Tobaccos Borkum Riff - Mixture with Bourbon Whiskey (Bronze)

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Robdlouisville (10)	2013-07-04		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I smoked this in the 1970's. Something changed and it turned to garbage in my opinion. So I dropped it. Back in the 1970's, it was both mine and my grandfather's favorite smoke. Today i bought a new pouch of Bourbon Whiskey mixture. Package is not the black and white but the new brown and beige color. It says Scandinavian Tobacco Group. This stuff changed back and it tastes like it did in the 1970's. It is smooth, great taste - not too overpowering, not too mild. Just a bit of the whiskey and a great flavor. Not too sweet, not sticky and goopy. I'm buying it up before another MBA genius thinks it's a good idea to ruin the taste in order to increase profits. hehehe. Buy some - it is very pleasant.

28 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2013-10-14		Mild	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I did not like this at first, in fact I hated it and found myself wishing I had not thrown away thirty Canadian dollars on this crap. That's right thirty and change for this, and pretty much any "cheap" tobacco, in the true north and not at all free.

However, after cleaning my pipe with rum and letting it dry out (the pipe and the tobacco) for a couple of weeks this tobacco has done a 180 and is actually quite good. I have also tried it in a barely used pipe and it has worked really well in that too. THe taste is decent, it creates a lot of smoke which I like but it burns too fast although it does burn fairly clean with little tongue bite. I would likely buy it again.

Cheers

24 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Wibblefishofdoom (139)	2014-04-30		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild	Pleasant

I'd never really considered Borkum Riff before, given the plethora of hardly complementary reviews on here for their offerings. However, a recent chat with a friend and discovering that Stephen King apparently smokes this stuff led me to try Bourbon Whiskey, just on the off chance that it might surprise me.

The gold and brown design of the packet, upon receipt, impressed me some, I'm not sure why, it's not something I normally notice much less comment on, but this looked contentedly well designed. The packet aroma upon opening is very nice, something mellow, possibly whiskey but doesn't obviously stand out as such. There's also something a little sweet in there, possibly vanilla. The tobacco itself is a fine ribbon strewn with blends of lighter and darker brown flecked with some odd hints of gold. Packing is easy and the lighting is much the same, this works easily on one light. Initial smokes were nice enough, much like the packet aroma, it's one of mild whiskey with hints of vanilla. As I have progressed down to the bottom of the packet, it has grown on me and now thoroughly enjoy it. This one does bite occasionally if pushed a little hard, but stepping off the throttle and smoking a little slower usually helps. One thing I've noticed with this is the way the smoke from bowl and mouth has a pleasant way of hanging around a little before drifting up and away as if it wants to enjoy being smoked a little longer.

I have to say, I have been bowled over by how much I've enjoyed this, it may not be the best tobacco out there but it's a hugely enjoyable smoke in it's own right. Sometimes it's hard not to sit back while smoking it and start thinking of Frannie Goldsmith's father in the Stand smoking some rendition of Borkum Riff in his garden as his daughter tells him she's pregnant. This is nowhere near that dramatic but that "Glow of Discovery" buzz phrase printed on the packet seems to fit admirably.

Pipe Used: Finlay's Laureate Knobby

Age When Smoked: Unknown

Purchased From: mysmokingshop.co.uk

22 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	hockey01 (29)	2010-11-01		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Ahh, Borkum Riff.

I'm old enough to actually remember when this tobacco was introduced to the US market and, oh boy, was it the whip! It quickly developed a very loyal following and I know men who have been smoking this tobcco since 1968 and will not budge from it.

It won't kill you to smoke this blend and it does have a very distinctive room note (you can immediately tell if a pipe smoker is puffing Borkum Riff) which is not unpleasant. There is absolutely no flavour of eight year-old Kentucky Bourbon whiskey at all; you're going to have to crack open a bottle of Wild Turkey to get that. This tobacco simply has no discernable taste. As other reviewers have also cautioned, you need to smoke this blend slowly to avoid t/b. Don't smoke this blend in your best pipes either.

Over the years, as tobacco blenders became more skillful and varied, more sophisticated blends began to proliferate in the marketplace. This reduced Borkum Riff to a common "drugstore" status in the pipe tobacco world but, as we all know, smokers of drugstore blends can be militantly loyal.

"Borkum Riff"? I don't know how that translates in English, if at all. "Bore'em Stiff" maybe? Smoke half a pouch and you'll probably throw the rest away.

21 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3021)	2012-09-16		Mild	Medium	Mild	Pleasant

The whisky flavor is not as deep as the Bourbon Whiskey version, and weakens some after the half way point, exposing the dullness of the grassy, tartly citrusy Virginia and toasted, nutty, earthy, woody burley. The strength and taste levels are mild. Has little nicotine. Burns fast, hot, and scorches the tongue even when puffed slowly. Leaves little moisture in the bowl, and requires few relights. Hardly has much of an after taste outside of a little sweetness.

This review is for the BR Whiskey blend, which was not the same as the Bourbon Whiskey version that this review is now under. Some congenital, uninformed moron condensed the two blends into one listing.

-JimInks

20 people found this review helpful.

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	DS86 (3)	2014-05-05		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Looks like I still have a bit to learn. The pouch I purchased says 65% Virginia, and 35% black Cavendish. Here, instead of black cavendish, it says Burley. I have smoked this tobacco in briars, about 3 times so far...

The more I smoke this blend, the more I like it. I like the amount of Virginia(65%), because it doesn't remind me of a lot of the black Cavendish heavy blends. In other words, it's not like other aromatics I've smoked. Virginias tend to bite me, but this one has enough black Cavendish(35%) to balance that out for me. Then again, not too much BC, IMHO. The tobacco proportions are just right, with a whiskey flavor that I would say compliments the Virginia, as opposed to being an in your face OTC casing, where the intensity is reminiscent of Captain Black Cherry, or some of the Super Value tobaccos. Tobacco Reviews.com made me avoid this blend for a while, but it is surprising to me the bad rep it gets. Me and this tobacco just get along.

Final thoughts: Without the amount of black Cavendish in this blend, I doubt Borkum Riff could have pulled this one off. The black Cavendish is there in the background as a mentor. A deceptively simple blend. I can't rate it just yet, but unless this tobacco disappears, I'm buying more. If you were disappointed by Highland Whiskey, try this blend instead. If you like Virginias, try it. If you want simplicity, try this blend.

For what it's worth: I like flakes, Latakia blends, Virginias, and am REALLY picky with aromatics. Aros seem to take more getting used to for me. My main smokes are Latakia blends. I've been smoking a pipe for about 3 years or so, and feel that I have a good enough grasp on taste to know what I like, whereas when I first started smoking, I thought Super Value Cherry Cavendish was the best blend in existence, just because I had one bowl, that included one puff of cherry turnover flavor. At that point in time, I think I had smoked no more than ten or 15 blends. I've lost count of all the blends I've tried now, but it's got to be at least 60. Maybe more. I'm only including this last bit to give an idea of what else I like, in hopes of helping you decide whether or not you should try this blend.

Pipe Used: Savinelli Orient, Erik Nording Jack

Age When Smoked: 6mos

Purchased From: Some tobacco shop in Grass Valley CA

14 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-08-21		Mild	Mild	Mild	Pleasant

I tried this a long time ago and I remembered that it wasn't anything special, but I got suckered into buying another pouch just recently because of the whiskey flavoring. Once again I wasn't impressed. I can't taste the whiskey and it tends to bite the tongue. This coupled with the high price makes me recommend that you pass on this tobacco.

12 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2006-01-13		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant

yikes! This was also my first tobacco when I started. Picked it up at the local CVS along with a Dr Grabow pipe. What a mistake. Still on the organ transplant waiting list for a tongue.

12 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	rsvp2rip (27)	2006-11-27		Extremely Mild	Mild	Very Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

I found this to be surprising. I was suprised it cost me $5. I was suprised I paid it. I was suprized it contained so many stems. I was suprised it burned my whole mouth and made me physicaly ill. But hey, I had to try it for myself just to see how bad it actually was... What's that sound? Thats me slamming my head in a door so as to remind me not to do this again. A total failure as a smoking mixture. 0 of 10

11 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	The Right Reverend (36)	2013-10-13		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

I've been trying various OTC's and so A Borkum Riff was on my list. It was a pouch of the Whiskey that I unfortunately ended up with. The pouch note was a little boozy, but not much. The first few puff give a light whiskey taste and then it was downhill from there, way downhill. The stuff burned hot despite various efforts to slow way down and it was all I could do to keep it from biting. The aftertaste was ashy and nasty. Even the room note, for an aromatic, was just not that good. There are better, much better OTC's. In fact it makes other OTC's positively shine. After a two bowls I ended up disposing with the package in the round file. I do not recommend this at all, unless you want to stop smoking.

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DrDyson (148)	2012-09-29		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Horrible; awful. Period. Burns like hell, tastes like your sister's sandals and smells like a wet dog. The pope should anathematise it. If there were any justice, the blenders at Borkum Riff would be doing penance in chains. Or being forced to smoke it.

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-08-30		Mild	Very Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant to Tolerable

NEW update: as my pipe smoking skill gets better...i found a way to reduce the unforgiving tongue bite from this blend. we only need to puff it VERY LIGHTLY, just like taking a sip from a drink. but what really ticks me off is the CONSTANT RELIGHTING!! if u tried to make the amber stays lit, you'll turn your pipe into a furnace and the gurgling will start and everything will be nothing but unpleasantness.

i only keep puffing this blend just to get more the feel on pipe smoking, but after i finish the pack, i'm sure that i will not buy this blend ever again.

=================================================================

OLD review: i started off in this wonderful hobby with a wrong tobacco! the reason i bought it bcoz i didn't read the reviews in here before and i was attracted to its smell in the package! but the smoke was nothing like a the unburned one!! my impressions about this particular blend: 1. IT BITES!! 2. almost no taste (mostly due to no.1) 3. constant relighting 4. not a good choice for a newbie (like me) 5. it's not from a good tobacco

u might wanna argue on the last point for a newbie to put a bold statement like that. i know what a good tobacco bcoz i was a hardcore Djarum cigarettes smoker. when i torn 2 Djarum cigs and loaded it into my pipe, the smoking experience was like heaven and earth compared to this blend.

i know that taste is just a matter of preference, but it's definitely not for me...and i'd recommend new pipe smoker to steer off from it.

for those who likes it, i'm happy for you. happy puffing!

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	garydobbs (20)	2012-10-12		Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant

The pack tells me this is made from 35% Black Cavendish and 65% Virginian tobacco,and I really can't understand the negative comments. Nor can I understand those who say there is no whiskey taste, because there is. There was some bite at first but the smoke soon became mellow though full of taste and I enjoyed smoking this tobacco. So much so that I will be ordering another pouch with my next tobacco order. I don't think there's much of a room note which is why I've rated the after smell as Very Pleasant. It smoked really well with a cup of coffee and left me with a pleasing taste in my mouth.Good stuff.

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	the_german (309)	2009-08-21		Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant to Tolerable

I got a taste of this concoction about a week ago; it was a complete desaster.

I felt I was being overly harsh, having had bad experiences with Swedish Match's other blends under the same brand, so I gave it another try.

Unfortunately, I came to the conclusion that I had not been overly harsh. This blend fills easily enough, lights readily, and from that point on, you're on your own. The taste is of... I don't know; to me, it tastes lightly of tar and something sweetish that would probably do better in a cigarette blend; the aroma is not really something I normally associate with pipe tobacco, and even if generous, I cannot say that smoking BRBW gave me any pleasure.

I miss any hint of Bourbon in either taste or aroma, the stuff is quite expensive (especially for a brand which is notoriously positioned on the cheaper end of the price scale where I am), and for the same price, I can get really good tobacco which does not need any flavouring to taste of something. 'nuff said before I go overboard.

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2001-03-28		Strong	Very Mild	Medium	Very Strong

Well, we all make mistakes in life, right? This was mine. I didn't have a tounge for a few days after I smoked it, and I have treated the pipe with a full cleaning. I hope the briar gods forgive me. If you like Ripple for your daily wine, African Robusto coffees, and old Wonder Bread, this might be for you. Your taster's gone anyway, so what the hell.

I wouldn't be suprised to find out that it isn't really tobacco, just dried dung from Scandanavian musk oxen.

Get the picture? I REALLY don't like this one.

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	bluebossa17 (2)	2014-05-13		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Moderate tongue bite. Smokes fast and hot. Expected a little more Room Note but was mildly pleasant. Nice puffy smoke though. A little more expensive than I expected for this quality. Good packaging.

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mr. Motoyoshi (68)	2014-01-20		Mild	Medium	Medium	Strong

Pouch note is not pleasant. Smells like cheap tobacco with a cheap Whiskey casing. Smokes very hot and has a terrible taste followed by a putrid room note. There are really no redeeming qualities for this tobacco.

I haven't found a Borkum Riff that I enjoy but this is probably the worst one. Avoid.

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3021)	2013-01-18		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild	Pleasant

In the 1970s version, the bourbon whiskey had a decent flavor (with a small chemical essence), and you could taste some of the tobaccos, particularly the grassy Virginia. The nutty, earthy, woody burley was a minor component. The black cavendish offered a slight sugar note. The strength was a step past the mild mark. The taste was mild. Hardly had any nicotine. The problem was that it burned fast, hot, and would bite even when puffed slowly. Left some moisture in the bowl and required an average number of relights. Was an all day smoke.

UPDATE: Oct. 2013. It seems the new manufacturer has improved this tobacco quite a bit. I experienced no tongue bite, and a little more bourbon whiskey flavor than I did when I used to smoke it. I did notice a light chemical taste at times, but not always. The grassy, citrusy Virginia and sugary, unsweetned black cavendish are lightly obvious. No burley in this version. Burns a tad slower than the older version did, and is much less harsh, and unless you puff it like a cigarette, you won't get tongue bite. The flavor is very consistent to the finish. The strength is a step past the mild mark. The taste is mild. Hardly has any nicotine. Leaves little moisture in the bowl, and requires few relights. An all day smoke. Two stars for the new version. One star for the older one.

-JimInks

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-08-06		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Tolerable

I've smoked this in early 90's, before I found out that the tobacco world in fact is a big one.

It's a mild boring aromatic tobacco. I'll smoke it again maybe in my next life just before discovering the real tobacco world!

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Dr. G (15)	2018-04-15		Mild	Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Hmm...One of the most popular baccys in the world I'm told. Dad smoked it so I had to check it out. Now I want to check out. The one positive is that it is low maintenance except for the goopy residue. Otherwise, two words - blow torch. If I wanted to expose myself to this much hot air, I would sleep through another staff meeting. Try it if you will - heck, millions of people can't be wrong - right?

Pipe Used: suicide noname briar

Age When Smoked: new

Similar Blends: the sun.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Leonidas (6)	2017-11-10		Medium	Mild	Very Mild	Tolerable

I thank this tobacco for one thing and only. It made me realize the guy in the tobacco shop i used to get my tobacco, was as ignorant as a 3 year old in a brothel. I remember him describing how tasty the bourbon was and all the honey undertones that arise during the finishing of the bowl. Unfortunately that was not the case at all.

Medium strength tobacco. Medium to low nicotine content. The flavoring is that of plain swetness (not overwhelming) and some low hints of cheap whiskey. The taste is very strange actually cause while you cannot really taste any particular topping, you definetely cannot taste the virginia, maybe some cavedish due to the swetness. Its bland with no body. Just a mildly sweet tobacco with no personality.

It doesnt necessarily bite the tongue as many reviews suggest, if packed correctly of course. What is true though, is that it burns inconsisently with many relights and a progressively ash-like ( or ass-like) taste which eventually comes to the taste of pure coal during the finishing of the bowl.

The room note is torelable. The wife suggests it leaves the aroma of a more ''serious'' aromatic, meaning that it doesnt bother her at all, but doesnt prefer it compared to the rest of the aromatics i use.

I purchased a pack of Borkum Riff-Bourbon Whiskey 2 months ago and it is still half full. I only use it sometimes at night with a glass of whiskey (preferably cheap, to match the flavoring) cause the absence of an actual taste leaves the actual whiskey to do the job this tobacco failed to.

Dr.Leonidas

Pipe Used: Capitol Bruyere

Age When Smoked: Fresh from the pouch

Purchased From: Tobacco Shop Thessaloniki

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	brashboy (84)	2015-09-19		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Very Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

I am reviewing the BR Whiskey -- which is what was printed on the pouch, btw, NOT Bourbon Whiskey. Got it for a buck on a manufacturer's coupon, totally dried out and crunchy (the only pipe tobacco that filthy Winn Dixie had). Rehydrated with the old wet-paper-towel-over-a-bowl trick, which brought back the moisture. I'm not convinced that rehydration of really, really dry tobacco restores its pre-dried out character, but this stuff is rough.

Choose any of the negative reviews and it will be correct. Harsh, lacking in presence, character, taste -- and really cheap tobacco. The contempt this company has for its customers is appalling, worse than the tobacco. Didn't taste any whiskey, either. This will bite you like a rattler unless you puff easy. The room note is better than the taste.

But, I almost never throw tobacco away. It goes into the Everything Goes jar, so one day I will have my dollar's worth of pleasure many times over. On the other hand, the other leaf in the jar may not want to meld with this stuff. We will see.

One star, because that's the least I can give it.

7 people found this review helpful.

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	bobbysmokes (15)	2015-05-05		Mild to Medium	Strong	Full	Pleasant

Did not like this at all. Tobacco has a very unpleasant aftertaste that is hard to figure out what causes it. I will not smoke again.

Pipe Used: Danger Devil Anse

Age When Smoked: unknown

Purchased From: Pipes and CIgars

7 people found this review helpful.

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	hubup (14)	2013-05-28		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Not a real bourbon flavour. Try smoking as cool as possible if you can manage to smoke it. Heats up quickly but leaves a good taste on the tongue if you can smoke cooler.

7 people found this review helpful.

