Mac Baren's blends and honey.

[puros_bran]

One of the illustrious brother, Psmith I think (sorry bro I can't remember names until you've posted 9,842 times, lol), made the comment that it's common knowledge that Mac Baren blends are honeyed.. I don't think I've I've ever got that but my experience is limited to Dark Roll Cake, Virginia #1, one of the burley blends... Gold something or ruther, and of course Navy Flake...

Is the consensus that all their stuff is honey'd? That would explain me enjoying the listed blends but it would also explain the dreaded MacB bite they are so very well known for.

 

[Richard Burley]

I don't know if it is actual honey, but the lip-smackin' taste and scent sure remind me of it.

 

[Ozark Wizard]

I have tried few Mac B's offerings, and the only one I can say MIGHT be 'honeyed' would be their Modern Virginia. Definitely something sweet there, remeniscient of bee spit.....

 

[DrumsAndBeer]

I have listened to a couple different Pipe Magazine Radio podcast interviews with Pers Jensen from Mac Baren, and he made reference to the use of a mild maple sugar casing in their products to add a very subtle sweetness and to dial in the room note, burn rate, etc..

 

[Ozark Wizard]

I have listened to a couple different Pipe Magazine Radio podcast interviews with Pers Jensen from Mac Baren, and he made reference to the use of a mild maple sugar casing in their products to add a very subtle sweetness and to dial in the room note, burn rate, etc..

Maple syrup............

Mmmmmmm, time for a waffle...

I could see that in their stuff.... At least the Modern VA.... Something tart though too..... But that could be the weed...

 

[puros_bran]

I can see where, when burnt, they could be confused for one another. Also that makes sense from the tongue bite perspective.

 

[juanmedusa]

Some of the blends by MacBaren I enjoy are likely without any honey IMO. Specifically, HH Acadian Perique, Old Dark Fired, Mac Baren made Savinelli Doblone D'Oro. The rest wouldn't surprise me.

 

[Psmith]

I was just being silly. Once again a well intentioned thread was morphing into talk of ketchup and old ladies panties.
Honestly I have only tried 4 MacBare blends and can say they all had a sweetness but no idea if was honey. Lots of reviews on TR allude to MacB topping with honey...that's where I got it from.

 

[puros_bran]

No, no.. It's something worth discussing. It's enlightened me to the maple syrup admission..

Information exchange is seldom a negative.

Also: tobacco reviews.. That explains why I had never heard the claim, I haven't paid much attention to tr.com in 5-6 years as opinion of a tobacco from someone I do not interact with regularly matters little to me.  I don't mean that hatefully, you may hate apples and I may love them..but if I don't know you hate apples your opinion of Granny Johnson brand applesauce is disinformation.

 

[Sloth]

No, no.. It's something worth discussing. It's enlightened me to the maple syrup admission..

Be careful, here. The conflation of "mild maple sugar casing" with maple syrup must not be allowed to take root.

 

[puros_bran]

Nah, it's full blown maple syrup.. Specifically Aunt Jemima. I've seen the 55 gallon drums shaped like little old ladies. It's true, it's on the Internet. :twisted:


Seriously though, You are right. I should have worded that better....But then again I'm a semi illiterate gimp on a pipe board, I doubt I'm quote worthy.

 

[Ozark Wizard]

Secrets tend to lead to speculation. We tend to fill gaps in our knowledge with our experience....

Sometimes our experience is lacking..

And yes, personal tastes heavily influence our inferences.

Perhaps someone knows a disgruntled employee from the blending houses that is willing to tip their hand?

 

[Anonymous]

I have tried a good many offerings from Mac Baren.

I do believe that this common Honey cased, or sugar, or maple, would have their Cavendish as an origin. A few examples that I have tried and found this common aroma would be: Navy Flake; Navy Mixture; Dark Twist; Scottish Mixture (and Mixture Flake); Symphony (whose tin aroma reminds me strongly of Dark Twist's); Club Blend; The Solent Mixture (but noit dominant as with the other ones); and Honey & Chocolate (err, obviously, eh?).

Now, from what I remember of the others I tried without the MB Cavendish, I have not detected the honey aroma.

 

[kaitlyn3837]

I love reading threads like this or pretty much anything in the tobacco jar! I love how your palates are all so refined. I can't wait to get there. In the meantime, I'm just like "Mmmmmmm, that's tasty!", but I can't pick out specific notes.

