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Favorite LOTR Themed Tobacco?

I am finding more and more LOTR themed tobaccos as I dig deeper into the world wide interwebs. So far, I think Shortcut to Mushrooms from Just For Him is my favorite, but other than the Country Squire Middle Earth series I haven't tried all that many. Anyone have a favorite LOTR blend? Know of any that may not be so 'common knowledge'?
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Comments

  • @Jaynaff, there are a lot of versions of "Old Toby" out there, but not sure about the availability.  Country Squire has Bag End, Old Toby, Rivendale, and Green Dragon (my favorite).  They are all good. I tried Shortcut to Mushrooms and the others offered by Just for Him, but they didn't strike me as unusual in any way.  I will look for some links to post.
  • Technically the Frogmorton series are LOTR blends. 
  • You are correct (again), @PappyJoe.  Here is a link to an article about LOTR-inspired tobaccos, a lot of which are made by McClelland's.
    http://www.tobaccopipes.com/blog/mcclelland-craftsbury-pipe-tobaccos/

  • I had an aromatic that was very good called "Gandalf that was a gift from a friend. The blender may have been named "Middle Earth", it is long gone.
  • Go4BrokeGo4Broke Enthusiast

    Vauen has a series of tobaccos called "Auenland - The Shire" that are LOTR inspired.  They have been on my wish list, but I haven't gotten around to ordering any of them.  I would be interested to hear anyone's thoughts on the blends from those who have tried them. 

  • I had a tin of Auenland the Shire a while back @Go4Broke - but I don't recall which of the three it was. I do remember not being very impressed. It tasted like a pretty typical generic vanilla aro to me. 
  • I've had Rivendale, Bag End, Old Toby, Second Breakfast and Green Dragon from TCS and all are good my favorite would be Green Dragon.  I'm a little concerned that the McClelland 5100 being discontinued might affect this blend.
  • Go4BrokeGo4Broke Enthusiast
    @Jaynaff thanks for the input. I've had some Vauen blends I really like, and others I could take or leave.  As far as my LOTR favorites, I would have to agree with @Darmon and go with Second Breakfast and Green Dragon from TSC, and the Frogmorten series as @PappyJoe pointed out.
  • just checked the site, the country squire is out of stock of green dragon.  i have no idea if this is permanent, are you sure it has 5100 in it? i have 2 ounces of green dragon left.  im going to have to save it for special occasions only!
  • Just bought some Virginia Woods from tobaccopipes.com.
  • I think I will make this my next on-going project. That is, acquiring as many LOTR themed blends as I can afford throughout the year. Thanks guys for the inspiration...
  • @KA9FFJ second breakfast, green dragon, bag end, all the frog morton blends.  wise move man, theyre all gold!
  • @TaylorJDutton Well, here's the way I look at it. Having read the Silmarillion twice, The Hobbit more times than I can count, and ditto for the Trilogy, I really owe it to myself to smoke weed from Middle Earth...
  • @KA9FFJ that you do! im still working through the trilogy, its my favorite time to smoke my pipe.  do you have a favorite LOTR blend so far?
  • @TaylorJDutton No. After smoking a pipe for almost 50 years, I'm pulling out the stops and acquiring as many different blends as I can. Up until now, I have mainly been a Black Cavendish, Vanilla, Rum and Cherry guy ( heavy on the Cavendish)... Here's an example of what I've been doing since December...
  • @TaylorJDutton Almost midnight here (St. Louis area). Hitting the sack. Catch you later...
  • @KA9FFJ I hope to join you in the 50 year club someday, props to you for that! also, looks like you've got quite a variety there, i bet those whiskey blends are delicious! also, i cant even imagine what the grape blend is like, i've just entered the aromatic world myself, before i really got into the hobby i only ever had frog morton, which is one of my favorites.   but i too am a van of vanilla aromatics, second breakfast will probably catch your eye as it is vanilla maple, with cavendish and virginias.  it really lives up to the name, its my favorite early morning smoke.  
  • @TaylorJDutton Thanks for the tip on Second Breakfast. Probably try it first...
  • @TaylorJDutton no I don’t know if Green Dragon has 5100 in it, i’m Just guessing that it might since it’s a Virginia blend.  I hope that it’s not a component of the blend, or if it is that Jon David can figure out something to keep this blend going.  
  • @TaylorJDutton, yes Green Dragon will be affected. Hopefully not much.
  • Is Second Breakfast blend the only aro among the LOTR based blends?
  • @KA9FFJ, Rivendell and Old Toby by Country Squire are both aromatics.
  • Thanks @mfresa Where do you purchase your LOTR blends?
  • mseddonmseddon Professor
    I'll second the votes for Second Breakfast from The Country Squire.
  • I was going to refrain from sharing this but my favorite LoTR blend was Shortcut to Mushrooms by the Just for Him Tobacconist located in Springfield MO. It was one of the best English blends I have tried, however it seems production on it has ended.  :'(
  • @PhilosoPiper wish i couldve tried it! what was it?   

