Tobaccos James Fox - The Squire's Mixture

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	StevieB (2080)	2016-03-08		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

James Fox - The Squire's Mixture.

There are a few blends where just one puff is enough to make me feel besotted yet there are also a few rare blends that take only one puff to fill me with disgust; this falls into the latter category. It's just too soapy. That aside, I'll try to give an impartial report.

To me, the contents of the pouch would be a lot closer matched to the description 'Mixture', I see ribbons, shag and broken flakes in there. Whatever the topping is that's been used it gives off very little in the way of aroma, there's maybe a slight floral note but nothing dramatic. The pouch has a decent amount of water to it, so on with the smoke:

As I said, the prevalent flavour I get is a soapy one which I don't enjoy. I don't taste ANY Latakia, not even a slight woodiness I'd expect from the calmer varieties. The Cavendish and Virginia come over a little clearer, they're still slightly subdued by the soapiness but do offer a little more in the way of flavour than the Lat' does. After about a quarter of a bowl a more pleasing floral taste comes to the foreground, there's still the soapiness but this floral touch makes for a more enjoyable smoke.

For a few reasons, one of which is the horrendous sticky sludge it leaves in my mouth, I can't rate this low enough.

Not recommended.

Pipe Used: Davorin Denovic Morta

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: James Fox

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2002-01-16		Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Like all of the Fox blends I have tried, The Squire's Mixture is a quality mixture of beautiful tobaccos beautifully cut. Colors range from black to light browns and the ribbon is cut thin and short for easy packing. The tin aroma is sort of fruity, sort of floral, sort of soapy in the way of old-fashioned English "aromatics." (I think this tobacco is intended to be an "aromatic English." ) Usually that soapy smell puts me right off a blend, but in this case, the taste and aroma are restrained enough to add interest to the blend without overdoing things. Once lit, the smoke is cool, smooth, and neutral with the slightest floral undertones. The room note is airy and slightly sweet, not bad at all according to my wife. I don't think you'll find here the sort of flavour you expect from the usual stout English blend, but non-smokers will find this easy to be around, thus proving there is a niche for an aromatic English. I've not yet had this blend bite me, but there's enough Virginia here that you could probably force it into a nip or two. Latakia is listed as an ingredient, but if it's here, it's just a smidge. Overall, a nice, light, mild tobacco you can smoke around others indoors that still tastes like something. Not a bad accomplishment.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3046)	2015-07-13		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

The Virginia is grassy with a little citrus, dark fruit, wood and some earth as the lead component, but not by much. The Virginia cavendish is toasty and citrusy. I can just barely notice the woody, earthy, musty, smoky Cyprian Latakia, which is obviously here to add a little campfire push. The Turkish is woody, floral, earthy, mildly spicy, herbal, sour and smokey in a support role. The topping is a little soapy and perfumy, and mildly sublimates the tobacco flavor, though it does weaken just a smidgeon after the half way point. The strength is a couple of steps past the center of mild to medium, while the taste is a slot past that. The nic-hit is a rung below the strength level. Burns reasonably well, clean and smooth with a mostly consistent flavor from top to bottom. Requires few relights, and leaves virtually no moisture in the bowl.

-JimInks

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	sasha (228)	2005-07-06		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

There's something into this tobacco that never convinced me, beginning with: what the hell this mixture means? Is it an English mixture? No, it is clearly cased, so it can't be an English. Is it an aromatic? No, the components are the classic English ones...Accepted that this is a strange kind of blend, the smoking experience hasn't been one to remember. The first part of the bowl have been dominated by the aromatic casing, the secon part was completely dull. I don't even know to whom I could recommend this mixture!

