10 Aromatics to Try Before The End of the Year

Our previous list was about English Blends, and now we are going to tell you about ten aromatics that you should take a look at before the end of the year. Before we get to our list, some newcomers to the world of pipe tobacco might have a question: what is an aromatic?

An aromatic pipe tobacco is one that utilizes outside ingredients to add extra flavors and scents to the blend. This is done in two parts, first by spraying a combination of sugar and alcohol that penetrates the tobacco leaf, which is called a casing. A casing is not what gives an aromatic its flavor; it merely assists as a subtle hint of what could be, more as a way to adjust the natural flavors of the tobacco. There are plenty of non-aromatic blends that have a casing, but the aromatics use them as well; as the first ingredients.

The second is through the use of what is called a top note. Top notes are where the magic of aromatics comes to the forefront. While casings are added to the individual leaves, top notes are added to the blends themselves during the final stages of production.

There are a ton of different flavors to use for aromatics; fruits, candies, and alcohols. You might find plums, cherries, citrus fruits. Meanwhile, others will use vanilla, chocolate, and caramel. Whiskey and rum are also popular choices. The beauty comes in the combinations that are used to make the best flavor.

Just like cooking, if you want to highlight a flavor, you don't just use that one. There are accentuating and complementing pieces, the ones that will make the main flavor shine. Just like you use salt to bring out the most of a chocolate bar, some fig can emphasize a citrus top note.

Aromatic tobaccos are the most popular tobacco blends, especially among beginners, and by a large margin. It is no surprise, really, since the scents brought out by aromatics are more pleasing to other people, the ones that are not enjoying the bowl. Having a smoking session around non-smokers can be a tricky practice since you are trying to spend time with friends or family while not driving them away because of something they might not like. The benefits of aromatics come in that room note that they are much more pleasant to smell than non-aromatics, so you will have fewer complaints from those around you when you enjoy a bowl of tobacco.

Just like last week, we're going to list the tobaccos based on strength, from mild to medium, then strong. Also, note that none of these will be cherry aromatics. There are so many quality cherry tobaccos that a whole list of them will be coming later in the series. So without further ado, here are ten aromatic tobacco blends that you should try before the end of the year.

Mild

Mild tobaccos are great for enjoying any time of the day. They are not as harsh as the more potent blends of tobacco, so they will not be as likely to give you the problems that a strong tobacco can.

Sutliff 1M

When you are looking for an aromatic with a wonderful flavor and a pleasant aroma, Sutliff's 1M is an excellent option to select. When you decide to light up a bowl of this blend, you will be getting a smooth and mild smoking experience that will highlight the vanilla flavoring.

Sutliff 1M is made with a mixture of Burley, Virginia, and Black Cavendish tobaccos topped off with a secret recipe that makes for an excellent tobacco to enjoy for dessert or as an all-day smoke.

One great benefit of this blend is the size options available to you. There are three different sizes for you to choose from, and you get to enjoy it as much as you want based on how much you like it. If you are new to the blend, maybe getting the 1.5 ounce pouch is your best idea. That way, if you enjoy it, you can go larger with the eight and sixteen ounce bags available.

Cobblestone Indulge Vanilla Custard

A custard is a dessert treat made from a milk and egg combination. Some custards are creamy and pourable, while others are thicker and used as a filling. One popular addition to the regular custard recipe is vanilla, creating a delicious and fragrant dessert, which is what this tobacco blend emulates.

Cobblestone has quite a few excellent aromatic blends, and Vanilla Custard is one of their best. Made out of a combination of Burley, Virginia, and Black Cavendish tobaccos, the mixture is topped off with some vanilla flavoring to give you the aroma and taste that gives the blend its name. This will be a great tobacco to treat yourself to, especially if you have a sweet tooth.

Cobblestone is a brand with many great blends, including quite a few fantastic aromatics. They have something for everyone, so you can be sure to find a blend you will enjoy and appreciate with Cobblestone pipe tobacco.

Cobblestone Indulge Walnut Maple Pie

If you want something sweet and savory, this is the blend for you. A mixture of Burley and Virginia tobaccos, this features a top note of maple and nut, giving you a pleasant aroma to enjoy after dinner.

Sweet and nutty, this works perfectly thanks to the flavoring mixing well with the Burley tobaccos, which typically provide an earthy flavor all its own. When you are trying to have a certain flavor, going with a tobacco that also carries those notes will help accentuate and highlight that flavor.

Walnut maple pie is a sweet and savory dessert that will look great on every table, as long as you are not allergic to nuts, of course. The flavor of walnuts gets emphasized by the sweetness of the maple syrup, improving an already delicious treat. Cobblestone's creativity when it comes to crafting new and excellent blends really shines here since the flavor and aroma of this tobacco is an almost perfect match for the delicious dessert.

Sutliff Private Stock Molto Dolce

Molto Dolce is Italian for "Very Sweet," and that is an excellent description for this blend. A combination of Black Cavendish, Burley, and Virginia tobaccos is mixed with a top note of vanilla, caramel, and honey to create a highly popular and extra flavorful blend.

