On the Pipe Smoker’s Forum for July and August we’re reviewing a couple of oriental-heavy tobaccos, so I decided to throw in my own review of the first blend and tell the world what I think about it.

I cracked open a 50g tin of William P. Solomon’s Presbyterian Mixture, a blend created before World War I by the Very Reverend Dr. John White. The 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley liked the mixture so much he suggested the blend to be named the Presbyterian Mixture in the reverend’s honor. It is still made today and is a staple English blend for many pipe smokers.

The blend consists of Virginia and “high-quality Macedonian grade” tobaccos. The “Macedonian grade” tobaccos are oriental and latakia.

Opening the tin the first thing you notice is the smell. It has the deep smokiness of latakia and the scent of leather and sandalwood. It is a very comforting and pleasing aroma. The tobacco itself is packaged inside a plastic bag in the tin, keeping it very moist. In fact, some people prefer to let it dry a bit before smoking as they find the moistness too much.

I didn’t have any trouble packing and lighting the Presbyterian. There’s an interesting change in flavor when you smoke it: You don’t get a lot of latakia in the taste, but instead you experience the spiciness of the orientals, with a barely-perceptible latakia smokiness.

The tobacco is quite mild, and the room note contains a lot of oriental and latakia. If you’re smoking around people not used to these tobaccos, they might not enjoy it but for a dedicated pipe smoker it is quite tolerable. It smokes down to a fine ash and didn’t leave a lot of moisture in the bowl. There was no real tongue bite, nor did it kick me in the face with nicotine. 

I was hoping to be wowed by the latakia in this blend, being a fan of that particular type of tobacco. However, I was disappointed that the tobacco smell didn’t carry over to the taste. The Presbyterian Mixture is pretty solid, though, but doesn’t really stand out as anything super special. It’s a good staple for your cellar, but not something to wow people with.

On a scale of 1-10, I give the Presbyterian Mixture a solid 7.