It is an interesting pipe-pedant argument. I've seen claim that anything with non-tobacco added to a blend is considered an aro, but I don't agree with that. YMMV. I don't consider Lakeland blends aros, nor do I think of alcohol added blends aros either, although I know many who view the latter as such.

A lot of the controversy is probably due to so many aros being such to mask low quality leaf - like heavy cavendish blends that rely on flavoring to get anything going. It is too bad really, because some aros number among my favorite blends. I love Nutty Cut and Uni Flake, and Dan Tobacco aros are sublime.