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	Horvat (5)	2015-04-18		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I dont know why this blend has so much negative reviews. This is a nice tobacco, with a mild whiskey aroma. It doesn't bite, if smoked slowly. I like Borkum riff, so 3 stars from me.

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	greggles (3)	2014-05-16		Medium	Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

Bought this and Captain Black regular as my very first pipe tobaccos. The Black is inoffensive, this on the other hand is.

First off, it smells wonderful, thats why I bought it, I figured if it smells this wonderful, it has to taste wonderful too! Well I've learned quickly that's not always going to be the case when it comes to pipe tobacco (Hell even cigars for that matter!)

Its flavor, is sour, like whiskey, but that's all I get when I smoke it. Its not pleasant. I know I bought cheap tobacco and I am still learning the ropes of pipe smoking. However I'll take another pack of the Captain Black over this stuff again. I'd recommend that brand over this one to one learning pipe smoking.

Pipe Used: Briar

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: Puff Smoke, Saline, Mi, USA, (734) 316-2691

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Leon (82)	2020-08-05		Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant to Tolerable

When I started smoking pipes many years ago I took on a few blends: Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey, Captain Black Original, CAO Eileen's Dream, and Peterson Sherlock Holmes.

I decided to get back too all of these and review them after all these years. See if they bring any memories, do I recommend them or not now that I got more experience.

Here's my #1 review: Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey.

The pouch note is of some kind of topping. To me it doesn't really smell like bourbon per say, but it is of slightly sweet and alcoholic note.

Right at the beginning of the smoke, however, this flavor disappears. What we're left with is an extremely mild blend of Virginia and Black Cavendish, and not of a high quality.

Somewhere at the half point I sometimes get tiny notes of mint, for some reason. Otherwise, it's a very mild sweet note. Not really getting anything else out of it. It too often just feels like I'm getting hot air and nothing more.

For someone that enjoys fuller and stronger blends, the mildness means that I automatically try to get more out of it by having a faster cadence, which can cause it to get a bit too hot. It's a ribbon cut which packs easily. Requires couple of relights. Moisture is good in the pouch and stays good for awhile.

This is for someone who likes them mild. Very mild. However, this blend is just too expensive for what you're getting. I simply can't recommend it.

Pipe Used: Brewster billiard

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	MiddleEarth Piper (5)	2014-10-31		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Classic tobacco, very popular back in the day. Some people hate it but I found it's very good, pleasant aroma and no tongue bite. Room note is nothing special but ok. I recommend this tobacco to all people who want mild tobacco with whiskey flavor.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pkloop (53)	2014-10-23		Mild	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant

Every few years I go out and purchase a pouch of Borkum and every few years its the same result. Disappointment. I'm not at all prejudiced to the OTC's. I'll take a cruise with the Captain every once in a while when I feel like smoking dessert, and Prince Albert is my regular daytime smoke..in fact, I just picked up 2 tubs of it today. That said, for the following reasons I just cannot get along with this brand.

Appearance in the pouch is a mix of various colored ribbons and to my sniffer smells quite good. I smell more vanilla then whiskey, but good none the less. Moisture content is just right. Not bone dry nor soaking wet. OK..this looks promising.

Packing goes well using a simple 3 step and I put flame to leaf..and here's where it all falls apart.

This is VERY bitey and bland. None of the promised whiskey flavor appears nor can I detect the vanilla the pouch smelled of. I stick with it and get no improvement. Extreme bite and bland all the way to perhaps a slightly ashy, but otherwise dry finish, lacking the usual soggy clump of dottle such as the one the Captain leaves behind. No appreciable vitamin N to me and the room note seemed ok.

I tried this in numerous pipes and even a few cobs. I put a medico filter in the cob to attempt to tone down that bite to no avail. I just cant seem to make this taste any good..UNLESS..

You MUST and I mean MUST smoke this blend very slowly, as in so slow the pipe barely stays lit. Slow shallow draws can manage to coax some of that promised flavor out and produce a passable at best smoke. If you do not, the hellfire that will reign down on your tongue will make you rue the day you decided to pick up a pipe. This stiff will broil every last tastebud off that everlovin tongue of yours.. For me this blend takes way too much work for the paltry reward given. There are so many better tobaccos out there its just not worth the time/effort.

So I reluctantly give it 2 stars. Why 2? Well, a few reasons. This is probably one of the finest practice tobaccos you could load your pipe with. It will teach you proper packing, puffing cadence and tamping technique. It requires flawless technique. If you fail at any of the above this tobacco will punish your missteps swift and hard..a lesson you wont soon forget..

Good luck..

Pipe Used: Too many..various briars and cobs

Age When Smoked: Fresh pouch

Purchased From: Local B&M

Similar Blends: Other bitey Borkum Riff's...

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Joeray (61)	2014-01-08		Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Ok, 1st I open the package I can smell a thin bourbon scent but when I smell the tobaccos, it smells just like a ordinary cigarrete ! This blend is totally bad, give me a tongue bite for many days, and when I try to smoke it again, my lips is very hurt and my tongue gets bleeding. Is easy to pack and 1st draw is still good but nothings specials. It taste just like an ordinary cigarrete. I got this blend for my friend, he give me a package and ask me to try it. But the good news is this bacchy is very good when I mix it with my local Indonesian tobaccos. Give a new color and taste because of it's bourbon scent. Perhaps I needs lot of alcohol drinks to enjoy this bacchy by it own.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-10-18		Mild	Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

Scandinavian Tobacco Group (ST Group) has made an outstanding effort to stick, as much as possible, to the original recipes of the tobaccos it has been acquiring over the last 3-4 years or so. it is curently manufacturing tobaccos such as Captain Black, Borkum Riff, Erinmore, Amphora and Sail, among many others. Their version of Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey, I must admit, worried me seriously at first, for it seemed it was a return at the original formula that I did not like. The pouch aroma was overwhelming with the bourbon smell and the composition was different than the one advertised on this page: 35% of Black CA and 65% of VAs. No trace of the BUs mentionned in the composition of the blend on this page. Ah, I get it; swedish match is not the manufacturer anymore...;-) Anyway. Surprisingly, STG managed to come up with a blend that is fairly balanced, smooth and does taste big time of bourbon whiskey. Despite the low level of nicotine, it is still an enjoyable mixture that burns smoothly and does not bite. I think I enjoy it most in a Corn Cob.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Capt (339)	2011-02-12		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Absolutely horrid. Please read the two reviews below.

There is truth in numbers!

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	stonedlion (6)	2011-01-31		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

I recently bought a pouch of BRW mostly out of idle curiosity.

PROS Readily available wherever cheap tobaccos are sold. Finely cut ribbons of tobacco that packs easily It light's readily and burns to a fine ash The room note is tolerable * It is inexpensive

CONS It tastes like crap It BITES, hard * Burns hot

Borkum Riff Whiskey is most definitely a triumph of marketing over reality. Seriously, this stuff is everywhere.

Last week, while waiting for my wife to emerge from a local discount shop, I ducked into a nearby tobacconist in search of pipe cleaners. The BRW caught my eye and while the thought crossed my mind to whip out my smart phone and pull up the reviews here, I didn't want to look like too much of a nerd. It was cheap, so I thought, what the heck, I bought it.

I smoked a generous bowl in the confines of my truck while continuing to wait for my wife. I became readily apparent that BRW was not all that it was cracked up to be.

Now, I pulled out my smart phone and pulled up the reviews for BRW, reading while I smoked. Oh boy! I must say, some of you are quite creative and brutal.

I won't go so far as to describe BRW as "piss soaked cardboard", but as someone who NEVER throws away tobacco, even stuff I don't particularly like, I am seriously thinking about it.

By the time my wife joined me in the truck I was two thirds of the way through the bowl. I had a headache and my mouth was burning.

Do yourself a favor, buy something else.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tantric (321)	2008-01-16		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Well, here we go again with what has been a long standing over-the-counter classic tobacco. Yep: this is a remake of the old German blended Borkum Riff, now produced in Denmark. I don't know if this is now being made by Orlik or MacBaren, or some other Danish firm, but I agree with my fellow reviewers in that there has been a noticeable improvement in many of the BR offerings.

I believe the new blenders are more cautious in their flavoring technique (the tobacco now has more of a topping rather than a casing ambiance), and the choice and quality of leaf seem to be better than previously. Most BRs are composed of Burley and Virginia, and this one has a strong Burley under taste that makes it quite palatable.

So, though we are still talking of a highly commercial blend, designed to be smoked without further ado, it has now a stronger or clearer tobacco flavor and its closer to a quality blend than to an artificial-chemical concoction.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2004-02-17		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

As with any Borkum Riff tobacco, it doesn't take one long to realize the recipe behind this albatross. Save yourself some money by just cutting up some cardboard and soak it in piss overnight. There you have it...in bulk.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2002-05-14		Mild	Extra Strong	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

As for the above reviews, all I can say is, "now fellers, be nice." So what if this stuff is sweet to the hilt. Beloved by some folks because it's a brisk seller at the supermarkets. I smoked Borkum Whiskey some 30 years ago when I first took up the pipe. I'm still a pipe smoker, so, I couldn't have been a terrible experience.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JoePipeMan (3)	2022-07-28		Mild	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

So I bought this on a whim when I saw it. Sounded interesting so I grabbed a 1.5oz pouch.

It went something like this. The first time I tried it, I was not a fan. It tasted like carboard, literally. I got no bourbon flavor, or any flavor for that matter. It burned super quick and hot to the point I ditched it about 1.2 way through. I honestly thought about throwing all of it away, but then figured maybe someone I know likes it and, not wanting to waste tobacco i thought I'd hang on to it just in case. I then thought that perhaps this was a pouch that sat on the shelf for a long time and maybe just needed to be rejuvenated. So I out it in a mason jar with a humidipak in it and let it sit for two days.

I tried it again today and I did notice an improvement. I now taste a very subtle hint of bourbon and also noticed it burned a bit slower. I still think this stuff is pretty sub-par but not to the point where I want to chuck it into the trash. It's a light smoke with hardly any room note and to be honest, has somewhat of a Marlboro Light taste... which is off-putting. In the end, I still think this stuff is trash but maybe I'll keep it around and store it for a while to see if it continues to improve. That being said, I'd pass on this stuff

Update: Yeah it still sucks and I ended up adding it to the campfire we had last night.

Pipe Used: Cobb

Age When Smoked: A day

Purchased From: Local Smoke Shop

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tucane (31)	2018-11-07		Mild	Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

I really don't like bashing blends, but this really isn't a good one. I didn't enjoy the first pouch, found it dull and didn't like the whiskey aroma. Gave it an honest chance by buying another bag later on, but no improvement for me, sorry!

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	thesmoggypipester (75)	2017-12-21		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Ah here we have what seems to be tobacco reviews most hated blend, I wonder why this is? I do understand that people don't like everything, but what I don't get is when people who very much dislike aromatics buy them and then slate them? Pointless much?

Anywho on to the blend and I am going to stick my head above the parapet and actually say I like borkum riff bourbon whiskey.

Opening the pouch you are greeted by quite a dark shaggy mixture there's a nice bourbon scent to it, it doesn't smell artificially so, it smells like real bourbon,also some nice tartness from the Virginia and some nice woody cocoa burley notes. Hydration wise it is ready to go immeadiately, packing needs to be done a touch tighter given its cut and it takes the flame with ease.

During the smoke the bourbon is mild, it doesn't overwhelm and it doesn't subdue the tobacco flavours, I can still taste the tobacco itself and it doesn't taste like cheap off cuts either, there's some nice qaulity stuff in there. Other flavours do come through undetected a drop of honey here and there and sometimes I get a taste very similar to carter hall.....strange...but in a good way. Room note isn't liable offend, and if you look up the old adverts on YouTube smoking borkum riff always leads to having a delightfully pretty Swedish lady in your company.

Now onto some other points. This is a fair warming, rush this tobacco and it will not hold you as a prisoner, this will bite you , lock its jaw and have your tongue in the death rolls. This is not a tobacco to be rushed, it is one too take your time with and relax , enjoy its flavours and taste and enjoy it with a cup of coffee.

All in all I find this a very enjoyable tobacco to be smoked at leisure with a cup of coffee, and I find it bridges the gap nicely when I want an aromatic with a nice added albeit mild flavour and actual tobacco taste and not have my head spinning with nicotine.

4 stars earned and 2 fingers shown to those who just like to blend bash to look good in front of the big boys.

(As post script and absent mindedly wondering, I wonder if this was put in a tin marked Sam gawith or gawith hoggarths and given to those who just like blend bash, I do wonder with much intrigue if their ratings and thoughts would be the same.....highly interesting thought indeed).

EDIT 27/12/17

well I found a couple of old cob pipes and ran this tobacco through them and it is a top class smoke. for some reason it just smokes absolutely beautifully in a cob, the sweet nuttiness of the cob works wonderfully with this tobacco.

try it in a cob and I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

Pipe Used: Blakemar briar bent egg and cobs

Age When Smoked: New(ish)

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Nwpipesmker (27)	2016-02-22		Mild	Very Mild	Mild	Very Pleasant

Is good smoke pleasant taste great aromatic love the blend. It doesn't bite like other otc tobaccos. One of my favorites to smoke while out in the woods.

Pipe Used: Cob

Purchased From: Tobacco depot

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Backwoods Piper (70)	2014-09-25		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

Ah the blend I bought with my first pipe, a Grabow Savoy as I recall. I really didn't enjoy this blend as a newbie I remember it burning my tongue and BRW tasting hot and sour. If I knew then what I know now. Hindsight is always 20/20 now isn't it? I recently bought two pouches of this from my local CVS for cheap when they dropped tobacco products from their inventory.

BRW is blended from less expensive foreign grown tobacco but does not hinder the redeeming qualities of this tobacco. It packs great and lights reasonably well. You have to smoke this one low and slow to enjoy the subtleties of this tobacco. I can taste the Virginia's and the Whiskey gives this blend a nice overtone of sweetness with a leathery back note. This tobacco will burn completely leaving a fine gray ash. If you smoke this one fast it is certain to set you tongue ablaze. If you sip it you can reap a decent reward from a drugstore blend staple that still sells for a reasonable price even at full retail.

This blend does not rate high enough to make my rotation, but certainly can't be dismissed as an unsmokeable offering.

Pipe Used: Briars, meerschaums or cobs for aro's

Purchased From: CVS Drugstores

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	StevieB (2075)	2014-09-02		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Borkum Riff - Bourbon Whiskey.

The ribbons are uniform in size and of a decent hydration. The aroma's weird, it smells much stronger than it smokes.

The smoke's flavour isn't offensive, but it just bores me. The whiskey isn't as strong as I expected it to be, and the tobaccos give a flavour I can only really describe as flat. The burn's ok, it only seems warm when stressed, and I have to really 'provoke' it to get a bite!

Nicotine: mild to medium. Room-note: quite innocuous.

Not good, not bad, just a little mundane.

Somewhat recommended.

Pipe Used: Peterson Sandblast Sherlock Homes Baskerville

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Smoke King

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	o3Ho3 (28)	2014-07-06		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Well, you have to let it breed for a little and will become quite tasty and pleasant... but there are many other blends with the same qualifications, some cheaper some more expensive. Anyway, it's not a disappointment so you should try at least once. Burn evenly and fair, no tong bite, no strange pipe heating... it's good enough and that's all.

Pipe Used: always Peterson

Age When Smoked: 1-2 yrs

Purchased From: online

Similar Blends: so many.....

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Bighead (1)	2014-06-21		Mild	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable

I bought a 50g pouch as my local tobbacconist only stocks erinmore mixture and borkum riff blends and i wanted to find a tobacco that was local available rather than trekking into the city or waiting on mail order. I chose the bourbon as I like bourbon and other sweet whiskies. I liked the cool mouth feel but the blend lacks flavor. If you're primarily a cigarette smoker I think you would like this blend. There is very little bourbon flavor.

Pipe Used: new cob

Age When Smoked: purchased same day

Purchased From: Mokos Westcity mall

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	erkantural (10)	2014-02-11		Medium	Medium	Medium	Tolerable

First of all it triggers strong chemical reactions in the mouth. Not a good one.

One day i started to feel really pleasant taste, while having cool burn with small sips. However, just after that it kicked my mouth and that sweet taste never came back again from this blend.

The bad thing is, I still have more than half a kilogram of this. Probably I am not going to open the boxes(!) for years. Then we'll see.

Pipe Used: Sahin Briar and Missouri Corn Cobs

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Istanbul

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Setherd (1)	2014-01-08		Medium	Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is just a plain drugstore variety. I got a coupon in the mail to try this for a dollar so i did. It wasn't that bad but there was really nothing good about it. Lots of tongue bite. The smell was somewhat pleasant and the flavor was bland. I had the hardest time keeping it lit however. I smoked 3 bowls, I packed one my regular way, one very lightly and for the last I really jammed the tobacco in tight. Surprisingly that last bowl stayed lit the best. Bottom line.... Don't get it.

Pipe Used: MM corn cob

Age When Smoked: straight from the store

Purchased From: CVS drugstore

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ignotus93 (2)	2013-12-22		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Very Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

This was my first tobacco. I really hate it. I can't taste the whiskey. I smoked a full pouch, it was a true misery to my tongue.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Phonomet (44)	2013-10-13		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant

So, a one star for me says at least that the entire pouch was smoked. There have been a few that didn't get reviewed because I simply could not persevere in the smoke. This one smokes like a VA and I detected no burley flavor (because I'm pretty sure that the burley is the cavendish component.) There are some nice flavors in this one, but it can bite and burn hot. I respect skandanavik for their more discreet use of toppings. The bourbon is mildly detectible in the smoke. Not recommended but finishable.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2013-09-13		Very Mild	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant

You can only smell the whiskey, just only at opening pouch. Then nothing about whiskey. After that it is just a Virginia-Burley which you can find everywhere. Smoke it slowly, unless you want a tongue bite. I would rate it one and a half star , but i can't.