    @KA9FFJ i suppose the frog morton series is considered a hybrid, frog morton cellar is stored in whiskey barrels to add some whiskey flavoring
  • @KA9FFJ Rivendell and Old Toby are Country Squire blends.  I think their website is:
    http://thecountrysquireonline.com/
  • @TaylorJDutton @mfresa Thanks guys for filling me in. Always appreciated...
  • By the by.....

    Hidden Wonders of the Digital World: Lord of The Rings Online

    BY ERIC GRUNDHAUSER 
    SEPTEMBER 18, 2015

    VISITING MIDDLE EARTH IS EVERY fantasy fan’s (sometimes literal) dream. To J.R.R. Tolkien, the setting and cartography of his fantasy world was as important as any of the characters—and his locations, like blasted Mordor or the idyllic Shire, have become the inspiration for just about every fantasy tale ever since, not to mention a number of direct translations of the books to movies, radio, comics, and just about every other medium including video games.

    So when a game company called Turbine, Inc. released The Lord of the Rings Online(LOTRO), an open-world game that set out to create a living Middle Earth, it was no small task. They also had to do so without rights to the films or other media based on, or related to J.R.R. Tolkien’s seminal works of fantasy—no visions of Frodo’s hobbit house from the movies, or a Gandalf that looked like Ian McKellen. Their source material had to be the text of the the novels and their own designs.

    Somehow, though, those limitations have made LOTRO one of the most faithful visions of Tolkien’s world.

    The game launched in 2007 as The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar, although the latter part of the name was later dropped, and now it is simply known as The Lord of the Rings Online. An MMORPG in the vein of World of Warcraft, LOTRO received strong initial reviews that rightfully praised the title for how faithful the world was to Tolkien’s work. It even garnered a few Game of the Year honors from sites like Gamespy and MMORG.com.

    Success was fleeting, however. Despite a huge boost in both membership and revenue when they moved from a subscription-based model to a free-to-play system in 2010, over the last five years, Turbine’s Middle Earth has become less and less crowded. Turbine is tight lipped about their exact number of registered users (they declined to comment on the question for this piece), but in 2015 they closed down 19 of their servers.

  • Even If They Come From Lothlórien (Cornell & Diehl Berries & Cream in a McQueen Wizard Churchwarden) 

    Erin McRoy / May 25, 2014

    Even though my tobacco arrived on Tuesday, I spent a few days curled up with my Cornell & Diehl Byzantium before moving on to the aromatics.  So I didn’t get around to writing this review until Sunday, and then was met with the choices of which tobacco to review.  Well, I only have one Churchwarden it happened to be Churchwarden Sunday.  Being a McQueen Wizard Churchwarden, I reserve it for the sweetest of aromatics, and good hobbit pipeweed, so I pulled out my three aromatic blends to compare them.

              The bag note of the Berries and Cream is so sweet that I can hardly believe it is tobacco. The tobacco is a Black Cavendish and Burley blend, topped with vanilla and blackberry brandy, and they did not skimp on the casing.  Being totally honest with you, I’m tired of trying to claim that I am neither a Cavendish nor a cased tobacco fan.  Lately, each time I try them, they prove me to be a liar, and I find myself enjoying them.  So, this time we’ll see…

                 Despite that, the tobacco is not too moist and has no need to be aired before packing in your pipe.  The Churchwarden loads easily, and I tamp it with a wooden tamper that came with the pipe. With my limited mobility, Churchwardens are difficult for me to light, but I always enjoy a good smoke from them. This is where the title comes in.  The room note of this tobacco is so pleasing, that it would impress your in-laws even if they came from Lothlórien.

              And the taste?  Well, let’s just say I can’t believe it’s tobacco.  It tastes like candy. I can sincerely see the elves of Rivendell importing tobaccos like this from Bree and other places in and around the Shire.  I wonder if this was what Tolkien was smoking as he put pen to paper to describe the various elven palaces in Middle Earth? The pipe, well, I love this particular Churchwarden to death, and it always gives me a good smoke, even if that smoke is always a dreaded aromatic.  And the tobacco?  Well, at least this time I’m not a liar.  I thoroughly enjoyed it, and look forward to the next bowl.

              The gurgle and the dottle were nowhere near as bad as I feared and the bowl smoked coolly with no need to re-light and not even a hint of tongue bite.  Smooth as Irish cream, and sweet as honey nectar. The only thing that I could say that could be considered bad about this tobacco is, it’s Cavendish and Burley!  In other words, though smooth and enjoyable, there’s no oomph, no power!  It just doesn’t satisfy that nicotine urge! But, if you’re not hoping for that nicotine rush, this tobacco is great, and I thoroughly recommend it.

               And if you’re someone who believes in fairies, be they Sidhe or Alfar, bogguns or dwarves, it can’t hurt to keep some around for offerings, and who knows?  Elrond went somewhere, maybe it was to your house.  It would be nice to greet him with a bowl for his pipe when he gets here wouldn’t it?

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