I didn't put it on a scale. It comes in a very dry state so I hydrated it within a zip-lock bag with a pouch humidifier for a couple of weeks. Afterwards, I could feel that it had gained a little weight. It is not packaged to retain moisture & the folded ends are not sealed. It will inevitably contain a moisture content of its environment. I had read reviews prior to purchasing & pretty much knew what to expect & it is very tightly packed within the brick.

It must be packed tight & drawn lightly to get the best flavor & won't bite if puffing cadence is properly controlled. It has a tingly sensation on the palate & leaves a pleasant aftertaste. I liked this well enough to reopen the package & load up again. I'll be keeping this in my rotation as long as it's available & ordered another brick & will be filling up my Mason jars after a proper moisture content is achieved. From my experience with cigars, cigarette & pipe tobacco, they all seem to smoke best with the proper moisture content & from my experience, Le Petite Robin is no different.

If you're looking for a quick tobacco preparation with an easy load and good flavor & a decent burning rate, you might consider giving this one a try. Much better than expected. I plan on sampling all the Tabac Manil offerings & liked this one well enough to prompt a purchase of the Reserve Du Patron brick & will give my review on that shortly. I found this blend to be "convenient," easy to use, takes readily to the match, burns to the smoker's preparation choice/preference & produces little or no moisture. It has a captivating taste & aroma.

I stored this in a Mason jar after hydrating to about 65-69% humidity & pinch off a quick bowlful on many occasions. There's a lot of fairly dry tobacco... hard-packed in one of these bricks that can be quickly hydrated to increase weight & proper smoking moisture & thus, found it to be a great value... a fine blend that will remain in my rotation. FWIW, I preferred the flavor of this over that of Tabac Manil's Reserve Du Patron & will stick with this one... just right for me.

Pipe Used: Cavicchi (CCC), 312 Sterling Pete, Huber Dublin

Age When Smoked: Fresh Brick

Purchased From: Smoking Pipes, Pipes & Cigars

Similar Blends: Nothing similar to any tobacco I've sampled before...

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2019-02-26		Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This is an extremely fine cut shag blend that is fairly dry due to the packaging. The charring light produced a burst of flavor that improved considerably after about 1/3 had burned off & provided more flavor & a better taste without any harshness. I loved this Belgian Burley flavor combined with the VA from the very first puff but the third ingredient or ingredients seem destined to remain a mystery but I think it's an Oriental variety. Whatever, the varietals play well together. I've never seen or tasted anything like it before. Very unique indeed & fairly strong.

It must be packed tight & drawn lightly to get the best flavor & won't bite if puffing cadence is properly controlled. It has a tingly sensation on the palate & leaves a pleasant aftertaste. I liked this well enough to reopen the package & load up again. I'll be keeping this in my rotation as long as it's available & ordered another brick & will be filling up my Mason jars & try to retain a proper moisture content. From my experience with cigars, cigarette & pipe tobacco, they all seem to smoke best with the proper moisture content & from my experience, Le Petite Robin is no different.

If you're looking for a quick tobacco preparation with an easy load and good flavor & a decent burning rate, you might consider giving this one a try. Much better than expected. I plan on sampling all the Tabac Manil offerings & liked this one well enough to prompt a purchase of the Reserve Du Patron brick & will give my review on that shortly. I found this blend to be "convenient," easy to use, takes readily to the match, burns to the smoker's preparation choice/preference & produces little or no moisture. It has a captivating taste & aroma. Stored this in a Mason jar with around 65- 69% humidity & pinch off a quick bowlful on many occasions. There's a lot of fairly dry tobacco... hard-packed in one of these bricks that can be quickly hydrated to increase weight & proper smoking moisture & thus, found it to be a great value... a fine blend that will remain in my rotation.

Pipe Used: Cavicchi (CCC), 312 Sterling Pete, Huber Dublin

Age When Smoked: Fresh Brick

Purchased From: Smoking Pipes, Pipes & Cigars

Similar Blends: Nothing that I've ever sampled before..