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Wicklow Piper (4)	2020-11-08		Mild	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

This is my first review of any tobacco as I'm a newbie. Upon opening the tin the smell is of Turkish delight chocolate bar or something along those lines. Needs a short while to dry and the ribbon cut makes for easy packing, the char light will tease your taste buds very nicely indeed and last for most of the bowl. Not sure of all the leaves or how they are processed in this blend because the beautiful taste and smell is enough for me in my early days enjoying pipe tobaccos. It can bite if not dried and must be sipped as I'm doing right now. In concluding this review I enjoy it a lot and sells very well from what I know. Thanks as it's my first review

Pipe Used: Briars and a cob

Age When Smoked: Out of tin/jarred

Purchased From: Jamesfox.ie

Similar Blends: Yet to try anything similar.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	rollyourowntobacco (9)	2020-01-10		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant

I am of the mind that you can't judge a tobacco before a good handful of bowls. More often than not when I try a brand new tobacco it can be an assault on the senses, and after 6 or 7 pipes it mellows out into a more well rounded tobacco. I think that this tobacco is such an assault on the senses that that's where all the bad reviews are coming from.

It's certainly a floral, soapy tobacco, and if you haven't tried it before the soapiness dominates for the first few bowls, though I wouldn't call it overpowering having tried the old Condor to compare it to. After a few bowls the soapiness fades and the floral notes take the stage alongside it, and its a fine mix of the two. The Latakia isn't noticeable, and neither is the oriental, but I'm not particularly disappointed in that as I am still somewhat new to the pipe, so just trying new tobacco is still a pleasurable experience in itself, I'd call this a "Lakelands light" if anything, just fair warning.

It burns well, needing no relights and leaves no dottle, nicotine is mild enough. All in all, a good smoke, I'd recommend this tobacco on the caveat that you give it a chance, and don't throw it out before you get a good few pipes in. While some tobaccos start out strong and then fade into obscurity after a handful of bowls, this just gets better as it mellows out.

Recommended.

Pipe Used: Various

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: James fox

Similar Blends: Lakelands (light).

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	eamonclever (48)	2010-05-27		Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

when i ordered it i was asked to take 5 tins, because no one else asked for it so far at my tobacconists. Nothing to say about the tobacco itself maybe about the pipe smokers around in this area. Upon opening the tin, a fresh floral rather musky flavoring invites you to keep your nose in the tin, guessing what the hell is in there i cannot detect. But it is no lakeside flavoring in this tobaco anyway and it is not soapy, although i like the lakeland smell very much. The colour of the cut virgina leaves is from light brown to dark brown a bit moist but good for loading a pipe right away. The flavouring is always there, it vanishies within the second half of the bowl, the smell of the smoke becomes more the way good tobaccos should be, earthy and with a little touch of the typical virginia smell i love. Burns down to the bottom, no problems with relighting needs. Simple and easy to smoke. At the end there is nothing of a ghost in my pipe, compared with other more established tobaccos like condor. To me this is a typical oldfashionde tobacco one likes or not. So I don´t give any recommendation. I think everyone should even try it - I don´t have it in my weekly rotation but I smoke it very often.

2 people found this review helpful.

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

I found yesterday that I had a sample package of this on hand, untested. Reading the reviews here piqued my curiosity and so I opened the little zip-lock (about 3 bowls worth) and loaded up along with some black coffee. I was in no hurry and wanted as full three bowls would allow. First, I read here some comparison to Dunhill Royal Yacht. I compared the two and visually they appear identical. The Squires Mixture is a quality ribbon of rather dark mono-colored brown tobaccos. Pouch/tin aromas were definitely different but I'm not sure if I wasn't just smelling plastic with Squire's as it was the same for my Caminetto samples (from same distributor- and for the Presbyterian in US - as well). Lighting was a no hassle affair. First impression: SWEET. And SPICY as my nasal passages registered a tingle similar to a perigue laced blend. But no perique is listed in ingredient description - must be the particular recipe of Orientals used here. My mouthpiece left a sweet taste on my lips at each pull. Second impression: a wine-like fermented fruitiness, pear, plum?...can't place it. No casing or topping is mentioned but what do I know? I wondered, "So, where's the Latakia"? It showed, in force, in the last half of each bowl and it stayed until nothing was left but a fine gray ash. The fruitiness came and went at the second half and sweetness abated somewhat. The general smoking experience, without the fruit, reminded me very much of Tnderbox's Philospher. And, at that being far less than 1/2 the price of this... This rates 2 stars - smokable but not likely to purchase. Maybe I should say I wouldn't go to extraordinary lengths to buy this from an e-tailer paying S&H, maybe if a tin presented itself to me in a shop. Maybe.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Phils Galore (12)	2018-04-20		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

