Three Oaks Syrian - Sounds Lucious

Brothers of Briar

Help Support Brothers of Briar:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Just bought some last week but haven't opened it yet.
 
I've been smoking this blend for quite a while now and I have to say I'm a fan. I think you'll enjoy it if you like English/Orientals.
 
Been wanting to try some of this blend as well. Let us know how you like it.
 
I may be biased, but this blend has rapidly catapulted itself to the forefront of my rotation, to the tune of about a tin per week. Very tasty stuff!
I am curious about the Three Oaks Original, particularly after reading Ted Gage's response to the review.
 
Absolutely the best I've found in quite some time. My review:

Simply stated, I love this blend. When I moved from cigars to pipes in 2001, my first enjoyable english blend was Ashton Celebrated Sovereign - and it had Syrian latakia. Upon further research , my holy grail tobacco became Pease Rennaisance, which was already becoming hard to find. I cellared as much as I could reasonably afford.
I've been on a Syrian latakia quest ever since. Many of the blends have been good, but the McClelland's offerings have had so little of the Syrian, that I've been dissapointed. Until I got to try 3 Oaks Syrian.

The best thing about this balanced blend was that is had enough of the fabled Syrian that I could really enjoy it. Since its release by McClelland, I've stocked up sufficiently.

This is a very well-balanced blend. It is classic English, with the use of great quality Syrian. When first smoked it, I realized that is was the very same Syrian used in Pease's Rennaissance. It was obvious. The orientals and virginias are classic English quantities. Just wonderful.

I will say that the blend has a slight harsh quality to it upon first light that mellows thoughout the bowl. I believe that is will subside with age. I've cellared enough to see if I am right.

That said, I get bored smoking the same blend all the time. I need a change of pace now and again. Upon the recent release of several new Syrian blends by McClellands, I sought that occassional compliment to 3OS. The test blends were Samovar, Ringlow Syrian Reserve, Celebrated Sovereign, and Wilderness. I liked them all, but have determined that my change-of-pace blend will be Samavor. I took them all to my pipe club meeting, and the majority preferred Wilderness.

Now I am comfortable that I can smoke the rest of my Rennaissance, while my 3OS ages. Then, I will still be content with great quality Syrian latakia blends, as I age as well.

 
Mr_Houston":avbmi9sd said:
Absolutely the best I've found in quite some time.
Click to expand...
I have a 50g tin on order - from this review (thank you for the well thought out, detailed review) it sounds like I may be cellaring some of this blend and letting it age.

Love the insight of my Brothers here. Thank you.
 
Hi Gents,

I found 3 Oaks Syrian at my local B&M, Strauss Tobacconists here in Cincinnati, today. I'm smoking it right now, and all I can say is WOW!! This is some very luscious and mellow latakia. I could smoke this stuff all day, and just might were it not for having to work. My TAD is going to get way out of control at this rate between 3 Oaks, Blue Mountain, Penzance, Cambridge Flake and various Dunhills.
 
choch":zvr45cbm said:
Hi Gents,

I found 3 Oaks Syrian at my local B&M, Strauss Tobacconists here in Cincinnati, today. I'm smoking it right now, and all I can say is WOW!! This is some very luscious and mellow latakia. I could smoke this stuff all day, and just might were it not for having to work. My TAD is going to get way out of control at this rate between 3 Oaks, Blue Mountain, Penzance, Cambridge Flake and various Dunhills.
Click to expand...
Hey Craig - I've been hearing good things about Blue Mountain

Your thoughts?
 
I just got a tin of it delivered, so I'll let you know in a couple of hours! From all accounts it's excellent. I used to smoke Balkan Sobraine 759. it will be interesting to see how close they were able to come to it.

 
I've been smoking this on an off for a month now. It's been a looooooooong time since I've tasted latakia but I'm really loving it. I will be very curious to see how this stuff mellows after a few years and I have a couple of tins set aside to find out...
 