And also i don't like bourbon, i prefer scotch.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2013-07-20		Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Flavorless, heated smoke. Packs well, burns well, burns quickly but who cares? If it isn't a good smoke then the rest is unimportant. There can be a bite. Even at the drugstore price this stuff simply is not worth it.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2013-07-17		Overwhelming	Strong	Full	Extra Strong

Bitter and untasty, Smokes like a pyre. Extremely unpleasant with no bourbon taste at all. If mixing some bourbon into this blend wont change or mellow the taste at all Im throwing this shit away

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2013-05-18		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

I received a pouch of this as a gift and was looking forward to giving it a try up on opening I can not detect any whiskey at all might just be me but I can not smell it at all.Up on smoking it tasted like a pair of old sweaty socks and it bites like a hungry crocodile not for me this one :(

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	irishjedi (3)	2013-05-17		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

Seems like nothing but pure tongue bite. Definately not a fan, and I probably would not recommend this to highly. .02.

Mike

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Perique (163)	2013-01-17		Mild	Medium	Mild	Tolerable

This just might be the absolute worst tobacco I have ever tasted.

I am amazed that this is even on the market, let alone so commonly available in seemingly every drug store and smoke shop in America.

One should have to search hard and wide for a tobacco this bad. One should have to work at it. It should be a challenge of sorts - a quest.

Instead, every year new pipe smokers stumble onto this tobacco and give up the pipe shortly thereafter.

We should start some type of petition to get this tobacco taken off the market.

And we should take up a collection to send some decent tobacco to those fond of this vile mess.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-10-21		Extremely Mild	Medium to Strong	Medium	Very Pleasant

Starts great and goes downhill from there. I had fairly high hopes for this; having developed a taste for aromatics over this beautiful warm summer. I was especially hopeful when I read the pouch and saw the surprisingly high Virginia content. When I got about halfway through the bowl though, my tongue was no longer hopeful.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-07-20		Medium to Strong	Medium	Overwhelming	Tolerable to Strong

The only tobacco Ive ever really hated. The only pouch Ive ever thrown away. The only tongue bite Ive ever had. Only bought it because it was my grandfathers smoke of choice, and wanted some kind of cosmic connection to a man who passed a few years ago. I guess Im gonna take up fly fishing, because this wasnt what I had in mind.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-01-08		Mild	Mild	Mild	Tolerable

Can't recommend this blend.

got it out of desperation at duty free while rushing to catch a plane and was out of tobacco. smoked 2 pouches (50g each) worth out of a box of 5 pouches and they last three are hideous spectres that lurk in my pipe drawer.

casing is with the pouch when opened but slowly dissapates a reveals a bit of a chemical scent lingering beneath. I tried blending it with a straight viginia to see if it would add substance to it when I returned home but all it did was detract from the virginia I blended.

It is easy to pack with out much notion and stays lit but overall flavour for me is not there. I've had too many better tobaccos to ever want this in the rotation. To be honest I wouldn't give it to a beginner and I get way better room note compliments on stanwell melange or hearth and home marble kake (or any standard vanilla for that matter).

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2011-07-05		Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild	Very Pleasant

[Note: This is the same Borkum Riff tobacco as that listed as "Whiskey."]

In the pouch, this long, fine-cut ribbon blend has the typically sweet cavendish aroma along with an unobtrusively natural bourbon scent.

This is a blend of golden virginia and burley cavendishes along with black (burley?) cavendish that is rather sweet without becoming excessively syrupy. The bourbon whiskey topping is credible and admirably plays the role of unifying agent.

A classic, Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey is a quietly elegant smoke for those who enjoy tobaccos on the sweeter side.

Chamber Gauge: Medium to Wide

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2011-07-01		Medium to Strong	Strong	Full	Tolerable to Strong

Bought this when I was out of tobacco... I wish I hadn't. Tasted awfull and I gave up trying to like it and ended up giving it away.

I recommend you to try this first before buying it and se if it is to your taste.

Oh and the Bourbon taste? Naaa no Bourbon just a wierd taste to the tobacco.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-11-24		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Unnoticeable

I'm very new to this hobby, and I don't have a lot to compare this to, but I'll do my best.

I wasn't terribly impressed with Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey.

Seems to me first of all that the flavoring was caked on pretty thick. It almost seemed like a sort of syrup had been applied to this tobacco. It wasn't overly stick or anything, just had a slightly unnatural quality to it that indicated to me at least that someone had added something to this blend late in the manufacturing process. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that at some point this tobacco was on a conveyor belt - under spray nozzles.

My wife puts hides her nose behind her shirt while I smoke this, so I'm going to assume the room note is not very good. In my limited experience, once I begin smoking, it's difficult to get an idea of the room note... Either due to inexperience or because my senses are deadened after taking it into my mouth. The rating system here does not allow you to indicate a tolerable yet unpleasant note. Only it's intensity, not it's actual appeal as a scent. Someone should revise the rating system.

This blend bit my tongue quite a lot... it burned hot for me. I'm a novice however and probably have a tendency to draw all of the tobaccos I try a little too frequently in an effort to keep the bowl lit.

There's got to be better tobacco's out there... Don't bother unless you're really curious or want to try it to just get it out of the way.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-10-26		Mild to Medium	Medium to Strong	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

I'm new to this hobby, so far, I tasted Erinmore Mixture, Captain Black(white), Gulden Dansk(Unknown brand), and the very unpleasant Borkum Riff Whiskey.

I'm a Scotch single malt fan, I know the taste of very good Whiskey and thrust me, this is F= gargage. Normally, I have a really soothing odor that linger in my mouth and on my clothes after a bowl. But with that, i had the impression I just smoked a pack of CAMEL(Real cheap brand of cigarette). If the supplier was not so far away from me, I'd kick his arse. I' m going to trow away the pouch, not without fear that this piece of crap contaminated my new pipe.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	MM (12)	2022-06-27		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild	Tolerable

I wonder how this qualifies as tobacco. I aged it for 3 years in a rubber sealed jar and that did not help alleviate its nasty bite - a product of the garbage it is soaked into. Also, how the pouch smells does not translate into flavor when it burns. The only leaf I’ve ever tossed in trash.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Newby (6)	2022-02-24		Medium	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable

I first must concede I am a new pipe smoker of 4 months. So take my review with that in mind. I also smoke outside so will always mark room note as tolerable.

So far I have tried about 25 blends with 13 being aromatics. This is by far horrible garbage. My father smoke BR Whiskey for 40 years before he quit for health reasons in 2000 time frame. He loved this blend but as others have stated they must have changed it and decided to cut corners.

It’s supposedly Virginia and Cavendish but it’s the only blend I have smelled (out of 40) that almost makes me dizzy like I am smelling chemicals. That includes Virginia, Burley, Cavendish, Latakia, Kentucky, Orientals, Turkish, etc. I smells like red man tobacco spit and tastes like an ashtray from Waffle House, and I like Waffle House.

That said maybe I smoked it too fast?

Pipe Used: MM Gentlemen

Age When Smoked: 4 months

Purchased From: P&C

Similar Blends: Liquid Drano.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gr8tefuldawg (87)	2020-10-07		Very Mild	Very Mild	Mild	Pleasant

Borkum Riff- Bourbon Whiskey Mixture

Well I can’t say I expected much from this one, I was gifted the pouch from and in law earlier this year. I stuff this away into a container with my other assorted tobaccos. I found this pouch today and am smoking it currently.

Pouch note is very nice as is the room note, tobacco tastes okay, get some hay Virginia’s and a little touch of cavendish on occasion, the bourbon is mostly non existent.

I am not an aromatic fan, and will say avoid this, buy yourself a bulk aromatic from Lane or Sutliff. The pouch is not worth the price.

Now to figure out what to do with this stuff. Hopefully the in laws don’t ask how I liked it.

Pipe Used: Bones apple

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Gift

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Alin-Andrei (2)	2020-07-27		Very Mild	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable

Just awfull tobacco. No flavor, no strength, no taste... is just bland. Like smoking grass that you find on the side of the road. Also burns extremely hot. For me it was just fuel for nightmares, and I feared for the integrity of my pipe.During my pipe tobacco blends exploration phase this was one of the lowest moments, and I will never try another Borkum Riff again, unless recommended from a very reliable source.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	mel64us (46)	2019-02-11		Medium to Strong	Extra Strong	Overwhelming	Strong

All I can taste in this blend is cheap whiskey. I get no tobacco flavor at all. I know many people smoke it, but this blend bites my tongue like a rabid badger. I can't get past a third of a bowl.

Pipe Used: Cob, Dr. Grabow

Age When Smoked: Fresh to 3 years old

Purchased From: Local tobacco stores

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Dode (14)	2018-12-26		Extremely Mild	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

This now goes under the name of “Bronze” it is truly awful. It burns fast and very, very hot. It had little smell from the packet and even less taste, no bourbon or tobacco, just horrible heat. I tried it in a selection of bowl sizes and also my Churchwarden, that particular pipe calms the most savage of heat yielding baccys but not this vile rubbish. I got this ad a gift, I had previously tried BR cherry and that wasn’t up to much either. Never again will I put a match to a Borkum Riff blend.

Pipe Used: Lozenzo Titino, cob, pearwood and briar

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Gifted

Similar Blends: Cigarette ash.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Corncob3 (77)	2016-05-05		Strong	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

Reading some of the reviews here and am floored by all the one star ratings. When I first started pipe smoking twenty some odd years ago this was one of the first blends I tried. I'm not a fan of Borkum Riff, but I've been playing around with this one. I usually smoke Smoker's Pride Whiskey. Sutliff also makes a wonderful Whiskey Cavendish, but it's a little on the sweet side. Think of Goldie Locks and the Three Bears if you choose BRW. In this case BRW is the Pappa Bear of the three brands: strong and straightforward with less sweetness. If you dry out on parchment paper 6-8 hours, the flavors are more well rounded. It doesn't burn as hot and offers a dryer smoke. This makes a good mixer. I have a special blend called Bad River Blend with BRW as the base, Toasted Cavendish and Dutch Masters President cigars for a smoky, creamy note. Turned out to be a very pleasant smoke. If you like strong, straightforward blends with less sweetness this might become a staple in your stockpile. Some people complain BRW is too bitey. Actually, what you're tasting is the burn of the alcohol playing off the sugars in the virginias. The burley is smooth throughout minus the sourness.The black Cavendish balances it all out. The key is to air this out over night to acieve the best flavor. Aging in mason jars highly reccomended. So for it's versatility, decent flavor, price, room note and sticking to honest ingredients I'll give it three stars.

Pipe Used: Corncob

Similar Blends: Sutliff Whiskey Cavendish.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TallPuffO'Burley (632)	2015-12-23		Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

My nephew gave me a sample of this after I told him I had never tried it. It is something I did not want to spend money on as I feared I would not like it. I am a huge whiskey fan as it is always my preferred alcoholic beverage when given a choice, but I have yet to really find a whiskey flavored tobacco that I really like despite trying several. My favorite so far is Peterson's Irish whiskey; and I think that is more out of the base component tobaccos than it is about the topping(s).

I have often seen BR's bourbon whiskey referred to as "bitey" and I often chalk this up to inexperience of the smoker as it tends to be a pervasive over the counter blend that a new comer to the hobby would see in a lot of tobacco shops. Now that I have actually smoked this blend, I can see where it would be seen as "bitey" as it did get pretty hot on the tongue when my concentration slipped.

As to the whiskey flavor, I found it light and inoffensive, but it was nothing like a nice glass of Woodford Reserve on the rocks. As to the underlying leaf, there was nothing to write home about here. No deep earthiness like the aforementioned Peterson blend.

To its credit, I did not find this blend to be goopy like a captain black blend or something such as that. This is likely due to the fact that this is a European aromatic and also, the reason I tend to prefer European aros over our American version of the same.

To this end, I did not really like this blend, but did not really dislike it either. I am leaving it a 2 stars as it did not repulse me enough to throw it out.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipelover12 (3)	2014-05-30		Strong	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I smoked this couples of days after trying the Borkum Riff Original When opening the package, you can get that strong smell of whiskey. I love the flavour, and after only 3 puffs, I get that nicotine stroke which made my head spins. In overall, it was an okay smoke, not to good, but not too bad However, when mixed with Mac Baren Aromatic, with a bit of Wo Larson Belle Epoque (i have no idea what this means), the flavour is blend in to absolute perfection. Everything you want in a pipe tobacco is there, the flavour, the smell, the strenght,... I've been having a hard time finding this pack again I recommend this to smokers who have the patience to get other blends ti mix it with, and wait for the flavours to marinate

Pipe Used: Lubinsky 662

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	oldcodger (74)	2014-02-12		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I have always preferred the aroma of someone else smoking this tobacco to the experience of smoking it myself. Although there are dissenters, most find the room note of Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey pleasant. As of the date of this review it is listed on this board both as "whiskey" and "bourbon whiskey" with about the same number of reviewers under each rubric. Since its introduction in the mid 1960's (if memory serves me correctly it was not until 1968 that it was imported to the US) this has been a good selling and widely available blend. Nevertheless, reviewers on this board have been largely negative, with more "not recommended" ratings than any other.

The current pouch identifies the contents as 35% black cavendish (burley?) and 65% Virginia. Smoked carelessly, it will bite like a constipated badger. Smoked carefully, it is still bite prone for smokers with sensitive tongues. Personally, with a relaxed puffing cadence, and remembering to hold the pipe in my hand and not clench it in my teeth, I can smoke it without biting.

The pouch aroma is somewhat mild for an aromatic. So too is the taste, a taste which I find pleasant, although not something to write home about. I doubt seriously that I could identify the taste as bourbon in a blind test.

I normally have about five tins or pouches open at one time. On the fairly infrequent times that I have Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey as one of these, I smoke it as often as the other blends open. When I do not like a tobacco, I cut it with something else. I have yet to find one that I cannot finish even if my cutting may create something far different from the original. (In over five decades, I have smoked well over 500 different tobaccos.) But I have never been tempted to cut Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey.

Bottom line: for me, this is a two star, "somewhat recommended" blend, but a two star rating given with a caveat for pipe smokers easily susceptible to tongue bite.

Similar Blends: .

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pseudo Nim (128)	2010-04-29		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

It has been many years since I last smoked this and my recolections are that it had a slight hint of Bourbon, I was expecting Scotch, and it bit like a rabid stoat.

No I didn't stock up on this.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-01-27		Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Strong

Bites like a injured pitbull with rabies! Have not found a way to help this blend at all. Only way I will ever burn this again is in the fireplace and hope it don't offend the neighbors. Minus 4 stars! So dry out of the pouch that it almost floats. Would not feed it to a horse or a wild goat for that matter. Other than that I have nothing bad to say about this blend.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kage (7)	2022-06-17		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Unnoticeable

I started smoking a pipe at 19. I can recall having my first blend, half and half. It gave me wicked tounge bite, it didn't taste like it smelled and wasn't at all what I thought it was. So I was highly put off to aromatic OTCs, rarely trying any, even higher brow ones. I accidentally got into cigarette smoking after a heat wave in 2010 killed my collection of good pipes when I was 23. After the bitterness of that wore off, I went back to the pipe about 2018, in hopes of ditching the cigs. Im 36 now and decided to review some old tobaccos I have tried before or ones I scoffed at before. Bokrum Riff Whiskey is one I scoffed at, hoping to not reexperience my issue of tounge bite half and half gave me.

Bokrum Riff This stuff is the stuff of legends in the pipe community. It is up there with Mixture 79 about how bad it was. That said, I lovw this stuff. My 23 year old self is wanting to kick my butt for that statment. "We end up smoking old codger blends almost exclusively?" He would ask and I would nod and continue to smoke my Corncob of Borkum Riff, silently laughing at the scrunched up face of youthful ignorance. Now, that said, it is not the perfect tobacco, for me, that is Granger, but Bokrum Riff might be top 25 for me intodays day and age. I love me some Jack Daniels, so southern whiskey was right up my alley. When I opened the pack, it didn't smell much of how I was thinking. It smelled of prunes, figs and other fruit notes with a wee bit of grass and hay from thw Virginias. I did the 3 step load and lit. After the 4th relight, we were in business and off and away we went. The first quarter of the bowl was light and wispery smoke, typical Virginia flavoring, almost like a watered down Sam Gwaith Full Virginia Flake. Had hay, grass, citrus, leathery and buttery notes. Nothing overly to write home about, but remember this blend is predominantly Virgina. Once we got pass the first quarter, the burley shows up along with the fruit notes and sweetness of the Cavendish. Then something magical and unexpected happens, pereique(sp?) Seems to show up, adding it's beautiful peppery goodness. It isn't listed, but I know what I tasted. This blend is subtle and complex, which make it an interesting blend that keeps you going. This is not a rookie blend as I think the nuance will be wasted on the inexperienced pallet. The more season pipe smoker will be thusly rewarded for sticking with this to the end. As foe tounge bite, I didn't get any, but Virginia tobacco is known for that, regardless of blend and I smoked at a decent pace. Now, I have read that occasionally BR can make the tounge feel coated in residue and while BR original gave me a bit of that, this blend didn't. I love BR original as well, in spite of the tounge covering with my first experience. Only problem with this is the bowl is over too fast.

I say this blend is highly recommend. P.S. I find clays work best for Virginia blends, so maybe try it in one of those to keep it smoking cool and you shouldn't have any issues. 5 outta 5 stars

Pipe Used: MM Corncob

Age When Smoked: Brand New

Purchased From: Maine Tobacco

Similar Blends: Altadis Rum Mixture.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pip'n'Piper (50)	2022-01-31		Mild	Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Beating a dead horse here it seems, that said it's an unimpressive, ashy, harsh, cigarette blend. Probably better than nothing, I guess, but there are FAR better bourbon tobys. Anything else I could say has been said by hundreds. Not recommended

Pipe Used: Cob

Age When Smoked: Fresh pouch

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Chojin (17)	2021-09-09		Medium	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

I can't say i enjoy this. To me it doesn't have any flavour, the smoke doesn't have much scent to it and although it smells nice in the packet i don't enjoy smoking it.