I'm writing this review because I was surprised to see how poorly rated this blend is. I was also a bit surprised to see is listed as an "American" style blend. I thought they were supposed to contain burley! I would characterize this as an auromatic oriental because the two dominant flavours one encounters upon opening a tin is orange and oriental. It's a nice orange too, not syrupy or overdone. The orientals provide a sour note that works well with the sweet orange flavour. In some pipes the oriental is more dominant, while in others the virginia sweetness appears. I didn't realize there was any cavendish in the blend until I read it's description. It should probably be noted that I'm smoking a tin that has been sitting on the shelf for 6 years. Maybe that explains why I'm rating it above the average rating here. I'm also wondering how long Planta has been producing this blend. Could it be that we are reviewing a blend that has come from more than one source? In any event I give this a solid three and a half stars, and will buy it again.

Pipe Used: a variety of briars

Age When Smoked: 6 years

Purchased From: James Fox London, U.K.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gentleman Zombie (729)	2017-02-16		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Hmmmm...I seem to be the only one that gets a vanilla hit from this. I get a Virginia led English that's very weak on Orientals and Lat. It has a vanilla note from the Cav and some light floral notes. Not a bad tasting smoke, but it also has a little harshness. There's really nothing about this that would make me want to recommend it to anyone.

Mild to medium in body and taste. Flavoring is mild. Burns well.

Pipe Used: MM Little Devil Cutty, Little Devil Acorn, Marcus

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2010-02-11		Mild	Mild	Overwhelming	Tolerable

tin smell is not describable floral chemical plant and and grand aunts perfume. Nice appearance and cut however the smell both in tin and under torch was off putting. this blend while moist burned nicely and left a fine ash. packs easily since it is nicely ribboned but the smell is more than i can stand i think i shall have to throw away my radice fouled by this smoke

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2008-08-30		Mild	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Tin aroma is like soap and a little fruit. No smell of latakia at all! Smoking: no latakia noticable! Just the taste of a medium quality blend/tobacco with a little aromatic toutch. Somewhat recommended.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2008-04-23		Mild	Medium to Strong	Full	Very Pleasant

I'm somewhat disappointed on occasion at "blend descriptions" by the brand manufacturers. Turkish, latakia, etc.....why not just say you poured plum jelly into the mix. I'm not putting this blend down by saying this as I rather enjoy it as a smooth aromatic and dare say there aren't many smooth ones around. But just say it's that and don't tease me with the different "leaf" blah blah blah. I'll probably keep a couple tins but it wasn't what I expected on my cavendish journey. If you pour a pile of maple syrup on an egg....it's not gonna taste like an egg.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2006-11-09		Mild	Extremely Mild	Mild	Tolerable

Fox' answer to Dunhill's Royal Yacht.

The flavor profile of this assemblance of varietals yields an "unnatural" tobacco taste, in my opinion, like the blend was spritzed with grandmas perfume (I feel the same way about Royal Yacht).

Not my cup of tea.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2002-08-16		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Very Pleasant

This blend, quite frankly, smelled strange in the tin. I suspect the casing used is responsible. This blend does not burn rapidly or hot. It packs well, too. The taste of the Virginia and Latakia is superb, and the two leave the wispy spice of the Orientals far in the background. The unique casing adds to the presentation in a way that is hard to put into words. Just know that this one is a keeper for good reason!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Nonpareil (20)	2022-04-13		Mild	Mild	Medium	Very Pleasant

50 years ago I was given a sample of "Diplomat", a store mixture, at the old Pipelane store in downtown Seattle. I liked it well enough as a change of pace to occasionally get some more and then the store closed. I was surprised then when I opened a 17 year old tin of "The Squires Mixture", to taste what seems to be the same blend.

