Well done Bradley. Another stellar review. In my opinion you are the gold standard for the RU-vid pipe community. Give Acadian Perique a try sometime. Cheers.
This blend is delightful! I tried a tin a few weeks after seeing the video; now that I refer back to the video, I can say that our good friend Bradley is absolutely spot on in his descriptions - as per the norm.
emile3363 Hello Emile, I have been very impressed with your overall tobacco knowledge, both from your own videos, and your comments to other peoples videos. Thanks for that. So, my obvious question is: What are the other two top tobaccos of all time? Ed
Oh boy. Opening the tin I really didn't like what I was smelling, I went for it on multiple occasions, but just couldn't deal with the smell. I didn't like the combination of malt, bread and coco. I really didn't think I would enjoy this one. Good thing I already bought it, because smoking this, it's amazing. I get the coco, nuts and even the sweetness of licorice. A true eye opener, I hope the nicotine hit won't be as harsh, because up until now, my favorites (like nightcap) have all been on a strong side for me. Thanks for the review!
I thought you might like this one. My favorite Burley mainly for its purity. Fantastic on its own but, it's naturalness makes it my favorite Burley for blending. Adds wonderful body without overpowering what I might be going after for a home blend.
Hi Bradley, new subscriber here and I have to say that I am loving your stuff so far. You're really setting the bar for pipe tobacco reviews here on youtube. I tried the 656 and I was definitely expecting more flavor, but for a Burley it was better than I anticipated. I'd definitely try it again, but maybe not before trying some other aged Burley blends for comparison.
Hello Bradley! Awesome review, just got done with my first tin of this wonderful blend! I really enjoyed it in the morning with my coffee! Going to be ordering more of this along with some more Dunhill DNR! Kind of expensive but the taste makes it hard to say no. Very Delicious! Keep up the good work, love all your videos!
Thanks for this Bradley, great review. I just bought some and I really like it. Like you said, lots of cocoa and dried fruit aroma/flavours, and not too high nicotine. And I normally HATE burley, avoid it like the plague.
Discerning review ... you've convinced me to order this once my Wessex Burley Flake arrives next week I've heard the two are quite similar: doing side-by-side comparisons would be enlightening. The discreet note of cocoa is also in MacB Golden Extra, though it's subtle at first. These uncased burley tobaccos seem to have a clearing effect on the taste buds. Thanks for mentioning the toasting aspect. Stokkebye and Larsen do this with some of their burleys and the result is amazing: lots of added depth. And a nice smell of just-toasted bread. But maybe that's only the power of suggestion. Cheers, Mark P.S. FWIW, my non-smoking family rave about the wonderful aroma of burley when it's burning slowly, complete with rolled-back eyes and comments like "That smells SO GOOD!" However, they're not as fond of Virginia, which I think smells GREAT. Oh well.
Bartholomew Fotheringay-Phipps - Glad you liked the review. Yeah, it is odd how much the olfactory experiences of the pipe smoker and non-smoker seem to differ.
PS: For your further reviews as far as additives are concerned you can check out almost every (pipe) tobacco (at least those available in Germany in the year 2011) under the following link: service.bmel.de/tabakerzeugnisse/index2.php?site_key=153 Please continue your reviews, there are all excellent and a great pleasure to watch ! Greetings from Germany
I have noticed that the blends you enjoy it almost always enjoy so I trust your reviews.. I have heard from multiple RU-vid pipe tobacco reviewers thar Wessex burley slice is almost identical to solani aged burley, and made by the same company.. so please Bradley can you review the wessex and let me know what you think? thanks and keep up the great work! you are by far my favorite tobacco reviewer on the net. thanks so much for all you do ;)
Thanks, Bradley, Very complete review. Thanks. I have enjoyed some burley blends. Carter Hall, and most recently, John Patton's "Stormfront". Also C&D's "Haunted Bookshop". These all fit into that nutty category, that you spoke of. I enjoy coffee with most pipe tobaccos, so this one sounds right up my alley. Will give it a try. Ed
I have seen most (if not all) of your reviews and I have never heard you say "delicious" so many times. I didn't count, but it was more than 5 times. I love Solani 656. I would also recommend a cup of hot 100 % cocoa made with milk. Oh yes !
Hi Bradley, nice review, thanx ! According to the data available at the German Ministry equivalent to the FDA this particular tobacco contains about 25% of additives which are : 16,8% added sugar 7,9% licorice 2,9% propylene glycol 0,5% added flavor (not exactly declared what it is) so, what "Solani" says "no added flavors" is nothing but a lie. This is definitely no natural tobacco. Please note that this declaration by the Ministry is incomplete since the manufacterer wanted it to be incomplete. There must be also added water. As a result, such tobacco has less than 75% "tobacco", it is far from being a "natural blend". There are almost no pipe tobaccos without additives on the market. Sorry ;) cu P.B.
Interesting information Peter, is there a website your pulling it from? I would hazard a guess that the percentages are by weight no? In addition most part of the casing process that is diluted in water and not actually the make up of the end product. Your point is taken though. Part of the all out war on tobacco is brought on by the industry themselves with their old world secret and deceptive bull crap ways.
