The term Lord of the Manor dates backs to medieval English feudalism. In more modern terminology it is used for land registry. It is indeed quirky how terminology changes over time. A case in point, all blends made under British Tobacco Purity Laws were known as English Blends, whether or not they contained any Latakia. You can rest assured that this Sutliff English mixture has an abundance of Latakia, along with Burley, Virginia, Perique, and Smyrna.
I like to vary my smoke, to keep things interesting and to avoid boredom, but I'm primarily an English lover. After taking a recent brake from them, this blend reminded me why I love English/Latakia tobacco's.
This is an interesting tobacco in many aspects. For one, I got to know it by pure chance while browsing online, and despite being contrary to my likings ( as it contains a lot of components) and I like focused tobacco with 2-3 components, yet I felt drawn to it and knew I had to try it. I couldn't find many reviews for it and it was mostly done by expert pipe smokers who have somehow very specific and experienced tendencies. I finally had my hands on it, and I am glad I could, since it is out of production. This is beautiful tobacco. A pungent, dominating tin aroma, followed by a mild taste that speaks well of Orientals and Latakia.. And just when you think you have got its profile right, bready, earthy viriginias start a new movement of the symphony of aroma and taste..Now the Latakia/Orientals duo takes a secondary role of providing smokiness and spice. And towards the last third of the bowl, they all take a strong crescendo to provide a better flavour palette, more smoke.. Making it a memorable smoke.. It has a coarse, chunky ribbon cut that reminds me of Frog Morton blends, it packs easily and lights easily given 20 minutes of dry time..And stays lit for the most part with a few relights needed. It is definitely a memorable tobacco. And I recommend that you get your hands on a few to stash before it disappears.
Pipe Used: Peterson Pipe of the year 2014 Ebony
Age When Smoked: N/A but fresh from the tin...Read More
I love the complexity of flavour in this smoke - sitting with friends and sharing this tin, we all enjoyed the spiciness of the subtle perique notes in the background, the lovely warmth of the latakia and the cool breeze of the burleys and virginias. An all round winner, great in winter by the fire....Read More
I like to vary my smoke, to keep things interesting and to avoid boredom, but I'm primarily an English lover. After taking a recent brake from them, this blend reminded me why I love English/Latakia tobacco's. It starts off fairly average, with little surprises and medium body. A great all-day English. But what I find unexpected is the changes in flavor as you work your way down the bowl. As the Latakia becomes less prominent, I found that I really enjoyed what was left. I can't describe it exactly, kind of a "weedy"/grassy character. But I didn't put this tin down for a solid week. Not remarkable, but really very good. Buy several cans of this....Read More