Sutliff's history is full of excellent blends worthy of your pipes. Since it was founded in 1849, Sutliff pipe tobacco has created American tobacco that earned rave reviews. Originally based in San Francisco, California, they later moved to Richmond, Virginia, to be closer to the tobacco growing operations.

Cornell & Diehl Autumn Evening

The best selling blend in the Cornell & Diehl catalog, the Autumn Evening blend is highly popular for a reason. A combination of Cavendish and Virginia tobaccos gets an added boost of flavorings to create an excellent dessert blend for you to enjoy.

This blend has a mild strength, but the sweet flavor can be more than some people enjoy. However, even the most negative of reviews love how this blend smells, so you know that you will be getting an excellent tobacco smoking experience whenever you pack a bowl with this blend.

Cobblestone Café Mocha Flake

The last of the Cobblestone blends on our list, Mocha Flake, gives you a great and thoroughly enjoyable smoking session each time you light up a bowl. A combination of Burley, Oriental/Turkish, and Virginia tobaccos, this blend gets combined with a Dutch topping and then pressed into a flake cut to ensure all the flavors mix together. The toppings give you a coffee and cocoa flavor, which mixes well with the woody and lightly spicy Turkish and Burley tobaccos. You will have a consistent experience through the entire bowl, and the mild strength will allow it to be a more consistent smoke than some of the stronger blends.

Medium

Medium strength blends are a great strength for many smokers moving past their first tobaccos. There's nothing wrong with staying with mild blends, but sometimes you just want a little more punch, and a medium strength will provide that without being overpowering like a strong tobacco can be.

Cornell & Diehl Apricots & Cream

Black Cavendish and Burley tobaccos combine with apricot brandy and vanilla cream flavoring to create this popular and comfortable blend. Thanks to the Burley tobacco, there is also a hint of nut and earthy flavors to the tobacco.

Apricots and cream is a great and sometimes underrated combination. Grilling apricots and serving them with a sweet cream is a great dessert option for warm summer evenings. Having a great smelling and tasting tobacco with the same flavor as these excellent dessert options will work wonders for when you want a smooth smoke while you relax during those same summer nights.

Cornell & Diehl is an excellent company that uses the experience of the brands that came before them to create blends that get universally recognized for their quality. When you pick up something from them, you are getting a great tobacco, something that will keep you satisfied every time you light a bowl.

Sutliff Queen Anne's Revenge

Sutliff is a major producer of pipe tobacco, with almost 200 years of experience in creating blends that people love. With all those years of experience, they were able to create a massive catalog, garnering rave reviews with almost every blend they manufacture. Of those, one of the more well received is their Queen Anne's Revenge pipe tobacco.

Medium strengthed, you will get a nice hit of the rum flavoring with this blend; Sutliff created it with a mixture of Black Cavendish, Burley, and Virginia tobaccos. You will have a rich rum flavoring and aroma with this blend. Some more good news about this blend is if you love it, you will be able to get as much of it as you want since Sutliff releases it in bulk packages.

Rattray's Wallace Flake

1903 saw Charles Rattray open up a pipe tobacco shop in Perth, Scotland. His skillful blending made it that people went out of their way to visit his store, expanding his business quickly. While Rattray's is now known more for their smoking pipes than their tobacco, you can still get a quality blend from them.

One such blend is this Wallace Flake. Made out of a combination of Orientals along with golden and dark brown Virginia tobaccos, the top note of plum and other fruits mix with the natural aroma of the tobacco to create a pleasant smelling blend, citrus and fruity, with earthen undertones. It is always a great experience when you can enjoy the taste and smell of your tobacco, and Wallace Flake does precisely that. Remember to pick up a Rattray's tobacco pipe to pair with this wonderful blend for the purest experience.

Strong

Strong tobaccos are not for beginners. If you are not prepared for a strong blend, it can overwhelm you. There's not a lot of things worse than sitting down to enjoy a bowl of great tobacco only to have it be too much for you and wasting a smoking session. Strong tobacco blends are something people work up to, and they are not for everyone. If you are looking for a more powerful blend than something mild or medium, this is it for you.

Peterson The Royal Yacht

Originally produced by Dunhill, Peterson's "Royal Yacht" is a classic blend, something that works wonderfully as an evening smoke. This is a luxury smoke, befitting the name. It is entirely a combination of Virginia tobaccos, with flavored toppings that create a great tin note and better room note. Thanks to the toppings, you will pick up hints of citrus and plum, flavoring that should not wane at any point of your smoking session.

Dunhill pipe tobacco has a legendary history, dating back to the early 1900s when Alfred Dunhill began creating blends based on his customers' desires. They had nearly 37,000 different blends at Dunhill's peak, all noted in the famous Dunhill "My Mixture" book. However, all good things must come to an end, and production on the Dunhill tobaccos stopped in 2017. It almost was the end of the line, but two years later, Peterson stepped in and acquired the rights to the recipes. Thanks to Peterson, we can appreciate tobacco blends that have thrilled and satisfied pipe smokers for over 100 years.

Next list: Virginia blends to try