Jim's HU Tobacco Reviews

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JimInks

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Here are my reviews for the HU tobaccos I have tried. Blender Hans Weidemann has created many well made, and a number of extra-ordinary blends. I hope some day they'll be available in the US. As of now you can only get them from Germany. http://www.hu-tobacco.de/

Bahia Orange:
The orange flavor immediately presents itself at first light in a mild to medium way. It's always noticeable, but never dominates the show.After a few puffs, the dark chocolate called out to my taste buds in a very pleasing, but delicately mild whisper. The chocolate gets even more subtle as you go along, but you always feel it's there. Burns slowly, even and leaves no dottle.

Director's Cut:
I'm not comparing this to the Vaper Bell's Three Nuns, but there have been times as I've smoked a bowl that I got a sense of that flavor. I think there's a little more perique and certainly more burley here than either the old or new Three Nuns. This is also a stronger smoke with more variety of flavors, all of which are amazingly wonderful. The perique is spicy and raisin/fig-like, so it's very complimentary without dominating the other tobaccos. The Kentucky is a tasty presence, at just the right amount to notice. Depending on how you stack the tobacco in the bowl, the flavor will change as you smoke it down. Sweet, spicy and a little sour at various times from puff to puff, there's not a weak or bad puff ever. Because it is very complex, the bigger the bowl you smoke it in, the more you will value the experience. One of the many things I really enjoy is that this has a full rounded smoke and doesn't overwhelm you any. I sure wish it was available for sale in the US. One of the best tobacco mixtures I've ever smoked.

Dockworker:
The spicy Malawi burley is top notch, and is chocolatey and slightly nutty with some earthiness. There's more spice from the Orientals that amps up the flavor with a touch of Turkish lingering in the back ground. The Virginia plays a back up role, but I get a hint of citrus and grass from it. The description say there's no topping, but I taste berries and fruit along with the chocolate. The flake breaks apart rather easily, burns slow, even and well with hardly a relight, and as is the case with most HU blends, leave almost no moisture. Almost sweet enough to be an aromatic, but it never crosses the line, and has enough going for it to please almost any smoker.

Edward G.:
This is a coin cut and loose broken flake mixture. I think it does taste a lot like Director's Cut, and agree with Steel Cowboy that the coins are the same as DC's coins. If there's any flavoring added, I sure don't notice it. This is a little more sweet and sour than DC is, with maybe a little more tartness and malt, too. The perique is noticeable is a good way, and adds nice spice and plum/raisin notes to the Kentucky and Virginias. Depending upon how you break up the coins (if you do), and add the broken flake, the flavors can change as you smoke down the bowl. I like that very much, though I prefer to stack the coins with some loose broken flake at the top and bottom.
I don't know why they named this after Edward G. Robinson, but it's nothing like the American version, which is mildly aromatic. It doesn't matter. This is a great mixture with enough strength to please without over taxing your senses.

Fayyum Kake:
A rich, full bodied English, creamy and smooth from start to finish. The Cyprian latakia is smokey sweet, and boldly takes the lead without turning this blend into a latakia-bomb. The black cavendish adds a mellow sweetness with no vanilla. The Kentucky is slightly spicy, and full of the flavors you expect as it plays back up with a hint of cocoa. The Virginia is naturally sweet and earthy, setting the stage for the other ingredients. The cake itself is a little moist and breaks apart with ease. Not a harsh note to be found, it burns well and smoother than your average English. It does leave a slight moisture in the bottom at the finish if you don't dry it just a little, but it's not goopy or unpleasant. A perfect evening blend that even less experienced smokers in this genre will enjoy.


Flanagan:
The boldness of the dark fired Kentucky merges with the spicy Orientals and a light addition of perique to create a tasty, tingly, mildly sweet, fairly earthy flavor. The earthy sweetness comes from the various Virginias, which is also naturally sweet. The Kentucky is woodsy and a bit smokey with spice. I get a hint of nuttiness at times, too. It's fairly consistent in taste, though at times, the spice is more prominent than other times. Burns even, slow and dry with no harshness. If you like spicy blends that have strength and some complexity, but won't knock you off your feet, you'll find this an enjoyable experience. Goes exceptionally well with coffee or tea, and if it fits your flavor profile, you'll smoke it more than once a day.


Joschi's Oriental Sunrise:
I've had to smoke a bit of this before deciding how to rate and describe it. Only high quality tobaccos were used here. The Kentucky burley has a slight pistachio flavor and light, light sweetness with a very slight earthiness to it. It's as light a Kentucky burley flavor as can be and yet, it compliments the other flavors nicely. Without it, the mixture would be very boring. The perique is very mild, and plays almost at the same level as the burley does. The Orientals are tasty and medium; this is not an Oriental-bomb. I like the natural medium sweetness of the Virginia which sets the base for the other ingredients. It's an all day, tasty, creamy smoke that especially goes well with tea and coffee. I prefer to smoke it in a big bowl to get the nuance of the varying flavors. Well worth smoking for anyone who wants a mild to medium tobacco blend.


