A new holiday blend for 2018....
PappyJoe
Master
in Tobacco Talk
Apparently Cornell & Diehl couldn't contain themselves.....
Comments
I love Seasonal Blends and even though I've been cutting back on tobacco purchases ... this looks like something I'd like in my cellar for the holiday season.
You asked for my review of Jolly Old St. Nicholas in another thread...
I've only had the opportunity to smoke four bowls of it so far and I like it. I'm a big fan of Rattray's Exotic Passion (formerly known as Exotic Orange) and Jolly Old St. Nick is similar to it.
If I believed that tobacco companies buy something that is selling well and basically experiment until they come up with something close, I would say that's what C&D did. But I don't believe that. Besides there are some striking differences to my nose.
When I open a jar of Exotic Orange and inhale deeply, I smell orange peeled that has been candied is orange blossom honey and then I pick up other fruit flavors like the mango. It has always been an enjoyable smoke and one the wife likes the smell of, so that's a plus. When I smoke it, I get the honey and the orange up front and with the mango becoming more pronounced near the end of the bowl.
When I open my tin of Jolly Old St. Nick (I'll probably smoke the tin before it dries out.) I get an aroma which is more like the aroma of warmed Grand Marnier and candied ginger.
Just the tin note takes me back 40 years to when I was stationed on the Washington coast. There was a cocktail lounge I would go to on winter nights and sit around a huge round fire pit with my pipe and sip a warm brandy snifter of Grand Marnier. When I smoke it, I first get the orange and the ginger and it pretty much stays until the bottom of the bowl. The citrusy notes of the golden virginia tobacco balance nicely with the flavoring and the touch of perique serves to bolster the spiciness of the ginger.
@PappyJoe Been wanting to try Exotic Orange for some time but haven't been able to find it - so now that you've described Jolly Old Saint Nick in a favorable way to Exotic Orange I ended up ordering two tins. I enjoy having Holiday blends, and this looks to be a good one.
Just got my order in and had a bowl and find it a fantastic blend. Unlike the Sutliff aromatic blends which are sweet and flavorful "Jolly Old Saint Nick" is an aromatic blend that has more of a tobacco flavor. Any toppings are well in the distance, and as a result would appeal to those who don't usually smoke aromatic blends.
Wait. You ordinarily are not looking for tobacco flavor, neh?
@PappyJoe
@KA9FFJ
Alright you guys all piqued my interest. My tin is due in this week. Can't wait to give it a whirl.