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pecci (9)	2017-03-24		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant

The smell out the wrap is wonderful. The cut is way beyond "shag", or at least any other that I have seen. It deserves a name of it's own. Perhaps "fuzz" would be appropriate. It comes dry and do to this in combination to the "fuzz'', It burns as quickly as a pyle of 3 yr.old leaves would in Death Valley. As a result, I did get a little tongue-burn, but only because of my quick pace. It was like, it burned so fast, I wanted my money's worth.

The good news ... I thought it tastes good, especially during 1st light and if your lucky enough to have any relights. Room not was floral and very enjoyable. To me, the floral note transfers to the taste, but with the addition of an earthy quality. There is a very slight grassy flavor that stays in the background, and I would love to know the mystery addition to this blend. I'm tempted to fire-up Google Earth and pan in close enough to read any top secret order list that might be labeled on a stack of "in-coming!" ;)

I found the nic-hit to be in the mid-range, probably because my cadence being rapid.

It's unique, with a great history/story/ mystery behind this blend. As a result, I think every piper would choose to experience this.

Pipe Used: Smallish MM Cob & lg. bent stubby Custombilt

Age When Smoked: 1 week

Purchased From: Smoking Pipes

Similar Blends: Nothing on the planet Earth!.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Antonius Blok (192)	2021-09-18		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

A type of burley called Semois, which is only made in one region of Belgium. It is difficult not to mention his presentation, which seems to transport us to another era. It reminds me of the tobacco packages that were smoked during World War II and that I could see in the Omaha Beach Memorial Museum, in Normandy (France).

The packaging is quite rudimentary, in golden aluminum foil, and as it is not sealed it does not retain moisture, so the tobacco is very dry. I changed the tobacco to a glass container, where I inserted a humidifier bag and it worked perfectly. Once the tobacco absorbed the moisture it needed to do its best, everything was so much better than when I smoked it dry the same day I opened the package. The cut is an extremely fine shag, which together with the dryness of the tobacco makes it burn as well as it does quickly, although it can sometimes have the consequence of heating up the pipe. For this reason, I highly recommend transferring it to a glass container and moistening it, since it allows this tobacco to express itself and offer its best organoleptic qualities. Loading is very simple, since it is enough to take the tobacco balls that are formed and introduce them into the pipe.

It took me about four or five pipes to get a taste of this one, but at this moment it seems like a very good option to smoke something different and enjoy it from time to time.

I would recommend giving it several chances before making a hasty judgment, as you could miss out on a tobacco that is very original and natural, compared to the many blends on the market that resemble each other. However, if you are one of those who are fleeing cigarettes or you do not like that type of flavor with some mineral nuance, I will understand that it is not for you.

Age When Smoked: 1 year

Purchased From: Sigmund pipe

Similar Blends: Réserve du Patron (Tabac Manil).

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	O. D. Jones (25)	2021-08-04		Very Mild	None Detected	Very Mild	Tolerable

This is the only blend Manil currently makes, not sure what's in it, but it seems to be just a small percentage of Semois involved. Frankly, I find this rather bland and tasteless, and the only reason I'm doing a review here is because of the cut... this is the only tobacco available in America that matches the Japanese kizami tobacco that you roll into a little ball and smoke in a kiseru... this is about the finest possible cut of tobacco... think of how fiberglass insulation comes, a super fine, hair like consistency. Koiki is the only Japanese produced brand I think is still available for the kisaru, and I've never seen that on the side of the Pacific. So if you ever want to feel like a samurai, having a last Puff while writing your death poem before battle, here's your tobacco! I'm betting there's a fair amount of decent Virginia in this tobacco, but I get mostly just a cigarette kind of taste, and talk about something burning pretty quickly! I happen to have an old kisaru, so it was kind of nice to dig that out and have a tobacco that would work for it... it makes for a very short smoke. I see plenty of good reviews here, and they are certainly valid, as this is a quality tobacco, but compared to the straight Semois... this is kind of meh for me. I just wanted to put my two cents in here because nobody has really mentioned how fine a cut this is, and it is identical to the Japanese type. If anybody knows an American source for Koiki I'd love to hear about it... it would give me a better excuse to pull out the old kiseru...