Pipe Used: Corn

Age When Smoked: 40

Purchased From: TobaccoBlends

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sholto (1)	2021-05-29		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Why this gets such poor reviews is a mystery to me. Perhaps in the past this blend went through some inconsistency but as of 2021 the 1.5oz pouch I finished was very pleasant. No bite, nice aroma, leaves little moisture, and satisfying. The burley comes through mostly with a light sweet top note, not very reminiscent of bourbon but it works for me. This would make a good first tobacco for a new pipe smoker.

Pipe Used: Falcon, Peterson

Age When Smoked: New from pouch

Purchased From: P&C

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	D.K. (58)	2020-12-15		Medium	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

I can't remember if it was Bourbon or just Whiskey when I tried this in the mid 80s. It's the sole reason, I started smoking cigarettes instead of a pipe. I remember a couple old geezers I worked with when I was 16, smoked pipes. They had to be in their 60s. I asked what I should smoke, and I was told Capt.Black, or SWR. I went straight to the dime store, and bought Broken Raft. I thought I was being naughty with the whole whiskey thing. I went straight out to my car, packed my Medico, and began puffing like a puffed cheek cartoon cloud in a Disney storm sequence. Of course I filleted my tongue with a flaming demon scythe. I felt like I had just French kissed a gaboon viper. How the heck do these old farts smoke pipes?! I do recall they both rolled their eyes, because I was a fool. This is just a memory review at the moment. I HAVE to get more of this....just to see, and bring back some memories, however bad.

EDIT: I bought another pouch at my grocery store. A little over $7 out the door. I just had to know. For the same price, I could've bought about 3000 matches, and used each one to burn my tongue like this stuff, and they'd probably taste better. This has a sharp twang that is NOT any bourbon I've ever had. Tasted like sucking on a soured cork, that was on fire. Gross like I remembered. Smelled like a chewing tobacco I've had when I chewed oddly enough, actually not bad odor in the pouch. Made me kinda want a chaw. Pouch split down the side when I opened the seal also. It was dry, I will keep the stars at 2 because some moisture MAY help it. I'll rehydrate and try again in 2087 if I'm alive.

Pipe Used: Then new dime store Medico

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: Mom and pop drugstore long gone

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2020-08-23		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

So I picked up a pouch of this as I was in my car and out of tobacco. I thought it sounded good and that it would be a premium smoke. I was wrong. This blend was fast burning, hot and gave me terrible tongue bite. The pouch not was good but the room note was unpleasant. I will not purchase this again. That is a shame, really, because it reflects poorly on the rest of the BR line.

Pipe Used: Cob

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Local

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Bbrown626 (150)	2020-08-17		Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I smoked this on occasion some 35 years ago. I remembered liking it at that time. I received a coupon recently and thought I would give it another try. As with other OTC blends I have recently tried, I have found my tastes have matured over the years. Pouch note was of pleasant whiskey. Room note was tolerable. Moisture level was good It packed well and lit with a reasonable number of relites. I had to nurse this one to keep it from burning too hot. The taste started out pleasant, but as it got about half was through the bowl it got bitter, to the point of becoming intolerable. If you have no taste buds, this would be an ok all day smoke. Super Value Bourbon Whiskey is a far better choice at a much better price point.

Pipe Used: Amphoria Panel Billard

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Local Grocer

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	True Life (4)	2019-08-03		Very Mild	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Smokes easy, smokes cool (at least in my cob). Straight out of a new package, this is absolutely horrible. It smokes like a wet dog, and tastes no better..but give it time to air, let it breathe, then the smooth, sweet whiskey will come out, along with what seems like sweet hints of virginia. I can only give it 2 stars due to the horrible flavor and smell when its fresh. This was, however, my first tobacco, and has a place in my heart.

Pipe Used: different cobs, briars and rosewood.

Age When Smoked: new

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	OTC Sweden (1)	2019-07-21		Mild	Extremely Mild	Very Mild	Pleasant

This tobacco lacks body. Bites occasionally and has very little whiskey taste. More like hot air white minimal sweetness. Its not the worst possible smoke, but i at least wont buy this again.

Pipe Used: Myon. Bent

Age When Smoked: 1 month.

Purchased From: Bokhandeln Ugglan

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	canvas (337)	2019-07-12		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

I did not seek this one out, it simply came my pipe via a donation. Being fairly snobbish, I had zero expectation of this being a good smoke, so it was free to excite me in some manner.

The pouch gave off a sour, earthy odor that reminded me more of wine soaked cardboard rather than sipable liquor (which immediately brought back memories of their nasty Limited Edition 36 blend) - they have consistency at least. The semi-dry, thin cut ribbon, packed well enough and fired to an instant smolder. No intense flavors or bitterness arose, with the first few puffs mild and somewhat 'cigarette-y' (perhaps due to it's quality and near shag cut).

To their credit, it was not an overly topped Aromatic, and the Whiskey flavor develops somewhat throughout the course of the bowl. I dunno, it was OK, but for my money I would never buy it over similar price points (Prince Albert or Captain Black) if at the drugstore.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Viscfab (36)	2019-06-04		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I always liked Borkum Riff blends, since they were produced by Swedish Match. I have picked up the latest offerings from STG - Scandinavian Tobacco Group and they are really great. I cannot understand the ranting and all bad-saying about this tobacco over here... Upon opening the nice pouch I am amazed by a block - almost if it was pressed - tobacco bar. Of course it is easily detachable into its fine cut ribbons, well executed by STG. You will get 3 or four different colors to it, beautiful blend. The topping note is sweet and mellow. It reminds me of dried fruit and if you compare it to a whisky smell, you may be able to notice some hints of it, but not overpowering. Packs and lights very easily. It however burns a bit fast, so take small sips to enjoy it for a longer time... Taste is very nice, I get the Virginias sweetness and the black cavs add a nice bouquet to my retrohale / french-hale experience. All in all, a very decent blend and extremely well revisited and executed by STG. Recommended.

Pipe Used: Vauen, Stanwell, savinelli, Brebbia

Age When Smoked: 1-2 years

Purchased From: Local tobacconist

Similar Blends: Borkum Riff - Original.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	hwmcadoo (3)	2018-12-13		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

I really did not like this and put it away but decided to try again before trashI gotta It was much milder, taste was;ow. I added a big splash of bourbon and let dry and it’s not all bad, in fact, I like it. It has to be given a chance.

I’m still a Boswell fan.

Pipe Used: Missouri Meershaum

Age When Smoked: 78

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	1/2 (17)	2018-04-19		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Tolerable

As I am relatively new to pipe tobbacco, having returned to it after years of not smoking at all due to work requirements, I have little by way of comparisson. So from a new pipesmokers perspective:

As I opened the pouh the first time, the scent of Bourbon was quite potent. It actually overpowered the scent of the tobbacco. Once the tobbacco had been lit, the flavour of Bourbon was present, But not as overpowering. It was quite a Nice flavour and kept that flavour through out.

My wife not being a fan of any whiskey did not enjoy the scent. She noted that it did Get to be a bit much whiskey. (She prefers the scent of vanillas etc ahead of this one. It has however grown on her and she claims it a taste she can aquire.)

Pipe Used: Vauen 1300 01 basic bent Apple

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: M.Sørensen Tobbakk A/S

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	wintermute (90)	2018-04-03		Extremely Mild	None Detected	Very Mild	Tolerable

Let me start out by saying that I may not be a Virginia fan. I mean, most of the virginia tobaccos that I have reviewed have gotten pretty unenthusiastic marks from me. Here we go with another less than wonderful blend. The smell out of the pouch is grassy and reminds me a lot of Sail or something close. I do n’t really smell the bourbon. The stuff packs well and it arrived at a good moisture level. The thickness of the packaging seems to have done a good job at keeping it fresh. It takes a couple of charring lights to get started and another full light to get the smoke going. The taste is of grass and a little earth. Again, the whiskey seems to be missing. In fact, this could almost pass as Borkum Riff Original if I didn’t have the pouch right in front of me. The aroma is that of a good Virginia and nothing else. By the way, the wife gives the room note a thumbs down. As the smoke continues, there is a little whiskey in the aroma, but it never shows in the taste. The burning quality is good, but you will want to keep your lighter handy if you start to talk or put the pipe down for any reason. There is no tongue bite and the taste is super mild. The ash is fine and there is no dottle left in the pipe. Although I do admit that the pipe tends to gurgle a little because I puff a little fast to get flavor or to keep it lit. Pouches are getting too expensive for such a lack-luster performance. But I can admit that others may find a lot here, but I found very little. Back to the Burley tobacco for me!

Pipe Used: MM Legend and MM Washington

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Pipesandcigars.com

Similar Blends: Sail Green, Borkum Riff Original, MacBaren Virginia No. 1.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	L'Italiano (231)	2017-07-23		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Not so terrible as described. The choice (ingredients’ selection) is ok: Virginia, Black Cavendish and Bourbon Whiskey blended together (really I don’t know if before it was better because I didn’t try the first “version” Virginia, Burley and Bourbon). I like this kind of flavoring (bourbon, rum, whiskey, cognac , brandy and so on) because I think it’s a perfect marriage. With these flavorings you can always perceive the tobacco. And indeed, in this mixture you can always savor the taste of tobacco. But it’s essential take care when you mix with others seasonings. I mean that if you are employing some spirit as a chief ingredient, consequently you have to be careful with the “casing” and with the final “top dressing”. And in this mixture you can perceive a bitter aftertaste, probably due to the wrong combination of some seasoning, incompatible with Bourbon Whiskey. For these reasons, in my personal rating system (from 1 to 10) my score is 6 and two stars.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Darth 69 (117)	2017-07-01		Mild	Medium	Very Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

The current version is both better and less so in some respects to the older version I smoked twenty plus years ago. The basic flavor seems consistent but lacks that extra bit of sweetness that rounded it out, likely due to ingredient restrictions these days of coarse. On the other hand, there is a real improvement over the older version that had a high amount of stems that were processed and incorporated into the black cavendish part of the blend that seriously affected the smoking experience. So, It's a smoother blend these days with a dark semi sweet character that is uniquely it's own and hard to describe. It doesn't taste or smell like whiskey. It's reminiscent of molasses, chocolate truffle and maybe a bit of dried fig. This is a dryer blend for an aromatic typical of European black cavendish along with the larger proportion of golden virginia it's blended with.

On a side note, I was reminded by this blend of the older Balkan Sobranie from the early 90's, it's base of light and dark virginias which I understand was cased and stoved-cavendish to make up the dark component. It is surprising how well this newer Borkum Riff works as a base for an English mixture; Just add turkish and latakia. It's not Balkan Sobranie but nevertheless it really works.

Age When Smoked: New

Similar Blends: Borkum Riff Black Cavendish.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ShadowFox (8)	2017-03-16		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I've tried this tobacco recently and I like it. There is not too much of a bite, it has a good taste and mild whisky flavoring. It's not the best of Borkum Riff, but it is a good blend.

Age When Smoked: New

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Nwpipesmker (27)	2017-02-22		Very Mild	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

Living in a place that has limited available opportunities to buy pipe tobacco at a decent price. My go to tobacco was sold out and this was sitting there. I bought a pouch. I opened it and it was as dry as dehydrated water. There was no pouch note. No taste it burnt hot and bit like a rabid dog. Tossed the pouch. I am not going to rate this low nor high. I might amend my review at a later date.

Pipe Used: Cob

Purchased From: Local b&m

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Greekpipesmoker (201)	2017-01-21		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild	Tolerable

Well after a 50g pouch i do not consider it as a quality tobacco...the smell when breaking the seal is decent cavendish dominates the taste wich doesn't last till the end of the bowl.easy packing a bit moist but no drying is needed.at the beginning you get some bourbon taste wich is lost after a few puffs.it burns hot and it has a very unique room smell.(not pleasant not bad).as you go it is flat with a bit bite if you go hard.it leaves more moist than should to the bowl.for one pouch is good you won't lose but you wo't earn something also.

Age When Smoked: When opened!

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Jevverrett (104)	2016-11-14		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant

I bought this in a pinch at a mini market.

Nice pouch aroma, looks really pretty in the pouch too. Nice fluffy ribbons that are easy to work with. Lights pretty easily too, with e few charrs to get it going.

The initial light gives a nice vanilla bourbon flavor that is unusual to a non aro smoker like me. The flavor is simple and the topping dies down a third through the smoke. It can nip at your tongue easily if you smoke it hot. It's not a great smoke though altogether. Pretty bland if you normally smoke something more complex. It'll do in a pinch, but may end up in the trash by the end of the day. Meh, 2 1/2 stars maybe. Moving on.

Pipe Used: Various briars

Age When Smoked: Fresh

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ringo (15)	2016-08-11		Medium to Strong	Medium	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

This is a good Cavendish aromatic! In the shag it smells whiskey and chocolate. The room aroma is burbon clearly. The flavor of the tobacco is realistic whiskey with Virginia and the characteristic feel of black Cavendish. The taste of the whiskey is very real but not overwhelming. It is also nice that the cooked part- the last third is very soft and mellow Virginia with burbon, yes this is clearly burbon. It does not byte and I ca not find negatives. Sometimes I also taste chocolate and I think the Cavendish is also Virginia tobacco and always the taste finishes in the mouth with whiskey. I wish the last part of smoke which taste burbon to last longer. If you like aromatics and whiskey, this is a must. I also want to add that I have become addictive to it, very nice nicotine kick, just right!As the tobacco becomes dry the bourbon taste comes more to the surface while the intense metalic taste of whiskey softens. I must say that the whiskey taste was very bright when the tobacco was fresh like throwing in the a glass of a whiskey a little bit of water or when the ice is melted.

Pipe Used: corcobswith filter

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: local kiosk- news agent

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	manxman (82)	2016-05-25		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I am surprised with the low average this received. No bite, no gurgle. Some nicotine. Stays lit well and burns right to the bottom. I liked this from the start, no need to wait for it to grow on me. Pouch aroma is fabulous. Nice thick smoke. I like to retrohale, and this was a little too strong to enjoy doing that. I find that it does burn fast.

Pipe Used: MM cob, MM hardwood, both with filters

Age When Smoked: fresh to 4 weeks

Purchased From: Buttheads Tobacco Emporium

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Steden (100)	2016-05-12		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Aroma in the pouch is really compelling: sweet tobacco with a trace of woodiness most likely from the Bourbon. Moisture is perfect and the cut is a fine ribbon easy to load which burns evenly but, as every Whisky or Whiskey flavoured blend, it tends to smoke hot so you need some care to keep the right pace; despite the heat it doesn’t bite at all, it also has a nicotine level a bit over the usual border for this kind of blend. Taste is woody and sweet, it actually reminds to Whiskey and wife she loves the room note (surprisingly more than I do), all in all a decent blend but... unfortunately starting from the mid bowl it gets sour, this unpleasant flaw is the only real one I can tell but serious enough to ruin the smoke near the bottom.

Pipe Used: briars and cobs

Age When Smoked: fresh

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	taazen (1)	2016-04-01		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Just wanted to lift this tobacco up. It deserves higher a rating than what it have. Dont know why it gets so low ratings, guess it has something to do with that it was different before. Dont know which year it changed, but now, in 2016, it tasts perfect. Someone told me that finaly it tastes like the first time.(when it came out). I love this blend. My favorite. Im so glad my local store has plenty of this. If you can get it, just buy and try.

Pipe Used: Meerschaum

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Shop in Norway

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	FlatCapMatt (59)	2015-12-07		Medium to Strong	Mild	Very Mild	Tolerable

I bought a pouch of this over the weekend because I was completely out of tobacco and wanted something right away, rather than ordering my favourites from online and having to wait a few days. Nearly $60 Australian for one 50g pouch of this. OUCH!

It's just very "OK" to me. It does the trick in a pinch, but I would not be buying this normally.

It smells nice in the pouch, but basically like every other non-fruity aromatic. I can't really smell any bourbon.

Smoking it, I can't really taste bourbon either. It burns my tongue pretty bad, but I puff pretty fast. I don't like having to constantly relight my pipes so I probably smoke them too fast.

Maybe it's because I hadn't had any pipes for a couple of months, but this stuff has been hitting me with a fairly hard nicotine kick. I had to put the pipe down before it was finished once, just because I was worried I'd start feeling ill.

I smoked this outdoors once in company with some cigarette smokers. One commented that she could really smell my tobacco, and I asked her if it smelled nice. The answer was along the lines of "not really nice, just different." So I probably wouldn't recommend this one to someone wanting a really pleasant room note.

tl;dr It's OK in a pinch, but not something I'd buy normally.

Pipe Used: Stanwell Bjarne Nielsen, Corncob

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Smokemart

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Seasoned Puffer (6)	2015-11-29		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

In the 1970s and 80s, I smoked the black and white tin Borkum Riff Whiskey and liked it very much. In time, I drifted into mixing my own blends as I think most of us do eventually. Recently, for the sake of nostalgia, I bought a pouch of the Bourbon Whiskey blend. It's true, you can't go back. The blending has changed to a degree that it's too sweet for me---leaves a bite I don't remember from the old blend. If you are on the road and forget your tobacco pouch, this would be an OK "drugstore" substitute; otherwise, might be best to wait until you get back home.

Pipe Used: Peterson p-lip Kildare chubby

Age When Smoked: Fresh from the pouch

Purchased From: local tobacco shop

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	wandyhee (16)	2015-10-20		Mild	Mild	Mild	Pleasant

Open my 1st pack, smell good easy packing easy lit taste okay but not my choice, maybe it's fine for beginner who want to explore tobacco taste without hurting the wallet

Age When Smoked: New in pack

Purchased From: kamelahtobaccohouse.com

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	paulw (76)	2015-08-09		Mild	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I had never smoked this. I heard that it was the series most popular Borkum Riff.The tobacco was a ribbon cut that smelled more like rum to me than bourbon.I liked the smoke taste and the room note was okay. I know why this is their most popular blend now.