Perhaps because the sample accompanied a pipe my wife had given me for Christmas and it was my boon companion on an Alaska fisheries patrol in February, I have a special nostalgia for it. The description on the tin states this is "A Medium Strength Turkish Blend" which led me to assume this was a Virginia/Oriental blend. There is clearly an added topping which I can't identify but it smokes cool and cleanly and is easy to light. Though my tastes have certainly changed over the years I find I still enjoy this.

Pipe Used: GBD Granitan

Age When Smoked: 17 years

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tobor (4)	2022-01-19		Strong	Strong	Very Full	Pleasant

An all-around wonderful, complex, & dynamic Lakeland style tobacco. My main tobacco‘s are Virginia’s such as Fribourg and Treyor’s is Blackjack and Vintage Flake. Second to Virginia’s, I smoke a lot of St Bruno and Gawith and Hogarth Best Brown No.2. I am a fairly well-rounded smoker, I also have English Blends in my daily rotation as well as Burly Blends, I love Highland Targe from Rattrays, Dunhill (now Peterson) blends, LJ Peretti’s English blends such as Century, British, Royal, Prince of Wales(cross over English) and lots of traditional American Burly’s which for me all my favorite Burly and Blends Ave from L.J. Peretti’s… That all said, I do love Condor. I don’t smoke as much as I used to, it is quite hard to get in United States, but I do have plenty stock piled and have decent access, so that isn’t why. It is just that my palate has just grown; I love Condors top notes/casing, but The face tobacco doesn’t always hit the spot like it used to; although sometimes it does, and I absolutely still do like it. I prefer a lot of Gawith Hogarth Lakelands these days, if that is what I am in the mood for. “Squires and Mixture“ is the closest to Condor (ready rubbed) that I have ever had, and I dare say it is much better (for what I am looking for in a tobacco, obviously) There is about 20% less flavoring/casing in “Squyres“ compared to condor, and the base tobaccos oh that of the highest quality, and no matter white ones experience level is, I think anyone would appreciate that quit smoking Squyres. You can absolutely taste it’s about goes underneath the Lakeland flavoring, and it does not seem to ghost in the way condor does. The use of high-quality Oriental and Turkish tobacco‘s, creates a really dynamic and complex smoke. If someone is just an aromatic smoker, they may not love this. And if someone does not love Lakeland tobaccos, they too may not love this. American style aromatics are really the only category that I don’t smoke with any regularity. But if you do like Lakelands, or even traditional American Burly aromatics with unique flavors (Think Peretti’s Blend 100, or even their Cuban Mixture) I think this would be worth giving it a try. I think you’ll find this to be an very unique, interesting and well balanced smoke with an ineffable Lakeland style flavoring. You may even end up loving it like me. It is not an all day smoke for me, is it a little bit too much for my palate to be all day, but when I do crave it, it hits the spot. And for what it is, hey once or twice a day smoke, it is definitely a four-star tobacco!

Pipe Used: High end Briars: Castello, Ser Jacopo, etc

Age When Smoked: 5+ years sealed in tin

Purchased From: LJ Peretti Co.

Similar Blends: Condor another strong Lakeland style Tobaccos, although it is also quite unique, it stands on its own. One could smoke condor and also smoke this, and be pleased with the differences, as well as the similarities.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2006-01-14		Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant

This fine shag tobacco comes very moist in the tin ... so a little drying out will serve one well to start. I found the components to create an interesting smoke with a light casing that moves to the background quickly. I'm not sure if I would classify this as a aromatic but it definitely has an initial flavoring. As far as it being an English blend, it claims no pedigree, and many English blends have a light topping.

One thing for certain, if one packs this too tightly and smokes it without a moderate drying, it will be a steamy and tasteless experience. I've noticed this about Fox blends and approach them accordingly. I find by lightly rubbing half a tin at a time into a container long before smoking makes for a totally different experience than directly from the tin.

The Latakia is light and the Turkish is more abundant making the bowl more naturally flavorful as the casing fades to the background. I think this is a terrific time to time smoke that is complex without being strong.

Cheers, VC

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