Pipe Used: kiseru, Peterson 406 spigot and Derry rusticated

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

Similar Blends: kizami Koiki.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Snappo's Pipe (23)	2019-12-08		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

Such a beautiful CLASSIC pipe tobacco. So flavorful and satisfying. World Class! Burns fast so temper puff cadence. Wonderfull... cellar deep! Doesn't age... perfect as is!!!!!

Pipe Used: Cob

Age When Smoked: 5+ years

Purchased From: SP

Similar Blends: None.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JaWiBr (568)	2022-12-13		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Package note of mildly sweet, earthy, and mild licorice. Tobacco is brown very fine shag, a little on the dry side but soft, no prep needed. Burns fast with few relights. The strength is medium and nic is medium. No flavoring detected. Taste is medium and very consistent, with complex notes of a moderately spicy cigar, rich dirt, mild sweet nuts, dry wood, very mild cocoa, very bready, floral hay like, mildly tangy-sweet background note, and a peppery retro. Burley is leading with the "secrete leaf" (maybe red Virginias?) supporting. Room note is pleasant to tolerable, and aftertaste is great.

Pipe Used: DR Ardor Urano Dublin

Age When Smoked: 1 month

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

Similar Blends: Tabac Manil - La Volute (wide ribbon cut), Tabac Manil - La Brumeuse (ribbon cut), Tabac Manil - Réserve du Patron (shag or fine cut), Tabac Manil - Le Petit Robin (very fine cut).

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	A. Dyer (19)	2023-04-01		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I love fine shag cuts, they do not get enough love in the pipe world. I find that with some kinds of leaf they smoke better, allowing for more smoothness too, and I like blending with them. The taste of Le Petit Robin is very like something between an old school blonde Gauloises and a balkan/turkish blend with plenty of light Virginia leaf in there, maybe even a hint of halfzware smokiness. Mostly, I would say this is like a really nice smooth Virginia blend with a little extra depth, cocoa and breadiness.

A nice clean, pure flavour (nothing added at all from what I can tell) with a touch of sweetness and cream, and the complexity is subtle. Delicately spiced woody, hay, bread and cocoa powder taste with light hints of citrus, raisin, sweet floral notes and cream. The finish is short and dry with a little raisin, wood and charred bitterness, and the room aroma is quite light and pleasant, but you get some draws with a creamier doughy kind of taste that's particularly delicious. I don't find it particularly strong, but around the lower side of medium at most.

If anything, it could benefit a bit more from just a touch of proper quality light and sweet Turkish leaf, which is sadly becoming completely muscled out of existence by the big tobacco companies and their drive to move everyone onto their cheaper-to-manufacture vape liquids and gear, which have bigger profit margins... I luckily have some rare Turkish and Macedonian from D&R left over which I mixed in a little of and it enhances the sweetness and smoothness beautifully. An added hint of light and fragrant Bursa and Yenidje would be ideal.

You can clearly see thick clumps of the darker Semois leaf in the brick, which you are free to blend in more evenly yourself if you prefer. It does indeed come packaged quite dry, but not crumbly or with any dust whatsoever. You are just getting the proper weight for your money (something we should champion). Just carefully jar it up with a little 69%RH humidity pack and after a few days it will be perfectly supple and smoke with a touch less bite. For those curious about tubing/rolling, the inhale is very light and smooth with just a touch of bite, mostly from the Semois.

Pipe Used: Briar Pipe & Tubes

Age When Smoked: No additional aging

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