Pipe Used: briar

Age When Smoked: new moist pouch

Purchased From: TobaccoPlus smoke shop

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Nathan (15)	2015-08-02		Mild	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I tried a pouch of this back in 2008. Pouch aroma was enticing. The tobacco was very dry. Taste was sub-par. The room note was quite pleasant. I ended up adding some cloves which helped improve the taste. I haven't purchased any since then. That is until today. My experience this time was quite different. Pouch aroma was still enticing. The tobacco had good moisture content this time around. The taste was actually pleasant. Decent tobacco notes with a slight sweetness. Room note was quite pleasant. It burned into a light grey ash and left only a slight amount of moisture in the bottom of the bowl. Maybe my first pouch years ago was stale or just plain junk. ? Some love this, some hate this. I would definitely purchase this again assuming the next pouch would be similar to this one. It's worth a try regardless, or even a second try.

Pipe Used: Briar

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Local smoke shop

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Old German puffer (106)	2015-07-07		Extremely Mild	Very Mild	Very Mild	Pleasant

This is a blend that I pick up weekly in the pouch. Scandinavian Tobacco sends me weekly coupons for this for $1.00. So I tend to unpouch it and throw it in a bulk mason jar. I pull it out after a short sit and smoke it when I need something different. In short it is a mild smoke with little bite. I smoke it in a Dutch over size pipe. It burns well if not over packed. Taste is very mild. No tough bite to speak of and it last for an hour and a half. As for taste it is very mild. I never get any of the whiskey taste. Leaves a good room note. For a buck it's a keeper and stays in my rotation. I will say it does not get better if let sit to long. I have jars 2, 3, 4 and five years old. I say no more than a year. I blend the older stuff.

Pipe Used: Dutch mag.

Age When Smoked: Pouch

Purchased From: TRO Tobacco

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	NHPro (4)	2015-06-30		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

First smoke, descent, good room note, burns all the way down. No bite but just not my kind of tobacco. It doesn't have much flavor at all. I enjoy Carter Hall more, and will return to its mild taste again. I will try a few more bowls of BRBW and update my review later.

Okay, I've had more than enough bowls to know what I think about the "Riff" It's a good smoke, but nothing to write home about. Now I don't know how this blend was so popular in the 70's but it was.

Was the 70's blend different, because I don't taste anything!

Pipe Used: MM Cob

Age When Smoked: 1 year?

Purchased From: Smoking Joe's

Similar Blends: I think this blend may be most like SWR..

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Ghiltor (2)	2015-02-22		Mild	Mild	Medium	Tolerable

I smoked two packages of this tobacco in a row this year. And I can say that, if you look for a tobacco which has a mild flavoring and taste, you had better to try this one.

Pipe Used: chacom, sahin and meerschaum

Age When Smoked: 0

Purchased From: Vienna/Austria, Tokyo/Japan

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Bluesmoke (75)	2014-11-29		Mild	Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Pleasant

Sweet burley, smokes very coolly. Aftertaste always gets me in these drug store baccys. Good price and I don't mind a bowl every now and them.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	oldcodger (74)	2014-02-12		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I have always preferred the aroma of someone else smoking this tobacco to the experience of smoking it myself. Although there are dissenters, most find the room note of Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey pleasant. As of the date of this review it is listed on this board both as "whiskey" and "bourbon whiskey" with about the same number of reviewers under each rubric. Since its introduction in the mid 1960's (if memory serves me correctly it was not until 1968 that it was imported to the US) this has been a good selling and widely available blend. Nevertheless, reviewers on this board have been largely negative, with more "not recommended" ratings than any other.

The current pouch identifies the contents as 35% black cavendish (burley?) and 65% Virginia. Smoked carelessly, it will bite like a constipated badger. Smoked carefully, it is still bite prone for smokers with sensitive tongues. Personally, with a relaxed puffing cadence, and remembering to hold the pipe in my hand and not clench it in my teeth, I can smoke it without biting.

The pouch aroma is somewhat mild for an aromatic. So too is the taste, a taste which I find pleasant, although not something to write home about. I doubt seriously that I could identify the taste as bourbon in a blind test.

I normally have about five tins or pouches open at one time. On the fairly infrequent times that I have Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey as one of these, I smoke it as often as the other blends open. When I do not like a tobacco, I cut it with something else. I have yet to find one that I cannot finish even if my cutting may create something far different from the original. (In over five decades, I have smoked well over 500 different tobaccos.) But I have never been tempted to cut Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey.

Bottom line: for me, this is a two star, "somewhat recommended" blend, but a two star rating given with a caveat for pipe smokers easily susceptible to tongue bite.

Similar Blends: .

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	musicman (131)	2013-12-02		Mild	Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant

I gotta say I think this blend has gotten a little bit of a bad rap. Other reviews have mentioned tastes like tar and other off flavors. I certainly did not find these flavors, but that's the point. I did not find any flavor at all.

The packaging is so very elegant, the pouch aroma is nice, the room aroma is nice. The cut is just grand, and the moisture content is perfect. The only thing this blend is missing is taste. A little taste and this stuff would not be that bad.

Bourbon is not a very subtle flavor. If something is flavored with bourbon, it should be relatively easy to pick out. I taste absolutely nothing here. Not bourbon, not nothin. This stuff should be title "Borkum Riff Bland Steam" That would be an accurate name.

One mans trash is another mans treasure. This is by no means disgusting, and may be just what you are looking for, but for most of us, it caused us to just keep looking.

Pipe Used: Dr. Grabow Billiard

Age When Smoked: purchased 2011

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	albfneto (184)	2013-05-26		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Mild	Unnoticeable

For me my oppinion, is only a very regular, common, Virginia-Burley Blend. Somewhat bitter taste and also slight large in Nicotine than desired and tendence to give Tongue Bite, and very dry. Not bad, but not remarkable also very similar to cigarrete tobacco. .

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2013-02-22		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I first smoked this blend in Savinelli Oscar Elite, which is a giant size bowl. When smoked slowly I found the blend quite pleasant with very little to no tongue bite. As for the Bourbon, I could really only pick this up when smelling the pouch. But I will try again. The room note is pleasant enough. This is an ok aromatic blend, though far from spectacular.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-10-27		Very Mild	Extra Strong	Medium	Strong

horrible taste, really bad bite, sucks. Avoid this one.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-10-01		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Pleasant

I bought a pack and decided to smoke some. Like many have said it has no taste of either bourbon or whiskey but it has some taste to it. The scent it gives of when you smoke it is really good in my opinion. I really can't imagine people complaining about the room note, but know that the taste isn't as pleasant. You can get TB from this smoke but to get around it you simply don't take to heavy drags, not that hard to get around. I need to relight this a few times when I smoke it. Perhaps I'm a bad smoker but it just doesn't keep lit in the pipe. I think it would be a much better smoke if they had more of a tobacco flavor to it, it is somewhat mild for me. The fact that is has no distinct taste probably make it a good morning smoke after breakfast or with a cup of coffee. You don't want to have this as your main stock but it is both affordable and decent enough for you for a quick smoke IMO.

I really can't see people who bash this tobacco as hard as they do, it isn't a top notch tobacco and is a fairly cheap one. You really can't expect too much of such a product! It isn't as terrible as some say but I would not recommend you to smoke it in a designated pipe. It is a casual smoke now and then and should be take for what it is. It leave a nice aftertaste in the mouth that last for a ½ hour or so.

Don't get me wrong when you read this, you really shouldn't go out looking for it but if you come across it give it a try. Just don't expect to much from it.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-03-12		Mild to Medium	Strong	Medium	Tolerable

I found this blend spicy and aromatic but I could not detect the Bourbon Whiskey. My strongest memory of it is the lingering aftertaste, which reminded me of premium cigars. So, I could recommend this blend to cigar smokers and I might give it a second chance myself - if I ever miss that odd aroma.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Redd (117)	2011-12-15		Mild	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

I give this four stars based upon that growing u as a boy about 11 this was favorite blend. It seemed so rich. the aroma was wonderful. Priced at about 69 cents more then a pack of smokes at that time. I have tried it ver recently and found that alothough it may not be up the the connoisuer level we are all up to today. It is still a good smoke. Smoked ever so slow the favor comes out. So enjoy it while we are all able to still buy tobacco. pretty soon it will all be but a memory. REDD

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2011-07-05		Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild	Very Pleasant

[Note: This is the same Borkum Riff tobacco as that listed as "Bourbon Whiskey."]

In the pouch, this fine-cut ribbon blend has the typically sweet cavendish aroma along with an unobtrusively natural bourbon scent.

This is a blend of golden virginia and burley cavendishes along with black (burley?) cavendish that is rather sweet without becoming excessively syrupy. The bourbon whiskey topping is credible and admirably plays the role of unifying agent.

A classic, Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey is a quietly elegant smoke for those who enjoy tobaccos on the sweeter side. This will ghost a briar and seemed best in narrow to medium gauge chambers.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-03-17		Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable to Strong

A decent smoke for the price. It never seems to burn well, even in my well-seasoned pipes. The taste is a little harsh. I can not taste any notes of bourbon whiskey, but there is another unpleasant taste that I can't put my finger on.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	BigSwede (88)	2009-01-14		Medium	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

*Update: well it smoked OK for a week or two, then seemed to go back to it's old ways. Went flat, stale real quick. Better than it used to be but you can do better.

In the mid to late '70s, I alway had a can of Borkum Riff Bourbon on my study desk and smoked a ton of it. It had a strong casing, not terribly unpleasant but very "definite", it smoked hot and it was hard to find a true tobacco taste. Hey, I didn't know any better and after several years of this being my everyday/all day smoke I moved on. Lots of young guys smoked this "back when".

This new version is definitely NOT the same stuff at all. The smell of the tobacco in the pouch is way toned down. Same cut for sure. The flavor is that of a plain burley with an occasional hint of virginia and the whisper of topping. Smokes like a straight up burley blend, nice tobacco taste. It burns nicely. And this new stuff doesn't bite unless really pushed. This won't put Dunhill out of business but I can see picking a pouch of this to have for.....well, studying (again) or reading. A pleasant suprise! The change in blenders had made a huge difference IMHO.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	strongirish (249)	2009-01-13		Very Mild	Mild	Very Mild	Very Pleasant

I think the room note of this blend is one of the best ever. However the taste never fulfilled me no matter how many times I have tried it. I don't like it's fine ribbon cut and my tongue always was raw afterwards, most likely drawing too hard trying for a n boost I never got. I have tried all the BR blends as I used to work for US Tobacco back when they had the US rights to sell it and I had all I wanted free but instead at that time smoked Amphora Brown. This always sold well and many a new smoker cut his teeth on it.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Fofo (81)	2008-05-19		Medium to Strong	Strong	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Not bad, I think their quality control has improved since I last tried this stuff. Borkum Riff is not something I would go out of my way to smoke or even buy large quantities, but not bad for now and then. The flavoring is pretty strong but not overwheelming and the nicotine content is high, so it is probably the good slap we need some mornings.

An ok OTC smoke. I'll smoke it in a pinch.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Glorfindel (86)	2007-05-04		Medium to Strong	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Strong

One bowl, 5 puffs and the package went into the trash.

Abysmal.

No offense to those who like this one, but its not for me.

Smelled like a pack of cigarettes that had been sunning in the dash of a truck for about 3 years.

Live and learn.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tantric (321)	2007-01-22		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is one of the first pipe tobaccos I ever tried (together with Capt. Black, Amphora Red and Clan). In my opinion, this is the best of the Borkum Riff range or, if you so prefer, not as bad as the others in this German-Swedish family. It is not as goopy or cased as either the Black or Cherry Cavendish varieties, and it does have more body and presence than the Ultra Light or Champange versions.

Evidently a popular tobacco, and readily available almost anywhere, it has enough Virginia flavour to fight back the Bourbon whiskey casing, and the Burley adds a certain sharpness which I find rather enticing. To put it briefly: it does taste of tobacco. The samples I remember were not particularly moist, and the famous (or infamous) riff cut (long thin strands) were never an obstacle to pack and light it easily. I assume it must contain some humectant or artifical substance to keep it fresh, and that tends to give it an industrialised undertone. But it's not that bad. I would rate BRW a mild to middle strength smoke, not really sweet, and if smoked slowly it won't bite. Not a particularly cool smoke, it does leave a tolerable room aroma.

Within the range of highly commercial brands, this blend is pretty good and can be smoked safely by both aromatic and non aromatic smokers. Definitely not an exceptional tobacco, but if stranded somewhere in the wild, it can become a passable option. __________

NB: I just tried the new, Danish blended version. It is much better than its previous German version. The taste is fuller and rounder, and the casing seems to be now a topping, providing a more defined and richer tobacco flavor, with a stronger Burley presence. Hence, one more star for this readily available blend. Smoke it slowly, though, because the tongue bite is still there...(January, 2007)

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipepundit (168)	2006-02-16		Very Mild	Mild	Very Mild	Tolerable

Proof - if proof was needed - that millions can be wrong. In an emergency tea leaves would make a better smoke.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2005-07-13		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild	Tolerable

Like a guy who keeps hitting his head with a hammer because it feels so good when he quits, I find myself going back to Borkum Riff Whiskey from time to time. Why would I do that? I've pondered that question while frying my tongue with BRW and can only come to the conclusion that it was my first tobacco back in the early 1960s and I thorougly liked my new hobby, so maybe I'm trying to recapture that initial enjoyment. I could deal with almost anything this tobacco throws at me, except for the tongue bite. Believe me, after 40+ years of puffing, I know how to control a smoke to make it burn cool. But, no amount of expertise can save my tongue with this stuff. It tastes as good as a lot of tobaccos I've had in my day, and after allowed to dry a bit in the pouch it burns cleanly. However, as I have in the past, I am sure that some day in the future I will see a pouch and buy it. I wonder how old you have to be before you get smart?

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SopwithCamel (255)	2003-12-11		Mild to Medium	Medium	Overwhelming	Strong

I bought this dreck when I was particularly ignorant about tobacco. The reference to smoking shredded newsprint soaked in bad bourbon is pretty apt. I was fortunate in that the sample I tried was quite dry, and I suffered no tongue bite. However, I couldn't finish the pouch, and I wouldn't dare make an enemy by giving it away. Save your money.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2003-11-20		Mild	Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This was given to me as a birthday gag gift. One thing I can say for sure is it made me gag.

My tongue got burned to a crisp, it tasted terrible. So bad and unfamiliar that I cannot really compare it to anything. Maybe tea leaves? There's nothing fancy about this blend, but the hot smoke... I mean it was... VERY hot. My tongue is kinda messed up, and I won't be enjoying my meals the rest of the day. This isn't worth buying folks, just stay away. That's my sincere opinion. If you really want a great smoke with some great flavor, AND you want an aromatic, try Dunhill's Royal Yacht, Blue Note, or Sweet Vanilla Honeydew. I know it's wrong to suggest other blends while doing this review, but this blend is so bad that a potential pipester might be put off by this blend forevermore.

Regards,

DJM

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Creek (17)	2023-01-15		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Overwhelming

If you like this you have a camel’s tongue. No flavor, harsh. I’m pretty sure the master blenders drank all the bourbon and got drunk and made cigarettes. This deserves a negative star.

Similar Blends: Pall Malls.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Cricri (3)	2022-08-02		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Mild	Unnoticeable

Is it just me, or I feel that this tobacco is really high in nicotine! I feel it after a bowl … like when I was kid and I used to smoke 3 cigarettes in my 15 min school break ….. . Anyway, it’s not that tasty and it’s a bit rough on the throat after… maybe my tobacco is old enough …. It’s my second Borkum and I did not really appreciate it .

Pipe Used: Blatter and Blatter

Purchased From: Internet

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipes&BikesTX (4)	2022-04-18		Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This feels like a hard-core tobacco at least in the OTC category I definitely taste the whiskey Ness I don’t love whiskey I don’t love this tobacco I probably would give this away I don’t really like this

Pipe Used: Briar

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	nach0 (35)	2022-03-02		Mild	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Not as bad as people says...When i first tried it, i was expecting a traditional aromatic blend, which means, full of preservatives, artificial flavors, too wet, or that kind of appearance most aromatic has. I was totally wrong, in a good way, bc this blend has the perfect moisture IMO, doesn't smell artificial, barely noticeable topping or casing, this is what i can call neutral tobacco, i cant feel any whisky in it, only tobacco flavor. Talking about the tobacco, the crumble is easy to break, easy to pack, easy to keep it lit. the mix i had were Virginia and black Cavendish, really well balanced, doesn't bit, doesn't make bubbles when finishing the bowl, i have only good things to say, since my first pouch it become my favorite 'drugstore' tobacco.

Pipe Used: many including briar and cob

Age When Smoked: fresh pack

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Smokolier (21)	2021-10-13		Very Mild	Extremely Mild	Very Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

What is everyone else smoking? I've heard great things about this tobacco from reviews on many sites, and apparently many pipe smokers have been puffing on this thenceforth from 1970. Yet, my experience was absolutely dreadful, totally unlike the glowing praise.

Like most alcohol-cased blends, the pouch note barely resembled its touted flavor. Upon opening I was hit by the strong scent of apples, honey, and maybe figs, as well as an iodine-like note I couldn't quite place. Not a good start.

While packing, I noticed something quite concerning. Unlike any other blend I had tried, this one was completely desiccated. It was like trying to pack dead leaves into my pipe. I knew instantly that this would burn hotter than coal and faster than a locomotive.

On lighting and drawing I tasted nothing. Then, a little bit of burley. Occasionally, a vague medicinal note would creep in, but only just before the tobacco overheated. It reminded me somewhat of the liqueur Southern Comfort (which isn't even real whisky, but rather some sort of tonic designed to cover up bad whisky. It tastes like cherry cough syrup.) Thoroughly disappointing, there was no whisky flavor whatsoever, and barely any notes of tobacco. On the other hand, there was plenty of ash.