I've heard a lot of people say this is the best Burley there is. A pet peeve of mine is when people call DFK (as in ODF) just plain Burley. The fire-curing imparts a great but unique flavor that I think justifies a distinction between it and air-cured Burley, FWIW.
Stuff&Things Most people mix them up. Around 11:00, you mention ODF in the context of other Burley blends you've tried. According to the tin description, ODF contains only VA and DFK. It's a problem I see a lot. I just edited the contents on TR, because it listed Burley, VA--even though the prose description read DFK and VA. The only category it fits under for blend type is still VA-Bur.
Stuff&Things I completely understand mis-speaking. I only point it out because it's such a prevalent misconception that often it isn't just a slip of the tongue. Like you said, they are quite distinct flavors. Cheers!
I bought one of these and a Dunhill virginia flake too, so i can mix the two up if l do not like the burley hehehe. Because it's my first time i prove burley. Excellen video e hugs from Brazil.
I just ordered a tin of Wessex Burley Slice (which is not in yet) and I'm interested in tasting the different. Gonna order a tin of Solani soon. Thanks Bradley~
smoking right now with a cup of coffee :) and best part about solani aged burley and Virginia flake is they were on the market before February 2007 so completely unaffected by the ridiculous FDA regulations.. hooray!!
I've smoked some burley based drugstore blends in my first months of pipe smoking. Not really fond memories here... So, after some years (and many quality english mixtures experiences later) I decided to try a "pure" burley blend and Solani ABF was my natural choice. And it was by far the best choice I could ever make. I enjoy this as my first smoke of the day, paired with a cup of black coffee. Best sunday morning smokes ever. Is there a similar "pure" burley blend, unflavoured, of similar quality that you would reccomend? It's a shame that such a blend is hard to find. Thank you for your kind replies so far, Bradley, and looking forward to your next reviews. Greetings from Brazil!
+Ricardo L. - It definitely does go well with coffee in the morning. I don't know if you could call it "pure," but I really enjoy Peterson "Irish Flake."
Very good review as always! I have been very curious about this blend for a long time but Im quite sensitive to Burleys. It tends to be hard on my palate. Sounds like this one is somewhat different so I´ll get a tin when I have the chance, I can actually get it locally. Take care.
I really enjoyed this blend. When I knew you were going to review I was very excited about what you overall impression would be. I am glad to hear you really liked the blend. I did as well but I am a bit upset to hear that it may ruin me for other burley based or strictly burley blends. I really enjoyed ABF. Say it isn't so Bradley.....
I really want your take on the wessex before I buy it over the solani.. sorry for commenting so much.. hope I'm not getting too annoying. pipe tobacco gets me excited if you couldn't tell lol
The IRONY of my just having received a tin of this yesterday. I like the lead in with the "cocoa and coffee" description- but the anise reference makes me nervous like it does in the PIF. The more I watch, the more I am interested- and I DO like burley blends.
Colin Kelly - Believe me, Colin, the anise is just the TINIEST of hints, and I may have just been imagining it. No one loathes licorice more than me, and I really loved this blend. Crack that tin! Remember, it's a subtle blend though. This isn't "Old Dark Fired" or "Dark Strong."
***** - You know, I'm not sure! I THINK I tried it several years ago, but I may have conflated it with something else in my mind. Too many tobaccos, man.
+Stuff&Things I'm about to crack this tin for the first time. What size bowl would you recommend? I was thinking in my Ashton which has a generous bowl. However, I'm worried about the burley ghosting my pipe so I was thinking of smoking it in a cob. I would appreciate your thoughts on this, sir.
I don't think you'd have to worry too much about ghosting with this blend. It's rich, but tit doesn't seem to linger. I always liked it in a pot, but it was pretty good in almost everything I smoked it in.
So, would this be considered a "burley cavendish" since it's toasted? Isn't that what an English cavendish is? I smoked some of this stuff last night, and in addition to how you described it, I also got sweet spices like cloves and cinnamon. I'm a new pipe smoker, and you've been my guide pretty much from the beginning. I'm glad I found your channel. Thanks for your reviews!
+Stuff&Things Also, I found this website, www.folkhalsomyndigheten.se/documents/tillsyn-regelverk/tobak/ingredienser/2013/kohlhase-kopp-co-gmbh-co-kg.pdf. If you scroll down to Solani Aged Burley, it lists the ingredients as the following: Benzoic acid Cocoa powder Flavour Glycerol Licorice extract, powder Propylene glycol Sodium benzoate Now, I'm a little disappointed. I don't like the idea of casings or flavorings, and I quite enjoyed this blend. I guess there just aren't any truly casing-free, topping-free, preservative-free pipe tobaccos. But if that's the case, then why do Solani and Monjure International say that they have no casings or flavorings?
I've seen some conflicting ingredient lists for Aged Burley Flake, but yes, pretty much every blend has something added. Solani adds very little, but there's always at least a humectant and anti-fungal. Also, bear in mind that many of these things are added in minute amounts, so the effect on flavor is pretty much nil.
