Introduction: I tossed little bags of tobacco at Bear, Josh, and Jeremy and told them to smoke it. When asked what it was, I refused to answer, instead opting to repeat my demands, with one small addition: Smoke it, and then write about what happens to you.

The idea of course is to get their impressions uncolored by previous knowledge of brand, blend composition, reputation, and what have you. Clearly, telling them the nature of what they’d be loading into their several pipes was right out, then. They’d have to find that out for themselves.

Josh:

“The pouch note promises a mild aromatic: smells of a grassy Virginias with a light topping—anise, oats, vanilla, and fruit. Appearance is golden and light brown, cut into long, thin ribbons that pack easily. Upon the first lighting the tobacco’s aromatic qualities, particularly berries and vanilla, come to the forefront of the smoke. A quarter of a bowl in, the topping is less pronounced, replaced by hay-like golden Virginias along with a little spice and nuttiness. The latter suggests a pretty significant Burley component that becomes more pronounced near the bottom of the bowl. Flavors become deeper and earthier, with only a whisper of vanilla. Overall, this is a mild smoke, what I would consider a Danish aromatic, reminiscent of Mac Baren’s Golden Extra with a light topping. Not a tobacco that I would reach for often due to its lack of depth or complexity, but it is not without its advantages. Room note is pleasant, which would make this a good choice for a smoker who wants a more natural tobacco flavor while still pleasing any non-smokers in his company. Smoke can become a little acrid upon relights or if pushed.”

Jeremy:

“I find this medium golden ribbon to be long and stringy in its cut and subtly sweet and boozy in its aroma. Prior to the light I am fairly certain that this contains Burley and Virginia. No darker tobaccos or oriental component is notable at this point. On the light Burley makes itself most noticeable and then settles down, letting VA take the fore. Mellow and sweet, kind of boozy topping, I can tell that this tobacco would bite back if puffed too heartily, but sipping suits it just fine. On the relight, I got kind of a sour note like oriental but once again this just trails off land eaves the VA with a slightly more pronounced Burley component. This reminds me of Sherlock Holmes by Peterson.”

Bear:

“Reaching into the unlabeled baggie (reminding me a bit of my youth), I pulled out a generous amount of my mystery blend. Springy, slightly wiry and already at what I consider perfect moisture level, I spread out the same to do my usual “pick the clumps apart” ritual, which turned out to be pointless (there were no clumps, just ribbons, ready to be smoked. The tin (ok, ”baggie”) note was that of a fairly light aromatic. Hints of vanilla, caramel, maybe even a bit of maple-like fragrance wafted up, but (again) light.

It packed beautifully, and the toasting light released a scent which I can only refer to as “Pancake House”. No, not choking syrupiness; the smell of pancakes cooking on a hot griddle in the back, maybe combined with some bread in the toaster for the folks sitting at table #4. Full light: for about the first three minutes, the dominant room note stayed faithful to the charring light, so much so that I found myself wondering when more “pure” tobacco elements would start to assert themselves. I received my answer about five minutes into the smoke - quite a nice balance started to present. As I moved further into the bowl, the maple/vanilla/caramel faded a bit, and hints of cassis started winking at me. It was something that, while pleasant, I would never had anticipated. Usually, berries/cassis/kier-like elements will make themselves immediately known from the pouch note, and not only had I detected none, I didn’t notice any for the first third of the bowl. The new notes and the formerly dominant ones shifted back and forth for the remainder of the bowl, which, along with some very subtle spice I couldn’t identify, amounted to be the major points of interest about the tobacco. I found it overall to be (basically) dichromatic in flavor, simply shifting in note dominance at different points. While not likely to become one of my go-smokes, I could see this becoming a staple for a light aromatic smoker who isn’t obsessed with layering or nuance, and would like something that’s consistent, easy to pack, and easy to light and keep lit.”

And the blend was? Norway Pipe Cut, by Newminster. Despite differing palates and differing pipes, Josh, Bear, and Jeremy all readily identified the primary VA/Burley content of the blend, though the Oriental leaf’s presence seemed to be more elusive. Curiously, both Bear and Josh noted a slight spiciness that neither one could pin down, even though out of the three guinea pigs contributing pipe-fellows, Bear was the one picking up the aromatic qualities more than the base tobaccos, while Josh and Jeremy were getting more from the VA and Burley.