As I've already said, it burned extremely hot and fast, almost as if I'd packed RYO tobacco into a pipe. Indeed, it smelled like it too, and I had to slap myself to make sure I wasn't delusional and actually smoking OHM instead. Nope. Just Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey. After I was done with a bowl, I came away smelling like cigarettes and a campfire, which was most unpleasant. On top of that, it heavily ghosted my pipe with an acrid flavor. I had to burn it out with a match to restore it to normalcy.

Although the idea of whiskey-topped tobacco is attractive, it seems hard for manufacturers to pull off. Especially Borkum Riff. Give this tobacco a wide berth. If you're looking for whiskey in a pipe, try out Erin Go Bragh instead, which is actually pretty decent, tasting more or less just like Irish whiskey on top of burley.

Pipe Used: Missouri Meerschaum Mizzou

Age When Smoked: 1 Day

Purchased From: Pipes and Cigars

Similar Blends: Borkum Riff Original.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimPM (142)	2021-05-06		Very Mild	Extremely Mild	Mild	Unnoticeable

Following up on a review I did for SuperValue Bourbon Whiskey, I realized I neglected to present my commentary of this alternative blend by Borkum Riff. Setting this up, I did a side-by-side comparison of these two comparable OTC blends. There is no question that the Borkum Riff is the weaker of the two.

The initial pouch note of this Cavendish-Virginia mixture really does present the nice bold bourbon fragrance one would expect given the added flavoring. Unfortunately, the flair of the whiskey note does not translate through to the actual taste when smoked. Short of a minimal flat spicy nuisance reminiscent of bourbon flavoring, the namesake of this blend is almost non-existence. What comes through is an unassuming hint of spice with some basic grassy presence from the base Virginia and that is pretty much it.

Borkum Riff burns exceptionally hot, and the tongue lashing is significant. The smoke that is produced is light on body and meager in room presence.

Given the much higher cost of this blend compared to its counterpart, my vote is a “no thank you”. However, this particular blend is readily available in most tobacco retail establishments so I can’t dismiss that there is a market out there for many who actually enjoy partaking the blend.

In the end, I only smoked a few bowls, and the pouch has now sat in abandonment in my cellar. Not wanting to promote a total waste, I have mixed Borkum Riff with a maple flavored aromatic with sprinkle of some budget black cavendish. With that modification, yeah, I can say I have improved the appeal of actually smoking it.

If you want a tasty budget OTC Bourbon flavored aromatic then go for the SuperValue. It is good and well worth the money you give for it IMO.

Pipe Used: Meerschaum Lionhead

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: CR Butts

Similar Blends: SuperValue Bourbon Whiskey.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	MRBROWNNOSE (18)	2021-02-01		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey was a present surprise compaired to the MANY NEGATIVE REVIEWS. To start with, this is not a typical goopy aromatic and it burns great with no issues. Appearance is a mix of brown with some black cavendish about 60-40 or so.

The flavor is not overpowering but is mildly sweet with some citrusy Virginias making themselves known. This is a tasty blend and was much better than I would have thought from the MANY many negative reviews which I'm guessing are from the older blend pre-reformulation since this blend has excellent taste, not goopy, and no Tounge bite.

The only reason I did not give this all stars is the price. It has creeped up in price over the years and at my local B&M a pouch is over $11 making it (aside from St Bruno) one of the most expensive pouch blends I have tried. With all that into consideration, I'm very glad I tried this blend and would recommend this to anyone that may be interested and would encourage people to try it again since the blend has been changed:)

Pipe Used: Corn cob, Peterson Castle

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Tobacco pipes?

Similar Blends: Super Value Whiskey.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Antonius Blok (190)	2020-10-25		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

It is not pleasant to review a tobacco that I do not like, but I am "turning the page." All I can say is that I smoked it a long time ago and didn't like it. With so many good mixes out there, I don't want to waste time smoking a pipe of this one again to perfect my review, not even a "minute" pipe. Look for more information in other reviews.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Korsukujan Keisari (4)	2020-10-15		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Tolerable

Nice thing was, when I opened The pouch i bought, that tobacco was in cake like form, but that was only nice thing about of this tobacco blend. Smells like some alcohol but not bourbon or whisky and tastes bitterish and harsh. Moisture level is good and can be packed into bowl straight from the pouch.

Pipe Used: Danish warpipe, made of birch

Age When Smoked: New from pouch

Purchased From: Local Kiosk

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Silver Tongue (3)	2020-08-08		Mild	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I packed very light. Pleasant aromatic. Easy lite, with no tongue bite! Nice easy summer smoke for an otc blend. Can not pouch. Steady burn to the bottom. Surprised that I enjoyed it so much.

Pipe Used: Randy Wiley Dublin Rusticated Black oak

Age When Smoked: Purchased this morning

Purchased From: Ingles Grocery

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Stormpiper (5)	2020-07-22		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Borkum Riff vanilla- used to be A favorite of mine... but the price is getting too high, ($9+ for 1.5 oz.)-and the last package I purchased was the Bourbon Whiskey.... it failed the smoke and taste test... too pungent, too strong, bad flavor.

Pipe Used: Corn Cob General and Emerald MM.

Age When Smoked: 68

Purchased From: BP gas station ??

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Ted vig (11)	2020-07-01		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

This is flavorful and enjoyable. I might recommend this for the Virginia smoker looking for an aromatic tobacco. I smoke more Virginia than anything else. STG changed the base of this blend to Virginia a few years back. It's really easy on the tongue and has a pleasant sweet flavor and aroma. It's a bit of a one trick pony, but it's a decent trick. Nicotine level seems medium-ish. It's available nearly everywhere that ryo tobacco is sold. Solid simple smoke!

Pipe Used: Briars, cobs.

Age When Smoked: Newish

Purchased From: Multiple sources

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Oombergen (13)	2020-06-12		Mild to Medium	Medium to Strong	Full	Pleasant

In my opinion this nice and delicate aromatic is unjustly downrated. Very pleasant pouch note. Its nice and not-too-sweet aroma develops already while you are lighting your pipe. The balance between black cavendish and (good quality) Virginia is just right. The presence of a round and semi-dry distilled spirit (bourbon? brandy?) is rather clear and resists through the first half of the bowl and beyond. A plus: this mixture is aromatic but not heavily topped. The best feature of this mixture: the great aroma you feel when you retro-swirl a tiny "sip" of the smoke through the back of your nose. Although not officially declared by manufacturer, I feel the presence of some burley, emerging through the second half of the bowl. A plus: the after-smoke taste that remains in your mouth is delightful. Why 3 stars instead of 4? The burley, which I personally don't like, but -i admit- may be necessary during the casing process of this mixture. This is very personal; YMMV of course. Suggestion, enjoy it in a pipe with a large and deep bowl.

UPDATE September 2020: I noticed that the quality of this tobacco may vary depending on the country where you purchase it. =>The one I bought in Italy is the best, you feel the liquor aroma and a fantastic taste remains in your mouth for several hours after your smoke. 3 stars, surely. =>The batch I bought in Belgium and the Netherlands is not so great, a bit more dull, and less aromatic, with prevalence of burley notes, and very little scent and taste of whiskey. 2 stars. Is the overall low rating of this mixture due to such diversity in batches distributed to different countries?

Pipe Used: Chacom Maigret

Age When Smoked: just purchased

Purchased From: Cigar shop at the "Grand Place", Bruxelles, Tobacconist in Busto Arsizio, Italy

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tropicalretriever (23)	2020-05-10		Mild	Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

I have heard so much about Borkum Riff over the years, and I even remember my father smoking it on occasion. So I tried a pouch and I thought the Bourbon Whiskey would be a good choice.

The pouch note was good, but the tobacco was dry as bone. It lit right away and burned hot and fast. Tongue bite was present through the entire bowl. No noticeable flavor or nicotine. It burned completely, leaving nothing but ash. I will not purchase this again.

Pipe Used: Peterson

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Pipes and Cigars

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	North State (72)	2020-03-21		Mild	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable

Well, Borkum Riff certainly isn't what it used to be. I had forgotten that this used to be advertised as "laced with whiskey" but since EU regulations do not allow names of alcohol to be connected with pipe tobacco anymore and this is now called "Bronze", I had totally forgotten about it; and I only found out afterwards as honestly, I could not detect any whiff of whiskey anywhere in this. Not in the pouch note, not in the room note and definitely not in the taste. The Borkum Riff that I knew in the eighties when it came in a much more old-fashioned wrapping pretty much reeked of whiskey, and was often so moist one needed to leave it open for a few hours at least to be able to smoke it at all (and for that reason, was actually a fringe smoke for me).

Today's Borkum Riff, though; consistency of fairly fine shag, a pouch note that is totally nondescript, room note similar, lights and burns easy, with a taste that is almost totally bland. You might as well buy the cheapest rolling tobacco and stuff your pipe with it, at least that'd a bit more economical. Desperately trying to come up with a positive point, being so bland it is an extremely easy smoke.

What a shame.

Pipe Used: various

Age When Smoked: Fresh from pouch

Purchased From: Viking Line ferry

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Derek LaRose (7)	2019-06-14		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant to Tolerable

I love exploring different drug store blends, so of course one day I decided to give this stuff a try, despite the mixed reviews.. Upon opening the pouch and taking a deep whiff, I was greeted by an earthy and figgy aroma. I also detected a slightly chemical like fragrance, which I gather was the "bourbon" topping. Before loading up my pipe, I gave it a little time to dry because of the goopy consistency. No matter how lightly I sipped on this stuff,I found it to smoke hot and burn fast. While smoking I never could taste bourbon.. oh well, this is the last time I get intrigued by a nice ship on a pouch! Ha!

Pipe Used: Various briars, cobs

Age When Smoked: Fresh

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ChadwickGHurlburt (24)	2019-03-17		Very Mild	Strong	Very Mild	Pleasant

After taking a five year break from pipe smoking, I returned to open the locked cellar after a half-decade. I kept everything. Everything includes many items that are now rare treasures and then there is everything else. This falls under the umbrella of Everything Else.

The tobacco in the opened pouch was dried out completely. I added a dash of Captain Morgan's rum and waited several days for osmosis to do its magic. Perhaps I should have added whiskey, but whatever. If memory is correct, the whiskey flavor wasn't very good originally anyhow. A few days later I found I had breathed new life into the Borkum Riff Whiskey.

My memory of this tobacco was poor flavor, severe tongue bite, and bitterness. Five years of age, and some Captain Morgan's rum, have changed it very little. It still bites, it's still bitter tasting to me, and the flavor is uninspiring and bland. Five years in the cellar has not transformed this blend into anything better. On a positive note, everyone seems to love the room note.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Theocharis (38)	2018-12-12		Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Smoked a bowl once from a friend. Not something memorable. I believe these kinds of tobaccos don't do justice to our beautiful hobby. Try something else instead.

Pipe Used: Briar

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Dr. Kinsey (12)	2018-01-27		Strong	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

I would give it a higher review if there were only say...five tobacco blends to choose from on earth. As a Kentuckian, I couldn’t be more disappointed with such a waste of bourbon. It’s just boring.

Pipe Used: RAW Bubinga

Age When Smoked: Just opened

Purchased From: Pipes and cigars

Similar Blends: Carter Hall?.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Wilhelm Joharsányi (33)	2017-10-10		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

This one almost made me quit pipe smoking before I even started.

I won't say much about this one. One of the first blends I purchased, ignorant of the world of high quality, premium tobacco. A very mild, poor quality, artificial whisky taste that burns extremely hot. I then proceeded to toss it in the garbage after the 2nd smoke. After the Hungarian government nationalized the sale of tobacco, this is the type of crap Hungarians are forced to smoke now at tobacco shops, unless you import them online.

Purchased From: Wish I didn't

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Dickson Bainbridge (1)	2017-08-13		Mild	Extremely Mild	Very Mild	Pleasant

Purchased on a whim. Gave it a run in a large Greek briar churchwarden special that smokes very cool. Tasted like dead wombat. Didn't get the harsh tongue others report and room note was very mild. Will give the rest to someone I dislike.

Pipe Used: Large Churchwarden

Age When Smoked: 12 Month

Purchased From: Little foreign bloke under Flinders Street Station

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Cowtownbaldie (2)	2017-07-31		Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Unnoticeable

I am very disappointed in this tobacco. I purchased it and find it very strong and bitter. I don't enjoy this tobacco. I am new to pipe smoking and perhaps the whiskey/bourbon flavors are not for me.

Pipe Used: Dorchester

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kribbage (32)	2017-02-15		Mild	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

Nope...... Sorry, but unless my taste buds have changed dramatically thru the years, this is NOWHERE AND NOTHING like the BR from the 70's. Now, upon reflecting a bit, I am sure I have revamped my tastes somewhat, but it seems like the old warhorses I used to smoke in my youth have all changed for the worst. The Dutchman, Amphora, even Cherry Blend have all been changed. I am an aromatic smoker 75% of the time, so it's not like I have been away from the genre for all this time, but these are truly mediocre OTC blends that have gone south for me.

Pipe Used: Briars and cobs

Age When Smoked: Who knows with OTC blends

Purchased From: Walgreens, CVS, who knows?

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ASmithee (20)	2015-11-05		Very Mild	Very Mild	Very Mild	Pleasant

This is the worst tobacco I have yet tried. I am going to try to age this to see if it improves but in the meantime I will not smoke another bowl. What's wrong? - it bites, no whiskey flavor, and just a poor taste overall. Not worth the try -- plenty of other aromatics with better quality out there.

Pipe Used: Corn Cob

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: P&C

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	natibo (169)	2015-11-03		Mild	Medium	Mild	Unnoticeable

Ugh. This is junk. It's dry, it burns hot, and has no real taste. And I like many drug store OTC blends. But not this one. How it got so popular, I have no idea.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Telling it how it is. (73)	2015-10-03		Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

So this is where everybody gathers together and finds their outlet for bashing tobacco. Well, that probably is a healthy thing then and to be honest this blend really lends itself to it.

Right away when opening the pouch you will be greeted by not enough. The whiskey aroma is only very faint and also artificial, the tobaccos play no role at all.

Packing and lighting both are easy but the burning properties are awful. It burns way too fast and way too hot but at least even and readily, there is very little maintenance needed.

The taste is just lousy to say the least. There is a light whiskey flavour popping in and out during the course of a bowl. But it only rarely is noticeable and when it is it just contributes to the overall bad taste. Also your tongue will hurt, hurt, hurt. This is one of the blends that i suggest when a break from smoking seems in order, to ease your chore with physical pain.

Aftertaste is bad also and lasts way too long. Plus i found you cannot get rid of it until it dissipates by its own. Room note is nice.

The entire Borkum Riff label was invented to get a grip on the American market and to suit the American smokers. So in the end the entire brand is just a marketing scheme everybody at first falls for and then never again falls for. I think every single smoker on this planet sooner or later will have dealings with one or the other Borkum Riff mixture. You really have to hand it to them how genius their concept is and how long they already are on the market. And what spread they have, you can get Borkum Riff all over the planet.

So do i recommend this blend? Lol are you joking? Have you not noticed how noone ever recommends this blend? So, no. Stay clear of it by all means necessary, it is not worth risking your health for this blend and be it the very last one on the planet.

Pipe Used: It went trough rotation.

Age When Smoked: They don't print production dates on it.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sybariten (61)	2015-09-17		Mild	Extra Strong	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is quite a ride. Unpleasant does not fully cover it. The first light offers up a taste of burnt hair, in a crossover with cheap soap and eau de cologne. And that is it. This is one ugly blend! It is foul tasting and I am positive it will burn you, given the time - I only got through half a bowl so I got off easy.

Stay away.

Pipe Used: Jean Claude Bent exclusive

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Graham24 (1)	2015-08-11		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant

I purchased this blend just to bide time until my more premium tons come in the mail. Although it may not be by much, I suppose that it was better than nothing. The tobacco itself is moist enough, neither dry nor soaked, and lights just fine. Upon the initial firing of the bowl I did detect the slightest hint of whiskey. Shortly thereafter however the taste faded to a very uninteresting and bland smoke. If smoked slowly, the bite can be avoided and the taste tolerated. I did not hate the tobacco, I just was not impressed. I think next time I will either purchase Captain Black, or just plan my next tin purchase better.

Pipe Used: Peterson

Age When Smoked: Fresh and moist

Purchased From: Big D Tobacco and Gifts

Similar Blends: Similar in quality to Captain Black.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sound Dude (10)	2015-07-23		Mild	Mild	Medium	Tolerable

I don't know if I can add much to what has been said in all the previous reviews. I first tried this when I was in college, because this is what the local liquor store sold and I didn't know better. It tasted horrible. Tongue burn, and a terrible taste in my mouth I couldn't get rid of for days. I though all pipes tasted like that and I gave up. So this is the tobacco that turned me off pipe smoking. It wasn't until 35 years later that I decided I'd try it again, mostly because my brother enjoys cigars and other fine stuff and showed me there are better tobaccos out there.

Age When Smoked: fresh (I assume)

Purchased From: local liquor store

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Hybrid12 (26)	2015-04-09		Mild	Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

My first puff of Borkum Riff and when I finish the pouch will be my last... This is a rather boring tobacco and for the price there are a lot better brands cased with whiskey. My personal favorite is Peterson Irish Whiskey. The quality of this tobacco is questionable and the whiskey casing does not do much to flatter it. Save your money and buy something good for what they charge for this mediocre pouch of tobacco.

Pipe Used: Peter Heinreichs 9mm, cob

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: local store

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	mightysmurf8201 (28)	2015-03-19		Mild	Mild	Very Mild	Strong

Got this in a pipe tobacco of the month club offering from P&C. Smelled pretty good in the pouch. Moisture level in the pouch was just right. Packs and lights well. Burns just fine. Very little Bourbon flavor, but it is there. I don't like smoking this in my briars, as it makes them smell like cigarettes for a while after. Room note is mildly pleasant while smoking it, but if you smoke it inside, the room will smell like stale cigarettes a little while later and it takes awhile to get rid of. Not a terrible smoke, but with so many other options out there, I don't see myself smoking this again.

