Lakeland tobaccos hack back to the early days of English tobacco production, when restrictions banned most flavourings. The only additives allowed in tobacco consisted of alcohol, floral and a few other natural scents. With these heavy restrictions Lakeland tobaccos use subtle added scents to emphasise the tastes of the tobaccos. Different curing and other processes allowed Virginia & Burley leaves to take on a varieties of guises.
Conniston is has cult following and its easy to see why. Consisting of 75% dark fired leaf 12.5% Malawi Burley and 12.5% Virginia, this tobacco is strong but very smooth. Without the addition of Alcohol and floral extracts, this blend would be woody, smooth and very rich. With the added flavouring, Conniston takes on a wonderful sweet and floral nature. Some detect a slight soapy note, but this is common with all Lakeland blends and after a few smokes can no longer be detected.
As with all Lakeland blends, Conniston ghosts Briar pipes and it is best to have a separate pipe dedicated for Lakelands. Ghosting fades with time from any pipe, but do expect your next few smokes to have a slight Lakeland note. Do not let this put you off trying Conniston or any other Lakeland blend, these pre-aromatic blends hark back to simpler time where the smoker was assured of natural tobacco taste with some subtle fragrant nuances.
Composition
Blend - Virginia & Burley
Casings - Alcohol & Floral
Cut - Flake
Origin - Kendal, England
Packaging - Loose
Ratings from TobaccoReviews.com
Strength - 5/5
Added Flavours - 3/5
Taste - 5/5
Overall - 3/4