Latakia / English Tobacco » Captain Earle's Ten Russians Tobacco Reviews

Latakia, Latakia, Latakia

This tobacco is relatively fresh. It is from the later part of 2010.

The tin aroma is smoky, earthy, and sweet with a hint of tanginess. The moisture level is perfect for smoking right out of the tin. I shaved off some of the tobacco with a knife and rubbed it out.

From the start there are heavy notes of wood, earth, and smokiness with a backbone of sweetness. They appear to my palate in that exact order.

The woodiness is the strongest flavor and it reminds me of the taste that I get when I chew on a toothpick for too long, except this flavor is stronger and more of an aromatic woodiness flavor.

The earthiness is kind of musty and invokes images of wet leaves and moss slowly smoldering and emitting light wisps of smoke.

The smokiness in this blend is lighter to me than most other Latakia blends, but it is definitely there and is very noticeable. It reminds me of a nice camp fire.

The sweetness is the backbone to this blend and ties it all together and mellows it out a bit. I also detect some very faint hints of black coffee every once in awhile. It is very hard to detect and if you are not looking for it, you will probably miss them.

Around the mid-bowl point I detected very light hints of a BBQ flavor, but they did not last very long. At the same time, the flavors that I have previously described are still there, but they have mellowed out quite a bit and are not as strong as they were earlier. This change in flavor lasted until the end of the bowl.

This is a very good blend that is heavy on the Latakia. This is a full bodies blend that packs a little bit of a punch in the nicotine department. It smokes slow, cool, dry, and doesn't bite. If you do not like Latakia, this blend is definitely not for you. Even if you do like Latakia and are a casual smoker of Latakia blends, Ten Russians still might not be for you. However, if you like Latakia bombs and can't get enough of it; then this will probably be right up your alley.

I Recommend it.

"A Sea Whale of a Smoke" Indeed

The first thing that strikes me upon opening the tin is the visual beauty of the Crumble Cake. It honestly looks good enough to eat, with a nice blend of dark browns, tans, and blacks - something akin to a dark chocolate brownie. The tin note definitely reveals the high latakia content in this blend, but hidden amongst the smokiness are hints of leather, peat, creosote, wet earth, leaves, and the slightest hints of spice.

The Cake slices and crumbles very easily, leaving one with a fairly fine cut - I find it's usually a touch on the moist side for my liking, and benefits from ten to twenty minutes of airing time. Packs easily, and takes a flame wonderfully.

On the charring light, the first thing I notice is Latakia. And nothing else. It really overwhelms, although that isn't a bad thing in this case - the smoke is smooth and creamy, and leaves one (or, me at least) wanting more. The after taste on the palate reveals the spiciness of the Oriental leaf, with an almost camphor-like undertone.

With the true light, the full impact (I hesitate to use the word complex, because this blend is about as complex as a kick to the boys) of this blend comes forth. Certainly the campfire-esque Latakia is the foremost flavour to be found, however it never overwhelms, but rather stays smooth throughout. I can also detect notes of fruit and spice, from the Va's and Orientals, although these are fleeting, and oft hide behind the pure Latakia flavour.

As the bowl progresses through the halfway point, I find the sweetness of this blend really begins to come forth, which really seems to allow the aforementioned flavours to mellow and mingle into something truly wonderful. This remains for me though the end of the bowl - in fact, this is one of the few blends I can say that I do smoke down to the heel time and time again; relighting to ensure every scrap of tobacco is burned - it's that tasty.

WARNING: This tobacco is not for the faint of heart. It needs to be smoked slowly, not because it will bite you, but because it can leave you reeling. The nicotine certainly there, and if you abuse it, it will abuse you.

This is a wonderful tobacco if you're looking for something latakia forward that packs a punch in the nicotine department, not for all day smoking, but a great way to end the evening. Highly recommended!

Compliments a peaty Scotch extremely well!