Pipe Used: Briars, cobs

Age When Smoked: Fresh Pouch

Purchased From: P&C

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Winchester38 (11)	2014-12-25		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Picked up a pouch of this on a whim one evening, having not heard much about it, but having often seen pouches of it on store shelves.

Pouch note is definitely sweet. I get more vanilla than bourbon whiskey, but it's sweet, no doubt. Lots of color contrast between the Virginias and cavendish. I let a small amount air-dry for about five minutes before smoking.

I packed a bowl, and went to it. Lit nicely, but instantly felt dry. The sweetness from the pouch was mostly gone, and I was getting more dry, ashy taste than anything else. I held on, and finished the bowl, hoping it would come alive, but it stayed dry, and burned hot through the whole endeavour. Had to puff slowly to avoid tongue bite.

I've now got almost a full pouch of this stuff, and don't really have much interest in smoking it. Maybe it'll make a better potpourri than a tobacco?

Don't bother with this one.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Jorge Soler (202)	2014-11-04		Medium	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable

I bought this some time ago in an attempt to go down memory lane, for this this is the first blend I ever got used to in my early 20s when I started smoking, but in the end it turned out it was not what it was all cracked up to be. So what befell of what many used to call "the best pipe tobacco in the world?" One can only wonder. This new mixture has nothing to do with that easy smoke I was so used to in the past. Yes, in the end I grew out of this blend. Not so more as I began to dislike it, but due to my adventurous soul and constant search for other tobaccos that would meet my new needs. Be as it may, this is certainly not the blend I was so used to. The blend did irritate me at some point, and if I did not throw it in the bin in the end is because of the £12.50 they set me back in the shop. In the end I ended up wondering if the person who put this together did it with intent and out of hatred, for only a very bad and nasty person could've come up with this. I really cannot find any word in the English language to describe how distasteful this is. Nor I would recommend it to my worst enemy. Just stay well clear of this blend, for it is not worth half the money you are going to pay for it.

Edit1: My experience tells me that some tobaccos will improve over time after some drying, but this is not the case with this blend. In true honesty, I had never had so bad an experience in my life. It bites, I find the Cavendish in it horrendous, and I've never been able to finish a bowl Yes, it is so bad. This is definitely going in the bin.

Pipe Used: Briar

Age When Smoked: Probably 1

Purchased From: John Hollingsworth's

Similar Blends: I cannot dare to think.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	panduji68 (28)	2014-10-13		Very Mild	Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant

Horrible! This is hands down THE worst pipe tobacco I have ever smoked. Reminiscent of packing a bowl full of cardboard flavored with some kind of cleaning chemicals. Shame on you Borkum Riff! Shame on you...

Pipe Used: Cob

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Pipes and Cigars

Similar Blends: Chemicals and Cardboard.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	incognitopoet (37)	2014-10-03		Overwhelming	Extra Strong	Overwhelming	Tolerable

This was the second tobacco I tried, back in 1984. It was like a match on the tongue, but tasted worse.

The horror.... The horror....

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Appalachian Scholar (34)	2014-08-18		Overwhelming	Strong	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Very Pleasant

How can one tobacco give off one of the best aromas and also the worst taste? I imagine this is doused whiskey, then dried out completely. Would you smoke a bottle of Jack Daniels? I feel the need to try this every few years because of the wonderful aroma. My taste buds haven't caught up yet. You need a chaser after smoking this.

Pipe Used: Corn cob, Basket pipe

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Ingles

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	pop pops pipe (28)	2014-08-04		Mild	Medium	Mild	Unnoticeable

WTF happened to this ? Its hot, bites badly, and has no burley in it ! When it was just burley and Virginia it was good, now it sucks !! This is bad, why did lane ruin this once good smoke ??? Don't waste your money !

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	William H. Hardy (93)	2014-03-25		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This stuff is possible the worst tobacco that I have ever had the displeasure of smoking. I'm not a tobacco snob, per se (I like a lot of OTCs), but this stuff is truly apalling. It burns hot, tastes horrible, and will burn your tongue like it's made from pepper spray. I usually defer to others and say that it's just not for me, but let me assure you -- you'll want to avoid this like the plague.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	larrjlion (3)	2014-03-25		Medium	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Very Strong

Nothing but tongue bite so I couldn't taste a thing. Burns hot all the way through. Expensive especially in Massachusetts. After 5 bowls I gave it to a friend to roll it in her ciggaretts.

Pipe Used: corn cob

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: Rite Aid

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	oldcodger (74)	2014-02-12		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I have always preferred the aroma of someone else smoking this tobacco to the experience of smoking it myself. Although there are dissenters, most find the room note of Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey pleasant. As of the date of this review it is listed on this board both as "whiskey" and "bourbon whiskey" with about the same number of reviewers under each rubric. Since its introduction in the mid 1960's (if memory serves me correctly it was not until 1968 that it was imported to the US) this has been a good selling and widely available blend. Nevertheless, reviewers on this board have been largely negative, with more "not recommended" ratings than any other.

The current pouch identifies the contents as 35% black cavendish (burley?) and 65% Virginia. Smoked carelessly, it will bite like a constipated badger. Smoked carefully, it is still bite prone for smokers with sensitive tongues. Personally, with a relaxed puffing cadence, and remembering to hold the pipe in my hand and not clench it in my teeth, I can smoke it without biting.

The pouch aroma is somewhat mild for an aromatic. So too is the taste, a taste which I find pleasant, although not something to write home about. I doubt seriously that I could identify the taste as bourbon in a blind test.

I normally have about five tins or pouches open at one time. On the fairly infrequent times that I have Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey as one of these, I smoke it as often as the other blends open. When I do not like a tobacco, I cut it with something else. I have yet to find one that I cannot finish even if my cutting may create something far different from the original. (In over five decades, I have smoked well over 500 different tobaccos.) But I have never been tempted to cut Borkum Riff Bourbon Whiskey.

Bottom line: for me, this is a two star, "somewhat recommended" blend, but a two star rating given with a caveat for pipe smokers easily susceptible to tongue bite.

Similar Blends: .

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Marlowe2nd (1)	2014-01-23		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Just received a pouch. It's not that bad. It lights ok, and if smoked slowly it stays lit and doesn't bite. Just take your time; treat it as if it were heavy on the Latakia.

Pipe Used: Peterson and Carey.

Age When Smoked: 1 week

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TW (38)	2012-09-25		Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

One star rates this far too highly. Zero stars would be too many. It really deserves negative numbers of stars.

It's that rare thing, a tobacco that manages to have no good points at all. The other one-star reviews are more than fair. Avoid.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-09-24		Medium	Very Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

I live in a country where pipe tobacco is hard to come by, and this was one of the few varieties available at the local tobacco purveyor.

I decided to try it out, and in my first pipe I was surprised by its bite and the speec of its combustion. The smell, while pleasant in hints, could be quite overwhelming when the smoke was too dense.

For my next pipe I decided to prepare myself better. I loaded the pipe and poured myself a whiskey (all I had was a Bushmill's malt, but it would do). This time around the experience was much more enjoyable. The flavour of the smoke and the liquid blended nicely, and the slightly denser packing that I used made it burn slower. Unfortunately I soon ran out of whiskey, and soon afterwards the bite again made an appearance.

It is not the best of blends, but in the right conditions it can provide a solid half our of enjoyment. I would recommend it to gentlemen who do not much mind the bite, and enjoy a good glass of bourbon (or equivalent) to go with their tobacco.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	tados (3)	2012-09-15		Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

An nasty tong bite could occur, but as my first tobacco, I feel like this is kind of great, it burns really hot. Don't let this tobacco dry a least, it'LL take fire in your pipe and trust me that's not what you want.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-07-29		Medium to Strong	Mild	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Beware of the bite. Where some tobaccos bite when too wet, this one will numb you instantly if allowed to dry any. Taste: Very spicy. Flavor is very peppery. Like black pepper. I would smoke this more if not for the bite. No tobacco has ever bitten me harder than this stuff after drying out a little. Once it drys out too much, smoking slow makes little difference. It bites. Room note: Tolerable. Not perfume, but not straight burley either. Still better than any cigarette. Final Notes: I like the taste well enough that I'd blend it with other tobaccos if not for the bite. This stuff bites so hard it almost makes it unusable for anything. I heard you can doctor it by adding a quarter ounce of whiskey to the pouch and letting set a week. I may try that sometime with an extra pouch I have handy. Either that or give it to the neighbor that is continually asking if I have any extra smoke to share.

UPDATE 8/04/2012 I added whiskey to the pouch (1/4 ounce) and gave it a couple days to osmosis around. The addition of whiskey definitely mellowed the bite and tamed the overall strength. It did improve it considerably. But not enough for me to consider buying another pouch.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-07-09		Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I am smoking this now and I've smoked it before. It's pretty good with a glass of bourbon. Seems like alot of people hate it. When you get bored of your soapy latakia come back to this. It's real tobacco (not bad for a supermarket blend) and it smokes just fine and dandy - it's OK really.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-03-30		Overwhelming	Very Strong	Overwhelming	Strong

I have to say trying this was one of the most unpleasant smoking experiences of my life. My brother gave me an almost full packet having tried it and found it not to his taste. I should have binned it there and then but curioisity lead me to try it, just to see how bad it was.

Upon opening the packet I was greeted with a sickly sweet tarry smell fading to rotting leaves. The substance within (I refuse to acknowledge it as tobacco) was in thin strands and sticky and moist to the touch.

Fooled by its appearence I packed it quite loosely expecting it to burn slowly. Wrong! it burned very fast and very hot, probably due to the petro-chemicals it was drenched in, (diesel oil perhaps?). If I tasted anything in the first few seconds It was tar, my toungue and mouth were so scorched as to be useless. I was too nauseated to finish a whole bowl and knocked it out to refill with my then usual fine cavandish cherry. On firing up my refilled pipe I had to check I had not refilled it with Riff by mistake as the toungue burning tar taste was as strong as before! On investigation I found a soggy black mass of chemicals anealed to the bottom and sides of my pipe bowl. An hour of frantic reaming and cleaning cleared enough muck to alow me to smoke again but the bitter/tar taste lingered for several pipes afterward.

The room note, (stench would be a better word) was acrid and sweet with a chemical burning smell akin to an acid spill in a chemistry lab.

It cuts me to the quick that the manufacturers of this filth have the gall to label it premium pipe tobacco.

The astonishing thing is people still buy it and smoke it, presumeably after they have got thier arms out of their strait-jackets!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-03-28		Strong	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

I just tried this tobacco, it is pretty good. It does not bite, but it is a little strong. I would recommend this to people who like aromatic and stronger tobacco.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-03-13		Mild	Very Mild	Very Mild	Tolerable

I found this to be one of the worst ever. I believe I would rather smoke a dirty dish rag. Please, don't waste the little this crap cost on it.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	tabaco (112)	2012-02-13		Extremely Mild	Extra Strong	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Very Strong

Another crap blend.

Burns way to hot, bites like a Viper, tastes like chemicals, and coated my mouth with Lord knows.

Picked it up at a gas station en route camping, forgot my baccy at home. After we pitched the tent and built a nice fire I grabbed a pipe from the tool-box. I Made it through half a bowl, dumped it and the remained of the pouch on the fire.

I'd rather go without than suffer through this torture.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2012-02-09		Mild to Medium	Medium	Overwhelming	Tolerable to Strong

So, I was waiting for an order of decent tobacco, when I decided to try this from the local Wal-Greens. It coated my mouth, tongue and teeth with a thick paste of the chemical-nasty. However, I was Vitamin-N deficient so, I kept at it...(le-sigh) Every part of me screamed! "Dump this pipe load on a steamy dog turd!" On the third re-light, I noticed the bite. There is a tiny window of smoke-ability between tongue-bite puffing pace and cherry-go-out pace. I mean small. Also, the Walgreen'ss where I actually paid money to be orally assaulted charged me like $9.00 US for this 50g bag of Whiskey flavored "joy". Which, incidentally, Only barely the fake whiskey stink is barely tolerable from the pouch when loading the pipe and lends an air of morning after gutter-vomit to the room-note. If you're thinking of trying this the next time you run out of the "good-stuff" ...Don't!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	22yrsonthepipe (22)	2012-01-16		Strong	Strong	Overwhelming	Tolerable

This is the only whiskey flavored tobacco I have ever tried and it is a disgusting abomination. Be prepared to salt your pipe or if you have the spare cash for a new pipe, bury it at least 10 feet underground so the fumes dont waft out of its grave.

I may be unfair to whiskey tobaccos as this is Borkum after all. Although the flavor is akin to a mix of vomit and petrol it is the only Borkum with any noticeable flavor at all apart from the cherry cavendish, which is the only Borkum I would recommend.

For a similar but far more mild and pleasant experience, it would be far better to spend the money on a bottle of cheapest, nastiest whiskey, give it to a bum, wait for him to vomit and subsequently deeply inhale said bum's breath.

The absolute worst tobacco in the world, even for Borkum. Recommend it to a pipe smoker you despise.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2011-10-19		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

I have been somking a pipe on and off for 37 years (I started in high school) and have tried a multitude of tobacco brands over the years, but this stuff (I'm thinking of another word...) is the poster child for horrible! I bought a can of this in 1974 for around seven bucks, tried it twice and promptly sealed the can. I threw away the can a few years ago when I was going through old stuff. I should have learned my lesson then, but in my nostalgic middle age, I picked up a pouch of this the other day when I ran out of my usual fave (Hearth & Home Classic Burley Kake). I was hoping over the years that it was just my youthful inexperience that was to blame for absolutly hating this stuff, but I was right even then. This is horrible from the get-go! The pouch aroma is pleasant enough, but that's where the party ends. The smoking is harsh to say the least and bite is worse than many of Balkans out there. I found NO Bourbon flavor or aroma in this, so... I added a quarter ounce of Evan Williams Bourbon to the pouch and let it set for a week. After I aired it for a few hours, I loaded my pipe and I fired up this Frankenstein blend and was pleasantly surprised! The addition of real bourbon mellowing tamed the beast here and was quite enjoyable. I still think that 2 stars is pushung this a bit much, but the experiment changed the entire make-up of the tobacco.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	atomicbuster (79)	2011-08-28		Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Unnoticeable

My first BR tobaccos were this and Cherry Liqueur (reviewed separately). I'd read that it smokes fairly hot, so I let it out to dry for 2 days. The pouch scent was really faint and not really pleasant. It didn't bite too much. It required a few relights. It tasted worse than the worst cigarettes. I couldn't detect any whiskey. It was not cheap ($10). Thankfully, it did not mess up my pipe. Other otc brands are better. Most online-ordered brands are certainly better. Bad quality and bad price, there's no way I can recommend this.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kokinhenik (91)	2011-08-25		Mild to Medium	Extra Strong	Overwhelming	Pleasant to Tolerable

Neptune's trousers! this stuff is God awful. If you took your ass and left it out in the hot summer sun for a week, this is what it would taste like. That's just the initial taste. The after taste is worse. It's a slowly dying taste of essence of sun soaked rotten ass and strong copper rod.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Taylor3006 (47)	2011-08-08		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Overwhelming	Tolerable to Strong

On the upside this tobacco is easy to find and not too expensive. It also smells pretty good in the pouch. Not great, just pretty good. You really should just sniff it in the pouch cause its all downhill after lighting. The stuff stinks, is harsh, tastes like old, partially smoked cigarettes. Horrible stuff. Does a good job of burning all the way down and requires no relights. The taste is so very strong that it is damn near impossible to blend with something to smooth it out. If this were the only pipe tobacco available left on the planet, I would quit smoking. Just isn't worth your time or money.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tom Servo (58)	2011-08-07		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild	Tolerable

The pouch aroma is like raisins, chewable vitamins, bran muffins and graham crackers. No real evidence of bourbon. Definitely artificial in character, but there is an underlying scent of stale burley tobacco.

Fine ribbon-cut packs OK, lights well.

Starts out bland but not off-putting. Notes of cigarette, trash fire and mouth-coating chemical flavors creep in and take over. Tobacco flavors are uninteresting at best. Bitter vegetal, and unpleasant anise/clove-like flavors come in halfway through the bowl. Second half of the bowl is harsher and soapy. Seems to me a complete waste of time and money. To paraphrase Monty Python - This is not a tobacco for smoking, it's a tobacco for laying down and avoiding.

As Fubber put it in his review - Just don't!

However, good or bad, life's too short for drugstore tobacco. Support your local (or online) tobacconist, and do yourself a favor.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2011-07-19		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable

Some of the worst tobacco i have ever had. Burns way too hot (burns my mouth whenever i try and smoke it) and it has no flavor... will never buy this again.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2011-04-06		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Tolerable

Almost as bad as "Honey and Orange". I can't place the taste, but it's certainly not whiskey. Never again.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	tabaco (112)	2011-02-09		Extremely Mild	Extra Strong	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Overwhelming

Insipid horrid crap, truly unpalatable. I had to retort my pipe three times after trying this. The rest was dumped in bonfire, can't even give this one away.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Arkie (129)	2011-01-24		Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I remember when this blend first hit the American market about 40 years ago. I had tried only a few blends at the time and I was trying a pouch of everything I could find in search of something I could like. BR whiskey was the best of the OTC blends at the time. It doesn't seem to taste the same now as it did then but it is still much better than the other drug store blends such as the Captain Black crap (which, by the way, would gag a maggot off a gut wagon).

