Hearth and Home Reviews

1. Daybreak
Supposedly this was inspired by Early Morning Pipe, which was both the first English blend I ever smoked, but is also a regular staple in my rotation. It’s my opinion that Russ can achieve about anything he sets out to do, so while this wasn’t supposed to be a match, my expectations were high for it. The cut is a little broader ribbon than EMP, but the smell is remarkably similar. The Latakia is there, but offers more of a muted smokiness compared to bolder blends. There is a mild sweetness peeking through and the consistency is spot on. I smoked this in a Big Ben 702. This was milder than EMP with the Latakia missing some of the spice. The Virginias had notes of exceptionally sweet hay and the Oriental blends just provided a third layer of pleasant nuance. The closest description I can give is that this is like a tin of 5+ year old EMP- softer, slightly sweeter, and very nice! This is about as good an AM smoke as you will come across! A


2. 10 to Midnight
This was one of the more unusual crumble cakes I have encountered. It didn’t flake like one of my favorite burley cakes, but instead, literally crumbled. I was gentle and so everything ended up in pieces that were manageable for my pipe. The scent on the plate was lighter on smokiness from the Latakia, and I found it to be particularly sweet and mild. I smoked out of a Dr. Grabow straight, smooth Golden Duke. This was a great smoke! It is possibly the mildest English blend I’ve ever smoked, but I found it to be quite enjoyable. Behind the light nuances of Latakia I found delightful flavours like similar to plum and honey wheat bread. It was sort of like a pastry baked over a camp fire. It burned well after a couple tries to get it going, and it left behind a very fine white ash. Overall- though the consistency and prep was a bit uncommon to me, the smoking experience was well worth it. A+


3. Caramel Apple Pie
The apple is the most notable smell coming out the tin with this one. It is sweeter than something like Middleton’s Apple, and you can also catch whiffs of the cinnamon. The consistency is good and it packs nicely. I was excited to smoke this because apple is one of those niche toppings for aromatics that are great when done well, but can also crash and burn pretty hard. I smoked out of a Graco Ocean. This one turned out to be true to its name. The blend came together to strongly resemble a fresh baked apple pie- and I even though there were some notes of caramel and vanilla from the Cavendish that made it taste as if it were served a la mode The apple and cinnamon flavor was there from the beginning, but towards the second half of the bowl the burley seemed to add the sweet, toasty crusty aspect to the mix. It burned well, if not perhaps a spot wet, and gave off a pleasant room note. I’ll give this one a B+


4. Stogie
I was a bit intrigued by this one because I’ve only recently become interested in the use of cigar leaf in pipe tobacco blends. I’m a huge fan of maduro wrappers, so the inclusion of that in Stogie seemed promising. Honestly, the blends smelled pretty unimpressive on the plate- moderately sweet, some Virginia hay notes, and a bit of cocoa like backdrop from either the burley or the maduro (or perhaps both). The consistency was good and it packed nicely in my Great Dane MM cob. This was a hard blend for me to pick through- after smoking it I read the ingredients and it is as if everything but the kitchen sink is included (Black Cavendish, Burley, Cigar Leaf, Oriental/Turkish, Perique, Virginia). I found it to be medium strength, with the biggest notes seeming to come from the Virginias. In the second half of the bowl I think the cigar leaf stood out more, offering a stout, but bittersweet contribution. The sweetest note came towards the very end and seemed to be of a Cavendish variety. I thought it was a complex blend that was balanced nicely- but the flavor profile just wasn’t in my wheelhouse. It didn’t treat me wrong though and I think it would be a good starter blend for someone coming over to the pipe side from cigars. Overall: C+


5. Grandma’s Kitchen
Finally, my favorite of the five when it comes to the name I was a bit surprised that this didn’t smell sweeter- like all kinds of dessert delicacies, but in reality it is quite balanced and very yummy smelling in its own right. I smelled vanilla, sweet almond, and a bit of caramel with splashes of cocoa coming through from the burley. I smoked it in a briar Yello-Bole Imperial. My first impression was chocolate nuttiness that I’m assuming comes from the burley. This married well with a faint vanilla, notes of cinnamon, and a molasses like sweetness. It burned well and stayed cool. Overall, a nice aro that isn’t overly sweet or biting- B