So, nothing really special but still a hand-rolled cigar. It was in the 'discount' bin near the counter with other cigars priced at $2 each. The cigar given to me was purchased in a typical retail tobacco store specializing in cigars. In fact, let me relate my experience with a Don Thomass cigar given to me in a 'herf' many years ago. I could, and will in due time, relate some truly mind-blowing cigars I have smoked over the years. I can remember a few cigars, out of the many I have smoked and enjoyed over many years, the ones that really stand out in my mind, were the hand rolled ones that had NO flavors added or introduced into the tobacco. In other words, let the tobacco taste come through instead of obscuring it with an introduced flavor. Reading through your post I would also tend toward the non-flavored blends. I should add that a small amount of Black Cavendish added to lighter-colored tobaccos improves the visual appeal of the blend. Brown Cavendish holds its own better against mature Virginia and Perique, though it contributes more of its own flavor than would Black Cavendish. Latakia, which is a notoriously poor-burner (as are most darkly fired varieties), can be blended with 25% Black Cavendish to yield an eye-opening 75% Latakia that burns well, and still looks like all black tobacco.īy steaming the leaf for a shorter period (like 4 hours), you end up with brown Cavendish, a fruitier, somewhat stronger blender that shows up as the base for a number of Rattray's non-Latakia blends, such as Highland Targe. Since BC usually burns well, it can be helpful if added to slow-burners. The Black Cavendish can go into any of them to calm it down or smooth it out. Having a wide variety of tobaccos on hand can make blending experimentation a lot of fun. My preference in pipe tobacco is English and Balkan style blends (no non-tobacco flavorings added). Each will lend its own attributes to the final product. Maryland tobaccos are famous for their absorptive capacity as well as their mildness and low nicotine. I chose some of BigBonner's excellent air-cured Maryland 609 for this batch. Your homemade Black Cavendish will have none, unless you choose to flavor it. Flavorings and humectants, almost without exception, increase tongue bite. Most commercial Black Cavendish is flavored (often with vanilla), and usually contains propylene glycol and glycerin, both used as humectants (so it feels fresh forever-like a Twinkie).
The difference between homemade Black Cavendish and the Black Cavendish that you can purchase at a tobacconist rests in the additives (and perhaps the quality of the tobacco). What makes Black Cavendish is prolonged steaming. Smoked straight and without added flavor, it is likely the mildest, bite-free pipe tobacco that you will ever taste. Unflavored, it also makes a wonderful blender when mixed with stronger tobaccos. Black Cavendish is notable for its ability to readily absorb added flavors for aromatic blends. Black Cavendish is a style of tobacco processing that produces a mild, very dark tobacco, that can be used for pipe blending.