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2011-01-14		Overwhelming	None Detected	Overwhelming	Tolerable

As a newbie pipe smoker, and a whisky drinker, I thought this would be a great choice for me. Boy, was I wrong. Way too much bite to it, and really hard to keep lit. Not recommended at all.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Arkie (129)	2010-12-22		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

After reading the reviews for both Borkum Riff and Captain Black I'm confused. The concensus seems to be BR is bad and CB is great. IMHO, neither is very good but, in comparison, BR is much better. No offense to those of you who like the CB blends but they gag me with their sickeningly sweet sticky toppings. (Actually, gold label is the only CB blend I've tried. It was so nauseating I couldn't bring myself to try the other CB blends.) BR does have decent tobacco leaf and the casing enhances rather than hides the taste of the natural tobacco. It burns a tad bit hot if puffed too briskly but it stays lit and it doesn't bite. The first time I smoked Borkum Riff was in the early 1970"s and it was actually very good back then. Unfortunately, the ownership changed hands many times over the years and the quality suffered each time. Still, if drug store stuff is all that is available I buy a pouch of BR.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-11-27		Mild	Medium	Full	Pleasant

The more people tell me something is terrible, the more I want it. So, I ran down to a pharmacy (I believe it was RiteAid) and picked up a pouch. Yum! I can see where people wouldn't like this, but I am a fan of Bourbon, and, for the price, this was a fun and tasty smoke. Cheap, and my eccentric lover really enjoys the room note. If you like aromatic alcohol tobaccos and enjoy experimenting, then try this. If you don't, then don't.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-10-16		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Very Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Well, I purchased this blend because I really enjoy the Black Cavendish Borkum Riff makes. This one was very...mild, it has a flavor of mainly corn; from the Virginia's I think. The Whiskey is quite literally non-existant. You get mainly a corn-like sweetness with a touch of nutiness from the burley.

If you like very mild tasting tobaccos with a corn-like sweetness and very faint nutiness from burleys, give it a try. But there are far better Whiskey blends available out there; China Black for example.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sweetbriar (14)	2010-10-11		Medium to Strong	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

When the fall comes rolling in, I crave pipe tobacco really bad for some reason. Past few years its been Sail green. i can't find the sail anymore so picked up a pouch of this BR bourban whiskey. I have been smoking it like crazy. I dont know alot about blends and did order up somw gawith and davidoff. i just love the stuff and look foward to trying out a vareity. I like the BR bourban whiskey and after the pouch got some air to it, it started burnin better and NO bite. nummy ~sweetbriar

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-09-17		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild	Tolerable

as a new pipe smoker i was lead to belive that pipe tobacco was far superior to cigarette tobacco, however after only 1/2 a bowl of this blend i would prefer a cigarette any day, now, this may be attributed to the fact that A. this was my first bowl, B. it was smoked out of a fairly badly made homemade pipe, and C, im fairly shure i dident follow proper packing technique. still, im am not a fan of this blend, i relit this bowl upwards of 10 times and it refused to stay lit, the tobacco had quite a bite, magnified due to the fact that i had to continuously puff on it for it to stay lit, and the flavor was quite underwelming, tho i plan to re-review this after purchasing a proper pipe and paying more detail to packing and lighting, i can honestly say that i am far from impressed.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-09-13		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Not the greatest blend I've tried but not quite the worst.

It does not smoke the way it smells, but its not totally unpleasent, there is a flavour somewhat like bourbon whiskey but somewhat unlike it.

WARNING: It's a biter, slow and easy with this one unless you want a very painfull tongue.

I probably won't be buying this again, but I would not turn it down if offered.

Updated 10/8/10: The other day I found I had half a pouch of BW as well as half a pouch of Half and Half and decided to blend them.

I was rather surprised as they compliment each other nicely, H&H stands well on it's own and it really mellowed the BW and improved the flavour. I suspect that BW goes well as a blending agent with other tobaccos and plan to experiment.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-08-06		Extremely Mild	Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable

Yes---It's really that bad.Don't touch it.Run in any direction away.Don't be silly,your tongue will thank you every day you don't smoke this.Everyone who knows you ,will thank you for not smoking this.I am a firm believer in everyone smoking what they like...except this.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-08-06		Medium	Medium to Strong	Full	Tolerable

Fortunately, the original Bourbon Whiskey is no longer produced and has been replaced with another manufacturer.

The original was overwhelming in its casing. The casing was so strong that it generated tingling in my head. And I am not figuratively speaking.

It would bite like you wouldn't believe it and smoked wet.

The new version could be a life saver but only if nothing else is available.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-07-26		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

I AGREE WITH MOST OF THE REVIEWS IT SMELLS GREAT IN THE POUCH BUT LETS ITSELF DOWN BY BEING A BIT OF A TOUNGE BITER WITH A AVERAGE TASTE SOME CLAN SMOKERS MIGHT LIKE IT

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-07-24		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

The new manufacturer has significantly improved this mixture.

The original mixture was so much cased that it would bite and the casing would harass your senses.

This one actually tastes of tobacco. It's an acceptable mixture occasionnaly when I seek a change of pace.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-07-11		Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

This is only my second tobacco I've tried, the other being Captain Black Cherry. Of the two this is far superior. The taste reminds me of a cigar and while there is not a huge whiskey taste, it has all the burn. Would not recommend for those seeking a mild tobacco but for those who would like a tobacco with the burn of whiskey, pick this up. It was extremely mild, I only smoke every other week or so( and only one bowl) and unlike the Captain Black, I experienced no nicotine headache after smoking a bowl. I did how ever experience a sharp taste on my tongue when drinking soda afterward. overall a nice, cheap tobacco for smoking slowly and thoughtfully.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-06-14		Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Unnoticeable

Quite possibly, the worst thing I have ever tried to toke on.

I am not one of these who have tried hundreds of blends. But, I probably have tried in the neighborhood of 35-40 blends. This is maybe the only one that I have smoked a couple of bowls full, then threw away the package.

It has been awhile since I have tried this so I can not give any specifics about its 'qualities', but I just know that is was totally unsmokable, and I can not imagine how a company could stay in business selling this garbage.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-05-12		Medium to Strong	Medium	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

Gross, it does not taste like whiskey, but it does taste like crud.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-04-28		Mild	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

This bit the heck out of me. It bit me years ago too. Some things never change. The whiskey sure doesn't do anything for this tobacco. Except perhaps make it worse.

I don't like giving just one star to a tobacco but this isn't even cheap enough to make it worth recommending to people who are broke. If you are like me and have to try everything you find then go ahead. Don't say you weren't warned.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-03-16		Very Mild	Extremely Mild	Mild	Very Pleasant

I've been smoking a pipe a little over a month now and I will say this is the best I've ever had. Being unexperienced I have only Prince Albert and Carter Hill (also Black Cherry & Vanilla aromatics but I don't count those) to compare to. I took a chance on this at the tobacco shop because I'm still experimenting and was hoping to find "the one". I own two very old Dr. Grabow's that belonged, one to my grandfather, and the other to my uncle, both around 50 years old. I can remember being very young and finding these on the bookshelf in the stand they've stayed on for years, taking them down and smelling inside the bowl. The smell was something so rich and sweet I will never forget it, and it's that particular aroma that I'm hoping to one day find and call my own. SO far this tobacco is very close to what I'm looking for. Along with a very pleasant smell it has virtually zero tongue bite. It's very "light" for lack of better terms, which is somewhat of a tradeoff to what I'm actually looking to find as a daily tobacco, since it is very light on flavor also. There is a hint of whiskey taste to it. If I could find a Brand with this same smokability but with more robust flavor, and keep the tongue bite out of the equation I'd be in heaven. For now, I'll try the Borkum & Riff Vanilla Cavendish next since I already saw it at the shop next to this blend, and keep Borkum & Riff as my favorite smoke.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Dr. Hardcrab (3)	2010-03-11		Very Mild	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

I smoked a pipe 25 years ago and remember smoking BorKum Riff. Maybe it was a different blend. Maybe I was young and uninformed. Bottom line: The stuff was awful!!! Very little taste. Not much aroma (the wife said it stinks!). Burned terrible. Just bad. Pass on this one!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ynrozturk (62)	2010-03-10		Mild to Medium	Mild	Very Mild	Strong

I don't know what possessed me to try this tobacco. I had tried two Borkum Riff tobaccos before (Vanilla and Cherry) and disliked both of them. I guess I had nothing better to do and was in need for a good laugh.

Like the other Borkums I've tried, this stuff smokes hot, lacks flavor, and whatever flavor you get is artificial and gross. Leaves a mess in your pipe which then requires the need for all sorts of domestic house cleaning products. Think of what it's doing to your tongue! I double dare anyone to smoke a bowl of this, and use mouth wash to get rid of it's "flavor". Don't do it!!

Even Borkum's own Vanilla Cavendish is a work of high art compared to this - and that tobacco is terrible. If you can call it that, that is. Tobacco, I mean! What I want to know is this :

Who buys this crap? Why? Why is it even manufactured?

I'm quite convinced that the guys who blend this don't have any sense of smell, taste, or touch.

Sorry Borkum, but I will never be buying any of your products ever again. I'd rather set my own hair on fire and inhale the smoke.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	muntajab (11)	2010-02-03		Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Here is the pouch http://www.mediafire.com/imageview.php?quickkey=j2mmmwd2zmg&thumb=4

I was surprised to see it rated as one star. It can not be compared to Orange and Honey. This one is far much better. I will give it 2 stars.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	BigNick (59)	2010-01-04		Extremely Mild	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

all i can say is YUCK, terrible!!! I threw up after half the bowl, it hit my stomach and boom. very displeased. first it was to dry, then no flavor of any kind, and the tobacco flavor was sickening. after a day or so i tried another bowl, lightly packed, and i didn't upchuck but it was still the same nasty crap, it truly deserves one star mabey less!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	colt25314 (42)	2009-11-26		Extremely Mild	Very Strong	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Manyyears ago this was a classic. Now it is typical of drug store tabackey. It is not cheap and thre are plety of better offerings for much less. look to C&D or Lane. Just don't look for Borkum Riff. It is goopy, wet and vegital in taste by mid smoke. Too bad. A once fine blent destroyed.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Demetri (113)	2009-11-22		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Ah, memory lane... I see we have two Borkum Riff whiskey blends here on TR being reviewed. I suspected they were the same with pouch styles leading to confusion. I am not going to clear that possible state up in the least. And I am going against the flow of the earlier reviews here with my opinion. Two days ago, while refilling an Rx at local supermarket I wandered over to tobacco shelves as I waited. There rested a single, lone pouch of Borkum Riff Whiskey in front of a full facing of BR Whiskey pouched as the image above. This lone pouch was in the familiar black and white with a red ribbon denoting "Whiskey". This was the package I was familiar with; I would never have bought the others. (Lesson for the power of visual branding in marketing). I bought it without hesitation despite panning reviews here. Back in 1970, when I once ran out of my #965 while on campus I went to local pharmacy to get something to smoke until I could get home to Tobak- Va Beach for 965 replenishment. BR was something new. I bought it. I smoked it. I liked it. (I know...heresy for an English fan). Later, upon return home I found this in a handsome tin and bought it as the trade-off smoke to my 965. I'm not sure why I quit it. Perhaps the Dunhill appealed more then, it certainly does now. Back to present day: I got home and grabbed my Kaywoodie billiard - a coincidence that this was the same pipe I used in college to smoke this. I lit up. Yuck. This couldn't be the same stuff I used to enjoy. Is everything "better in the past"? No, it was my pipe. After two bowls which gave me an astringent, chalky, almost bitey experience I set the pouch aside for storage and mentally prepared another panning review for my friends here. This afternoon, however, on a whim, I tried this in another pipe I keep for aromatics - a little used, but very clean, dry Brebbia and ...the pipe was the problem. This blend was as enjoyable for me, in small batches as I used to smoke it, as ever. Now, I wouldn't be buying more and I think there are both better and worse whiskeys available now, but I enjoyed it enough to (shock) rate it 3 stars

(and Kaywoodie is in dry dock)

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kilmarnock Piper (250)	2009-10-12		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Tolerable

Concur, but found it tolerable one time with a fresh pouch, right out of the pouch, in a pipe with a very small bowl (which is now finally smokeable again after two years) on a cold day while drinking strong black coffee to cover the taste.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-08-26		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

Do yourself a favor. Pull your spare tire out of your trunk and set it on fire. Stand over it and smell the fumes. It will be better than this stuff.

I for one never throw tobacco away. Too many pipe smokers out there would give their right arm for a pouch of tobacco as times are hard. If something tastes bad to me I'll try and blend it or cellar it away for a year or so to see if it improves. Nothing has worked with this stuff. I couldn't even find anyone that would take it off my hands. This is the very first tobacco I have ever thrown away. Sorry pipe lovers, I did you a favor this time by tossing it.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-08-19		Medium	Medium	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

Dog meat. One bowl and it was straight to the trash and that's really saying something for a cheap ass engineer.

I can't fully describe it because some survival mechanism in my brain supresses the memory.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-08-13		Mild	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Poor old Borkum Riff...Gee I hate to pile on, but still...

I bought this before I even had a computer, so as others have said, I never read a review of this one before I bought and tried it. I mean, it was sold everywhere at that time so it had to be good, right?

Wrong.

It tasted bad, it was really goopy, and even my rookie palate at the time knew it. Still, being the trouper I was back then (short on funds), I didn't waste a bit of it. I can look back and be philosophical about it, it was all part of the journey. Thank goodness I stuck with the hobby...

Disclaimer- If you like it, you like it. Enjoy!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-06-27		Medium to Strong	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Strong

I bought a pouch of this before reading any reviews, and BOY, I probably wouldn't have bought it if I had read some reviews on it, because its reviews are horrible, even though the lady at the tobacco store said it was the tobacco she sold the most of. I didn't think it was that bad. I liked it a little more than Captain Black. It definitely is a stronger and more "tobacco" like flavor but it leaves a sweet smoky aftertaste on the roof of your mouth. The smoke is definitely not aromatic so smoke outdoors. The tobacco was a little dry right out of the pouch and it bit my tongue a little bit so I was forced to smoke slow. Seemed to stay lit fairly well. My first impression wasn't awful but at the same time I'm not in love with it either. Don't think I'll ever fall in love with a drug store tobacco. Cheers.

UPDATE: Upon a second bowl of BR Whiskey, a horrible taste was detected, not sure what it was but I'm pretty sure a large mammal crawled into my pipe and died there before I smoked it. I'm not going to revisit the Riff any time soon. One star. Not recommended.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Percy Dovetussel (7)	2009-05-28		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

In 1969 I tried my first pouch of Borkum Riff tobacco in a pouch that cost .35 cents for 2 and 1/2 ounces. I had a corn cob pipe (I was 14 years old). At the time, the mixture was very moist and well matured. I thought it was the greatest pipe tobacco I ever smoked. I nearly went through the whole pouch and often would spend evenings like Sherlock Holmes, piling large quantities of smoked portions on a table along with a gallon of iced tea to cool the tongue. I always considered this blend to be the "Marlboro" of the pipe tobacco industry. The mixture became very popular later much to my dismay because the quality began to decline in that the moisture content vanished, the quantity was reduced, the tin version discontinued, and the sudden propensity of different flavors led to diffuse enjoyment as the company ventured into Cherry blends, Congac, Champagne, Rum, etc. All for naught. However, the brand still is around and is popular to this day. I abandoned the brand long ago in favor of others and in the long run had stopped smoking for a period due to the ill health of one of my children. When I returned, Caesar Borgia was available and I thought it's amphora like qualities were a notch above returning to my old habits. There is no doubt that this is still a prince of tobaccos and you will find it a decent "everyday" blend.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-05-15		Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant

If you want to stop smoking - this will do the trick. Smoke some of this then drink a soda -- I dare ya! We loose a lot of pipemen due to blends as this. You might try smoking the plastic package it comes in - no worse.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-03-20		Mild	Medium to Strong	Mild	Tolerable

This tobacco is another mild boring aromatic. I bought a 5 pouch pack in duty free, and still have 3 pouches remaining. The kind of tobacco I will have completely forgotten in one year from now. That's why I hurry for this review !!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	doc'spipe (241)	2009-02-16		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

I tried this one years ago as I was always attracted to the aroma when a fellow piper was smoking it. I had to smoke it slowly as it burned hot and would most definitely bite if puffed too hard. None of that delectable room note was ever present for me as I smoked it, and its overall flavor was way too mild. I always enjoyed it when it was in someone elses pipe, but not when in mine. That translates to 2 stars for me.

UPDATE 7-18-12: Picked up a 200 gram tin from JR Tobacco last night and must say it was better tasting than remembered. Still a very beautiful room note. All in all, raising it a star to recommended.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	CornCob (94)	2009-02-02		Very Mild	Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

I was really disappointed with this one, i had great expectations as my father smoked this blend for several years and raved about it(whether or not the mixture has changed over the years i dont know) the tobacco and cut resmbled and smelled something of cigarette baccy and i couldnt detect the "bourbon" in pouch at all. It packed well and stayed lit, but it bured awfully hot and fats too. Once again i couldnt detect any bourbon topping, it was more of a vanilla, maybe a bit of maple? I think in a pinch id smoke it but if i had the choice id smoke something else.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Satc001 (67)	2008-12-29		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild	Strong

Opening the package, this tobacco has the aroma of cheap American style RYO blends. Figuring that these types of tobaccos are barely tolerable in cigarettes, I couldn't expect much from them in a pipe, where quality is much more important.

It lights, it burns, the taste is somewhat sweet and somewhat ashy. The flavor can become almost acrid. The aroma this tobacco produces is offensive. Smoking it indoors, I could not tolerate the aroma, so I assume that others would find it equally offensive. I didn't find it to bite the tongue, which may be its only redeeming quality.

If you are looking for a widely carried blend at a cheap price, Captain Black (Blue and White), Prince Albert, Carter Hall, and Sir Walter Raleigh are all better choices.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	paulwfromtheden (14)	2008-10-24		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

As enjoyable as I can remember it. This tobacco just seems to get better and better. On the recommendations on here I tried this for the first time and found it thoroughly enjoyable. Actually, I have changed my mind....I'm sure the tobacco has changed over the last couple of years, it's shit.

1 person found this review helpful.