Gents,

I am smoking my first bowl of Blue Mountain right now, I received it in the mail just today from LJ Peretti (along with a sampler of their house Omega blend). I also smoked 3 Oaks Syrian for the first time just last night. The Blue Mountain is very good indeed, but I used to smoke 759 and to me Blue Mountain is not in the same ballpark. As I said, it's very good in it's own right, but it's a rather mellow and light bodied blend. The 3 Oaks Syrian is a richer and more full bodied blend IMHO. I want to try Black House next, but the 3 Oaks Syrian will be staying in my rotation while the Blue Mountain will not.
 
I know they are dissimilar blends, but along the "something new" front - I tried my first bowl of Rattray's Red Paparee (thanks again Frost) tonight and thoroughly enjoyed it.

My mouth is still dancing with the sweet, spicy and completely enigmatic taste of this tobacco.

I could get used to this! :D

Anyone have any experience with this one they could share?
 
choch":7nd6nufe said:
Gents,

I am smoking my first bowl of Blue Mountain right now, I received it in the mail just today from LJ Peretti (along with a sampler of their house Omega blend). I also smoked 3 Oaks Syrian for the first time just last night. The Blue Mountain is very good indeed, but I used to smoke 759 and to me Blue Mountain is not in the same ballpark. As I said, it's very good in it's own right, but it's a rather mellow and light bodied blend. The 3 Oaks Syrian is a richer and more full bodied blend IMHO. I want to try Black House next, but the 3 Oaks Syrian will be staying in my rotation while the Blue Mountain will not.
Click to expand...
I think you'll enjoy the Black House, its a very deep, rich blend with huge earthy notes of peppers, smoke and meat. I find that the flavour profile is surprisingly complex, with the Latakia and Orientals weaving a delicate balance that is very interesting...although I would have to put Black House closer to the savory end of the spectrum than 3OS, with its bold sweet notes.
Two things about Black House have really stood out for me (outside of the flavour profile); the burning qualities of the leaf used are second to none - I find the blend burns almost as well as CH or PA, and secondly, the nicotine in the blend really sneaks up on you. It seems quite mild in the N deptartment, until you get into the last third of the bowl.

Adam Smith
 
I'm smoking a bowl of 3 Oak Syrian as we speak. Bought a tin of it a couple wks ago from my local B&M and this is my 2nd bowl of it.

I'm not a lat connoisseur by any stretch but I find it to be very mellow in this blend. Bear in mind that this is a traditional oriental blend, meaning that you won't get the sweetnessof VAs or spiciness of periques to come in and add much support. There is absolutely no tongue bite whatsoever, no matter how fast it's smoked.

It's clearly a very nice blend that probably far exceeds my amateurish taste buds. I like it but I don't think it will make it into my normal rotation.
 
Frank, I haven't tried Rattray's Red Rapparee so I can't compare the two. I absolutely love their HOTW offering, but I'm pretty sure that's a completely different tobacco blend that can't be compared to a straight English/Oriental/Balkan blend like 3OS.
 
My palate isn't sophisticated enough to differentiate the 3 Oaks Syrian, Blue Mountain, Legends and McClellands Bulk Dark English Full.

All I know is that I've had many many good bowls of ALL of them, and very few bad bowls--which is way more than I can say for Dunhill's Latakia blends.

I don't know how they do it, and maybe McClelland adds some stuff than Dunhill would not. Maybe it's the water. I just know our boys from KC bat a much higher batting average for me when it comes to "English" blends than the actual English do.
 
Three Oaks Syrian is one of my very favorite blends, though even toward the end of the tin I'd occasionally have trouble keeping it lit. Could be user error, certainly...a very flavorful but mellow smoke, for me, and one that really showcases the difference between the woodsier, campfire aroma of Cyprian Latakia and its softer but just as flavorful Syrian cousin.

As for:

CarterHallJunkie":snd23rpk said:
raf66 -

Have you ever smoked Rattray's Red Rapparee? If so, how do they compare?
Click to expand...
I've smoked both, and much prefer Three Oaks--RR is delicious, in my opinion, but a bit richer, and with Cyprian Lat, I believe, which is nice but less subtle. It's hardly a Lat Bomb, but it's certainly there...as is a little cavendish, though not so much that I really pick up on it. I go back on forth on whether I prefer Red Raparee or the slightly fiercer Black Mallory, but neither ever tops Three Oaks in my book--those two have much more in common than either have with the Oaks.
 
Top