incendio

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Real Nameunknown
Joined2001-01
Last Visited2023-02
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There are many good blending houses, producing many fine mixtures, but it seems to me that a majority of the material on the market is mediocre and repetitive. Many of the domestic craft blenders have had to rely necessarily on the tobacco industry giants to source much of their leaf. Thus the English blend from the corner shops around the country smell unsurprisingly similar to one another. There are only a handful of sources for Latakia and Perique. Who bothers importing exotic Virginias from Africa and India anymore? Where is the old Rhodesian Virginia? The fragrant Yenidje? The Syrian Latakia? The Xanthi, Dubek, Basma and Mahalla? Due to industrialization and suffocating regulatory restrictions our own domestic tobacco has become a homogenized cellulose compost that has no character of its own and must be sauced and doctored to become tolerable. And even in such an alarming context the marketing wizards have us all convinced that there are more numerous and unique blends than ever before. How can we be expected to make an infinite and profoundly diverse assortment of tobacco mixtures with such a limited array of 'materia prima.' For my part I find it more and more difficult to smoke a mixture that I consider average. If I have to struggle to articulate a redeeming character or distinguishing feature of a blend then I must simply confront the truth that it is average and perhaps, with only a finite number of bowls to be smoked in any given day or indeed, in a lifetime, why bother to constantly seek out that minimal goodness that hides within all things? Why not instead seek the absolute best, unapologetically, and smoke to good health, each bowl as if it were our last?

Badges

Neutralist Has rated between 50% to 80% of their reviews with 2 or 3 stars.
Veteran Has posted reviews in at least 5 different years.
Virtuoso Has received upvotes on 80% of their reviews.
Motivator Has upvoted at least 80% of the time.

Favorites

Date Blend Reviews Avg Rating
2016-07-12 Ashton - Artisan's Blend 211 ★★★★ 3.5
2016-08-16 Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. - Brown Flake Scented 14 ★★★★ 3.6
2016-07-12 Rattray - Highland Targe 63 ★★★☆ 2.9

Reviews

45 reviews
228 helpful votes 		4 star:
18 Strongly Recommended
3 star:
12 Recommended
2 star:
9 Somewhat Recommended
1 star:
6 Not Recommended

Preferences: Burley 3.8, Latakia 3.8, Virginia 3.6, Oriental/Turkish 3.6, Perique 3.6

Date Blend Reviews Helpful Rating Avg Rating
2022-12-01 Samuel Gawith - 1792 Flake 444 4 ★★★☆ ★★★★ 3.0
2022-09-20 Samuel Gawith - Full Virginia Flake 603 5 ★☆☆☆ ★★★★ 3.5
2021-03-25 Mac Baren - Latakia Rolls Limited Edition 12 4 ★★☆☆ 3.3
2020-08-18 Cornell & Diehl - Sun Bear (Small Batch) 25 1 ★★★☆ 3.4
2020-08-17 Lane Limited - Crown Achievement 86 1 ★★★★ ★★★☆ 2.8
2020-06-05 Dan Tobacco - Holly's Discovery 24 5 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.5
2020-05-17 Peretti - 150th Anniversary Blend (Flake) 15 10 ★★★☆ 3.3
2020-04-26 James Fox - Campanile 43 1 ★★★☆ ★★★★ 2.9
2019-08-30 Dunhill - My Mixture 73 7 6 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.4
2019-05-19 Dan Tobacco - London Blend No. 250 10 2 ★★★★ ★★★★ 2.8
2019-04-24 Cornell & Diehl - Carolina Red Flake (Small Batch) 48 13 ★☆☆☆ ★★★★ 3.5
2019-01-11 Diebel's Sportsmens Gallery - Folkestone Flake 1 2 ★★★★ ★★★★ 4.0
2018-04-15 G. L. Pease - Caravan (Original Mixtures) 92 4 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.1
2018-04-06 Peretti - London Flake (Flake) 22 6 ★★★☆ ★★★☆ 2.9
2018-03-09 Cornell & Diehl - Dreams of Kadath (The Old Ones) 24 16 ★★☆☆ ★★★★ 3.3
2018-03-02 Peterson - Balkan Delight 64 3 ★★☆☆ ★★★★ 3.2
2018-02-21 Cornell & Diehl - Izmir Turkish 22 5 ★★☆☆ ★★★★ 3.5
2017-12-01 Dunhill - Durbar 60 3 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.1
2017-10-21 Drucquer & Sons - Blairgowrie 27 10 ★★☆☆ ★★★★ 3.6
2017-10-10 Cornell & Diehl - Golden Ash 19 5 ★☆☆☆ ★★★★ 3.4
2017-08-04 Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. - No. 25 Mixture 18 4 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.7
2017-08-04 Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. - No. 12 Mixture 24 13 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.0
2017-07-23 McClelland - Balkan Beauty 14 6 ★★★☆ ★★★★ 3.4
2017-07-15 HU Tobacco - Director's Cut (Original Warehouseblend) 35 1 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.5
2017-07-15 HU Tobacco - Fayyum (African Line) 16 4 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.5
2017-06-29 Mac Baren - Mixture: Scottish Blend 397 3 ★★★☆ ★★★☆ 2.9
2017-01-15 Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. - Scotch Mixture 27 6 ★★☆☆ ★★☆☆ 2.3
2017-01-13 McClelland - No. 5125 Coyote Classic Full 48 2 ★★★★ ★★★☆ 3.0
2016-12-02 McClelland - Venture Forth (United Pipe Clubs of America) 5 2 ★★★☆ ★★★★ 3.4
2016-11-29 Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. - Brown Flake Scented 14 4 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.6
2016-11-27 pipesandcigars.com - Acadian Gold (RO Series) 12 10 ★★★☆ ★★★★ 3.2
2016-08-28 Peretti - Cambridge Flake 21 5 ★★★☆ ★★★★ 3.5
2016-08-26 Peretti - Black Virginia (Cavendish Blends) 11 4 ★★★☆ ★★★☆ 3.5
2016-08-18 Cornell & Diehl - Briar Fox 177 5 ★☆☆☆ ★★★☆ 3.0
2016-08-13 Cornell & Diehl - Big n' Burley 74 1 ★☆☆☆ ★★★★ 3.3
2016-07-12 Peretti - Royal Blend (English Blends) 40 7 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.6
2016-06-30 Samuel Gawith - Golden Glow 109 3 ★★★☆ ★★★★ 3.3
2016-06-08 Peterson - The Royal Yacht 432 4 ★★☆☆ ★★★★ 3.0
2016-04-08 McClelland - No. 2020 Matured Cake 53 5 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.2
2016-01-06 G. L. Pease - Gaslight (Old London Series) 146 4 ★★☆☆ ★★★★ 3.3
2015-12-25 D & R Tobacco - Rimboché S.J. (Rimboché) 30 15 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.4
2015-12-25 Mac Baren - Three Nuns 232 1 ★★☆☆ ★★★★ 3.1
2015-08-16 Ashton - Artisan's Blend 211 3 ★★★★ ★★★★ 3.5
2015-08-16 Rattray - Highland Targe 63 8 ★★★★ ★★★☆ 2.9
2009-11-19 Wessex - Sovereign Curly Cut (Brigade) 39 2 ★☆☆☆ ★★★★ 3.0