Louisiana Broken:
The natural sweetness of the high quality Virginia works very well with the peppery perique. The Kentucky is just noticeable and adds a slight tartness for contrast. It's a creamy smoke with enough power to keep you interested, but it's not a perique-bomb. And the Virginia smokes cool with a medium nic-hit. It's not that complex a blend, but it doesn't have to be. There's enough going to on to appreciate the variety of flavors present without complicating matters. Like all the HU tobaccos I have tried, it burns very well and evenly right to the very bottom of the bowl. A well thought out combination of ingredients make this a filling smoke that doesn't make you dizzy, and makes you look forward to smoking it again.


My Special One:
A appropriately named ready rubbed flake. The Virginias are mildly, naturally sweet and fairy earthy, and provides a solid base for the other components to bond. The perique is not strong, but its spice and dried fruit taste is often noticeable, and plays well with the meaty, spicy, woodsy dark fired Kentucky. The combined spice hit from perique and Kentucky is moderate, but you'll get it in every puff. The latakia is a minor addition, but it pushes a little smokey base note. There's no topping, so you have the pleasure of smoking a pure tobacco mixture with a bit of complexity.


Old Fredder's:
A medium bodied VaPer with light and red Virginias that offers entrancingly inherent tangy citrus and grass with a hint of straw. The perique is mildly spicy with a dried fruit taste that really makes this flake burst with savory goodness. There'll be a few instances where the perique steps up here and there with the spice, but basically, this product is consistent in flavor from first puff to last. No harshness, no dull spots, burns well and dry, and leaves a pleasant after taste and room note. It can be an all day smoke if you wish, and will appeal to experienced VaPer smokers as well as aromatic smokers. It's not an aromatic by any means, but the sweetness might hook an aro smoker before he realizes what happened to him.

Tillerman:
The choice Virginias have a little earthiness and grass to them though the sweetness is somewhat sublimated by the added flavorings, one of which has an alcohol base. There's an occasional mild spice note that helps prevent this from being a one dimensional aromatic, though this isn't the most complex blend made by this company. The chocolate is light as is the nuttiness from one of the toppings. Smooth and creamy with a nice after taste and room note, but it's not a flavor bomb. The nic-hit is very mild. A mild to medium flake designed to offer an all day pleasantness.

Zulu:
Zulu is consistently smokey, woodsy, and earthy, with the latakia being the major player, though this is not a one dimensional lat-bomb. Smooth and creamy with tasty spice from the perique, dark fired Kentucky, and Oriental Djebel, there's also room for a slight nutty, brown sugar sweetness from the burley. I also get a slight plum note which must be coming from the perique. It's so well proportioned that I don't miss the absence of Virginia, which is usually a staple ingredient in English bends. Burns perfectly with almost no relights, and virtually no moisture at the finish. Not a harsh note to be found either. I recommend a wide bowl for the total experience of what this has to offer.
 
Great work Jim. You certainly had your work cut out for you.. Hah hah!

I have had my eye on some HU tobacco for quite some time. It's high time I ordered some. I did exchange some emails with Hans a little while back asking about the ordering process and he was super nice and helpful.
 
DrumsAndBeer":0dym7k4r said:
Great work Jim. You certainly had your work cut out for you.. Hah hah!

I have had my eye on some HU tobacco for quite some time. It's high time I ordered some. I did exchange some emails with Hans a little while back asking about the ordering process and he was super nice and helpful.
Thanks for the compliments. In the opinion of many - myself included - Hans is one of the top blenders in the world. He uses only the best tobaccos and takes his time developing his products. I'd be smoking his mixtures much more if economics weren't a concern.

Btw, Herbert Motzek is a German blender of great skill. If you've never smoked Strang, you are missing out on one of the best ropes ever made. I'd have pounds in the cellar if I could afford it.
 
For those who may not have seen this info I posted on another thread, I'm posting it here.

Hans' site is in German, but there may be a translater. http://www.hu-tobacco.de/

Here's his contact. http://shop.strato.de/epages/63080810.sf/de_DE/?ObjectPath=/Shops/63080810/Categories/ContactForm


I contacted Hans about ordering and he does sell worldwide. Here is his response. Please remember that English is not his first language.

"The ordering is really simple. Registration and ordering in the shop, and than I answer the customer and sent the invoice.
The shippment for a parcel max 2 kg cost 17,50 Euro. The tobacco prizes are the shop prizes without VAT (-19%)
The customer could pay per paypal.
But pay attention, for new customer, the delivery note is not correct. The shipping cost show the cost for shipment in Germany. The shop is not prepared for orders outside EU. So I sent the correct invoice.

Thanks!!"
 
I can highly recommend ordering from Han's , having done so on numerous occasions without any problems.

Top Baccy in my view. :cheers: 
 
Hans has some top quality tobacco.. I picked some of the haymaker this past weekend at the lohmar show

For English descriptions, just click the UK flag top right corner I think

James
 
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