 

[DrumsAndBeer]

I have tried a good many offerings from Mac Baren.

I do believe that this common Honey cased, or sugar, or maple, would have their Cavendish as an origin. A few examples that I have tried and found this common aroma would be: Navy Flake; Navy Mixture; Dark Twist; Scottish Mixture (and Mixture Flake); Symphony (whose tin aroma reminds me strongly of Dark Twist's); Club Blend; The Solent Mixture (but noit dominant as with the other ones); and Honey & Chocolate (err, obviously, eh?).

Now, from what I remember of the others I tried without the MB Cavendish, I have not detected the honey aroma.

You might very well be correct about the Cavendish being the primary vehicle for the maple casing. Either that, or there's just a few specific blends that Mac Baren treats this way and they happen to contain the Cavendish. For instance, I have smoked a fair amount of Stockton, which is a roll cake with 100% dark fired center coins. If there's any casing at all, it's very light. Perhaps a diluted version of what they use on DT Roll Cake.

For reference, here's the expanded description of Dark Twist Roll Cake (one of my favorite smokes).

Whole leaves are used as wrapper for the rope and the inlay is divided into two groups. The first group contains 100% pure Virginia tobaccos, meaning that the whole leaves are used as wrapper leaves and the leaves with small imperfections are used as the inlay.

The second group contains whole Virginia leaves as wrapper and Dark Fired Kentucky as inlay, meaning you see the dark tobacco in the centre and the brighter Virginias around it.

After the tobaccos have been spun into ropes it is stored for weeks and then cut into small coins. The blend of Dark Twist is broken down as follows. For every 2 coins of Virginia tobacco there is 1 coin with a centre of Dark Fired Kentucky.

Like most of our spun tobaccos, water and maple sugar are boiled and added to the tobacco. This is all we add, so the taste is very natural with the interplay between the natural sweet Virginias and light sour and smoky flavour from the Dark Fired Kentucky perfectly blended to create a natural tobacco taste.

Notes: Introduced in 1955.

 

[Anonymous]

@Drumsandbeers: Right; thanks for the reminder on the Maple & sugar. I am not sure if it really contains DFK....or Stockton, for that matter. I really can't make it out in either of them.

As you're mentionning Dark Twist, my position is that it really kicks some serious ass big time. It's one of my favorite VAs. I also think it's one of the most underated VA blends on the market, IMHO. Personally, I have found it way better and flavourful than highly seeked after blends such as Hamborger Veermaster, Wessex Dark Flake or F & T's Cut Virginia Plug.

 

[juanmedusa]

The wessex I've had but the other two I have in tins and can't justify opening until I work through my open stuff. But now I'm eager to try them with this in mind.

 

[Puff Daddy]

Well this thread got me going. I have a couple of large jars full of Dark Twist Roll Cake from 2012 that I haven't cracked. Just cracked one and filled a pair of pipes for tomorrow morning. I almost lit one immediately, but I just finished a bowl of Conniston plug and most tobaccos would be totally lost after smoking that stuff :drunken:

 

[TheBigSmoke]

As you're mentionning Dark Twist, my position is that it really kicks some serious ass big time. It's one of my favorite VAs. I also think it's one of the most underated VA blends on the market, IMHO. Personally, I have found it way better and flavourful than highly seeked after blends such as Hamborger Veermaster, Wessex Dark Flake or F & T's Cut Virginia Plug.

I think I found my first new pipe tobacco to purchase... I can actually find this in Canada too

Any ideas on how many of the average bowls you can get out of 100 gram $58 tin? That's the price of 2 to 3 Rocky Patel cigars

 

[juanmedusa]

As you're mentionning Dark Twist, my position is that it really kicks some serious ass big time. It's one of my favorite VAs. I also think it's one of the most underated VA blends on the market, IMHO. Personally, I have found it way better and flavourful than highly seeked after blends such as Hamborger Veermaster, Wessex Dark Flake or F & T's Cut Virginia Plug.

I think I found my first new pipe tobacco to purchase... I can actually find this in Canada too

Any ideas on how many of the average bowls you can get out of 100 gram $58 tin? That's the price of 2 to 3 Rocky Patel cigars

Whoa, good question. I've never really paid attention. I also have more than one tin open at a time so it's not super obvious in my defense. I'm going to say twenty. Maybe more. That would be 5 grams a bowl. Which would mean 10 smokes from a 50 gram tin. It's definitely way more than 3. That you can count on.