Very informative. Good content, well spoken and you seem to have the lighting issue dialed in just right. Also, tins go for about $32 dollars here at my brick & mortar shops in Ontario. What software do you use for editing?
Solani was at the West Coast Pipe Show in Las Vegas last year. I sampled a couple of the aromatics and didn't really care for them. Very wet, burned a bit hot, taste was rather bland. I'll have to give this one a try and look for the other straight tobacco blends if they're at the show in November.
Not a huge Burley fan and never really considered this blend..... until now! Will have to add this to my next order. Do you have C&D "Star of the East" on your radar to review? :)
Big Al The Crusher - I don't think you'll regret it. "Star of the East" is on my list, but that list is getting SO long! I guess it's nice knowing that I'll always have blends to review.
I don't know what to think of this tobacco. I'm still finding my tastes, and realizing I lean towards VA/pers, but I really enjoy it all, except the more artificial/heavier aromatics. This one feels like an excellent framework or support tobacco, but to me seems... lacking? It almost tastes like ordering a fried rice dish from one of those Asian places in the mall, then picking out and only eating the white, fibrous cabbage and celery pieces with the traces of soy sauce left on them. Maybe I'm missing something, or it's just my personal tastes. I also noticed that my (round) tin actually has a description, and it states that it only contains aged white burley, with a hint of chocolate flavoring. Could the recipe have changed?
Hello again Bradley! Another excellent review. I too like my tobacco as pure and unadulterated as possible... well, most of the time anyway... How would you compare the flavor of this blend with Haunted Bookshop? I know this may be sacrilegious to some, but I'm not a big fan of Haunted Bookshop... I find it to be a tad harsh and the flavor kind of blah. I guess I tend to prefer latakia blends the most, so maybe I'm a little biased. Hope all is well. Take care! -Jim
Stuff&Things Like you, my wife is a former cigarette smoker and is therefore also very sensitive to the smell of any pipe tobacco that reminds her of cigarettes. She's never really complains about my tobacco too much (except when she says my latakia blends smell like skunk butt, lol.) After I smoked Haunted Bookshop (in my 1984 Peterson Mark Twain no less), she complained that our house smelled like cigarettes. Not a happy camper... I was worried that I'd come home day to find my Mark Twain MIA. Thankfully, that has not yet come to pass, as the lingering order of burly seems to have dissipated of late. Ever since that unpleasantness, I have tended to steer clear of burly blends... :-) -Jim
Of course , the snuff wouldn't be enjoyable because it lacks the 'smoking' itself , and pipes has a lot to excel than cigars , Flavors , rituals , etc. thanks for the replies ! I'll buy my first pipe pretty soon and I'll need your help then :)
pretty new to pipes.. can I get any of these $10 tins in bulk. these tins ste expensive! can you please explain to me why they are so much more money then most pipe tobaccos?
As someone who did start out my burley blend experience with solani ABF, and enjoyed it, I'm curious to try a quintessential burley blend to compare. Any thoughts on what that blend might be?
Thanks for this review, Bradley. I am a new pipe smoker and I'd like to try some burley blends. Unfortunately, I know nothing about them and I just don't know where to start... I wonder if you could point me in the right direction here - towards one of those ``quintessential`` burleys you mentionned a couple time in this video, perhaps? Have a nice day, - Mike.
+Michaël Claveau - C&D Haunted Bookshop is often sighted as a great burley blend that tastes very "typical" of the genre. I love Solani Aged Burley Flake and Peterson Irish Flake. The Peterson blend is probably a bit more illustrative of burley than the Solani is.
I actually believe 99.9 percent of all Burley is flavored in some way. It has to be otherwise it would have almost no flavor for people who don't like it. It's also a tad harsh for the uninitiated. I think the most popular flavorings are cocoa, and or a very light liquorice, and molasses. These flavors seem to compliment the natural earthy qualities inherent in the leaf.
+Matthew Gabbard - I think you're right. This tobacco probably does have SOME flavoring added, but it does a very good job of not TASTING like it does.
+Stuff&Things yeah it's definitely a good one. I don't know if I like it or the Wessex better. It's about the time of year for Burly, I think I should order a tin. Take care man.
Hi Bradley, I'm a fan of you channel live in Bangkok Thailand love your tobacco review. My duaghter visit Seattle quite often I want her to purchase some tobacco from tobacco shop outside Washington (try to save cost). I've tried Pipesandcigars.com but every tobacco I pick all has shipping restriction "will not ship to Washington". Where do you order your tobacco from outside Washington and they could ship them to you in Seattle? Thank you , Peter
look here for additives (german language, sry) service.bmelv.de/tabakerzeugnisse/index2.php?detail_id=104712&site_key=153&stichw_suche=solani&zeilenzahl_zaehler=14
Damenbartable - I took a look. I have to say I'm impressed. Most other blends I've looked at have a very long list of additives. ABF had very little indeed.
